It has been said that Donald Trump acts like a mafia don. His former lawyer Michael Cohen said that Trump communicated with him by means of a code they both understood. He worked for Trump for over a decade and he knew what Trump meant when he asked for an update about the Moscow Tower deal. Through Cohen, and from our own observation we also learned that Trump lies as a matter of fact; relies about everything and anything and that he will do so in spite of stark evidence to the contrary. At the recent gathering of C-PAC he delivered a two hour speech and lied over 100 times, almost one lie or exaggeration per minute. Then he said during the campaign that he could shoot someone in plain view and get away with it, he was expressing the confidence of a con man who knows his audience. His followers cannot be dissuaded no matter how much they find out about the man. He is a manipulator who promises things he cannot deliver. One of his main claims, that he would build a wall and Mexico would pay for it is obviously not happening, but he changed the language about it, arguing about a barrier or a steel fence, “or whatever you want to call it.” By whatever name it is not what he promised and the U.S. taxpayers are paying for it, not Mexico.
But one report of what can be expected if he loses the next election in 2020 can be gleaned from Cohen’s testimony and it should give us pause. According to Cohen, Donald Trump will not recognize a victory by any opponent and he will not leave the White House willingly or quietly. Our leader is a pathological liar who will not accept defeat. This is what Cohen said in his appearance before Congress: “given my experience working for Mr. Trump I fear that if he loses the election in 2020 the there will never be a peaceful transition of power.” Back in 2016 we saw glimpses of that when Hillary Clinton was ahead in the polls and he stated that if he didn’t win the election he would not accept the results. His lawyer Rudy Giuliani was prepared to file an appeal and a Bloomberg poll showed that 56% of Trump supporters believed his claims of a rigged election. He will prepare his followers in 2020 so that they will not accept the results if he is not the winner. Critics of Trump like Donny Deutsch, think Trump would be willing to start a civil war in order to stay in power. Other pundits say that he is afraid of prosecution for all his crimes as soon as he stops being president and for that reason alone he will try to remain president. Pelosi believes the Democrats must stop talking impeachment. “He is not worth it,” she said. We must vote him out of office and have the generals escort him out of the White House.
Editorial