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A new poll by The Washington Post and ABC News says 60 percent of Americans DISAPPROVE of Donald Trump as president of the United States with 36 percent approving of his performance. Only 24 percent of people "strongly" approve of Trump. Prediction: Watch as Trump's disapproval rating soars even higher. It won't be long before 70 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump sitting behind The Oval Office desk. Trump can call himself a "very stable genius," but the vast majority of Americans are a hell of a lot more stable and much smarter than Donald Trump or any of his base will ever be.
While aboard Air Force One on September 7th, 2018, Trump told reporters that he wants Attorney General Jeff Sessions to find out who wrote the Op-Ed that was published by The New York Times on September 5th. How 'bout this for a twist? As I tweeted on September 7th..."If I was writing a political screenplay, I'd have Sessions be the author of the Op-Ed. Maybe what's on my creative mind will turn out to be more fact than fiction."
The White House is in crisis. The Op-Ed only identifies the author as a "senior official in the Trump administration." The piece slams Trump and it claims there have been conversations among cabinet members to move down a path that could constitutionally bring down the Trump presidency. The Op-Ed spells out intentions by not only the writer, but by others too. "Given the instability many witnessed, there were early whispers within the cabinet of invoking the 25th Amendment, which would start a complex process for removing the president. But no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis. So we will do what we can to steer the administration in the right direction until - one way or another - it's over."
Talk of the 25th Amendment - according to former director of communications for The White House office of public liaison Omarosa Manigault Newman - was not uncommon. On September 9th, on MSNBC, Manigault Newman made news when she told anchor Alex Witt that White House staffers would text each other and use #TFA to reference that the 25th Amendment is something to think about. As Arte Johnson would have said on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In..."Verrrry interesting!"
The Op-Ed, though, pinpointed some specific concerns. "The root of the problem is the president's amorality. I work for the president, but like-minded colleagues and I have vowed to thwart parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations. We believe our first duty is to this country, and the president continues to act in a manner that is detrimental to the health of our republic."
A Quinnipiac University poll - released on September 10th - shows that only 28 percent of Americans do not believe the charges in the Op-Ed.
That Quinnipiac University poll from September 10th indicates that 60 percent of Americans do not think Donald Trump is honest...and 65 percent of people in the United States believe Trump is not level-headed.
The Washington Post's Fact-Checker confirmed on September 13th that Trump has made 5,000 false or misleading claims since he took the oath of office on January 20th, 2017. That's more than 8 lies each day. I'm amazed Trump's nose is not a mile long. If America's 1st president was alive today, he'd be stunned to see that the 45th president could be such a venomous con artist. The "Father of our Country" would be floored and flabbergasted by Trump's deceptive behavior. After all...unlike Donald... George - as legend has it - could never tell a lie.What is it that Trump has to do before Republicans recognize the magnitude of the problem that our nation is suffering? I suppose he actually would have to go to New York City and "stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody." Even then...Trump believes he "wouldn't lose any voters." Tragically...he's probably right. Trump's base would likely say..."He must have had a good and justifiable reason."
For me, the icing on the cake, so far, has got to be when Trump wouldn't denounce Nazis, white supremacists and the Ku Klux Klan immediately after the Charlottesville, Virginia protests in August 2017, and when Trump permitted migrant babies and children (plus tweens and teens too) from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras to be locked up in cages. Trump ordered the separation of those kids from their families after their parents attempted to cross the U.S./Mexico border to seek freedom from the violence in their countries. To this day - according to documented data obtained by The New York Times - there are 12,800 migrant children in federal custody. Federal shelters that house migrant children are jampacked with these kids. What kind of president separates children from their parents and locks them up in detention centers? Donald...stop stealing babies from their mommies and daddies. America - as a humanitarian nation - must keep families together. But with Trump in The White House, most of these children will probably never see their mothers and fathers again.
Republicans wasted tens of millions of taxpayers' dollars to wrongfully impeach then-President Bill Clinton because he wasn't totally forthcoming about a bl--job. Yes, let's cut the crap and tell it like it is. Of course the Senate didn't see eye to eye with the House of Representatives and so President Clinton was acquitted. But with Donald Trump, money is properly being spent because of evidence of obstruction of justice. I'll refresh your memories in case any of you have forgotten.
On May 11th, 2017, Trump acknowledged on national television that he fired James Comey as F.B.I. director to end the Russia investigation. The following are the exact words from Trump's interview with NBC News anchor Lester Holt. "And in fact when I decided to just do it, I said to myself, I said you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story, it's an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should have won." That quote by Trump is the bombshell. He admits to thinking about the Russia investigation...that it was on his mind...when he terminated Comey. But Trump was wrong. Getting rid of Comey didn't put a stop to the Russia probe. It only made things worse for Trump as Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed Robert Mueller as special counsel, which took the Russia investigation to an even higher level.
The crux of the Mueller probe involves the allegations that Donald Trump conspired to collude with Russia in an effort to interfere in America's 2016 presidential election. Mueller continues to drive forward to definitively discover the truth about Trump's relationship with Vladimir Putin...and to learn whether another sitting U.S. president...is a "crook." Richard Nixon infamously said he wasn't. And yet he was.
On September 11th, "Trump whisperer" Sean Hannity predicted that Donald Trump will fire special counsel Mueller, "sooner rather than later." The Fox News television host told listeners on his syndicated radio show that Trump could put an end to the Russia investigation by terminating Mueller, potentially in a matter of days. But legally, Trump cannot give the boot to Mueller. Only the deputy attorney general can do that. Since Attorney General Sessions recused himself from all matters pertaining to the Russia probe, D.A.G. Rosenstein appointed Mueller and he's the only one who can give him the ax. But Trump could dismiss Rosenstein and nominate a new D.A.G., but it would then require Senate confirmation. Only when confirmed could the new deputy attorney general discharge Mueller...a firing that would create a constitutional crisis and devastation for our country.
With precision and clarity while noting grave concern, Congressman Adam Schiff - Democrat of California - reacted on September 14th to Sean Hannity's thoughts. "The fact that one of the president's top confidantes and mouthpieces is publicly advocating such a reckless action is a massive warning sign about the danger to our democracy."
Although he may not have an opportunity to come across Dorothy along the yellow brick road, since Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is not running for re-election for his congressional seat...Ryan needs to somehow find a way to meet The Wizard so the Wisconsin
But besides Ryan...Republicans on Capitol Hill don't have the balls - in plain English - to do what's right. Whether they actually believe it or not...Republicans - for the most part - in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are professing that Trump is as innocent as a newborn baby. In reality, any sane person who possesses a scintilla of integrity in their bones has to admit that an innocent man does not go on tweeting tirades as Trump often does.
Eventually - if impeachment proceedings were to begin - Donald Trump will not want his dirty laundry spread about for all Americans to sniff. Trump isn't going to want the stink of his life to be revealed under oath and before the United States Congress in a live televised event. I am confident - as I have penned in many previous columns - that Trump will, instead, pull a Richard Nixon and resign the presidency before any of us have the chance to be exposed to even more stench than we've already been offended by over the last three years. All that being said, though...Trump's arrogance...his egotism and conceit...pumped him up in an August interview with Fox News...and caused him to make threats. "If I ever get impeached, I think the market would crash. I think everybody would be poor." Donald Trump has always been all about Donald Trump. He cares about nobody but himself.
Regular readers of The Controversy are well aware that I have been pushing for Trump to resign for more than a year. It's mind-boggling that he has lasted in The White House as long as he has after nineteen women accused Trump of inappropriate sexual behavior. Such sexual misconduct should have bounced him out of The Oval Office as fast as a Mexican jumping bean.
Over the last year, NBC's Today show anchor Matt Lauer, CBS This Morning anchor Charlie Rose, and most recently, CBS chairman and chief executive officer Les Moonves were fired because of allegations of sexual misconduct. It's beyond baffling that Trump has survived the chopping block. But then...he was elected president after the Access Hollywood video was released, just one month before the 2016 election. In that 2005 video, Trump grandstanded to Billy Bush about his sexcapades...allegedly with television personality Nancy O'Dell, among others.
"I moved on her, actually. You know she was down on Palm Beach. I moved on
her...and I failed. I'll admit it. I did try and f--k her. She was married.
No, no, Nancy. No this was...and I moved on her very heavily. In fact, I took
her furniture shopping. She wanted to get some furniture. I said, 'I'll show
you where they have some nice furniture.' I took her out furniture... I moved
on her like a bitch. But I couldn't get there. And she was married. Then all
of a sudden, I see her. She's now got the big phony tits and everything. She's
totally changed her look."
The conversation
continued as the Access Hollywood bus arrived at NBC studios in Burbank,
California and Trump noticed actress Arianne Zucker who he was meeting that day
to videotape a scene with her on Days Of Our Lives.
"Yeah, that's her...with
the gold. I better use some Tic Tacs just in case I start kissing her. You
know, I'm automatically attracted to beautiful... I just start kissing them.
It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star,
they let you do it. You can do anything." Billy Bush replied..."Whatever you
want." And Trump uttered the line that nobody should forget. "Grab 'em by the
p---y. You can do anything."
After the video was released, then-Vice President Joe Biden insisted that Trump's lewd comments were the "textbook definition of sexual assault." Numerous others in the public eye have made similar remarks.
Furthermore, Michael Cohen, in August, implicated Trump as an unindicted co-conspirator with his sworn testimony in a federal courtroom. Cohen acknowledged under oath that Trump "directed" him to break the law by paying two women - the names of which Cohen did not reveal but who Trump allegedly had sexual affairs with - so that they would keep silent about the flings. It's widely known from earlier reports and from the women themselves that Trump ordered Cohen to give $150,000 in hush money to Playboy model Karen McDougal and $130,000 to porn star Stormy Daniels for the express purpose to keep the two women from blabbing before the election. That means Trump was complicit in an illegal act because by Cohen coughing up the cash from Trump's coffers, it would squash any chance that voters would find out and, as a result, then possibly abandon Trump if they learned he was involved in extra-marital affairs, especially when they were not too long after Melania Trump gave birth to Trump son, Barron. Thus - based on Cohen's testimony - legal scholars have stated that Trump conspired with Cohen to violate federal campaign finance laws. Cohen told a judge that he "knowingly and willfully" broke the law and that he did so "in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office." The payment to Daniels - whose real name is Stephanie Clifford - exceeded the individual contribution limit of $2,700. McDougal was paid by a corporate entity and federal law does not allow corporations to donate directly to federal candidates. Anybody with an ounce of brains knows we cannot separate Michael Cohen's guilt from Donald Trump.
On Friday, September 14th, former Trump Campaign chairman, Paul Manafort - who had already been convicted in August on federal charges in a Virginia trial - pleaded guilty in a Washington, DC federal court on additional felony counts. Between both cases, Manafort is on the hook for crimes ranging from money laundering, tax fraud, lying to the Justice Department, violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act and conspiring to obstruct justice by witness tampering...among other charges. But Manafort made a deal to play ball with Mueller and federal prosecutors. He has agreed to provide unspecified documents and to testify before the Grand Jury. The cooperation agreement says that Manafort must completely cooperate with investigators in "any and all matters as to what the government deems the cooperation relevant." In other words - just as others have presumably done - Manafort will be spilling the beans on everything...and Trump will not only be thrown under the bus, but he'll be squooshed underneath it.
Remember...Manafort was part of that June 2016 Trump Tower meeting with Donald Trump, Jr. and his brother-in-law, Jared Kushner when they met with a Russian lawyer and at least three other people who had offered to provide "official documents and information that would incriminate Hillary (Clinton) and her dealings with Russia and would be very useful to your father." Those words were part of an e-mail that Trump, Jr. received from music publicist Rob Goldstone who arranged the meeting. In agreeing to meet with the Russians, Trump, Jr. e-mailed Goldstone back by writing..."If it's what you say I love it especially later in the summer." In July 2017, Trump, Jr. admitted that Goldstone stated in an e-mail to him that the Russian government was involved and that the meeting was intended to get "dirt on Clinton" in a "Russian effort to aid (the Trump) campaign." I'm sure Robert Mueller wants to hear all about the preparation for that meeting and the meeting itself. But the White House is denying that Manafort's plea deal has anything to do with Donald Trump. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued the following statement. "This had absolutely nothing to do with the president or his victorious 2016 presidential campaign. It is totally unrelated." And bears don't poop in the woods.
Donald Trump, for some time, had included Paul Manafort in his "circle of trust." I bet now Trump wishes he never met him. Manafort's full cooperation with federal prosecutors could mean - if he lives long enough - he may not have to spend the rest of his life in prison. Manafort is 69 years old.
If Trump starts to see the handwriting on the wall...and it's clear that Mueller is about ready to cook his goose...I doubt The Art Of The Deal author will wait much longer to make a deal with Mueller and/or Congress. When push comes to shove and orange jumpsuits become part of the wardrobe - along with handcuffs as their jewelry accessories - for Trump's three oldest children and one son-in-law - Trump, I believe, will agree to resign the presidency so that Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric and Jared don't get thrown behind bars on state and/or federal charges.
Thick smoke is billowing from The White House and Trump Tower...and soon a full-fledged fire (metaphorically speaking) is going to burn down the Trump presidency and the Trump dynasty.
I realize that many of you are going to think I'm the biggest wackadoodle for suggesting that Republicans break ranks...but from where I stand...it's the only way to save America. Listen to President Barack Obama...and vote! Donald Trump has gone off the deep end by encouraging "violence" if Republicans don't cross the finish line in victory with the mid-term elections. By Trump merely saying, "I just hope there won't be violence," that's his demented way of influencing those certain Trump supporters - who are part of the sick-minded and delusional lunatic fringe - to hit the streets and initiate riots in major cities and small towns from Maine to Hawaii. There would be bloodbaths from the Atlantic seaboard to the tropics of the central Pacific.
On August 27th, Trump spelled out to evangelical leaders at a Washington, DC dinner..."You're one election away from losing everything you got." When a statement like that from the president of the United States is picked up through social media, the nut-jobs that hear it could make it their business to create and wreak havoc where catastrophic chaos could blanket our nation.
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.
Please express your personal opinions by following the instructions above. And thank you for reading The Controversy.
Photo credits: Pinterest ("already lied in every state"), Kevin Siers and Cagle Cartoons Inc. (Trump forgets words to God Bless America cartoon), Cliff Owen/Associated Press (Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein), Ed Hall and Artizans Syndicate (Crazy Town cartoon), Democrats Organizing for America (former President George Washington) Other 98 ("What we don't have"), The Great American Disconnect (The Cowardly Ryan), Clay Jones and Claytoonz.com (All The President's Felons), Limit, Inc. and ME.ME (Vote), Facebook (former President Barack Obama) and Getty Images and The Hill (Donald Trump)
Copyright 2018 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
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