Trump isn't 'getting away' with anything - By Jennifer Rubin

[DonViejo]

By Jennifer Rubin April 9 at 12:30 PM

President Trump, his frustrated critics say, has “gotten away” with constant lies, race-baiting and boorishness. “No other president … ,” the refrain goes, would have been able to attack the FBI with baseless accusations or mislead the public about who is responsible for failing to protect “dreamers” or operate a bizarrely incoherent foreign policy or assemble a Cabinet that most resembles the customers in the “Star Wars” cantina scene or — you get the picture. The sense of frustration is reinforced by the media’s constant reminders that Trump still has the support of this hardcore base. (Yup, Bob from coal country still thinks illegal immigrants are murderers and still thinks Trump is swell.)

After 15 months, reality has caught up to Trump. The cold, hard facts do not disappear simply because Trump is willing to say black is white and white is black. Consider:

Trump declares he wants out of Syria. It would be lovely if we could simply pack up and go, but the enemies of the United States and the war criminals get a vote, too. Bashar al-Assad steps up to use chemical weapons. Russia continues to support him. Israel and Hezbollah (as well as Hezbollah’s patrons in Tehran) will clash militarily. Trump hasn’t “gotten away” with attacking President Barack Obama’s policies while duplicating them. To the contrary, Trump’s now in a mess of his own making. His foreign policy team lacks knowledge and adroitness; he will either contradict himself (to reengage in Syria) or be revealed as a weakling. There is a big price to be paid for an ignorant, incoherent and amoral foreign policy: Conflicts heighten, the United States loses influence, and Trump looks foolish.

Likewise, Trump can refuse to learn that the trade deficit is not a bill to be paid (We’re “down $500 billion,” he proclaims). He can hire economic illiterates who declare a trade war is no big deal He can send free-marketer Larry Kudlow out to renounce a lifetime of free-market advocacy by cheerleading for tariffs (and worse, insisting Trump’s attack on Amazon is not an attack on a specific company but a benign effort to level the playing field — or something). Here, too, others get a vote. The markets crash. Farmers are in an uproar over China’s retaliatory tariffs on agriculture. Trump loses support of GOP donors like the Koch brothers. If the two sides do not step back from the edge, a trade war will in fact bring nine years of economic recovery to an end. Trump, once again, can say whatever he wants; reality will tell us something altogether different.

Then there is the matter of the Russia investigation. Trump can scream “hoax” until he is blue in the face. His attorneys can pretend that talking to special counsel Robert S. Mueller III is optional. In the real world, Mueller is racking up indictments, flipping witnesses and preparing, if need be, to subpoena Trump to testify. There is a price to be paid for trying to hamper the investigation and for his campaign’s 72 contacts (involving 22 officials) with Russia-linked operatives.

Politically, has Trump “gotten away” with playing to our darkest impulses, taking direction from crackpot Fox News hosts, refusing to listen to experts and sullying the office he holds? Well, Republicans now anticipate the House majority will be lost and are scrambling to save the Senate. The Post reports:

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2018/04/09/trump-isnt-getting-away-with-anything

[smirkymonkey]

1. K&R

[gratuitous]

2. I see Trump is still in office, still tweetering away

Still having excuses manufactured for him on Fox, even if they're in danger of pulling a hammy from all the stretching they're having to do. Still inflicting grievous wounds on the body politic, the nation, the environment, the law, and our standing in the world.

Yeah, some people have figured out at long last (including Ms. Rubin) that the dirty fucking hippies have been right all along about Republican perfidy and its horrible effects on our beloved country. But Trump's still getting away with his shenanigans, and maybe a few people are pissed about it that weren't pissed before, there's still a lot of damage being done.

I'm hopeful that there's a price to be paid, but so far all we have are outstanding invoices, and if anybody knows how to dodge a bill, it's Lord Littlehands.