Trump & Team at It Again (#28)
The most memorable and distinguishing trait of the Trump Presidency, so far, has been the blatant lying that has shocked the American politicians (no mean feat), the press and the public. The rest of the World has been mesmerized by the spectacle Trump has made of the ‘Great’ America since his campaign and his election, by his ridiculous statements and behavior, that has made America seem more like the most dysfunctional ‘Banana Republic’ with corrupt, tragic and sadly comical leadership, than the World’s leading and most powerful Nation. How could this turn of events be even possible?
Our attempt at answering that question would be: it’s been made possible by those having some vested interest in supporting Trump; the Republicans who wanted desperately to regain power regardless of having to hold their noses and backing him, after forcefully calling him every kind of derogatory name pointing to his utter unsuitability; that portion of the moderate public that just wanted ‘real’ change and hoped for economic opportunity returning, and then chose to ignore his obvious unsuitability; the far-right, to whom Trump answered their prayers for an openly divisive racist, bigoted, misogynist, who would then legitimize their suppressed hate in all of its many forms; and of course the strangest of political quirks in the U.S. political system – the Electoral College, leaving almost 3 Million voters dis-enfranchised.
The combination of all the above and - whatever mistakes the Democrats made in their campaign, Russia, Wiki leaks, and FBI Head James Comey, all conspired to elect the most unsuitable and openly lying President, possibly in U.S. history. His team of course has not been far behind, as they got caught time and again dealing in lies, too often, or as now better known, as ‘alternative-facts’.
According to Trump and his team, when questioned about the seemingly, overly, cozy relationship with Russia and officials-Russian, they fooh-fahed it away as just routine courtesy calls, or meetings in the line of duty. But only after these meetings had been discovered, post repeated denials, did of any of them confess to them having taken place at all, determinedly lying - till caught.
For over an year now, Trump has been denying anything to do with Russia and Vladimir Putin, except for his grand vision (in one fell swoop, because he is ‘a great negotiator’, overturning 7 decades of suspicion and potential life extinguishing hostility between the two countries), to have better relationships with Russia, always followed up with the rhetorical question to the listeners ‘Wouldn’t that be Great (!) folks?’.
Well it would be, and no one’s arguing it wouldn’t, if this new relationship was cultivated in a safe and sustainable way. The mystery is why all the denials to what are later vociferously tagged as routine meetings. If so routine, then why weren’t they disclosed when they should have been. Why are they barefacedly denied until after being caught. It would seem neither Trump nor his team members have been as arms length to Russian officials as they would like everyone to believe, and nor were the meetings as innocent as claimed. If otherwise, they would not be hidden and would not, today, be an issue.
From those consistent flat denials of ‘I know nothing!!’ (reminiscent of Sergeant Schultz’s famous line in Hogan’s Heroes), to having to fire his newly appointed and deeply trusted, and ‘a great guy!’ National Security Advisor, General Mike Flynn for not disclosing, fully, the contents of his conversation with the Russian Ambassador to the Vice President Mike Pence, to finally having to admit some of his people may have met some Russian officials, at some time, for perfectly innocent reasons - to now, his brand new Attorney General Jeff Session, infuriatingly soiling the after-glow of his ‘Great Speech to the Nation’, by having to admit two meetings with the surprisingly nimble and pro-active Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, after swearing under oath at his confirmation hearings, that there had been none.
This spoiler by Jeff Sessions has to be deeply resented by Trump as it dissipated the goodwill emanating from his rare ‘Presidential’ moment in the Joint-session of Congress on Tuesday night, in which he wanted to bask in the after-glow a good while longer before political reality of being unfit kicked back in.
Recently appointed Attorney General Jeff Sessions was caught flat out lying to the Senate Committee in his confirmation hearings, under Oath, about Trump surrogates meeting with Russian officials.
Sessions was questioned by Senator Al Franken about Trump surrogates having contact with Russian officials, and he said he knew no one who had. But, he himself had had contact with the Russian Ambassador, twice, and he himself had admitted to being a Trump surrogate.
He outright lied that he didn’t know anybody in Trump’s team meeting with Russian officials, when he must have known, considering Trump’s almost entire innermost circle of advisors seemed to have met the Russian Ambassador as he had. And he flat-out denied he had, under Oath.
Later when he was forced to admit he had met the Ambassador twice, he claimed to have been ‘taken aback’ by the question, even though it was in the simplest of English language, and then later tried to explain it all away in the most detailed reminisces of the conversation that had taken place, after insisting he hadn’t remembered the meetings themselves.
Further, it is now known that not only did General Flynn meet with the Russian officials (the Russian Ambassador being a Russian official), so did Jeff Sessions, and (gasp!) Trump’s own son-in-law the great and wisest, closest top Advisor to the United States President, Jared Kushner, also met the very busy Russian Ambassador (kept busy by Trump’s team) at the very heart of ‘Trumpdom’, the Trump Tower itself.
Which brings up the very obvious question – how could have Trump denied, anyone from his team had met any Russians. He had insisted he didn’t know of anybody from his campaign meeting Russians, when two of his closest advisors, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and his Security Advisor Mike Flynn met the Russian Ambassador, at his home? How could he not know?
So it was all just innocent meet and greet, but then why all these dogged denials till sheepish, twisted, admissions are wrung out by disclosures to the fake, phony, ‘enemy of the people’ American press (a free press, an institution of American Democracy enshrined in the Constitution, except of course in Trump’s dishonest, denying mind, and in authoritarian murderous un-democratic countries, like Russia).
So much of the Russian Ambassador found everywhere in the Trump-world, over months of campaigning, and after winning the election. And such reluctant admissions from Trump, even after his people keep getting caught-out. Denial after denial, except of course after being caught; having met, and met, and met, the Russians. Regarding meeting the Russians again and again, they lied. Who? Trump and his Team, including Flynn, Sessions and Pence.
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