Donald Trump has cooked his own goose. He need not wait to see if Michael Cohen, Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort or any of his other former sidekicks is going to cook it for him.
Trump does not know when to shut up. It has been unmistakable in the past...and it was indisputable on Thursday, April 26th, 2018 in a live, telephone interview on Fox & Friends...that "The Donald" might as well come before the American people and confess to us all...that he is a big fat liar.
In a rolling rant that probably would be going on to this very moment if the Fox hosts and network executives would have allowed him...Donald Trump admitted that "Michael (Cohen) would represent me, and represent me on some things. He represented me like with this crazy Stormy Daniels deal, he represented me."
Definitely...Trump is his own worst enemy. He gets his jollies by hearing himself speak. But then...that's what we get from a narcissist in The White House.
However...Trump continues to put his foot in his mouth. While aboard Air Force One on April 5th, reporters asked the following series of questions to America's "Liar-In-Chief"...which totally contradicts what he blabbed about on the Fox News Channel.
Reporter: "Did you know about the 130-thousand dollar payment to Stormy Daniels?"
Trump: "No. No. What else?"
Reporter: "Then why did Michael Cohen make it, if there was no truth to allegations?"
Trump: "Well, you'll have to ask Michael Cohen. Michael is my attorney. And you'll have to ask Michael."
Reporter: "Do you know where he got the money to make that payment?"
Trump: "No, I don't know."
Reporter: "Did you ever set up a fund of money that he could draw from?"
That question Trump did not answer.
Michael Cohen has never denied preparing a non-disclosure agreement with adult film actress Stormy Daniels, which was intended to guarantee her silence about an alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Donald Trump. Cohen has acknowledged paying the porn star the aforementioned sum of money as part of a deal to keep her from telling anyone about what she claims was a one-night sexual fling with the current Oval Office occupant...which White House officials say Trump insists never happened.
Anyone who has ever watched an episode of Perry Mason knows that a lawyer cannot bind a client in a legal transaction, or - for that matter - in anything that legally represents his client, unless first discussing it with said client. But even if you're not a fan of any television shows that feature attorneys...it's not necessary for a person to hold a law degree to realize that a lawyer works for a client, not the other way around. Therefore, it lacks credibility that Michael Cohen would have paid 130-thousand dollars of his own money to Daniels without advising Trump first...and without Trump agreeing to the payment. Furthermore...it's not the slightest bit plausible that Cohen would shell out such a large amount of bucks from his own wallet without previously making an arrangement with Trump for the funds to be reimbursed.
In addition...if Trump didn't even have an inkling of knowledge about the hush money...or about the non-disclosure agreement that he never signed...then why would Trump tweet on April 18th..."A sketch years later about a nonexistent man. A total con job, playing the Fake News Media for Fools (but they know it)!"
A composite sketch of the man who allegedly threatened Daniels was revealed by Daniels and Avenatti on the April 17th edition of ABC's The View. Daniels told the program's hosts..."His face is burned in my memory." It is the sketch of that man who Donald Trump refers to in the above tweet.
Query. If Trump was clueless about the money that Michael Cohen admits to paying...and he was unaware of the non-disclosure agreement...then how would Trump know...or not know...whether there is any truth to someone threatening Stormy Daniels? By tweeting that the man was "nonexistent" leads me to believe that he was indeed well-informed about everything going on between Cohen and Daniels.
Stormy Daniels alleges that in July 2006 she had a one-time, romp-in-the-bed with Donald Trump. That's less than four months after Melania Trump gave birth to the Trumps' son, Barron. Meanwhile, Trump reportedly is suing Daniels, in excess of 20-million dollars, because he claims that by not remaining mum about a sexual relationship, Daniels is violating the non-disclosure agreement. But if Trump denies such a tryst...then a non-disclosure agreement - especially one not signed by Trump - is worth nothing more than the paper it's written on. It cannot be valid.
On April 9th, the FBI raided Michael Cohen's office, home and hotel suite...and agents reportedly seized documents which show that eleven days before the 2016 presidential election, Cohen paid Daniels that 130-thousand dollars...to buy her off and zip her lip.
I'm waiting for Special Counsel Robert Mueller to possibly come forward with written proof - or perhaps even audio or video recordings - that Donald Trump knew about the payment to Stormy Daniels...that he directed Michael Cohen to pay it...and that he ordered to have someone threaten Daniels' life.
Am I pointing the finger at Donald Trump for committing such crimes? No, I am not. I am merely stating a possible theory, not a fact. It is not for me to make such an accusation so I dare not do that. But I won't be surprised if that's what Mueller and the FBI discover after reviewing every morsel of documents from Cohen's premises.
However...if it is proven - and I'm not insinuating that it definitely will be...or that it ever will be - but if physical evidence positively confirms that Donald Trump is guilty of the allegations against him...I am confident...that Congress - Democrats as well as Republicans - will impeach and remove him from office. I wonder, though, if his supporters will call it "fake news"...and if they will still have his back and protest that Trump should remain in The White House. Well...it'll be an effort in futility...but unfortunately...they probably will do it anyway.
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.
Now please express your personal opinions by following the instructions above. And thank you for reading The Controversy.
Photo credit: CBS News/60Minutes/Associated Press/CNN (Anderson Cooper interviewing Stormy Daniels)
Copyright 2018 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
I love the way that you and the left think you know everything. Yes, President Trump said on Fox and Friends "Michael (Cohen) would represent me, and represent me on some things. He represented me like with this crazy Stormy Daniels deal, he represented me." None of us knows what that means, what if he said to his Attorney Michael Cohen, there is this thing with a porn star I’d like you to take care of it, and Cohen took care of it, all said and done. Cohen then went to then Candidate Trump and said it’s all taken care. If President Trump asked how, Cohen may have said you don’t need to know, all legal and done. As for the NDA it was written between Stormy Daniels (Stephanie Clifford) and Michael Cohen’s company Essential Consultants LLC and/or DAVID DENNISON (DD)(Donald Trump) so it didn’t need President Trump’s signature to make it binding. It reads and/or which binds Clifford in a NDA with Essential Consultants LLC. I know the courts don’t always follow the law especially left leaning courts but under the law that NDA is binding. If Candidate Trump and his Campaign had no knowledge of any money transfer, it is pretty hard to claim a FEC violation when they had nothing to do with the money. It is done every day for bosses, family members and friends, you take care of something not tell the other party how, giving them “plausible deniability”. No, I don’t think President Trump was involved with the NDA or the payment, his people took care of a minor potential problem and that’s all he needed to know. I don’t think there was any crime with Stormy Daniels, no threat, I don’t believe her, I think she is looking for her 15 minutes of real world fame and hoping for a big money payoff! She also has the left supporting her hoping to take down the President of the United States; it almost makes America look like a third world nation fighting off a coup!
ReplyDeleteMy response to the above reader will be in three parts.
DeletePART ONE OF THREE
As usual with members of Donald Trump's base, you'd support him if he actually did "stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody." Therefore, to your comments above, I will borrow words from the great Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock on Star Trek..."Your thoughts are not logical."
Why would you defend a proven liar? Up until the issue with Stormy Daniels became front page news, Trump denied knowing anything about it. There is NOTHING...NOTHING I said...that has ever involved Donald Trump...the Trump Organization...the Donald Trump Campaign...or the Donald Trump Administration...that Donald Trump isn't first made aware of...and there is NOTHING that others have done on his behalf that he hasn't approved. "Plausible deniability" doesn't cut it when it concerns Donald Trump. He's a narcissist. He insists on knowing EVERYTHING. It's why there's NO WAY that Trump wasn't made aware of the Trump Tower meeting with his son, his son-in-law and the Russians in June 2016. There is NO WAY that Trump would ever have his attorney pay 130-thousand dollars to Stormy Daniels without Trump first signing off on it with Michael Cohen. As for the non-disclosure agreement, if Trump didn't sign it - which he didn't - and if Trump denies the sexual encounter ever happened - which is what he says - then the NDA cannot be valid. As for the money itself, if it was indeed paid by Cohen, and not by Trump, then it can be considered a campaign contribution, and such a huge amount would be a campaign violation. Accepting such an amount by Donald Trump...would be illegal.
GBD
END OF PART ONE OF THREE
PART TWO OF THREE
DeleteAs for Stormy Daniels being threatened...and your ludicrous remarks that you "think she is looking for her 15 minutes of real world fame and hoping for a big money payoff"...if that was the case, then why the hell did she wait 12 years to come forward? It makes no sense. Nobody knew in 2006 that Donald Trump was ever going to RUN for president, let alone that he would ever BECOME president. But Trump was still a real estate mogul and a famous national television celebrity with millions of dollars (or if you believe him, billions of dollars) of personal assets. Daniels could have gone to the press...gone on MSNBC, CNN or even FOX...or talked to Barbara Walters, Oprah Winfrey or ANYBODY in the media, at anytime, from 2006 to 2018. But she didn't. Let me say that again. SHE DID NOT!!! The only reason the Stormy Daniels affair became public at all was because The Wall Street Journal broke the story on January 12th, 2018. Yes...I said The Wall Street Journal...America's premiere conservative newspaper. If the WSJ never published their story, then Stormy Daniels would have done what she did for 12 years. She would have kept her mouth shut. But Daniels - whose real name is Stephanie Clifford - had every right to defend herself after the story became public and Trump called her a liar. So YES...I believe her about the affair. So YES...I believe her about the threat. And YES...it will be up to Special Counsel Robert Mueller...NOT "the left" as you insist on blaming...to find the truth and the definitive evidence, which I believe he will do through documents found following the FBI raid of Michael Cohen's office, home and hotel suite. And whatever crimes that Donald Trump may have committed - I repeat..."may have committed"...will be learned by Mueller.
GBD
END OF PART TWO OF THREE
PART THREE OF THREE
DeleteSo NO...this has NOTHING to do with "the left supporting her, hoping to take down the President of the United States." This is the FBI and a Special Counsel, who has been respected for decades by Democrats and Republicans alike, working to come up with facts that may or may not prove that Donald Trump is a crook. And I believe Robert Mueller will prove that Trump is indeed a crook. Remember that another President claimed he was "not a crook" and you know what happened to him. I have written for a very long time that Donald Trump is, in many ways, following the Richard Nixon playbook. And resignation for Trump will be the result for him, just as it was for Nixon.
No...America does not at all "look like a third world nation." We look like a true democracy that will not stand for a President...who is a crook.
GBD
END OF PART THREE OF THREE
No, I wouldn’t support him if he shot someone in the middle of 5th Avenue. You asked “Why would you defend a proven liar? Well then nobody should support any of the past Presidents at least the last 10 or so in my life time since every one of them from LBJ to Obama and now Trump has been proven to have lied at some point to the American people. That is a historic FACT! As for "Plausible deniability" it is your opinion that “He insists on knowing EVERYTHING”, I say he is smart enough to know when not to want to know everything. As for the NDA, President Trump denying it ever happened has no bearing on the NDA , it was written to prevent Daniels from tell what she claims to have happened, nothing to do with what President Trump claims to have happened or didn’t happen. She took $130,000 from Essential Consultants LLC and signed an agreement with them not to disclose. If the President and his campaign were unaware which as of now there is no public evidence to prove otherwise the campaign cannot be held responsible for not reporting something they didn’t know about. Daniels had been trying to sell her story for years with no takers, one network (not Fox) says they were approached by her in October 2016 and turned her down being they thought it would look petty being they were believed he had NO chance of winning.
ReplyDeleteI don’t believe that anyone should trust the Special Counsels or the FBI’s investigation, Mueller is close friends with Comey who is a proven liar and a national disgrace and has filled is team with partisan Trump haters and Clinton supporters, the FBI management team is filled with people like Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, all Trump haters in their own words and needed an insurance policy in case he got elected. American can’t trust this witch hunt!
I am certainly glad to see that you would not support Donald Trump if he shot someone in the middle of 5th Avenue.
DeleteAs for your comment that "every" American president lies, I will quote an article by Politico.
"Donald Trump is in a different category. The sheer frequency, spontaneity and seeming irrelevance of his lies have no precedent. (Richard) Nixon, (Ronald) Reagan and (Bill) Clinton were protecting their reputations; Trump seems to lie for the pure joy of it. A whopping 70 percent of Trump’s statements that PolitiFact checked during the campaign were false, while only 4 percent were completely true, and 11 percent mostly true."
The fact of the matter is...Trump is a chronic liar.
As for President Obama...I will quote The New York Times, as a result of their fact-checking.
"In his first 10 months in office, (Donald Trump) told 103 separate untruths, many of them repeatedly. Obama told 18 over his entire eight-year tenure. That’s an average of about two a year for Obama and about 124 a year for Trump."
The numbers above have been fact-checked, so don't write back and say they are not true. These are facts.
So yes, everybody lies at some point in their life. People lie for one reason or another. But when the president of the United States lies to obstruct justice or to hurt people, he is nowhere in the same ballpark as any other president or anybody else period. His lying may end up being criminal.
Your entire debate on the "plausible deniability" makes no sense whatsoever so I won't even comment further about it.
Michael Cohen was not only Trump's personal attorney, but he was...and still is - according to records - executive vice president of The Trump Organization. Therefore, your remarks about the non-disclosure agreement and the money paid to Stormy Daniels is not accurate...and my thoughts in a previous response are correct.
Your remarks that Stormy Daniels tried to sell her story in 2016 has never been proven.
Of course you don't believe that Special Counsel Robert Mueller and the FBI should be trusted. Of course you don't.
I'm not a fan of former FBI Director James Comey. As I wrote in an earlier column, I blame Comey's letter to Congress, eleven days before the 2016 election, for Hillary Clinton's loss. However...that being said...Comey is NOT, as you state, "a proven liar." You are laughable to think that he "has filled his team with partisan Trump haters and Clinton supporters." Democrats...and lots of Republicans too...on Capitol Hill and elsewhere throughout Washington, DC and the country...have time and time again come forward to state that James Comey is not a liar. That is why Americans believed him in July 2016 that "no reasonable prosecutor" would bring a criminal case against Hillary Clinton. He did not lie when he wrote the infamous letter to Congress, but what he did was provide a document when he had no truth or facts to back it up. And, as we all know, the contents of his letter about any other e-mails...turned out not to be true. Comey's letter was against Justice Department policy and it should never have been written.
You are one of my Republican readers who insist on continuing to use the "h" word. Those of you who continue to say that Democrats are "haters" is totally untrue. This is no "witch hunt." And Americans will realize that when Donald Trump is forced to resign the presidency...or...is impeached and removed from office by the Democratic Congress in 2019.
Wait for it...wait it for it. Did you hear it? That's the thump of Trump's fist through The Oval Office wall when he realizes..."FUUUUUU-k!!! Mueller's got me. Yeah...I'm f--ked."
GBD
Please forgive the typo in the last paragraph above. It should read...
DeleteWait for it...wait for it. That's the thump of Trump's fist through The Oval Office wall when he realizes..."FUUUUUU-k!!! Mueller's got me. Yeah...I'm f--ked."
GBD
Sometimes it is more important what you lie about verses how many times you lie, you used President Obama so I will also. How about “If you like your health care plan, you can keep it” or “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor” both lies told dozens of times! How about the average premium would go down $2500, another big fat lie told dozens of times, the list goes on and on. LBJ lied and 50,000 Americans died. It doesn’t matter that Cohen was Trump’s personal attorney or that he was...and still is - according to records - executive vice president of The Trump Organization, he had a company called Essential Consultants LLC and Daniels signed an agreement with them not to disclose and took $130,000. The NDA is valid! Comey lied to the US Congress and is being investigated by the OIG for lying and leaking, look for a referral to the Justice Department for a prosecution. Mueller’s top staff of 17, at least 12 are registered Democrats, 3 have no party affiliation and 2 unknown; all 12 Democrats supported Clinton many giving money to her campaign, its rigged and un-American! You proved my point that it is rigged and a witch hunt by saying you need a Democrat congress to impeach the President. Look up the word “hater” in the dictionary and then look in the mirror, the Democrats HATE President Trump and the main reason is he beat Hillary!
ReplyDeleteMy response to the above reader will be in three parts.
DeletePART ONE OF THREE
You just don't get it...and you never will.
If the Republican Congress had done what President Obama wanted done, then his statements about the Affordable Care Act would have been true. Unfortunately, that is the fault of the GOP.
As for President Lyndon B. Johnson, I opposed his actions concerning the Vietnam War. I am old enough to not only remember the war, but my birthday lottery number was drawn so if Richard Nixon had not ended the draft and subsequently the war, I would have been sent to Vietnam...a war I - and most of the country - was against. However, President George W. Bush was responsible for a war that should never have happened. America went to war with Iraq after 9/11 just so the younger Bush could make good on what the older President George H. W. Bush tried to do years earlier...to get Saddam Hussein. And because the Iraqi dictator, after the war in Kuwait, later plotted to have the senior Bush assassinated, "W." was going to do whatever he could to take down Saddam Hussein...even if it meant lying to the American people and to Congress. So, the junior Bush told lies about "weapons of mass destruction" that never existed. But I will add that, although President Johnson was wrong with Vietnam, he is responsible for Civil Rights and Medicare...which without...our country would be in shambles.
You will see in less than three months that a judge will eventually decide that the non-disclosure agreement that Stormy Daniels signed, but that Donald Trump did NOT sign...will be ruled invalid. Watch and you will see it happen.
GBD
END OF PART ONE OF THREE
PART TWO OF THREE
DeleteIt will be found by the Office of the Inspector General that James Comey did not actually "lie" to Congress. I've said this in other columns and in other responses to readers, but I'll say it again. I can't believe I'm actually defending James Comey who I blame for ruining Hillary Clinton's chance at being elected president. However...that's old news. The bottom line is this. As for "leaking"...there are four reasons why Comey did not leak ANYTHING. First of all...when he read his memo to his friend - the Columbia University professor - so he could provide the information to The New York Times...Comey had already been fired by Donald Trump. Second... there was no classified information in the memo. The FBI signed off on that fact and even allowed Comey to publish the entire memo in his book. Third...in order for something to LEGALLY be considered a "leak"...it has to be classified...and since Comey's memo was NOT classified, it cannot be considered a "leak." And fourth...since Comey wrote the memo BEFORE he was dismissed by Trump...Comey - as FBI Director - had full authorization to designate the memo as "classified" or "not classified." He could de-classify such a memo at ANYTIME while FBI Director...but since the memo was NOT classified, there was no need to DE-CLASSIFY it. Therefore...Comey is NOT...a leaker. There will be NO "prosecution" of Comey. Now...that being said...if it was up to me, I'd want to see Comey punished for the wrongful letter against Hillary Clinton...but Comey broke Justice Department "protocol"...he did not break the "law."
As for your comment about Special Counsel Robert Mueller and "at least 12" of his "top staff of 17" being "Democrats"...I give you the following. First of all..Mueller himself is a registered Republican. Mueller - as a federal employee - had been appointed by Republican Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush...and Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. However, as for Mueller's staff, Pulitzer Prize winning PolitiFact says the following...and I quote. "Trump tweeted that Mueller’s team has '13 hardened Democrats, some big Crooked Hillary supporters, and Zero Republicans.' Mueller’s team does have 13 registered Democrats and no registered Republicans, and several team members made donations to Clinton’s campaign in various amounts. However, Trump leaves out a crucial registered Republican — Mueller himself — and glosses over the fact that we don’t know the identities, or the partisan affiliation, of other Justice Department or FBI staff who are working with the investigation. It’s also questionable to say that the multiple non-donors are 'hardened" Democrats.'" Plus PolitiFact says...and once again I quote..."Agents" (who are "helping gather evidence") "come in all political stripes, though most are not active politically. FBI agents, as most law enforcement, tend to be conservative, law-and-order types, so (the) guess is most would tend to be Republicans or conservative Democrats or just plain Independents." Therefore...the bottom line is - according to PolitiFact..."So Trump is using some sleight-of-hand to say that there are 'zero Republicans' on Mueller’s team. The team is led by a registered Republican, and there may be other registered Republicans working with Mueller whose identities the public simply doesn’t know about. We rate the statement Half True." Thus...the Mueller investigation is NOT "rigged and un-American" as you want to believe.
GBD
END OF PART TWO OF THREE
PART THREE OF THREE
DeleteI did NOT prove your point, as you say, that the investigation is "rigged and a witch hunt." There is enough circumstantial evidence, at this time, to perhaps force Trump to resign. But once Mueller reveals the "facts" through definitive "direct evidence" - which I think he will do...THAT IS WHEN a Democratic Congress will move to impeach Trump. And that time is coming soon once the Democrats win back the House and more than likely the Senate too in November 2018 and regain control in January 2019.
You simply are a HATER. You can look up words all day long in the dictionary, but Democrats do NOT "HATE" Donald Trump. I have said this over and over and over again. I have also stated 'til I'm blue in the face that I PERSONALLY DO NOT HATE DONALD TRUMP. I - and other Democrats - despise his policies and we loathe how he has treated people throughout his life...throughout the campaign...and throughout his presidency. But NONE OF IT has ANYTHING to do with him "beat(ing) Hillary." And as I said at the outset...you just don't get it...and you never will.
GBD
END OF PART THREE OF THREE
Please forgive the typo in the second paragraph of Part One above. It should read...
DeleteIf the Republicans in Congress had done what President Obama wanted done, then his statements about the Affordable Care Act would have been true. Unfortunately, that is the fault of the GOP.
GBD
More lies from you, when the ACA was written and passed the Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate with no Republican support. It was written behind closed doors Democrats only invited in. Stop your lies. President Obama said those lies after it passed and he signed it. Don’t blame the GOP they wanted healthcare reform, not a government takeover and giveaways. LBJ and his team lied about the Gulf of Tonkin and lead to the escalation of the war and the deaths of 10s of thousands of American. Now you want to tell more lies about President Bush, you are just hater of Republicans. As for weapons of mass destruction, the UK, France, Israel, Germany and many countries in the region all confirmed Iraq had these weapons. As for the NDA, as I said liberal judges don’t follow the law, they like to make law not follow it. Comey did lie to Congress and anyone who is not Trump hater and honest would admit it. Robert Mueller is a close friend of Comey and is now a Trump hater. We know that FBI management was filled with Trump hater and Hillary supporters, people like Andy McCabe, Peter Strzok and Lisa Page all President Trump Haters. The left (Democrats) should stop praying at the altar of Hillary and stand up and do what’s right for America and end the witch hunt!
ReplyDeleteMy response to the above reader will be in FIVE parts.
DeletePART ONE OF FIVE
No lies. If you bothered to read the correction for the typo above, you will see the explanation. However, even though the Democrats "controlled" the House and Senate, there was no support by the Republicans. On the night that Congress did pass the Affordable Care Act, President Obama said... "This legislation will not fix everything that ails our healthcare system, but it moves us decisively in the right direction. This is what change looks like." Every Republican opposed the measure, and 34 Democrats were turncoats and joined the GOP in voting against the bill. But President Obama wanted the public option, which would have made the Affordable Care Act even better. In December 2009, Senate Democrats agreed to drop a full-blown government-run insurance option from the legislation in order to get moderate Democrats to eventually vote in favor of the bill. But if some of those Democrats, as well as some Republicans, had the balls to realize what is best for our country, the Affordable Care Act would be so much better than it is. But it is still first rate legislation, no matter what any Republican wants to say. Remember that every Republican in the House opposed the Affordable Care Act, and 34 Democrats joined them in voting against the measure when it passed in March 2010.
You call them "giveaways" but most (not all) richie-rich Republicans don't want to help the sick, the poor and the elderly. Democrats - whether very wealthy, rich or even "comfortable," overwhelmingly want to help the sick, the poor and the elderly. It's not a "giveaway" but the rich helping others. It's the way America was built. It's the way America should be.
GBD
END OF PART ONE OF FIVE
PART TWO OF FIVE
DeleteAs for your remarks that President Johnson "lied about the Gulf of Tonkin"...again, you're wrong. Public Radio International, which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, reports as follows. This has been fact-checked and correct.
"On August 2, 1964, two U.S. destroyers on patrol in the Gulf of Tonkin — the Maddox and the Turner Joy — were attacked by North Vietnamese boats. Unlike much else that followed, this incident is undisputed, although no one from the U.S. government ever admitted publicly that the attack was likely provoked by its covert actions. No one was hurt and little damage was done in the attack, but intercepted cables suggested a second attack might be imminent. (Defense Secretary Robert) McNamara was ready to respond. 'We have ample forces to respond not only to these attacks on these destroyers but also to retaliate, should you wish to do so, against targets on the land,' he told President Johnson. Unlike McNamara, Johnson, on the morning of August 4, 1964, was in less of a hurry to respond to an attack. Any escalation in the bombing of the North risked provoking the Russians or, more likely, the Chinese. Both countries were backing North Vietnam, but so far they were staying out of the conflict and The White House wanted to keep it that way. But only a few minutes later, McNamara was back on the line with news of a second incident in the Gulf of Tonkin. Over the next 12 hours, as the president's team scrambled to understand what had happened and to organize a response, the facts remained elusive. Around midday on August 4, Admiral Grant Sharp, the top navy commander in the Pacific, made a call to the Joint Chiefs, and it was clear there were significant doubts about this second incident. He read the chiefs a cable from the captain of the Maddox. As it turns out, Admiral Sharp failed to read to the Joint Chiefs the last line of the cable, which read: 'Suggest a complete evaluation before any further actions.' Despite this tremendous uncertainty, by mid-afternoon, the discussion among Johnson and his advisers was no longer about whether to respond but how. In a conversation with McNamara on August 3, after the first incident, Johnson indicated he had already thought about the political ramifications of a military response and had consulted with several allies. 'The people who are calling me up, they want to be damned sure I don't pull 'em out and run, and they want to be damned sure that we're firm. That’s what all the country wants, because Goldwater's raising so much hell about how he's gonna blow 'em off the moon, and they say that we oughtn't to do anything that the national interest doesn't require. But we sure ought to always leave the impression that if you shoot at us, you're going to get hit,' Johnson said. It was 1964, an election year, and the Republicans had just nominated Barry Goldwater, a former jet fighter pilot, and hardcore hawk, to run against Johnson in November. Through the evening of August 4, while no new information arrived to clarify the event in the Gulf, the White House narrative was firmly in place. 'We're going to retaliate and we’ll make an announcement a little later in the evening, in the next hour or so and we’ll ask Congress for a resolution of war the next day to support us,' Johnson told an old friend. That night, on national television, Johnson addressed the American people, saying, 'Renewed hostile actions against United States ships on the high seas in the Gulf of Tonkin have today required me to take action and reply. Our response, for the present, will be limited and fitting. We still seek no wider war.' And so, in the course of a single day, and operating on imperfect information, Johnson changed the trajectory of the Vietnam War. Two days later, the Gulf of Tonkin resolution sailed through both houses of Congress by a vote of 504 to 2."
GBD
PART TWO OF FIVE
The above was the END OF PART TWO OF FIVE.
DeletePART THREE OF FIVE
The bottom-line facts are that President Johnson did not lie. In actuality, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and Admiral Grant Sharp are more responsible than Mr. Johnson. But, as noted above, "operating on imperfect information, Johnson changed the trajectory of the Vietnam War." There is no debating or disputing these facts. But...no lie. Of course, President Johnson should have ended America's involvement in the war...but there was no "lie" by Mr. Johnson, as you claim there was, regarding the Gulf of Tonkin.
GBD
END OF PART THREE OF FIVE
PART FOUR OF FIVE
DeleteWhat I wrote about President George W. Bush, in my earlier response to you, is 100 percent accurate. No lies. And I am NOT a "hater of Republicans." I HATE NOBODY.
YOU...are OBVIOUSLY...the hater. For you to write that "liberal judges don't follow the law" is contemptible and reprehensible.
James Comey did NOT lie to Congress. Period. And the proof is in the pudding.
Robert Mueller is NOT a Trump hater. Mueller has been respected and revered by Democrats and Republicans alike, including five presidents who he worked for, three of which were/are Republicans.
You go on and on and on about "Trump haters." Get off your soap box. There is NO hatred from Democrats.
GBD
END OF PART FOUR OF FIVE
PART FIVE OF FIVE
DeleteI have such an urge to use language and to say things to you, just so I can get the words off my chest. But I won't do it. You're not worth it. Besides...I never use such language...and rarely do I think it. However, you and other Republicans need to stop with your garbage that Democrats "pray at the altar of Hillary." Democrats DO stand up for what's right for America. That is why we support Robert Mueller to continue his investigation...NOT A WITCH HUNT. By the way...according to an April 2018 poll by The Washington Post and ABC News...69 percent of Americans want Mueller to continue his probe until he is satisfied. That's nearly seven in ten Americans. Face the facts...Mueller needs to do his job. And he will.
GBD
END OF PART FIVE OF FIVE
You only corrected it because I caught you in another lie. Everything about the ACA is the Democrats; they did not allow any input from the GOP members that would have made it better for all. In 10 pages the GOP could have required INS Companies to cover pre-existing conditions and have a buy in program for Medicaid with a floating premium based on income which would have covered the sick, poor and elderly. The left wanted a government takeover and give aways and higher taxes. Your public option would have made us like the UK, with their rationing and their death panels, don’t say they don’t have death panels we all just watch one in Liverpool, Alfie Evans whose parents were offered free treatment at the Vatican’s children’s hospital, free transportation from the UK and the Death Panel in the UK said NO he must die! So they let him die! Maybe he would have died in Rome but it would have been the parents not the government that made the decision. Your statement about the “richie-rich Republicans” is disgraceful, nasty, hateful, mean and un-American and I’m being nice, if you believe that you are truly a disgusting hateful person. The Republicans give as much if not more to charities than anyone else. The big word is charity, from the heart, you want it done at the point of a gun, yes that is how the government steals your money, don’t pay your taxes and the IRS can show up with a gun and take it. Overwhelmingly the Republicans want to help the sick, the poor and the elderly but not all by government mandate, we believe in families, churches, temples, social groups, neighborhood groups and more, not the strong arm tactics of the Governments.
ReplyDeleteBefore he died Robert S. McNamara went public and told the world the Gulf of Tonkin incident didn’t happen the way it was reported, it was faked.
What you wrote about President George W Bush is a 100% lie and you are a Bush hater!
I don’t know about you personally but so many of your leftwing companions have shown in the media that they don’t care about this country and are leaning towards truly hating America, are you one of them?
First of all...I don't lie.
DeleteSecond...I made the correction before I saw your comment and then subsequently your response was published.
Third...your remarks about the Affordable Care Act are bogus. I refuse to discuss the matter further with you except to say that people in Canada and Australia love their health insurance programs and what President Obama truly wanted would have been very similar.
Fourth...you obviously didn't read my words carefully so I will repeat them. "You call them 'giveaways' but most (not all) richie-rich Republicans don't want to help the sick, the poor and the elderly. Democrats - whether very wealthy, rich or even 'comfortable,' overwhelmingly want to help the sick, the poor and the elderly. It's not a 'giveaway' but the rich helping others. It's the way America was built. It's the way America should be." If you read what I wrote CAREFULLY, you will see that I said "not all." Therefore, you must be the hater if you think that my comment about the wealthy is "disgraceful, nasty, hateful, mean and un-American." Republicans in Congress are notorious for not wanting to help the poor, the sick and the elderly. That is a fact. I was not referring to people giving to charities. You can believe all day long about "families, churches, temples, social groups, neighborhood groups and more"...and so do I...but THAT...IS...NOT...ENOUGH. That is why Democrats believe that the people at the higher rungs on the income ladder should pay much more in taxes in order to help the people who, unfortunately - for a variety of reasons - are at the middle and lower rungs of the ladder.
Fifth...the report I quoted in my earlier response is 100 percent true. President Lyndon Baines Johnson did not - in that instance - lie.
Sixth...I don't know how many times in my columns and in my responses to readers that I have to spell this out. I AM NOT A HATER. I HATE NOBODY. I DO NOT HATE DONALD TRUMP. I DO NOT HATE GEORGE W. BUSH. PERIOD. However...everything I stated in an earlier response is true about President Bush 43.
Seventh...I have never recognized ANY of what you label my "leftwing companions" showing hatred towards America or indicating a lack of care for our country. And I certainly am not part of anything so hateful that you want to believe about liberals, progressives and Democrats in general.
GBD
The only reason we say the stuff like "pray at the altar of Hillary" because it is true. She does book tours blaming everyone but herself, she say if it wasn’t for this or that she would be President (thank God she’s not). Hillary go retire somewhere and leave the rest of us alone. You want to change the Constitution so that the Electoral College would be nullified, it is the only way all 50 states get fair representation in our national election, actually we don’t have a “National Election” we have 50 state elections plus the District of Columbia. I would agree you need to modify the EC by granting delegates by Congressional districts and then the winner of the most districts in a state should get the 2 extra. We are 50 States that make a Country, not just 1 country. All States must be represented. That’s a discussion for another time. As for Mueller if he sticks to what he was hired to investigate the possible Russian interference in the 2016 election he should be able to complete his work. If he is going after things to do with Comey of Flynn or any of the other side trips Mueller is try to find a crime with he should be shut down. Russia only, all the other stuff is a witch hunt, by Trump haters! It’s time for Rod Rosenstein to go, Congress should impeach him and throw him out, time for Jeff Sessions to go, let him go back and run for the Senate, Rudy for AG!
ReplyDeleteIt is YOU...who is the hater. YOU...and so many other Republicans...are Hillary Haters.
DeleteSecretary Clinton has stated over and over again...in interviews...testifying before Congress...and on her book tours...that she made mistakes. She has admitted that she made mistakes. Why won't you and other Republicans leave her alone. Mrs. Clinton does blame former FBI Director James Comey...as I do...and as the vast majority of Democrats do...for the 2016 loss. And we all blame Russia interference.
As for the Electoral College...and your explanation...it's bogus. We are one country. Yes...we are indeed 50 states. But we are ONE nation. I have had this discussion with numerous readers in the past and I have even written my thoughts in more than one column over the last six years. Therefore, I don't have any reason to discuss it further.
You truly amaze me when you say "possible Russian interference." Practically the entire country - not to mention Democrats AND REPUBLICANS in Congress - agree that Russia meddled in our election...and that they will do it again if we don't stop them. What you don't seem to understand is that Donald Trump firing James Comey DOES have to do with the Russia investigation. And obviously, Michael Flynn is part of that probe too. There is NO "witch hunt." There are NO "Trump haters." Enough Senators on both sides of the aisle have already said that if Jeff Sessions and/or Rod Rosenstein are fired by Trump, the Senate will not confirm anyone new. If Trump fires them and tries to nominate Rudy Giuliani, our constitutional crisis will be in full swing and America will be in worse shape than we are in already.
GBD