Trump's Contempt for the Truth

The list of reasons to despise - perhaps even hate describes the emotion - Donald Trump.  Yet, to me many of them trace back to Trump's most predominant trait other than perhaps his self-absorption and lack of empathy for anyone else: he is a pathological lair who holds the truth on just about any issue one can imagine in contempt.   All of engage in a little white lie from time to time or perhaps embellish a story line from time to time, but with Trump, no matter the issue, rather than honest and truthful, Trump prefers to lie - even when the truth is easily verified.  A column in the New York Times looks at this irreversible character flaw - one of many with Trump - in the context of the Justice Department's confirmation that no wiretapping of Trump ever occurred despite Trump's lie to the contrary. Here are column excerpts:

Once again: Donald Trump is a liar.

The Department of Justice confirmed in a Friday court filing what we all knew to be true: that Trump’s slanderous assertion on Twitter in March that President Barack Obama had Trump’s “ ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower” just before the election was in fact a total fabrication.

According to the filing, both the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice’s National Security Division “confirm that they have no records related to wiretaps as described by the March 4, 2017 tweets.”

To some this lying may seem small, just another defect among many, but to me it is so much more. Honesty is the foundation of character. The truth is the common base from which all else is built.

And yet, this man feels completely unbound by it. He has no respect or reverence for it. For him, honesty is an option, one that he feels no compunction to choose.

Before Trump’s bigotry, race-baiting, misogyny, corruption, bullying and vindictiveness, there is the lying. One could even argue that the lying is a core component of all the rest.

Of the statements by Trump that the fact-checking site PolitiFact has checked, just 5 percent were deemed absolutely true. Another 26 percent were just “mostly true” or “half true.” But a whopping 69 percent were found to be “mostly false,” “false” or “pants on fire,” the site’s worst rating.

The Washington Post calculated that Trump made 492 false or misleading statements in his first 100 days — “That’s an average of 4.9 claims a day” — and that there were only 10 days without a single false claim. There were five days with 20 or more false claims.But Politico may have been the most insightful. In an article there, Maria Konnikova pointed out . . . . “The sheer frequency, spontaneity and seeming irrelevance of his lies have no precedent. Nixon, Reagan and Clinton were protecting their reputations; Trump seems to lie for the pure joy of it.”

Trump, we know, lies constantly, about matters as serious as the election results and as trivial as the tiles at Mar-a-Lago.”

Trump is quite literally overwhelming our human capacities with his mendacity. It is not only hard to imagine that any person could lie this much — let alone the leader of the free world — it is also impossible for us to keep pace.

We begin to build into our processing of politics the caveat: Yes, the “president” lies. That’s not new. That’s just what he does.

But we must resist that impulse. It makes normal, or at least rational, something that is neither normal nor rational.

Trump’s incessant lying is obscene. It is a collapse in morality; it is an ethical assault.
This notion that Trump is damaging the sanctity and purity of truth, that truth in the Trump era operates on a floating scale, that for the Trump apologists truth has become a minor inconvenience, should have us all objecting in earnest.

This is not simply about a flawed man, this is about the function of our democracy and American positioning in the world. How is one supposed to debate policy with someone who almost never tells the truth? How can a liar negotiate treaties or navigate international disputes? Without truth, everything falls apart, or more precisely, nothing can be established. . . . America made a colossal mistake, and it cannot be easily undone. . . . the first step is that we must never stop saying: Donald Trump is a liar.

That evangelical Christians continue to support Trump speaks volumes about the moral bankruptcy of this falsely pious, modern day Pharisees.

CNN:: Classified Documents Contradict Nunes Surveillance Claims

In addition to the breaking news abut the FISA warrants issued against Trump adviser Carter Page, CNN has a new story that undercuts the claims of GOP House Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes seeking to give cover to Der  Trumpenführer's claims that the Obama White House ordered wire tapping of Trump Tower.  Sadly, like most things coming out of the mouths of Donald Trump, Sean Spicer and a host of Trump apologists, the claims of Nunes appear to be lies. Brace yourself for extreme White House efforts to change the topic this morning.  Here are excerpts from CNN:

After a review of the same intelligence reports brought to light by House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers and aides have so far found no evidence that Obama administration officials did anything unusual or illegal, multiple sources in both parties tell CNN.

Their private assessment contradicts President Donald Trump's allegations that former Obama national security adviser Susan Rice broke the law by requesting the "unmasking" of US individuals' identities. Trump had claimed the matter was a "massive story."

However, over the last week, several members and staff of the House and Senate intelligence committees have reviewed intelligence reports related to those requests at NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland.

One congressional intelligence source described the requests made by Rice as "normal and appropriate" for officials who serve in that role to the president.

And another source said there's "absolutely" no smoking gun in the reports, urging the White House to declassify them to make clear there was nothing alarming in the documents.

Rice is among the list of witnesses that House and Senate Intelligence officials want to interview as part of its probe into Russian attempts to meddle with the US elections. House Democrats and Republicans on the Intelligence Committee are near agreement on the list of witnesses to interview, with the GOP mostly focusing on people who may have leaked classified information and the Democrats hoping to question Trump associates who may have ties to Russia.

But the House review has been thrown into turmoil after Nunes last month expressed alarm about the unmasking of US persons, including Trump advisors, caught up in incidental collection. He reviewed the documents on White House grounds with the help of White House officials, despite House Speaker Paul Ryan saying Nunes informed him that the information came from a "whistleblower."

Critics said Nunes appeared to be giving political cover to Trump in the aftermath of the president's unsubstantiated tweet last month that Obama ordered wiretaps of Trump Tower to spy on him during the campaign.

Nunes' office has not responded to CNN's request for comment.

Nunes last week abruptly recused himself temporarily from the Russia investigation as the House Ethics Committee announced it is investigating whether he revealed classified materials, but he is still serving as chairman of the panel. 

Nunes needs to (i) be removed from the chairmanship, and (ii) subjected to an FBI investigation since he has (A) arguably released classified information, and (B) was part of the Trump transition.  I continue to believe that beneath all of the smoke there is actual collusion by Trump and/or his campaign with a foreign hostile power.  Impeachment does not begin to be an adequate punishment if these treasonous actions occurred.  

The Cowardice and Mindlessness of Trump Supporters

Over the years that I have been writing this blog, almost without exception the negative comments are left by (i) Christofascists or (II) right wing types.  In both instances the comments are left anonymously since these brave folks are too afraid to attach their names to the batshitery they spew. Gutless cowards as well as ignorant and/or living in a right wing news bubble.  Today an anonymous comment was left that sounded like it was straight from Brietbart of Fox News,  Here's a sampling:

Pretty big deal DOJ investigating Trump's campaign to ties with Russia, no way President Obama did not know about this. Wiretapping stories all over the newspapers like the New York times, so if they are to be believed then wiretapping did go on. Trump campaign people worked at Trump Towers including Michael Flynn who we know was wiretapped because his phone conversation was leaked to the Public, another crime, worked at Trump Towers. We know someone was listening because the conversation was leaked. These are all facts think you better go back and do some research.  

Let's review the true facts and make clear how clueless this cowardly character is in fact.  If anyone needs to do some research, it is this ignoramus.  A good start would be to change the dial from Fox News and/or Breitbart and similar purveyors of fake news.  Here's a review:

First, the wiretapping stories "all over the newspapers" are merely a reaction to Trump's unfounded accusations about Barack Obama ordering a wire tap of Trump Tower.  Most of the coverage is that wire tapping did NOT go on.  Obama spokesmen have denied it, Republicans in Congress have indicated that they have heard nothing to support Trump's claims. and the former Director of National Intelligence and the Director of the FBI have said Trump's claims are not consistent with the facts - a polite way to say Trump is a liar.

Mr./Ms Coward also brings up the intercepted conversations of Mike Flynn.  Yes, his conversations were subject to "listening" because the wiretapping was directed against the Russian ambassador, NOT Flynn or Trump Tower.  Indeed, ALL of the intercepted conversations to date were the result of monitoring known Russian agents and officials.  This type of surveillance of Russian operatives has gone on for years and in no way was directed towards Der Trumpenführer, I mean Donald Trump.  

What I find both frightening and mind boggling is that Trump's campaign officials and flunkies were so stupid that they did not realize that they were communicating with individuals under wire taps and other kinds of surveillance such as that conducted by the British and Dutch intelligence services. These folks make the Three Stooges look brilliant. 

Lastly, if the Justice Department or FBI did conduct a wire tap, (which seemingly was not the case from what is known) that means that the FISA Court found probable cause that crimes were being committed.  If this did in fact, occur, Trump and/or his henchmen has/have very serious problems.

The conclusion?  Despite the rant of the apparent Trump supporter, there has been ZERO evidence of wire taps aimed at Americans.  Those who have been caught communicating with the Russian were caught due to wiretaps and surveillance against the Russians involved, NOT the Americans.   Perhaps if the author of the comment got his head out of his ass and switched channels/radio stations to a legitimate news outlet, he/she would have known what I laid out.