So the question for historians is, America: the full blown oligarchy, or proto-banana republic?
30
Did Sen. McConnell betray the nation when he blocked the pre-election warning of Russian interference?
61
There are three problems, Mr. Krugman, not just one :
1/ The worst president in the history of the United States
2/ A G.O.P. that abandoned any pretense to moral behavior
3/ An electorate which voted, and will vote them, in office.
Of the three, the last is the worst.
70
Am I angry? Yes. Am I shocked? No. The great unwashed finally got what they wanted in Trump. The Republicans have the morals of alley cats and the Democrats are cowards. I came to this country in 1946 and I am as American as mom and apple pie. However, I have dual citizenship with the US and the UK, and from now on, I'm all about "God save the queen."
31
In normal circumstances, a President who has both Houses of Congress controlled by his own party isn't dangerous, but with Trump as President, it is absolutely perilous to have a Congress that is not from the opposition party. This dangerous situation might not have occurred without the gerrymandering, voter suppression, Russian interference, and Super-Pac money.
42
Republicans bang on about "wasteful big government" and "lowering deficits" and entitlements which aid the "little guy" but guess who's first in line for EVERY government subsidy, handouts, corporate welfare aka "tax cuts." Their hypocrisy is so blatant (see, Pruitt, Scott; McCONnell, Mitch, Trump, Con) and unfettered these days they don't even bother denying it.
Stupidly, the gullible republican base goes along, even though it is mostly THEY at the lower end of the economic spectrum who have benefited the most from Medicare and Social Security and WILL lose the most IF Republicans succeed in rolling back such social programs. They are selling their retirement and their children's future for some shiny slogans and terrible Supreme Court and other lifetime Judicial appointments. Gotta end Planned Parenthood too, despite the FACT that abortions are only a SMALL part of what PP actually does. In fact, it is the low and middle class women who need and get the most benefit from PP, yet the Republican leadership and base want it crippled.
IF congress had to get their healthcare like the rest of US instead of free for life at OUR expense they'd have a whole other attitude. Ditto if their wife, daughter, sister, mother needed an abortion and had no way of getting one.
Trump brags how it's "stupid to pay taxes" and "how smart he is to avoid paying his share".
They disgust me! I will certainly do all I can to ensure their defeat in as many elections as possible.
45
This, and Jared Kushner's father getting a loan from Quatar after Quatar was punished by Donald Trump during the Arab blockade of Quatar, needs to be thoroughly investigated. That means it is imperative that the House of Reps be taken away from Republicans this fall.
45
In case anyone forgot, Trump said during the campaign that he was surprised no candidate made any money running for president, given the millions of dollars that flow around politicians. I think it's safe to say that he is proving himself correct. It may be safe to say that the most dangerous place in the world right now is between Trump and a dollar. From all his ventures and deals (see: e.g.,Trump Hotel in DC), those dollars are surely flowing into his bank account. So much for running a country; moe like ruining it.
26
You speak prematurely. We’ll see what happens with ZTE.
4
If you voted for Trump because he was for "America first" what would be your reaction be to Trump tweeting he wants to save jobs in China?
35
What is "sophistry'' and are we naive not to believe that cynicism is inherent re understanding our plight?
Rivalry and competition is destroying whatever goodness mankind needs to adapt.
4
If we judge a presidency by its appearance of impropriety, no administration has ever been worse than the Trump administration. From Scott Pruitt's financial picadillos that have led to a dozen investigations, to Ben Carson's dining furniture and rules that will hurt the poor to the shutting down of key investigations by the CFPB, there are daily headlines denouncing key officials' use of their offices to further their own agendas and line their pockets.
Now we have Trump not only refusing to share his tax returns and "failing" to mention payments to Cohen on his financial disclosure forms, but suddenly getting investments for his and his son-in-law's companies.
No doubt there will be a special place in hell for these people. They deserve it.
25
there is no such place as ‘hell’ These perps need to keel-hauled through the justice system or Congress, whereever possible...
24
And if Trump kept ZTE banned, this weeks column would lament that Trump will start a trade war. Instead now Trump is compromising national security. There is no way Trump can actually win in the NYT op ed section so why bother?
2
Apparently the only crime the GOP will hold Trump accountable for will be murder. But then again, that would probably depend upon whether the victim was a registered Democrat or not.
So, recap, Kapersky Internet Security was a gift from Russia that would keep on giving as far Russian hackers penetrating computers with this SW.
Now we have ZTE and an alert from our intelligence community and military that China's that these throwaway cell phones are used for espionage.
My list of DO NOT TRUST UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES has now expanded to include ZTE products. ZTE is the last addition on my alphabetical list. However, Trump comes first and foremost and before the Kapersky name.
13
Robert Mueller: don't act in haste ... just hurry up. My nation is collapsing before my eyes.
25
Morality unhappily after all is subjectively applied in politics.
Legality is ditto.
I am being nastier than I should be.
China confuses, and the USA doesn't?
1
Who care about the Republicans? Certainly not progressive Dems who spend all their time fighting Corporate Dems. Their message is basically the same as Trumps except they actually mean it. The irony of NYT and other corporate media is the refusal to equate the Trump phenomena with a promise to forgotten Americans that the candidate will try to help them. If Dems do that in November they will carry even deep red states for obvious, but from the corporate media perspective, totally incomprehensible reasons. The age of meritocracy is coming to an end; better get used to it.
3
One might think those Trump supporters who applauded Trump's promise of "draining the swamp" would be disappointed. But "draining the swamp" has never really been about corruption or the mingling of private money and public government. It has always been a code phrase for a purge of anyone who is not loyal to Trump tribe.
13
So the short answer to the question that is the title of the article:
yes
7
Do we expect patriotism from the Republicans? Do we expect the Republicans to behave in a manner required of our elected officials? I think not, their only interest is how much money they can beg, borrow and steal from the economy.
When they are ousted, which they always are, they will cry and complain about how wasteful the Democrats are. They will cry that the Dems are Mericun enough and that we need more god in our gubment and the great toothless masses will reelect them to steal even more.
Lets here it for the Banana Republican party.
10
would you have said that about Obama Kerry and Iran?
How about the open mic where Obama "promised" Putin things will change after he was re-elected?
2
Excellent spotlight on the hard facts. "Republicans who control Congress won’t do anything about it. That in itself is a key part of the story: An entire political party — a party that has historically wrapped itself in the flag and questioned the patriotism of its opponents — has become entirely complaisant in the possibility of raw corruption, even if it involves payoffs from hostile foreign powers."
13
Appears Lenin was right after all. He just had his timing wrong. Trump IS selling China the rope which they will hang us with.
6
Ironically, it is the Republicans who hate the Republic most and have been stealthily trying to overthrow it since 1980. Grover Norquist, who claims that Reagan was the inspiration for American for Tax Reform, was so bold as to state that his tax pledge wasn’t merely to abolish government, but to kill the idea of government. “I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub.”
I’m sure that a lot of right-wingers got a good chuckle from this hyperbole, but the fact is that 95% of Republicans in Congress have taken his pledge. Trump is just moving the destruction of the US Government faster than even Ronald “the-nine-most-terrifying-words-in-the-English-language-are,-'I'm-from-the-government-and-I'm-here-to-help'” Reagan could have imagined.
All this is out in the open. It is tantamount to Mr. Trump’s “I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose voters.”
Trump runs the quick con, dealing a hand of Three Card Monte to the American people, and Republicans in general have been running the long con.
Why is anyone surprised?
22
Yes , yes it did. Not that Trump supporters or the Vichyite GOP care.
6
Dear Mr. Trump,
I am very sad that you feel persecuted by a lengthy "witchhunt." The job is more stressful than you ever imagined. You never imagined that you would be prosecuted for obstructing justice (you did and continue to), You never imagined your acts treachery,bribery and collusion with Russia would be discovered. You never imagined your violation of campaign laws would be enforced. Nor did you imagine your bribery scheme selling foreign influence through Michael Cohen would be uncovered. Do yourself and your corrupt family a favor and admit you are witch who deserves being hunted, tried and convicted of high crimes and misdemeanors. Resign NOW and save us the trouble of proving what you actually are: a personification of evil. May the witch hunters follow your foul trail forever.
12
The reporting needs to better articulate how the GOP actually thinks about this. The reporting makes too many assumptions about what they are thinking. It needs to actually get statements, get responses, keep asking them specifically how they think about this. The reporting lets them off the hook - indeed, actually leaves them out of the story - if it doesn't demand comments and statements from other GOP leaders.
6
"Did China Just Bribe Trump to Undermine National Security?"
Duh!
7
Pressure groups must up the ante for Congressional Republicans, but Democrats as as well, by studiously targeting representatives and senators up for reelection. Robert Mueller should also speed up his prolonged investigations that risk becoming a jaded witch-hunt.
2
Why are we still pretending that corrupt actions like this are questions instead of our new reality? We have to stop normalizing this president and his administration, whether it ignoring nepotism that installs grossly unqualified actors like Jared and Ivanka Trump or cabinets officials who indulge their every whim while intentionally destroying the very agencies they direct.
Or undermining the law enforcement agencies charged with keeping us all safe in a desperate attempt to cover up crimes that are now crystal clear.
How many more payoffs, how many more lies, how many more laws must this president break before we stop pretending the overt corruption in the Trump Administration—and the Republican Party which enables him in order to keep its hold on power—is a real and present danger to this nation? This is no longer a rhetorical question. It is our reality.
14
With all the money in politics that is already corrupting our democracy, China bribing Trump, and Trump taking the bribe, is not surprising. What should be surprising is that so many consider all this acceptable. But then, of course, we have so-called religious leaders like Graham and Falwell that have either given him a pass or absolved him of any wrong-doing, regardless of his past conduct.
9
Donald J. Trump is all about himself. Is there any limit to what he would do to get what he wants for himself?
11
George Washington would not have felt a lot of mercy for today's Republicans.
5
I am quite surprised at Paul Krugman opining about the ZTE matter, which is a subject he has zero understanding of and about which he has quite surprisingly on this occasion decided to uncritically swallow the line offered by the US Government and mainstream blowhards . The truth of the matter is ZTE was not sanctioned because of any failure or violation on its part of the agreement signed by them and the Department of Commerce; the 7 year nuclear sanction is purposefully political and backed up only by vague undocumented DOC allegations about ZTE "lying". Being put on probation, paying a hefty fine and subsequently doing all that the probation agreement stipulates should not expose ZTE to this new 7 year ban. It is no accident that the only bad conduct harped on the press is the original conduct for which ZTE was placed on probation; there is NO new "violation" period. People who are opining on this matter should take the time out to actually read the publicly available relevant legal documents before loosely and inaccurately talking about national security exposure and other alarmist tripe. This has serious implications for many thousands of high paying American jobs including mine.
2
How many times do Americans need to have the TRUTH shoved right into their faces ? I've said it before : Trump will be down in History as a cuss word.
7
666 Fifth Avenue.
What's in a number?
Quick, somebody call Pat Robertson.
7
It's simply part of what makes America Great, and exceptional: anything for a buck...
As has been said (Calvin Coolidge, 1925): "“After all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing and prospering in the world. I am strongly of the opinion that the great majority of people will always find these the moving impulses of our life.”
2
Americans voted for the Trump extended family. They have only themselves to blame.
5
"Even if it borders on treason?"
Enough is enough, Professor.
Will someone please get a rope?
2
Yep, you hit the nail squarely on its head and the Republican party are just a bunch of gun happy, treasonous people who wrap themselves in the flag and God. Their constituents just lap it up without realizing these folks don't care about them and are taking total advantage of them, but as long as they support their right to shoot their assault weapons and label all Immigrants who don't look like them as "Bad Hombres". Then the republicans get what they deserve. We just need to make sure the rest of us get out an vote and keep on voting until this republican party goes the way for the Dodo bird
7
Where are the Very Serious People with their outrage? At best, this gives the appearance of impropriety. At worst, it's a violation of the oath of office.
5
The die was cast during the campaign, when Trump refused to release his tax returns, & the voters allowed him to get away with it. That includes all those Democrats who didn't bother to vote because they lacked "enthusiasm," as well as the self-styled "progressives" who hated Hillary so much that they refused to vote for her & didn't care if Trump won. The people who voted for Trump or didn't vote are getting exactly what they asked for.
11
Question is, what are people doing about this? Are they registering and going out to vote, are they trying to persuade others to do so? Writing a check is easy, but not the solution. The Democrats were awash in money in 2016, and they lost because people sat on their hands or threw away their vote.
6
Yes Paul, the present administration is despicable, but how you can claim with a straight face that the liberal elites are any better is astounding. President Obama was the singular person of conviction and reason during the Dems reign, aside from him there is no difference, Wall Street and AIPAC are in charge, their revolving door policy has been at play through successive administrations both Republican and Democrat. The Dems had the chance to ram through Single Payer, instead they let Lieberman and his insurance cronies author the ACA, we had a chance to rebuild America instead we bailed out Wall Street, we had a chance to reregulate Banks instead we allowed the banks to write Dodd Frank, which as weak as it was, is now being dismantled, we had a chance to pull out of the Middle East instead we continued fighting and funding wars for Israel while we ignored the plight of our own nation and its failing middle class. Sorry Paul, game over, the rest of the world has acknowledged the charade that is American Politics and is moving on, we will unfortunately be going down with the ship as Trump, Bolton, Bibi and Adelson are waving the tattered flags of two nations that attempted to dictate world policy and utterly failed.
12
A premise of pre-Trump free and fair trade deals was that, by helping to lift all up, in the long run we would be helping Americans, too. Trump swept all that aside: "America first!" It was a rallying cry for his supporters.
So, whence this concern for Chinese jobs? How does Trump justify it? Perhaps more importantly, how do his supporters justify it?
Paul offers a plausible justification from Trump's side—but one that should trouble Trump's supporters, if the mere fact of his about-face didn't trouble them already. Then again, nothing seems to trouble them.
8
Trump: "Nobody has ben tougher on Chiner than me."
Except Obama.
6
Krugman is saying nothing controversial. The entirety of the Republican Party-before-country (excepting Ben Sasse and Jeff Flake) are complicit in selling out America for personal gain. That's the generous assessment. A harsher view could hold them responsible for aiding and abetting treason.
11
Trump and his family are all traitors, pure and simple. The Republican Party, really a criminal organization impersonating a political party, is complicit in sedition and treason. All of them, from Ryan and McConnell on down.
Full penalty of the law to apply:
18 U.S. Code § 2381 - Treason
Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 807; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(2)(J), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2148.)
15
Whether Trump is feathering his own nest in violation of the emoluments clause in the Constitution through the mechanism of foreign and trade policy in this one case may be difficult to prove definitively. However, what is more important is that in the context of the Trump administration such a conclusion is absolutely plausible.
Trump has ruined every scrap of faith the public might have in the integrity of the presidency. Every day we get more evidence that Trump runs a Putin-style kleptocracy with his pardon power the "get out of jail free" card, which he is delighted to play with no shame and no regret. He may not care about his own ethical reputation, but we are all sullied by his filthy dealings, and our national reputation is in the toilet.
12
Calm down and remember. At least Hillary Clinton and the 'Democrat" party are not in power? Anything would be worse than that?
And what about Qatar's bribe to the Trump gang reported in yesterday's NY Times: "The company controlled by the family of the White House adviser Jared Kushner is close to receiving a bailout of its troubled flagship building by a company with financial ties to the government of Qatar, according to executives briefed on the deal." Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution restricts members of the government from receiving gifts, emoluments, offices or titles from foreign states without the consent of the United States Congress. Sadly, it's Congress that needs to enforce the Constitution and Republicans have no intention of doing so.
8
The author would enhance his credibility by seeking evidence before making conspiracy accusations. I guess you're pandering to your base, Mr. Krugman.
1
Tigershark, it appears you do not understand how the rules governing conflicts of interest are intended to work. The rules require public officials, and in the private realm, professionals like attorneys, to refrain from conduct that creates 'the mere appearance of impropriety.' A client is not required to investigate and obtain evidence to prove that his lawyer scuttled his consumer protection claim against Corporation X because X is a longtime client of his lawyer paying an average of $1 million a year in fees. And the client is not required to be satisfied with his conflicted attorney's assurances that his handling of the consumer protection claim has not been affected by his business interest in keeping the million dollar corporate client satisfied.
The only 'evidence' required in the case of the Trumps, the Kushners, et alia, is the fact they have refused to separate themselves from businesses, assets and investments that create a panoply of opportunities for corruption, self-dealing and use of government power for personal gain. We are not required to accept 'there's nothing bad going on here, just trust us' as the explanation when a string of highly suspect 'coincidences' like the Qatar investment in Kushner properties and the Chinese investment in Trump real estate projects are rolling down the pike.
And the tone has been set. Ryan Zinke, Scott Pruitt, and other Trumpistas have got the message: abuse of public trust and public funds is A-OK in Trumpworld.
9
Seems to me that he's merely pointing out the obvious.
11
Tigershark, hi. Have you ever been a juror in a criminal trial? I remember a judge explaining to us jurors that circumstantial evidence is equally important to hard evidence. Common sense suggests a lot of dodgy things happening with Trump not divesting or clearly staying away from what are conflicts of interest. More generally, he lying all the time. And then there is his refusal to release his tax returns. You need not be a conspiracy theorist to wonder what is he hiding.
13
There is a good reason that the Trump family will bend over backwards to protect their interests and not those of the country. It's obvious when you look at the financial history of the so called Trump empire built on bankruptcies and shady dealings. Trump has always been good at spending other people's money, lawyering up and walking away from it. Now that he feels he is in the ultimate position of power he will use the Republican house and Senate to do his bidding, and they are the perfect suckers....so desperate to regain power at any cost. So along comes their savior, even though initially many of them viewed Trump as a hawker and con man. People like Rubio and Cruz seem to have no problem with their own family being insulted and dragged through the mud. The fact is the truly weak party is not the Democrats that lack the votes.....it is the Republicans that have no spine, guts or fortitude to stand up to someone that is willing to take the entire country down for his own personal gain. The Republicans whimper and shake at the mere thought of saying anything negative about Trump. For fear of the so called backlash from the "base" . History has taught us what happens when an individual systematically eliminates laws, institutions of governance .....accountability . This is "Dictator 101". It's coincidence that Trump attacks the media, the last thing he wants is for someone to reveal the truth. And the Republicans are drinking the lemonade.
7
It’s the evangelicals too, so desperate to take control over the minds of Americans, that they ignore Trump’s sins against everything they claim to hold sacred.
11
This is what we get when we allow our government to shirk the constitution, the rule of law, ethics and decency. When will enforcement of the laws under the constitution ever "kick in" maybe law enforcement has a thing for Donalds hugs and kisses from Trump. What does that say about our country? Us?
2
Trump sells Jerusalem to Israel for big money. Netanyahu now leads the leader of the free world around by the nose. Trump has set up an international business enterprise to benefit he and his family, selling favors of his office to gov'ts and fat cats. China found out early that Trump could be influenced by flattery and financial favors to his family.
8
Unfortunately those that really need to hear this info (GOP voters) are tuning into their Drudge and Fox propaganda. I go over there sometimes and its bizzaro world. Reagan still makes headlines!
Talk about old white male baby boomer safe spaces!
7
If only that were the only demographic under their influence.
5
Yes, our government has become full of corruption thanks to a man who lost the popular vote---and for most Americans it's too complicated to understand. Who was it that said, "A country usually gets the government it deserves"? How true! The real problem is people who thought Civics and Government classes in high school were "not important" or wouldn't "help me find a job." And they grew up to be the adults that "don't like politics" or are "too busy to vote." There will ALWAYS be a "donald trump" running for office, someone who will lie and try to manipulate our sacred constitutional institutions for personal gain. It is up to us to make sure he/she doesn't get the keys to the oval office. We have failed miserably. Yes, because of a lack of interest in learning about how our government is supposed to function, we have indeed gotten the government we deserve. Lets see if we will remedy this travesty in November of this year and again in 2020. Thank you, Mr. Krugman for always speaking out!
8
Not as big a treason as this:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/02/us/politics/nixon-tried-to-spoil-john...
...reported, finally, in The Times last year, 49 years too late to do any good. Nixon colluded with a foreign power (S. Vietnam) to sabotage peace talks so that he could be elected. 20,000 more Americans died before peace on the same terms could be negotiated.
Then there's his secret bombings of Cambodia, unlawful under American law and impeachable, but the House rejected articles for it.
What Trump's doing is minor compared to four years of war with tens of thousands of American casualties (and millions of Asians). It's also not as bad as cynically selling a whole war with lies and advertising techniques just 15 years back.
I wouldn't appeal to Republican decency to push back about this; I'd just take advantage of it as another way to haul out the vote.
3
Corruption is the chief product of the GOP, so it's hardly likely the party will hold Trump to account for selling out Iran sanctions to line his own pockets.
3
Donald Trump is living proof of H.L. Mencken's cynical but utterly accurate observation that nobody ever went broke by underestimating the American public.
7
Yes, Mr. Krugman, The Con Don is a good little member of the International Mafia and bribery/corruption keeps them going.
WE THE PEOPLE - average people around the world - must stop them. NOW.
4
Thank you for "complaisant."
And thanks for the sustained commitment to clear-headed analysis and critiques.
4
For his entire life, Trump has used "the art of the deal" to swindle and cheat and survive. Everything in his presidency-- starting with his refusal to disclose tax returns, put his assets into a blind trust, sell his interests in his real estate and other ventures, or use his private properties in excess for government business that we the taxpayers reimburse -- indicates that Trump is soaking the United States people and government to extract every penny he can to enrich himself. That he would compromise the integrity of his office for personal gain is no surprise; that there is no check on this presidency is the core of the discussion. Congress must undergo a significant personnel change ASAP (November 2018 only 6 months away!) to stop this presidential travesty. Vote out the Republican leadership and lemmings. Put some moral conscience back in our Congress.
6
Trump sells out the United States to the highest bidders for cash to his pocket and the GOP says nothing. Hillary breaks an email server rule like her predecessors and the GOP hypocrites shout "Lock Her Up".
The most serious problem this nation faces is that the the two-party system is broken. The Republican Party as we once knew it no longer exists. It has been replaced with greedy traitors who care nothing about America.
10
Paul concludes: “But today’s Republicans have made it clear that they won’t hold Trump accountable for anything, even if it borders on treason.
All of which is to say that Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage.”
Paul is mainly correct here, but he hasn’t identified the correct motive. It is not partisan advantage. - it’s simple venality. The GOP has been bought and paid for. It does what its puppet masters request in order to be touted by a monstrous and effective propaganda machine spreading disorder and disinformation to get vassals elected.
9
China had already bribed Trump and his family by awarding those Chinese trademarks for Trump and Ivanka Trump brands. Until he took the presidency aided by the Russians, he and his daughter aggressively sought those trademarks (worth many millions) unsuccessfully. That he needed to bribed again just shows how greedy he is. We officially have a major kleptocracy for a government today.
11
There has never been such a blatantly dishonest president in my lifetime. On second thought, Trump is just the latest in a string of corrupt Republican presidents: Nixon’s Watergate, Reagan’s Iran-Contra, HW Bush’s invasion of Iraq, and W Bush’s falsified WMD intel.
However, Trump proposing to aid and abet Chinese company ZTE known to have spied on the USA is treason. If the RNC doesn’t condemn Trump, and if Republicans in Congress don’t convene Intelligence Committee hearings immediately they are complicit.
Thank you, Mr. Krugman, for putting it so succinctly. Perhaps Trump supporters will finally see the light and demand action.
4
These are the stories we should be paying attention to, not the impetuous tweets of a deeply flawed and uniquely corrupt president.
Because Congress is not providing oversight, the Mueller investigation must continue as a compensatory mechanism.
7
if one assumes even a small portion of this is true, what do we do about it?
all complaints fall on deaf ears. The Rs currently in Congress, with a tiny # of exceptions, have abdicated all responsibility.
Sad. very, very sad.
6
Of course he did . If these folks are employed, they can vacation at the Trump hotel in Indonesia.
2
Why is there even a question? Of course he did . This is so obvious and so within his scope of behavior. The sooner we rid ourselves of this foul stench of corruption, the better off we will be. He is everything we do not want to be. A liar, a bully, a cheater, a bigot/racist but worst of all an amoral brute . He abuses the women, the sick, children the defenseless and the dying. There is nothing beneath his reach..
4
Crickets from Krugman and the legacy media when Bill Clinton was allowing Loral to give the Chicoms satellite/missile technology! Talk about a national security threat?
1
Actually, the New York Times and CNN both criticized Bill Clinton's approved of the sale of a Loral satellite to China. The Times editorial board at the time wrote, "It is a distressing case, the more so because it coincides with large donations to the Democratic Party from the companies that benefited from the deals with China." The difference here is that Trump personally benefits from the present bribe, which was not the case with Clinton.
5
What Bill did was poor policy but I don't think there is any evidence it enriched him personally. What trump has done is for personal enrichment. That's a Constitutional violation.
4
What Clinton did was give the Chicoms the ability to accurately target the US mainland with Chicom ICBM's! That in itself should be an impeachable/criminal offense.
The Pentagon refused comment on the Drudge report that the Loral engineers who reviewed the recovered debris said that the encryption hardware was missing.
U.S. intelligence has reported that China has targeted 13 of its 18 CSS-4 long-range missiles against U.S. cities. The CIA says that China's targeting was made more accurate by Loral's unauthorized help. The Justice Department started a criminal investigation of Loral, and the State Department warned that Loral's actions were "criminal, likely to be indicted, knowing and unlawful."
No surprises here. Same as the Russia pattern. And the whole point of Mr. Trump's presidency. To sell the USA for rights to a hotel. Of course, the USA isn't actually his to sell. So, I'll put it in more accurate and, unfortunately, more childish terms: to take something that isn't his, and trade it for something he wants, before anyone notices it's missing.
5
If ZTE was a private company I might have some small amount of sympathy. But they are not. They are a mostly government owned and 99% government controlled company. Xi's CCP cronies knew what was going on and did nothing to stop it.
2
Wasn't the writing literally on the wall for corruption when a mere 6 days after the election, Trump got an approval from the National Park Service for a $32 million historic preservation tax credit for his lucrative Trump International Hotel?
How totally aristocratic.
Or was it when Trump showed Russian officials top secret intelligence about Syria that had been provided by the Israelis?
Is this corrupt presidency marking the end of America's young democracy?
5
If the congress is not doing anything, then the media should be making a real loud noise around this.
But the silence is almost deafening!
Its about time the subject of patriotism and the pandering our administration is doing to China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and even locally with issues like the tax cuts and the consequences for deficits, severe ethical problems, should all be an incessant noise in media.
2
Of COURSE!
Next quesion?
3
Only in America. Only in America can a blatant liar win the Presidency, get a half billion dollar bribe from the Chinese gov't to reverse everything he'd promised he'd do, tweet out that he's working to save jobs in China and still have people support him.
301
Steven46
If you read Mr. Friedman's opinion piece carefully, you will see that what he says is not definite; therefore, you cannot say that the President of the United States was "bribed" by China.
sarah N.J: the degenerate President of the United states was bribed by both China and Qatar.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/17/nyregion/kushner-deal-qatar-666-5th.html
If you want to see the definitive legal proof, you need to wait for Mueller's report. Hopefully at that time, when the proof comes out, you will get outraged .
There is however enough maleficence proven in other areas, such as the destruction of environmental protections against disease causing toxic emissions, that there is no need to wait for treason to be legally proven, before you are outraged against the "president".
2
Friedman? Krugman points out that the standard for elected officials is not the same as in criminal court.
Where is the Democrat leadership blasting this apparent corruption on a daily basis? Why so quiet? This type of situation should be a feature of every Dem. campaign, especially in the steel and aluminum areas where their promised relief will be traded off to thank the Chinese for promoting a June "event" which the Donald can proclaim as a victory.
5
Not just partisan advantage Professor.....I say your next step
is to take a hard look at members of the Republican Party
and their business dealings......and you can throw in the Democrats too.......How did they all get to be millionaires on a government salary?
4
Yeah, he's corrupt. He's got both hands in the till and no one is stopping him.
Our elected officials are doing absolutely nothing about this.
Remember this when you go to the voting booth.
Of course, I live in Texas. Between the evangelical wackadoodles and the gerrymandering, my vote won't matter at all. But I'm still donating, and I'm still voting.
6
I think the answer is yes. Do I get a prize? Maybe Canadian citizenship, please!
2
The title should be did Trump just changed his mind after the Chinese dangled an offer that benefits him?
3
This and the sudden Kushner deal with Qatar - after Trump's extortionist rants - are so blatantly unethical (if not criminal) as to defy any other explanation. Unless, of course, one of our main exports to China now are the trademark rights for the Administration's idled "Infrastructure Week."
5
And of course there was no dirty deal there - Qatar just happens to like Kushner.
4
For the Trumps, the concept of "public service" means that the public is there to serve them. The idea that they should serve the public is too ludicrous for words.
6
This country was founded on the principles of the Enlightement, but wow we appear to be going through a reverse era of Un-Enlightenment or De-Enlightenment, which began with Ronald Reagan's ideological right-wing fairy-tale presidency and has reached its zenith with Donald J. Trump's chaotic willfully ignorant, crass presidency and authoritarian GOP rule that gives to the already rich and takes from the middle class, poor, civil society, and future generations.
It is appalling what Trump, the right-wing media and GOP are putting this country through. I seriously don't see how our nation can survive, much less thrive, with all the lying, corruption, greed, misplaced priorities, and ugly uncivilized behavior.
As a steady voice of reason, fairness, and democracy, Krugman's column today spells it out clearly and well. But this is a relay and endurance race to wrest control from the far right ideologues, self-serving 1%, and Republican Party.
Sadly, the Democratic Party, the so-called party of opposition, is missing in action and allowing the GOP to almost totally define the situation for this nation.
It will take very strong and forceful leadership--an Abe Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR with a powerful will and a personality stronger than Trump's--to make the case to the American people. We have waited far too long already.
Hello, is anybody there?
8
Thank you, Mr. Krugman, for finally calling out the GOPs failure to hold Trump accountable for anything as well as shirking their Constitutional duty to protect our country for enemies foreign (Russia) and Trump (domestic).
3
Extortion and bribery are hard to prove, which is why most crime families get caught for tax evasion or money laundering. That will probably be true of the Trump crime family as well.
5
So glad to see that Dr. K is highlighting this. Few of the TV news reports I've seen about Trump's avowed anxiety about Chinese job losses mention China's investment in the Trump property, or for that matter the spyware in the ZTE products. Is there a new wariness in the media when it comes to critical reporting on our dangerously irresponsible potus and his Republican enablers?
What worries me is that Trump is ignoring the threat of cyber attacks not only on our elections but on all aspects of our society, from the electrical systems to water supply to nuclear p
4
It is ridiculous for anyone to think or believe there could be a quid pro quo. The Professor certainly does not know what he's talking about.
No one does a quid pro quo anymore - it's illegal! That all ended last millennium.
In the good old days a politician monetized government service by grabbing a bag of cash under the table for services performed. But that's too risky and inconsequential $20,000 bribes would be underperforming your peers.
No one directly pays off their politician anymore, unless they're a lobbyist, which is a different. That's legalized corruption.
We're now in the era of advanced corruption. The new, more profitable corruption is Proxy Corruption. Everyone does it.
Except Bernie the laggard, who's only worth $800,000 after 35 years of government service. As a contrast consider Hillary, worth $51,000,000 and Bill at $189,000,000.
Here's how it works. The Chinese government invests $1,000,000,000 in Hunter Biden's and Chris Heinz's (Kerry's stepson) hedge fund (located two blocks from the White House, not Wall Street) to influence China policy. Or they give millions to the Clinton Foundation.
Or else China gives deals to Trump's kids, who've been tasked with managing Dad's portfolio. In return - and it's a huge ROI - China owns the future. And China will certainly be supporting Trump's second term, as will Russia.
Anyone still believe that Trump's not as smart as he says he is? The guy's a genius!
4
Trump desperately wants to secure his place in history, his reputation at the pinnacle of America's presidents. Well, I think he has already definitely succeeded. The Trump presidency is the most incompetent, most corrupt administration ever. And yes, I'm including Grant and the Gilded Age (the first one...) too. The Most Corrupt President Ever. I hope.
7
Yes and get ready for it will happen again and again.
1
As others have asked, how do we put a stop to the wholesale corruption of this regime?
This is clearly out-and-out bribery in the case of China and extortion in the case of Qatar.
What is our legal and political recourse?
2
You speak the obvious truth, Mr. Krugman, and the remedy is to elect Democrats to take control of Congress. Then they can either impeach Trump or neutralize him till he can be voted out of office.
3
And the band(fans of Trump) keep playing on and keep getting played. Not only God bless the United States but God help the United States.
1
I work for a company that during the presentation of every business ethics training course, the instructor mentions the 'newspaper test.' Meaning that if you would not want to see it in the newspaper, don't do it. DJT, his administration and WH staff fail the newspaper test daily, sometimes multiple times a day. The sad part is ~25% of the US population don't read real, legitimate newspapers and get their information from Fox broadcasting, The National Enquirer and the like, where there is no 'newspaper test.' The claim from those outlets is 'witch hunt' or 'deep state conspiracy.'
5
I am discontinuing my New York Times subscription
They deal in gossip with Trump, they are in bed with Trump because of the amount of money both sides are making. Write about the racism being pushed by Trump and the Republicans. Write about the the tax bill will hurt people on medicare. Write about these unqualified federal judges republicans are pushing through. I can go on and on.
3
Did China Just Bribe Trump?
Not just China. Qatar as well.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/17/nyregion/kushner-deal-qatar-666-5th.h...
It appears that degenerate and bankrupt Trump and family are attempting to use the US Presidency to become solvent again.
They must be stopped: Vote in November!
14
Wait, the president crowed about saving jobs at the Carrier plant in Indiana, who then turned around and laid off people so they could have those parts manufactured overseas, but nothing was ever said about that. Now he’s concerned about Chinese jobs because one of his cronies complained to him about the effects of his tariff policies? Or is this a concession to China because they really control the upcoming North Korean talks, or maybe they’re threatening to take away Ivanka’s favored sales status? Whatever the reason, it’s all because it’s a good deal for his image and not because it really benefits anyone else. The 1%, banks and polluters are cashing in on this guy while average Americans can’t afford to buy a home. This is truly Bizarro America.
7
Oh, look, Paul Krugman concern trolling a possibly real instance of Trump corruption with right-winger "national security" claims.
How like Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin, and Glenn Beck, etc regards Obama (except in the case of Obama there was no grounds for the corruption claims.)
1
The problem, dear Krugman, is this is on the Opinion Page of the Times and not on the front page.
10
I think it should be made clear to the leaders of the traitorous GOP that they, their children and their grandchildren are very, very close to losing their "living in America" privileges.
3
Don't forget the Democrats, they're in it just as deep.
Democrats still think it's Democrats vs. Republicans, which the mainstream media has programmed them to believe for decades.
But it's not R vs. D - it's the 1% against the 99%.
1
Trump's grandiosity knows know bounds. The smirk-like expression on his face when he took the oath of office told it all. It is 1000% about him. The rest of us are suckers and treated as such. A greater abomination on a country founded on principles such as ours could not be imagined, and the stupidity and vapidity of so much of our populace is beyond shame.
10
Government announces they won't allow sales high-tech components to ZTE and will no longer permit ZTE phones on military bases. ZTE shuts down. China invest $500,000,000 dollars in an Indonesian development along with a loan of $500,000,000, and all of sudden trump is going to help Xi reopen ZTE! SHAKEDOWN is the term.
Qatar refuses to loan Charly Kushner $100,000,000 for his 666 Fifth Ave. building. Bahrain, Egypt, the UAE and Saudi Arabia embargo Qatar. Qatar arranges a $100,000,000 loan for the Kushner building and the embargo is lifted. SHAKEDOWN is the term. Typical NY mobster behavior.
15
"Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage." There is an even bigger "problem": "the base". To the tens of millions - repeat: TENS of millions who still support him, Trump is like the home team's drug-taker or wife-beater or drunk-driver, always given "a pass" because he's "ours". Trade him to another team and he's an incorrigible bum sho should be banned from the sport. Dr. Krugman is right to sneer at the Congress and the Republican Party, but the fans are the enablers. Until the star - drunk, high, and with a black eye - strikes out with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th in Game 7 of, say, the World War Series, the fans will continue to cheer.
6
Without considering the possible illegal financial deals concerning ZTE, you have to wonder what Trump's base is thinking now. For months on the campaign trail Trump bashed China to cheers and salutes by his "deplorables." How will he explain this wimpiness? The playground bully so easily backs down from a fight and his convictions.
5
Wrong. Trump doesn’t have to explain his actions to to the misinformed and “aggrieved” (and the bigots) who voted for him. THAT is the core issue and that’s why Trump continues to maintain his poll numbers.
3
If it's not being reported by Hannity or Fox & Fiends, they don't know about it.
1
‘A GOP that will do anything, even betray the nation, for partisan advantage’. This is what money in politics buys. Thank you so much, Supreme Court.
11
The Republican buy-in to Trumps amoral, smells like treason administration is so repulsive to my patriotism and moral code that I have no choice to reject them wholesale.
No quarter given. If you’re a Republican, I think your reprehensible. Blame your leader if you must.
Republicans, each and every one, have become the object of my revulsion. Republicans have turned into a tribe that I will not do business with, cooperate with or socialize with.
10
Trump says “Too many jobs in China lost”.
How can anyone doubt this president has mental problems.
10
Was expecting the bribe in question to be China's recently announced Trump share of a "China Belt and Road Initiative" project in Indonesia (something under US 500 million), according to this article: http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/2145808/trump-indon...
Have to wonder how many other "fake news" emoluments/bribes/kickbacks will there be?
1
"Treason never profits. What's the reason? If treason profits, none (in the GOP) dare call it treason."
Disgusting.
5
Mr. Krugman is spot on in describing the overt corruption of Trump and his lackeys and the greedy cowardice of the Republican Party.
Rule One for any one engaged in public service (including President of the United States) is the avoidance of even the appearance of a conflict of interest. Trump has displayed his contempt for this standard of practice since the day he took office. More than a year ago the Chinese agreed to grant Trump 38 new trademarks across multiple personal businesses. Trump did an about face on his China policy shorty afterwards.
The disclosures about the use of Cohen's shadow company to launder money extorted from major corporations make it clear Trump is running a crime syndicate in the Oval Office for personal profit. Trump accepts bribery from any source without regard to national security. Apparently, that's not his business.
As with RussiaGate the complicit Republican leadership prefers to look the other way while they dismantle Social Security and Medicare. Trump is a major distraction as he disgraces the nation and fills his pockets.
Every person who cares about the future of our nation must work to get out the vote and throw these criminals and traitors out of our government across the country in 2018.
7
"An entire political party — a party that has historically wrapped itself in the flag and questioned the patriotism of its opponents — has become entirely complaisant in the possibility of raw corruption, even if it involves payoffs from hostile foreign powers."
That really says it all. They've revealed themselves to be a bunch of cowards that have no moral compass. They live and breathe to maintain power and enrich themselves. And of course they are addicted to the strongest drug known to man, namely the physical and psychological need to be re-elected.
6
you must be crazy, Krugman. that stuff could never happen here.
... could it?
1
While your question is almost rhetorical, it cries out for an answer.
YES. CHINA. BRIBED. TRUMP.
His ethics are non-existent. He believes that he was elected to run the govt like he ran his businesses. And that means it's all about him, making money for his family in any possible way, the rules be damned. Bankruptcy, bribes and corruption are integral to the way he has always done business and it would be folly to expect him to change. He encourages short-cuts and carelessness. There is nothing that can't be defended with, oh, I didn't know or some such.
He should have been arrested long ago and should be impeached now.
9
Anybody buying a ZTE phone ...is an idiot. You really shouldnt even be using an iphone/smartphone or whatever. You dont need a tinfoil hat to observe that those devices really ARE tracking devices used to spy on you.....no matter how much "net neutrality" or "transparency/privacy" nonsense they throw at you. And China does in fact track you.....its called MetaData.....and various govt agencies and corporate enterprisess use it to steer the mob one way or another......Arab Spring for example.......make a fortune off an IPO for a Donut Stand, another......crowd fund a smear campaign......it gets pretty nefarious. Ever thought that maybe the CHINESE are behind all the "russian hacker" rumors???
2
Please say it’s possible for any rep or Senator to be charge with accomplice after the fact to treason and obstruction of justice.
They chose to ignore Mueller’s reports and ran a ridiculous investigation.
The Senate is a tad better but shouldn’t they all be completely horrified by all of this.
This is beyond politics.
And as for the Roberts Court, shame should rest heavily on your shoulders and the death of our democracy should rest and over shadow your legacy. It all went to hell once you allowed a handful of corrupt billionaires to take over the globe with dictators and murderers.
Now we can’t even be assured that our vote counts because of gerrymandering. The nine of you are truly the only thing left keeping us a democracy with the rules of law.
4
Fox News must be proud of their boy. The man is only out for himself & family. Going to golf course this weekend will be another victory lap for him. American jobs & wages are not growing the way he promised, why is his base so blind? Save China First! Why did this country not hold this man to the same standards it has every president? Show tax returns & divest from all companies or not be sworn in! Bet the next democratic president (if there is one with dictatorship growing by day) will have hell to pay when republicans make all those demands...tax returns, DNA, birth certificate, divest all assets, no kids in office, etc., etc.
3
As an outsider watching the situation in the US very carefully, it seems obvious that the long predicted decline of the US is in full effect. Ironically it is off the back of a slogan of "Make America Great Again!"
Yes, you'll still have the firepower to blast everyone on the planet to hell for a long time to come, but do policy makers in the US really think that US military might is what made America great in the eyes of the rest of the world?
American greatness was a myth believed by both those in the US and those outside. "The land of the free"; "the American dream"; "leave no man behind"; "the beacon of democracy"; "justice for all". It may be well known for a long time in the US that these ideas are just myths, but for those on the outside looking in America was something to aspire to. That's soft power.
And now, within a short 18 months, the US has trashed it's already flagging reputation. The fact that Trump was elected was an awakening in itself. He is no statesman. He's covered in accusations. It was clear even before his election that he had little respect for democracy. And now, unsurprisingly, he undermines it every opportunity he has to further his own personal agenda and wealth.
But the fact that he is supported by so many US policy makers is the real shock. It's not just the lack of action, but the lack of criticism. Surely a democratically elected politician is meant to represent the public and defend the republic. Both need defending from Trump.
11
Rome does not pay traitors - the honorable Republic will die with the great McCain
2
It says a lot about where we've come to in a year and a half that we even have to entertain those questions. And it says even more that we have to consider that the answers are, "Yes." Gawd help us.
5
We are well down the slippery slope of big money corruption and the future demise of a democracy the size of the USA. This is what happens when tribalism dominates, truth become meaningless in comparison with monetary gain, and when leaders in every branch are willing to look the other way, refuse to confront wrong-doing of those "in their party", their tribe. Republicans and Democrats are both letting this happen. Doing nothing is unacceptable. But there it is. We may have arrived. The glaciers may all have melted. Money talks. Is it the only voice? Is it too late? Keep it coming Paul Krugman. The slope is getting steeper. 2018 may be our last chance, as a people, to stop the slide. Or not.
3
The notion that ZTE phones and Huawei phones are spying on Americans is ludicrous. You know who's spying on us? Google and Facebook. ZTE? What a joke!
Donald Trump has been busily illustrating the shortsightedness of the founders. They did not
forsee the election of a garden variety criminal backed by a political party of criminals, toadies, grifters, and racists. Not even treason in the name of profit can peel these leeches off the body politic.
6
How could you even suggest any hint of bribery or wrongdoing by Good President Trump. The leader of the most ........(fill in your own glowing adjective) administration in American history would never engage in any type of behavior that smacks of wrongdoing or corruption or bribery. The man is a billionaire (ask him, he wouldn't lie about such a thing). He has his own money. And I don't care what Michael Cohen says. The boss paid him back, fair and square. Rudy said so. And the Stormy Daniels thing. Well, a real man has needs, and Potus is nothing..... if not a real man. Just ask his wife. Ain't she hot! A real man doesn't get a woman like that by accident or being poor. And we know he's not poor, because he's so rich he doesn't want to embarrass us by releasing his tax returns. That makes him a good man, too. Just ask his Evangelical friends. They wouldn't support a bad man, would they? Nah. MAGA, Baby, MAGA!
2
Well done Michael!
MAGA, indeed!
2
We literally have a traitor in the White House. He would (and has) sold the country out for his own personal gain, and he and his mob will continue to do so, until he is stopped.
4
Congress is owned by billionaires. Period.
Such a disgusting bunch, the Republicans. MAGA supporters love 'em.
: (
The highway to h3!! is paved with good intentions.
Bush,Sr.....signed into law....and then sabotaged NAFTA.....favoring China Trade instead of Mexico Trade. All the Detroit Auto Workers got laid off anyway.....only now there were also 20million unemployed Mexicans driving north across the border........Nobody in DC cared. Then came Bill Clinton....with a cabal of over-educated fools from Harvard, Robert Rubin, being the exemplary case......once a currency trader advising everyone to invest in Pesos, now US Treas Secry......only to watch billions in investments evaporate.....solution?.....Clinton advocates and wins a Bailout(Debt forgiveness) for Mexico! Rubins foolish currency play is recovered and transfered to Chinese ExIm Companies.....the "illegal immigrant" pressure creeps NE-ward....two mexican restaurants in every outlieing NJ town, just beyond Metro NYC. It appears that Marvin Bush is in cahoots with Deng Shou Peng's son...billion dollar investments in China....NOT Mexico. Bush, Jr does nothing to shift back to NAFTA, heck the family's doing fantastic in China....just like ole great-great back in the days of the Opium Trade....btw ....where do all those oxycontin pills come from?
As usual, Krugman is just making up stuff. Is it any wonder that the public is worried about fake news?
Did the president of the United States just betray the nation’s security in return for a bribe from the Chinese government?
Doh
2
Trump would throw his own family to the wolves if there was something in it for him. He lies, cheats and hates all the time. He's repugnant and repulsive, and he's a miserable person. Would he take a bribe? Would he undermine National Security? Of course he would. Our security is already undermined and in danger because of him being president; a very useless and incompetent president. Trump is an embarrassment and a joke.
2
"Complaisant", i.e., willing to please others? Or did you mean to say "Complacent", i.e., unconcerned?
Seriously? What was your first clue? VOTE!
1
No coincidence. The Kushners and Trumps are moving fast now just in case poppa Trump gets thrown out of office. These folks are blatantly corrupt and don't care who knows it. Our country is now a major open embarrassment for all to see. Trump will go out of his way to take down as much of our nation as time will allow. He is vindictive enough to punish every American on his way out the door for the investigation into his Russian connections. Americans need to dismantle the Republican party so this never happens again. They are all complicit in what is happening to the erosion of what was once The United States of America.
2
Bingo especially since Trump knows he can not be indicted. He is living a kleptomaniacs dream. The Kushner's however will return to NYC after the mid-terms to escape the glare of DC. It won't help however as the US Atty SDNY will bering them to justice.
Does the headline pose a rhetorical question?
Saudi Arabia, through BCCI, bought Carter when they forgave the loan on his family farm while he was still governor. He sold the them AWACS while he was president then spent the rest of his life taking money to whitewash slave states in the Gulf and demonize Israel. Trump is awful, yes. New, no.
“Slavery bred in the poor white a dislike of Negro toil of all sorts. He never regarded himself as a laborer, or as part of any labor movement. If he had any ambition at all it was to become a planter and to own (pejorative). To these Negroes he transferred all the dislike and hatred which he had for the whole slave system. The result was that the system was held stable and intact by the poor white.”
~ W.E.B. Du Bois
Trump's base is just the modern incarnation of the poor, Southern white. How corrupt and vile the system is, is irrelevant. As long as they're held in greater esteem than non-whites, everything is fine.
2
Don't blame Trump. It's not his fault. "We the people" received fair warning- and ignored it. Stupid U.S. ...
paul ryan pay ryan paul ryan pay ryan...
Maybe it's time to start building a guillotine on the national mall ???
(That is to say since none of these guys follow the constitution)
1
HE said "TRAIN the swamp", not drain...
2
The paranoid right wing smell conspiracies everywhere.
Now the left follows...
1
Eroupe runs the usa he is doing what hes told also in all else matters
You should find the photos of Xi Jinping taken minutes after he met Trump early in 2017. Xi had the giddy look of a man who upon first meeting his enemy discovered that the man is a fool.
5
Did China Just Bribe Trump to Undermine National Security?
Obviously YES!!!
3
It's bad. Really bad.
The Chinese ZTE thing will do immeasurable harm to national security. Even more blatant and obvious is the Qatar deal: Trump using America's highest office to shake down a foreign government, inducing them to bail out his daughter and son-in-law from their really stupid real estate deal. He has no clue whatever what it means to act ethically.
We must get rid of this pack of idiots/morons/thieves ASAP if we are to have any hope of saving what's left of America's goodwill in the world.
2
It’s well past time to lower the boom on this con-man known as Trump and his crime family organization.
3
Trump is corrupted. How about Obama and Biden ? Hypocrisy!
“In December of 2013, for instance, Biden traveled to China for talks. He brought Hunter Biden along. While there, the senior Biden soft-pedaled China's clear aggression, and played up the bilateral trade partnership. Ten days after the trip concluded, China's central bank, the Bank of China, set up a $1 billion investment joint venture called Bohai Harvest RST. For the record, the "RS" referred to Biden's son's firm, Rosemont Seneca.
That's questionable enough.
But months later, in July 2014, Secretary of State John Kerry traveled to China, also for talks. Kerry talked little of China's clear aggression, but did conspicuously note that "China and the United States represent the greatest economic alliance trading partnership in the history of humankind."
He should know. In the ensuing months, Chinese government-linked firms took major stakes in several of the firms owned or controlled by Hunter Biden and Chris Heinz, and provided them with massive funding totaling billions of dollars. Nor is this the only scandal involving John Kerry.”
Source: https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/think-obama-administration...
New York Time is a Fake News Company ! Selected Reporting !
President Goldfinger loves only gold.
2
And the black man Trump wants most to surpass is ......drum roll.
Robert Mugabe. And he has done so.
2
A bribe for Trump and Fredo? Well, if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck.....
3
Jimmy Carter had to put his peanut farm in a blind trust.
3
"This is bigger than Watergate!!!"
"Did the president of the United States just betray the nation’s security in return for a bribe from the Chinese government?"
You mean, today?
Gosh, I just can't keep all this malfeasance and skullduggery straight. Trump, taking bribes? Who knew?
Only everybody.
His entire presidency has been nothing but one big smash and grab boondoggle. Emoluments, shmemoluments. Trump just can't stink of corruption enough. Every day, it's another lie, another cover up, another set of crimes against sanity from him.
One day, this puke-a-thon will be over. I just hope America is still around to enjoy it. The only thing I want is that, before the lights go out, I get to see Trump in an orange jump suit, behind bars, without his world class awful comb over flying all over the place. Even if only for a few seconds, that would a sight for sore eyes. And after watching this charade of incompetence and narcissistic anti-Americanism coming from him for so many years, my eyes are plenty sore.
5
Krugman and other New York Times columnists are fading off into fanciful fallacies. The Trump phenomenon has apparently deprived them of their senses as they reel from one foolish and unsupported column to the next. There is nothing here at all to sustain this column beyond the author's frenzied mind.
1
In just over one year, Trump has turned our America from a Democracy into a combined Corruptocracy & Sleazocracy!
If that is not Treason, what is?
3
Trump Indonesia Real Estate Project Gets Chinese Government Ally
New York Times article, May 15, 2018
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/15/world/asia/trump-hotel-china-indonesi...
1
Qatar and China bribes all in one week. We have traitors and criminals in this crooked administration that stole the election with Russian help but our political system has broken down. Now, we cannot get rid of these parasites and roaches.
2
This behavior doesn't "border on treason. It is treason.
4
You sound tired. I know I am, but I will vote!
2
Trump and family are pimping America.
4
Of course Trump wants to save Chinese jobs! America First!! What??!
2
Everyday is a horror show with these “animals” in the White House circus.
1
You mean the way dozens of countries bribed Secretary of State Clinton with donations to the Clinton Foundation?
Sad, the fact is that any intelligent voter knew this. Don the con. But watch Fox news and you don't hear any of this. So when you tell your republican friends the facts, they think you are fake news, crazy and just hate Trump. We should investigate Fox.
There is no longer a republican party, only a group of power hungry sycophants with no moral values, whatsoever.
2
Clearly yes. The complicit Red Party will do nothing for fear of the angry base.
For god's sake please end this nightmare NYT.
Is anyone surprised? Really?
3
Paul Krugman, don't you dare stop writing. A light in the darkness...
3
the China Power Elite seem to understand that the American Leadership cannot ... simply cannot resist CASH. Remember when Al Gore got caught shuttling actual bags of cash to the DNC bank accounts just before re-election time? They simply gave the cash back....after Clinton and Gore were re-elected....and then hired Chinese firms to run Govt computer networks at Los Alamos and Qualcom and a decieptful joint venture called GlobalStar.......suddenly China was developing its own advanced nukes, missiles, satellites, and wireless phone technologies.............
Of course he did. A more relevant column would have been why Trump waited this long to arrange a China.
1
I for one have had ENOUGH!! This has got to stop. This man and his political party are a disaster for America and they must go! They hate America, they hate democracy, they hate working people. Simply put, they are traitors.
3
Why is this not the biggest news story of the day?
4
How fascinating that Krugman, now just embarrassing himself with this ideologically motivated drivel, had absolutely nothing to say about the corruption associated with the Clinton Foundation.
This is a story that should be on the front page with a banner headline. Agent Orange is suddenly concerned about Chinese jobs? Really? and not just any Chinese jobs but those at ZTE, a company which did, as Professor Krugman makes clear, undermine American security. And, amazingly, his concern manifests itself just in time for the Chinese to finance a project of his in Indonesia. Wonder of wonders.
The Saudi blockade has indeed hurt Qatar, thanks to the bromance between MBS and Clueless Kushner. Now that the Qataris have seen the error of their ways and kicked in to save 666 5th, that blockade may be lifted. Again, wonder of wonders.
It's imperative to take the House in 2018. These matters are sufficient for impeachment, notwithstanding what Mueller will report.
2
innuendo is so hard to argue against. Any word on Qatar paying for access to the Clinton Foundations
Certainly this information has been, or is being, closely studied by Mr. Mueller & Co. Surely the NYT has received permission to make this public. If not, then there isn't any reason to continue to have faith in Mr. Mueller's investigation, the integrity of the NYT. or the Rule of Law. Terrorist attacks in the US are demoralizing blood baths, but survivable, except, repeat, except when they are instigated by the terrorist-like actions of Donald Trump, or any other such immoral person who could be elected to the supreme office of The President of the United States.
2
This a man who during a debate with Hillary said "that makes me smart" about not paying his income taxes. Also, Trump's history of bankruptcy and shady business practices has for years belied his basic dishonesty. And guess what? He was never arrested for it and was still elected president of our country! It's just so hard to read articles like this with no solutions at hand.
1
trump whined about how unfair Chinese trade practices are before the election. Now he’s more concerned about Chinese jobs than American jobs. Hey trumpoholics, you took the wrong pill.
4
View from Asia
Utter nonsense. China -> State Owned -> Tied to the Trump Organization.
China presumably means Xi ? If real it would have to be approved on the highest level.
State owned -> there are thousands of companies in the the State has ownership, or part of it.
"Tied to" What does this exactly mean
Reality is that the lifting of sanctions on ZTE is a negotiation chip.
All else is a conspiracy - with no facts worthy of a newspaper
1
Due to his refusal to divest, Trump became the most corrupt president in US history on the day he was inaugurated. Virtually daily actions since then have only reinforced and expanded his utter corruption. Every single person who supports trump in any way proves themselves supportive of that corruption. Shame on them.
6
Good work as usual, Mr Krugman, you truly are a man of deep thought, thanks all the same, Mike Liston
1
Who would have though the party that was so indignant about flag burning would be will to let there leader and his family benefit from bribes. I never would have thought the GOP would become a party of traitors.
4
We are in big trouble with no hope in sight. Better wake up people.
3
Back in the before the 2016 election, Trump once crowed something to the effect that he would be "the first presidential candidate in history to make money off his campaign." And now, according to this piece and others cited in the comments, he appears to be systematically turning the American presidency itself into a family profit center.
Look at not just the ZTE deal, but the blockade of Qatar. The Times just reported that Kushner is close to finally getting a bailout out on his disastrous 666 5th Avenue deal. I wonder how long it will take Trump to find some reason to dissolve the Qatari blockade after that? And Trump himself just reported he made $40 million on his D.C. hotel--this despite the fact that, according to earlier WaPo reporting, it is half empty. Does anyone really think those who do patronize the place are willing to pay half again as much as the Hay-Adams House just for the amenities?
And walking away from the Iran deal? After Congress hamstrung Trump on getting rid of the Magnitsky sanctions, how better to repay Putin for releasing the hacked DNC emails than something dramatically increasing the price of oil--on which Putin and his oligarchs are so dependent.
And to stay in power himself, all Trump has to do is call immigrants "animals" and Nazi-flag-wavers "good people" and create new slurs for Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton. He must be laughing all the way t the bank.
6
The Republican elephant should be fired and replaced by pigs at a trough. Truth in symbolism at the very least, if in nothing else the GOP does.
8
Also,
Pulling out of Iran deal has increased oil prices, is it. to help Saudi Aramco IPO. MBS is Kushers pal.
3
The US Government is a subsidiary of Trump Inc. Instead of Luca Brasi, Trump has the US Military.
3
The problem is worst than we think
If Trump and family are engaging in pay to play foreign policy then they are making lots of demands
Every foreign country (friend or foe) has intelligence agents embedded among their diplomatic contingencies
These agents are recording and storing evidence of these quid-pro quo transactions
Hence, every country that has made a deal has potentially damning evidence that can be used to blackmail the president at the most opportune time
Hence, Our government is now at the mercy of a litany unscrupulous governments who will at some point use their newly valuable intelligence to exact something more valuable that the hundreds of millions given to the Trump family......... our democracy
2
Republicans from Trump on down are in a public corruption feeding frenzy. They're looting the nation while the looting is good.
2
Will someone please introduce the Corrupt Political Parties Act of 2018? Oh right, G.O.P. will just kill it in committee.
1
Where was Krugman's concern when the Clinton Global Initiative was peddling influence around the world (including to the Saudis)?
Trump and the Clintons are dirty, Krugman is a partisan hack.
Thanks GOP. Is it worth it? What price is too high to cower and protect your GOD Trump? Clearly, our cyber security is not a price high enough. What is wrong with you? I suppose cult members know not what they do.
1
The answer to the question posed by the article's title is yes!
1
To answer the question in the article title: yes.
2
At what point did the entire republican party decide to become traitors?
Vote them all out.
2
"Did China Just Bribe Trump to Undermine National Security?"
Or perhaps the Democrats bribed you to undermine Trump?
Given your enormous anti-Trump and anti-Republican bias, you are no longer a reliable source of advice.
The Chinese government decided, after aggressive acting out by Donald J. Trump, to give $500 million in loans to a deal that will specifically enrich Donald J. Trump.
No wonder a mere 13 percent of Americans consider Trump honest and trustworthy. Trump is a shameless grifter.
With this quid pro quo, Trump will pocket over $4 million in management fees, licensing--- and who knows what other "incentives" that follow---as he corruptly continues to violate the emoluments clause.
Someone who left his immediate circle complained about what he saw and experienced----> Rex Tillerson warned of "growing crisis of integrity and ethics."
Stand up, GOP House and Senate. You will otherwise be part of this corruption! You are on thin ice as it is. Corruption clouds and haunts your party.
4
If it walks like a duck.
2
But of course (among Republicans, at least), none dare call it treason.
4
Their entire signature achievement, the tax cut for the megarich (and for the mega churches) is pure graft, with bare minimum dilution for appearance purposes.
Their frenetic pursuit of deconstruction of the state is graft: no environmental protection or inspection anymore, so colluders and polluters can become even more surreal profit looters; no oversight or inspection of for-profit fraud in for-profit education; selling out public land so their rich buddies can exploit and destroy it; and so on and so forged.
The disappearing of the larger part of the Suspicious Activity Reports revealing direct bribes to the Trump admin via Trump's fixer is graft trying to hide the graft.
And now 500 million from China's Ka-ching Ping to the Trump admin, and Qatar seeing itself forced to save China Bag Barbie and Back-Channel Ken Kushner-Trump from the yuge financial noose they bafflingly stupidly put around their own necks.
Still they utter their incredible lies from between make-believe maybelline lipstick on a crooked croc, as if they'd drain the swamp and bring peace to the Middle East. Yet the tearing up of the Iran deal and the transferring of the embassy to Jerusalem are also nothing else than graft gifts to buddies Adelson and Putin.
It's a miracle they don't spontaneously combust into dust, crumbling apart for the sheer discrepancy abyss between internally known truth and spoken lie.
No wonder they never remember and serially take the fifth, once they get real questions.
2
Why the surprise? Trump will do anything to make a buck off the office of the President. He does not care. He thinks he can do anything without paying the consequences. Trump is a common thug without a conscience. This is not an opinion, it’s the sum total of a known historical record. We can only hope that like the fate of the dapper Don (Gotti) Mueller puts this crook where he belongs.
4
As ee we are at conspiracy stories
Did Ukraine oligarch with links to Trump bribe Mr. Krugman in 2017 ?
The Trump connection
Mr. Trump’s appearance was broadcast at the Yalta European Strategy conference. Through his own foundation, Mr. Pinchuk sponsors the affair, which typically attracts well-known former Western leaders like former Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain and former President Bill Clinton
The Krugman connection
The list of invitees included , prominently, Paul Krugman, handsomely paid for his appearance. Mr Krugman was invited by Mr. Pinchuk not for his economic wisdom, but for his position as prominent columnist in the NY Times in an attempt to write more kindly about Mr. Pinchuk.
More recently, Mr. Pinchuk has been investigated by Mr. Mueller
"Mueller Investigating Ukrainian’s $150,000 Payment for a Trump Appearance"
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/us/politics/trump-mueller-ukraine-vic...
As to Mr. Krugman's time in Kiev
He was even whisked to his favorite Friday evening entertainment.
https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/friday-night-music-dakhabra...
What's good for Donald Trump is good for the USA. Ethics 101.
So many witches, so little time.
3
How can so many Americans be so blind to Donald Trump's corruption?
4
If you are a patriot, you know what you have to do in November.
2
It's a smash and grab. Trump's insane greed knows no bounds. He's never been held accountable for his life of crime and fraud, now that he is President, he is stuffing his loot bag before the cops close in.
2
And now Qatar just bribed him.
2
When Trump was running, and after he won, I was positive that he would turn his advantage into a four year shopping spree. His plan was, and is, to milk this country for all it's worth. He is first and foremost a huckster. How he fooled so many is still a wonder. Why he continues to fool so many is a crying shame.
In the next election, vote against every Republican candidate in every race in every part of the country. Only when there's a complete purge will the Republican party be able to function again for the good of the country.
1
Sounds about right, Paul Krugman.
2
The Republicans won’t do a thing about this except retort that the Clinton Foundation is more corrupt.
3
Trump is having new merchandise made with MCGA logos.
1
Who says Trump has no real friends? If you’re a first-rate global thug (for example, China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, the Philippines’s Rodrigo Duterte, Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Egypt’s Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, or Cambodia’s Hun Sen), and you scratch Trump’s back, then you’re invited to the Trump party, with a golden ticket. No longer do we have a U.S. president; we have a mercenary-in-chief. No longer do we have a GOP-controlled Congress; we have a den of thieves, with no honor or patriotism.
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” (Abraham Lincoln)
We should remember Lincoln when we protest and when we vote. Otherwise, there won’t be anything left of America but a distant memory.
3
When the world goes up in nuclear flames, who's going to care?
1
Where has the interest of "All Americans" gone. Gone to the oligarchy trading of decency and democracy ........to the almighty dollar. God, please save us.
1
Vote them out.
2
Can the United States join Melania in the hospital? It appears to be a safe place to hide for a while.
4
Our military industrial complex is not corrupt enough? How about the F-35? Our wounds are self inflicted not inflicted by the Chinese. Of course Trump and his relatives and attorney are sleazy but how about the think tanks and white shoe law firm lobbyists on K street with brief cases full of Saudi or Israeli cash being carried to both the Repubs and Dems. Trump's crime is that he is a low class behaving, rude New Yorker with no ethics. Far better were he a Harvard Law graduate with no ethics....maybe not.
Every time you shake a tree near the Trump's another foreigner with cash in hand falls out.
3
Despite endless hearings costing millions of dollars both of the Clintons were fully exonerated on ALL the charges insinuated by the Repubs.
Yet here we have Trump, with concrete, proven corruption and the Repubs spend their time wondering if the Clinton emails should be investigated AGAIN.
Republicans are the definition of Corruption. They have nothing to offer the country, no ideas, no solutions to anything EXCEPT how to get more money into the pockets of their billionaire masters, and therefore into their own bank accounts.
Of course, anyone voting for a Republican is also participating in this corruption, so are themselves utterly corrupt. Shame on them.
1
Is this an emolument from a foreign state?
2
you betcha. Creates jobs in China in exchange
for funding of his Indonesia golf course and
hotel
I love the smell of corruption in the morning.
3
"Borders on treason????" (Sure about that "borders" part Mr. Krugman? Some things are just plain, simple and clear.)
It's just "business" Trump style. That's why he was so appalled that CIA/FBI investigators wouldn't pull back from looking at Russia election interference and possible (likely? certain?) collusion by his campaign. In his world, facts, fairness, truth have no meaning unless they are useful to achieve objectives. The "deal" is whatever the heck one can twist under the table favors to.
America can no longer claim to be anything other than "like every other country," thanks to Don Jr., Don Sr., Mnuchin (did you see the brands my wife's wearing today?), Pruitt (yeah I bought a house with a lobbyist? so what if he put up all the money? we bought it together!), and their ilk. FIFA collusion? Sure, why not? If it gets us the World Cup, who need complain? Talk about an economic jump start! (When you add in the bribes, it's even more of a kicker.)
Here's an idea: you know that lawyer who was caught on video railing against workers for speaking Spanish? find him a prime spot. He's a great cultural fit for this administration. And he has the histrionics and lack of propriety that is essential to find a spot in the Trump firmament.
He probably already knows Giuliani, who BTW, is doing more to solidify Trump's defense against misuse of campaign funds, fear of impeachment, etc., than anyone or team to date. Rudy may be slippery. But he's good. Watch out justice!
1
Words escape me.
What was once "the arsenal of Democracy," what was once a land that said, in Emma Lazarus' immortal words, "give me your tired, your poor, the huddled masses yearning to be free," has become a state that is one half fascist and one half plain old mafia don.
Trump's bluster and barbarism reminds me of Mussolini so much that I think we should all shout "Il Duce," when we see him.
And as for the GOP, which, as Krugman rightfully said, used to say that the Democrats weren't patriotic, no punishment is too severe for them. They don't care a whit for America. They are purely parastic.
Do you remember that when Obama spoke before A joint session of Congress, a southern reactionary from South Carolina shouted, "You lie." When Trump speaks, I want Democrats to stop being such cowards and to shout Traitor.
But I fear that the Dems won't clearly articulate Trump's treason and that Middle America will think the Dems are simply trying to exploit his hanky panky with Stormy Daniels. Most of the people have a very vague and tenuous grasp of current affairs, history and just about every thing else.
Think America is too good to go rotten? There was a time when Germany -- home of Goethe, Shiller and Beethoven -- was seen as the most civilized place on earth. In the Jewish community, Russian Jews envied the status, money and relatively peaceful lives of German Jews in Wilhelmine Germany. And look what the Germans turned into. America, shape up.
4
Is there any information the author provided here to support his theory that is not already known to the FBI or CIA, or really, not known to anyone who reads NYT? If the author does believe he has valuable information, perhaps he should contact Mr. Mueller instead of sharing his tip in public for the enemies to see. Or else, this is just yet another conspiracy theory on national security matters from a leftist Nobel Laureate in Economics. Not that I would vote for Trump.
Like it matters. All the President’s bovine racist supporters care about is that Trump is fighting to keep the white man on top. So a little corruption, in their minds, is a small price to pay to maintain white supremacy. Also, it’s not like any of the Evangelicals that support the President have morals. Their’s is a religion built on greed, bigotry and intolerance not morality.
The Times must run daily headlines "WHEN WILL TRUMP REVEAL ALL OF HIS TAX RETURNS?" or this tragedy will continue unchecked!
1
President Trump ought to be embarrassed and ashamed. But he probably is not.
But what is wrong with the rest of the GOP? They purport to have morals and ethics.
1
The answer to your question of course is “yes”. The Republican Party is the party of treason. Money is above everything else for Republicans. That and voter ignorance will be the undoing of this country in short order.
1
I believe Trump and his GOP enablers were just accused of Treason.
1
This is how America ends.
1
The GOP is the party of treason and their silence speaks volumes. Each and every one of them needs to be voted out of office. If not, the corruption will calcify and we'll become the dictatorship they so richly desire.
1
Thanks, Paul, for bringing this matter to light. And may the N.Y.T. keep ffodlights on corruption.
Brecht knew Trump would be coming:
Oh, the shark has pretty teeth, dear
And he shows them pearly white.
Just a jack knife has Macheath, dear
And he keeps it out of sight.
When the shark bites with his teeth, dear
Scarlet billows start to spread.
Fancy gloves, though, wears Macheath, dear
So there's not a trace of red.
On the side-walk Sunday morning
Lies a body oozing life;
Someone's sneaking 'round the corner.
Is that someone Mack the Knife?
Yes, of course, Trump and his family are in on the take. Qatar bailing out Jared's bad office building buy, and China. Trump would sell his mother, wife or daughter for money. That is obvious. Now, we have embraced money as the end and only end to doing anything. It is now our God. The evangelists have already replaced their God with money. It is in all their doctrines now. The more money you have, the more God has graced you. Trump is a God to them, because he will become so much more wealthy through stealing from the U.S. Government.
1
More evidence that the Republican Party is the most successful criminal organization of modern times. US and Russian mafia don't come close. And we should understand that that is all it is, for it really no longer exists for any purpose other than to advance various criminal schemes. Pete McGuire, Atlanta
Remember that it is now acceptable to suggest locking up your political opponents. You can even chant it at campaign rallies. Let’s all try it together: “Lock HIM up!, Lock HIM up!,...”. (Repeat ad infinitum)
1
Don't you know anything about how economics works?
Oh, you're that Paul Krugman. So what? Nobel Prizes are popularity contests--not reflective of genuine knowledge or contributions. Or is that only the Peace Prize?
Nice conspiracy theory.
No question about it.
Trump has never met a dollar that he did not covet. Years ago, a local rag here, the superbly sublime Spy Magazine, proved that point, by sending checks to Trump himself. At first they were a fairly reasonable amount. And of course, without questioning their origins, they were cashed.
But then, Spy upped the ante. They kept sending Trump not his business personal checks in increasingly diminished amounts. They wanted see how low they, and Trump, would go before he couldn't be bothered cashing. Spy stopped when it got to, wait for it, thirteen cents. Yes, you read that correctly. A check in the amount of thirteen thin pence was cashed.
Could such a selfish greedy person like take a bribe from China, Russia, whomever? Does Trump not crave every cent he can get his small-fingered hands on? If you think not, you're a bigger fool than you know.
DD
Manhattan
1
Vote, Americans. Vote. Your country needs you.
The Trump family are gangsters and Republicans are their gang.
It is naive to expect honesty or patriotism from any of them.
1
The fact that you even wrote that headline shows how far the US has fallen over the last decade.
The current situation in the White House reminds me of Pope Leo X when he was elected to Pope in 1513. True to his Medici heritage, Leo is alleged to have said, "Since God has given us the papacy, let us enjoy it." I can hear a similar comment from the current occupant of the White House. True to his Trumpian heritage, I can hear him say, "Since the Electoral College has given me the Presidency, I'm going to monetize it to the very end." After four centuries, grifters still grift. However, one of the great families that supported the Renaissance can be forgiven more than a person who thinks refinement and elegance consists of a gold toilet.
1
The Grifters on Parade just want a piece of the action!
Boot ‘em out.... every single one of them. Vote, and make sure your family and friends do the same.
Mr. Krugman, you say at the very end that what drives the GOP to drop all ethical concerns is partisan advantage, but, that is not the bottom. The partisan advantage equals money, side deals, kick backs, quid-pro-quo’s, and political contributions to stay in office.
1
I don’t know if Trump was bribed or not, but he did the right thing. The sanctions on ZTE were a far greater threat to US national security in the long run than ZTE trading with Iran or North Korea, both bit players in the grand scheme of things. Such an action invites retaliation against US companies and will only spur powerful foreign countries like China to seek greater self-sufficiency and less reliance on US technology and finance in the future. If we want to keep being the leader of the global commons, we can’t use that leadership to exclude other countries into developing their own alternative commons.
Why did Trump place the sanctions in place in the first place? Did his admin's analysis not suggest the possible impact on ZTE before they decided on the sanctions?
"Did China Just Bribe Trump to Undermine National Security?"
If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck (and does all the things the duck has repeatedly done!), then is probably IS a duck!
AKA bribery, extortion, and illegal kick-backs!
10
HOW can he get away with this? WHY are we letting him? WHERE are the Republicans?
It's all blatant. It's all sickening. He and his grifter Crime Family are destroying America.
Republicans? You are going to be voted OUT in November.
7
The majority leaders of the Senate and the House have probably had a number of incentives steered in their direction also. The rot runs deep, and the stench of corruption is growing on a daily basis.
1
Let's just get it over with and divide our country into two. The GOP deserve every red voter and every red state they've bought, fooled, corrupted and frightened into voting for them.
8
Where is the outrage?
4
Remember when Jimmy Carter was forced by Republicans to sell his family peanut farm lest he profit from the sale of peanuts after he became President? Where are those "honorable " Republicans now?
9
Profiting from the sales of peanuts?
To those who think this deal is purely coincidence, I say that “ there are none so blind as he who will not see,”. Also, I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I would consider selling to you.
3
This latest bribe, from China, should be the wake up call to all citizens in the Formerly Known As the US. This is not an awakening to bribery, extortion or influence peddling in general, no, this has been obvious for some time. This is an awakening to the reality that the Formerly Known As the US, or FKAUS, is no longer a Sovereign Nation. Both local Oligarchs and foreign Oligarchs have more power and influence than the people sitting in our House and Senate. Some of the people sitting in these chambers are, like the rest of us, are just waiting for the trickle to come down to them. They jockey for their seats to keep a closr position to the fawcet which is controlled by the local Oligarchs. On the international level the Oligarchs all vie for position to pick the bones of a dead Idea, the Idea that Men of Equality can manage their own affairs. Where once the FKAUS had a Department of State the Crime family of Squatters now residing in the White House runs the Stateless Department of Finance, which is basically running a silent auction for it`s own gain. We have a chance to change this in the next election but if we don`t get this done it will be to late by the time our next symbolic Presidential Election occurs. Our fate will be cast in cement and our future will be a wet one.
3
Thank for calling it like it is.
1
This is not new news, to be redundant.
I have suspected the Donald Trump is a traitor almost since he declared his candidacy. This is one more piece of evidence. If he is, I would hope that at some point he will be indicted, tried, convicted, sentenced and executed.
Dan Kravitz
5
Mr. Krugman characterizes President Trump China negotiations on behalf of the United States as bribery based on absolutely nothing. If Mr. Krugman wants to know what bribery looks like consider the case of Russia gaining significant control of US Uranium through actual bribery including millions of dollars “donated” to the Clinton Foundation.
It is my understanding that the law required governmental review of the proposed free enterprise transaction. The State Department was one of nine departments that were required to review the proposed transaction. All nine OK'd the sale.
I also understand the uranium cannot legally leave our country without further review and approvals.
https://www.factcheck.org/2017/10/facts-uranium-one/
That was debunked a long time ago, but the zombies love that lie because it makes it easier to eat the brains of the gullible.
1
Mr. Krugman's May 18, 2018 entry into a historic book called: "History of a Corrupt President and the Complicit Republican Party: A Fact Based Parable."
Many of the comment posters have noted the Qatar matter that sounded like policy but was clearly retribution against Qatar until Qatar buckled-under. Now we have the China matter.
Imagine all the ones we don't know about...no wonder trump is now squealing that the Justice Department is "framing him" (with his own unforced errors)!
4
Thanks to Krugman for shining some light on this, but the basic facts of an apparent bribe have been reported for days now, by Agence-France Press in several South Asia outlets, and covered by The National Review (!), and in HuffPo, and in a couple of opinion pieces in the Washington Post. I'm probably missing other sites.
Why is this not a straight news story in The New York Times? It defies explanation. If the facts show the appearance of a bribe is incorrect, then for goodness's sake, in a context where the appearance of a bribe of the POTUS by China has been reported, that's news! If the appearance of a bribe has not been refuted, that's even bigger news!
Really, what the heck is going on with the Times?
5
Jeeze ! And George H. W. Bush thought the U.S. had prevailed over the USSR back in the 80s ! What a come-back. Thanks, Donald.
1
And the biggest problem of all: what should be a headline news is a barely visible commentary.
6
“But today’s Republicans have made it clear that they won’t hold Trump accountable for anything, even if it borders on treason.”
Q.E.D.
For whatever reason--his inexperience, stupidity, hubris, corrupt intent, paranoia, dementia, kompromat, megalomania, etc., when foreign leaders look at Trump, they see an easy mark.
1
Don't stop firing Paul. This man's moochie reach knows NO bounds... How could so many American's have made such a horrible mistake. God help us!
Trump was anticipated a while ago:
"When the time comes to hang the capitalist West, the American businessman will sell us the rope." - Nikita Khruschev
4
And you're surprised because.......?
From the moment he announced he's been selling out this country for his own enrichment and allowed his cronies to do the same. National Security bores him, especially when there's money to be made.
1
i think congress is all on the take, too
1
Yes they did! And Jared used the WH connections to bail out his family and lord knows what other corrupt garbage is going on. Trump and his minions really are a crime family and the inability of the Republicans to be honest about this is sickening. But their "ends justify the means" attitude says it all.
3
We haven’t had a president free of corruption since Jimmy Carter, before I was even born. Trump doesn’t even try to hide it. He is actually proud.
1
Republicans who fail to address Trump’s corrupt behaviors in office from using his position to advance his own businesses, including running them while in office, to using foreign policies to bail out his in-laws, to appointing the most corrupt people to high office since Harding seems to consider political power indispensable and all the checks upon government by upholding the laws and practices followed to limit misuse of power to be expendable. The conservatives appeal to free the people from excessive government is nothing more than eliminating checks upon raw and brutal conduct by the rich, powerful, and with least conscience. They seem to think that they can live free themselves if they can just do whatever that they can with impunity.
This is naked corruption no matter how you look at it.
2
"Which was why many eyes turned to Indonesia, where a Chinese state-owned company just announced a big investment in a project in which the Trump Organization has a substantial stake.
I heard it's worth $500M to Trump. Be that as it may why in the world is this not front page news? Year in and year out we read important news in the NYTs op-ed section without a wiff in the news section, what gives? Why isn't the Times all over this story? Trump is backing a company that is spying on us and it does not rate a front page story? Maybe I just missed it.
I've been watching MSNBC recently where NYTs reporters often take part but my point here is that is seems that TV news is often ahead of the press. This just seems wrong though I have long noticed that the Times mysteriously ignores news items that I think are important and interesting. Is the Times going to contribute to the death of reading coupled with an ignorant electorate in its apparent lazy approach to producing a NEWS paper? I ask because it does not seem that the average news fan is getting an accurate understanding. Could articles be more informative, and clearer? It appears that MSNBC is gaining in market share and one can see why. They actually explain things and interview (non-anonymously) people involved.
2
What's getting lost in all this is that there are *numerous* other countries who actually throw their presidents out of office, and very often into jail, for levels of corruption not even close to this.
South Korea, Brasil, and Peru are a few recent examples.
2
This opinion piece is light on facts and heavy on innuendo, add to it the shifting of the narstive, it's a liberal "I hate Trump" letter.
What should happen in a democracy when bribery and treason are adjective used in referring to the head of government? What happens in the USA? Fake news or fake democracy?
3
Sure looks that way but the GOP and FOX NOISE could't care less. Perhaps it was the other way around. Fund my Indonesian Hotel and the heat is off.
1
Oh come on NYT. Is there any doubt about the selling of trump across the planet? And please don't ignore the whole family and their deals and self promotion. All complicit in all possible ways. Divest assets? Haven't heard about anything except the constant exploitation of trump "deals." Please continue to expand All investigative efforts. Nothing to see here?
1
America, and the GOP especially, is now "married to the mob." Trump has turned the government into a criminal enterprise, and the GOP is fine with that.
The core value of conservatism is selfishness. It has found its apotheosis in Donald J. Trump.
4
"[E]ven if it borders on treason." Trump crossed that border a long time ago. He has done and is doing everything he can to assist Russia; that's why Russia wanted him in, and its investment is paying off handsomely.
1
If this were the Clintons, say of a speaking fee for a speech to a Russian bank for $500,000, you would be saying that there is no proof of a quid pro quo. When you can start applying your standards objectively, I'll consider your arguments.
1
Simple solution, vote EVERY Republican out of office at every level. Get rid of them all.
2
Maybe we'll find the truth if the Democrats get control of one of the oversight committees after November, but given the disgraceful cave in the Senate on the torture queen, I'm not hopeful.
2
"An entire political party — a party that has historically wrapped itself in the flag and questioned the patriotism of its opponents — has become entirely complaisant in the possibility of raw corruption, even if it involves payoffs from hostile foreign powers."
This in not mere corruption, it is treason. Federal guidelines if found guilty of treason maximum penalty is death.
"Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States."
...shall suffer death....
However maximum penalty for corruption is 15 years or 20 years if the conviction falls under the RICO stature.
Trump if found guilty for treason, may become eligible for the electric chair (or lethal injection). I, off course, I am against the death penalty for any any crime.
Trump and the GOP seem more like an organized crime syndicate than a political party and they do not have nations best interest in mind. The GOP partisan politics wrapped in religion, hatred and the flag is the most threatening movement the USA has ever encountered,
3
It's time to stop pussyfooting around. Lies are not inaccuracies. They're lies. And selling out your country's security for a few dollars doesn't border on treason. It is treason. And Republicans won't hold Trump accountable even if he commits treason.
7
This alone is impeachment-worthy.Bring it on!
1
The unhinged do weird things. Trump the Weird flails and creaks, flaps and tweets. His base and China can't get enough of his weird.
1
Thanks for using Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford for comparisons. The Barack Obama one was getting tiresome since no Donald Trump supporter consider him as legitimate.
2
Apparently, one of the results of electing Trump President is giving him use of US foreign policy as bargaining chips in deal making for personal enrichment. Wonder who Trump used as bagman for dealings with Saudi Arabia and, possibly, Israel? The appearance of impropriety itself is damning. In order for Trump's actions not to be more nefarious than improper, one would have to believe that Donald Trump is such an ethical person that he has demanded that his family and business associates not discuss business with him in private. And, if you believe that...
3
I agree that our disgust should be placed squarely on the GOP especially the leadership in the House and Senate. They have been out of power for so long that they would look away if their president was committing treason. Where is the out rage, the demand for investigations into the president and his family for literally betraying this country. The Senate never came to the defense of Senator McCain when the White House staffer made her now infamous quote "he's dying anyway". These same people will come to his funeral and say what a great man he was and how they will miss him. Where were you when he was alive and thought you were his friends. If the GOP won't stand up for a friend I guess they won't stand up to defend their own country. This is the saddest commentary anyone could make about a political party that has come to an end all for the lust of power.
1
Professor Krugman,
Didn't you know MAGA = Massive America Give Aways.
3
How many Republican office holders owe their jobs to the Russian oligarchs' donations to the NRA which funded their campaigns?
And American oligarchs have contributed to "think tank" front organizations like the Federalist Society and contributed opaquely to 501(c)4 so called "charitable organizations."
The results: Citizens United and the foundation of lies upon which the Republican Party is built.
5
Thank you Paul Krugman for having the intelligence, the insight and the intestinal fortitude to tell the truth.
We are indeed witnessing an entire political party – the Republican Party who are acting as co-conspirators in defrauding and subverting our federal government and our democracy. They support a president who has already been compromised by one hostile foreign power, namely Russia and now this president is about to engage in another act that will compromise our country even further. Very few journalists writing for the Times will go so far as to be as bold as you have Dr. Krugman, because nobody wants to call these horrible acts by their true name. And for those of you who don't know what this is called , it's a simple seven letter word: TREASON .
4
Yes they did. Anything else? Do republicans care?
Not a jot.
2
The last sentence of this article has been true since Bill Clinton was elected. It's what makes me tired of current-day Republicans - including several right-of-center columnists at this paper - who are astonished that their party has arrived at this point of bottomless immorality driven by unlimited self-interest. YOU MADE THIS. YOU MADE TRUMP. You made intellectual leaders of an oxycontin addict (Limbaugh), a guy who left college to major in coke (Beck), a forced phone-sex enthusiast (O'Reilly), an economist who can't do math (Paul Ryan), a moralist whose daughter can't stop getting pregnant (Palin), and basically any other unqualified thinker you could find, and you followed into a cognitive vacuum that allowed you to elect a guy who cheats at everything - business, parenthood, marriage, speaking - the leader of the free world. Thanks, Republicans, for an absolute moral vacuum. Can't wait for you tell the rest of us what else we're doing wrong.
6
I assume the headline is a rhetorical question - but just in case- the answer is obviously yes
2
It’s time to put on my red “Make America Great Again” cap, made in China by small children for pennies, go to a Trump rally and chant “Nobel, Nobel, Nobel” for the man who brought back coal and fights for the common man.
2
Good job, as usual, Paul. Pelosi, Schumer, and their followers need to come clean: even without conclusions from Mueller, 45 should have been impeached yesterday. But, it appears 45 is right: as long as he religiously maintains white (economic) supremacy, he can indeed go out on 5th Ave. and openly, and without consequence, commit murder.
And democrats are accused of being "globalist"?
1
Until the Kochs and Adelsons of the world wake up and smell the covefe, we are stuck on our own petards.
It’s their country too. They should be publicly shunned until they reject Trump.
2
I think you just broke Betteridge's law which states that when a headline is phrased as a question, the answer is no.
The real question is, why do we expect such a low standard of behavior for Republicans/Conservatives?
Is it just that we recognize their greed and hypocrisy, and expect it as an integral part of them, so when it occurs, it engenders just shoulder shrugs and loud yawns?
After all, except in these pages, and in those of a few other reliably lefty publications and media outlets, the situation Krugman talks about here has been met with little shock or approbation. Imagine the widespread screaming and fainting hysterics that would ensue if a Democrat/Progressive were accused of the very same things.
Have we become so cynical that we can't punish malfeasance because it's just looked upon as an inevitable part of certain people's essence? Is our attitude now that we can't yell at the scorpion for stinging us, because, well, it's a scorpion, and that's what they do, and what else can we expect, and it's our fault for going near it in the first place? (Sounds a lot like masochism to me.)
Seriously, how do we get the large numbers of people who have apparently been poleaxed into numbness by the constant barrage to actually give a whatever, and maybe try to enforce some reasonable expectations of our government? (Like, perhaps, recognizing there ARE differences among politicians--they are not all one big morass--and voting accordingly?)
If we can't figure this out, we might as well throw in the towel.
4
Senate majority leader McConnel and House speaker Ryan could have stopped this tradegy from occuring on any number of occasions over the last 2 years or so but they chose not to do so. Why? The damage that is being inflicted upon the status and prosperity of this nation has been readily predictable and is now irrefutably becoming fact. What benefit is bestowed upon these two men for their decision to turn a blind eye to what is going on?
Where are the cries of "Lock him up! Lock him up!" for our cheap (well, maybe not cheap, at these price tags) grifter of a President?
2
About Qatar: Keep your eye on the ball. The quid-pro-quo may well be that the annual rent on the largest US military base in the Middle East, Al-Udeid Air Base, is located in Qatar.
The citizens in the US are paying for this Qatar money going to the Kushners....
Qatar money goes to Kushners, US/Pentagon money goes to Qatar, US Taxpayer money increases funding to the Pentagon.
Classic rip-off.
3
I is really sad that there are so many americans who have been abused in so many ways that they believe a person like Donald Trump to be honest.
3
They don't. They feel like they're getting their revenge.
It's in the family. In Lord & Taylor the other day I saw a sign for the Ivanka Trump boutique. Was I hallucinating? The prestige of the presidency, sold to a department store? No, it was real. It is disgusting, repellent, the trashy triumph of a trashy couple and of their trashy spineless enablers.
2
It’s the end of the world as we know it
And I feel fine
Don't blame the Republicans. Six Democratic Senators just voted to confirm the nomination of a war criminal as head of the CIA. Have they been expelled from the party?
1
"Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage."
Yes, the Republicans in Congress are betraying America. They have joined Trump in lying to America. But so are people who vote Republican, lying and betraying America. It's not just that Republican voters are not holding their Republican representatives accountable, they are applauding the corruption of the Trump mafia and thrilled that their Republican representatives are lying for him. Why?
What does the average Republican voter want? Not jobs, not better pay, not a better standard of living, not financial security, not healthcare, not infrastructure improvement, not national security, not any of these things. What do they want?
Republican voters want a couple of things.
1) They want guns. Not just a shotgun or pistol for self-defense, they want something that shoots more bullets faster than a fully automatic AR-15, more powerful than an M242 Bushmaster machine gun.
2) They want to blame immigrants, Muslims and people of color for their problems.
3) They want End of Time so Jesus Christ will return and lead them into Paradise.
4) They want schadenfreude. They are celebrating the angst of Democrats and all other sane patriotic Americans. Selling out the nation, its honor, the Constitution, law and order, Truth and reality, is a small price for Republican voters to pay for the pleasure they are enjoying.
4
Thanks to PK for a great article as usual. Maybe Mueller has a new area of investigation? Keep it rolling.
1
Maybe he US needs an "International Commission against Impunity" like the one imposed to Guatemala to investigate and prosecute serious crime and corruption...
because isn't this "third world" path the US has been taking for a while???
Specially with Trump?
1
This is an outright bribe and is getting nowhere the attention it should. That, along with the Kushners getting their loan from Qatar, should be front & center in every media story. But noooo...we get the royal wedding, Giulian 24/7, all the shiny distractions. Meanwhile, we have a president who is obviously above the law and no one is sounding the alarm.
1
In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned the country of the dangers to the country of political parties. He forewarned parties would place their own interests ahead of the country's.
Today's GOP fulfills that prophecy. For this reason, switched registration from lifelong GOP to independent. The GOP has morphed to a place where I no longer wished to be associated with them.
The GOP power plays in Congress serve their own purposes and not the country's.
2
Apparently, but here it is in the maze that is our daily news. Thanks Paul for picking one spot to clarify... this coup is definitely shock and awe style. Better hurry Mr. Mueller!
1
Another column for the crazies. This is negotiations and we will see where it ends. But let's imagine the worse, that he has betrayed national security. What that means is restoring the status quo ante under Obama.
Why is this even in the news? trump took this job for his and his families personal gain. This has been made clear from their actions since he started his run. The GOP will never do anything to him as he also gave them a bone this week. Todays NYTs has a piece about how President Trump is to impose curbs on reproductive rights. He knows how to bribe everyone to get what he wants.
5
Trump is invulnerable. We are in the midst of a fascist dictatorship. The constitution has been shattered.
5
Ditto, reading this makes me sick. Republicans in cahoots with Trump, just enriching themselves. It's so obvious. It's so sad.....................
4
Don't forget XiJinPing's gift to trump upon his arrival at Mar-a-Lago shortly after the inauguration: long-sought trademarks for Ivanka's businesses. Suddenly Xi was donnie's best bud.
How do we undo the profound damage brought about by this malevolent fool?
14
This definitely poses a problem: Should parents have their children learn Russian or Chinese in order to succeed in a subservient and humbled United States?
3
The American people are standing aghast as the Republicans and Trump the regions of deplorables destroy the Republic.
2
What I don't understand is
1) Does Trump think we can't see what he is doing?
2) Does Trump think he will get to keep all the money he is getting from all of his stupid hotels in all sorts of places?
3)How can Trump keep all of his lies straight?
4) Does he really think he is smarter and more invicible than all of the manipulatve tyrants and enemies of the world, when he is afraid of germs and hair loss?
8
As far as number 4, you forgot he's also scared of walking down flights of stairs.
1
Trump "think"? Does he think at all? It's all primal instinct.
1
So the America First President who claimed that China has committed the “greatest theft in history” (of US jobs) is working feverishly to get more Chinese jobs? Yeah, I’m certain that a $500M investment, a mere 72 hours after announcement of the ZTE deal, from China in an Indonesian company from which Trump stands to personally benefit has no relationship whatsoever.
MCGA...er, MAGA
5
This scenario is Ayan Rand's wildest dream come true. Libertarians must be so happy, and their ignorant, authority challenged followers are following along. I'm scared, just about all the time.
3
I think the answer to your headline question is "yes." Although I suspect that the combination of Trump's enormous ego and cognitive dissonance on overdrive will allow him to think that "he and he alone" is smart enough to foil any attempted espionage. The GOP gave up whatever soul it had under Newt Gingrich. They should all be made to read the Federalist Papers and then demonstrate that they understand the basis of our form of government. Because, so far, they show no inclination to preserve it.
4
Revolting and growing more so by the day. When will America get rid of this sullied and shaming spectacle of utter garbage? If his behaviour and penchant for dirty deals remain unchecked, one cannot see how democracy and political accountability will return. Trump is a brazen tyrant and 'one', if not 'the' evil of this world. Oh America when will you wake from your slumber?
4
As there's no scientific evidence supporting Trump's decades old idea of increasing tariffs in order to benefit American workers, after reading this op-ed I'm starting to wonder whether the only reason why he's now trying to do so is precisely BECAUSE it allows him to then obtain "deals" from foreign governments that directly benefit his own personal business.
And then there's the pity excuse advanced by Trump to accept weakening down his own tariffs: it will create ... Chinese jobs.
Does a US president HAVE to worry about jobs in foreign countries for foreigners?
Yes he has, because of the fact that this is a global economy now. So IF you can invent and then sign deals into law where both the US and a foreign country get to create more jobs at home, that's a win-win situation. And it's what Obama has often done.
But in this case, Trump is deciding something that goes AGAINST his own idea of creating more US jobs, simply, he tells us, in order to save more Chinese jobs. THAT's totally absurd, and shouldn't be accepted from any president.
And then we're not even talking about the fact that ZTE is a company that doesn't respect US sanctions against Iran. Why would Trump end a nuclear weapons deal that guaranteed that Iran would't build a nuclear weapons for at least a decade on the one hand, and then start rewarding a Chinese company that totally neglects US sanctions against Iran ... ?
So yes, of course this is bribery - and in the worst possible way.
5
Trump and his cronies have absolute CONTEMPT for American citizens and the so/called “rule of law.”
3
"All of which is to say that Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage."
Paul, what I find incredulous is that you really believe that it is just the GOP. What alternate universe are you in?
I guess Hillary's Russian uranium deal was BENEFICIAL for America?
I guess the past is the past. How easily we forget all of the previous administrations "executive actions", without the approval of Congress or the American people.
I think I recall our previous president stating he had a pen and a telephone. When speaking with a republican member of Congress he stated he was president, the other gentleman lost. He should get over it.
How about a fair and balanced opinion?
OH, I ALMOST FORGOT, THIS IS THE NEW YORK TIMES.
1
When your only sources of news are Fox and Facebook, you'll swallow the absurdity that Hillary had a uranium deal. I should amend that, slightly - Fox's own Shep Smith totally debunked the lie:
" . . . The accusation is predicated on the charge that Secretary Clinton approved the sale. She did not. A committee of nine evaluated the sale, the president approved the sale, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and others had to offer permits, and none of the uranium was exported for use by the U.S. to Russia."
Why do you consider the uranium deal to be "Hillary's"?
It is my understanding that the law required governmental review of the proposed free enterprise transaction. The State Department was one of nine departments that were required to review the proposed transaction. All nine OK'd the sale.
https://www.factcheck.org/2017/10/facts-uranium-one/
Did we forget the $500 Million the Clinton Foundation received. The speaking engagement Bill had?
This foundation ( the Clintons) distributed less than 10% of what they took in. Lot's of travel expenses, huh!
great as always Paul. You know what I like to do? I call Trump and the Republicans, "Commi lovers!" Remember that term? Used against liberals who's polices were left on the political spectrum. Imagine that, if your policy was pro-government to benefit the poor, then you were called a Communist. But now, if you embrace Communists dictators you are perceived as "strong", "speaks his mind." what is that??
1
Krugman's observation that this bribery event does not require the same level of proof that a court would require is absolutely what we need to be reading.
Of course Trump took a bribe.
He has always operated this way, and I do not accept the apologists line that he is reinventing government, or that times have changed. That's all baloney. A crime syndicate has set up shop in the executive branch, with the support of the legislative branch.
The only question left is, do we have the power to change the situation? Let's hope we do. Impeach, indict, imprison.
3
Perhaps Trump knows Mueller has all the evidence he needs and so why not get while the getting's good! All the while impeachment looms closer each and every day
Why aren't the Democrats lockstep running on a detailed anti-corruption platform? It's a no-brainer.
2
The mid-terms couldn't get here soon enough!
1
Zephyr Teachout wrote a fine, very readable book on this subject: Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United. Of course, for the most part, I am sure it has been ignored. I know of no one besides myself who read it. Bottom line, it is now almost impossible to get a public official like our prez on bribery charges. Unless a piece of paper exists with the quid pro quo outlined the cretan will skate. As the good Doc points out, it is pretty obvious the deal at 666 with the son in laws family and Qatar dough is connected to our change of heart towards their "fine people" and country. And the ZTE deal is so transparent you might not see the glass that hides it. But hey, its Trump, the modern day GOP and a compliant media, which is willing swallow any hook for access. As I keep saying, this turkey of a country is done, stick a fork in it.
2
It’s conspiracy, not coincidence. And the trumpsters aren’t even trying to hide it. Or maybe it’s just because xi likes trump so much - you know they get along great.
How big is the cabal? Why aren’t others saying what you said?
Has this become the norm? Pay-to-play?
Whatever it’s called, it’s disgusting. I imagine you’ll be called out for fake news, but it’s our lying government that’s going to drag us all down. And we won’t have anybody to blame in the end.
2
So, new?
Also old is the ability of many Americans to tolerate or ignore the practice of corruption while talking about "draining the Swamp."
Didn't we fight a revolution about this. Well time for revolution #2. The real kind.
1
So now the president who vowed to put America First, and has instituted policies to do so, is accused by Krugman of treason?
Liberal fever-dreams abound, caused by the onset of Trump Derangement Syndrome. This is just mindless partisan mudslinging--and even liberals should be ashamed of it.
1
If it walks like a duck. . .
I would be more surprised if I read that Donald Trump wasn't using the Oval Office as an extension of a money-making scheme. His Washington DC hotel is making him millions, he has thumbed his nose at the Emoluments Clause in the Constitution. And nothing happens. No accountability, no consequences.
It makes me ashamed to be an American.
6
This all sounds all too possible. Kushner, Trump--would they ever use their clout to enrich themselves? This needs another Special Counsel. Most (all but 3?) House and Senate Republicans are beneath contempt for their support of this corrupt president.
2
I am suddenly having a flashback to the Republican Convention when the sole change that Trump’s people demanded to the party platform was softening sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine. Why the silence from the Republican Party, for something only a year or two before they would have been shouting treason had it been done by a Democrat? Yet, not a voice in response from America’s loudest patriots, a silence that continues, covering action after action by this administration, except for the cries in the right wing press insisting that anyone who dares speak such doubts is only an enemy voicing hate.
1
I don't understand why Trump accepting a bribe to favor foreign spies over US interests is even news. Next column, tell me something I don't know.
1
Reading Krugman each week reminds me just how much trouble we are in. Many of my fellow Americans seem wilfully defiant and obtuse. There are too many forces working against rational thought and better sense, especially in "news" and social media.
For example, reading these comments I see a lot of obvious trolling. Just now there are two comments, one from "ZAHRA ZAFAR" from Islamabad and one from "Susan E" from Europe that are EXACTLY the same comment sent 12 minutes apart. The translation from "Susan E" is better than that of "ZAHRA", but they are clearly same source copy-translate-paste text. Troll factory? Why do you suppose these two comments are exactly the same (except for some differences in translation)? I'm willing to bet it's foreign propaganda. They mix a little truth in the about Citizens United, but the comment in its entirety is seeped in anti-American hostilities. Propaganda. This is how you influence and divide people, ie, by weaponizing words to confuse people, incite anger, and eventually divide a nation so that nation is susceptible to the corruption that allowed Trump to cheat his way into office.
WE ARE NOT PAYING ATTENTION
I will be surprised if my comment is published
1
Did anyone in Trump's base even hear him say it: “Too many jobs in China lost”?
2
May the notion that one can be too rich to be bothered with corruption rest in peace forever.
2
The question is NOT whether Trump did this, but rather what are we going to do about this criminal behavior. The only answer that is reasonable is to vote straight Dem on Nov 6 and then encourage a Dem majority to investigate Trump and his friends the way the GOP investigated Bill and Hillary.
2
Maybe the republicans are doing us a favor by not putting Pence in the Oval Office. Bribery and quid pro quo kazdillion dollar deals might be much better than a Fundamentalists inquisition.
2
The answer to bribery of Trump is an unqualified yes.
And the Republicans are complicit in this bribery by not challenging it.
Is this another possible treasonous act to add to the long list of a crimes that point to Trump, his family and his cohorts.
It is time they start paying for their illegal and possible treasonous behavior.
Hurry up Mueller before we lose our country.
1
The Republican leadership in Congress is a pack of two-faced hypocritical whiners. They sit on their hands while the Trump Administration and family have their snouts in the government feedbag. This incident isn't new or the only example: In the early days, when Ivanka accompanied her Dad on his first China trip, her clothing company was awarded billions worth of Chinese patents. The tax bill, Trump's only "achievement" is going to make the deficit go through the roof.
So where are the howls of protest from the GOP? The two Republicans who dared to speak out are quitting in frustration. Why isn't Mitch McConnell speaking out? Doing anything? Congress would have fits if Obama did one tenth of this. The GOP say they don't even like Trump all that much. He's clashed with so many people on both sides of the aisle. So WHY does he get away with this obvious conflict of interest? He has yet to release his taxes (don't hold your breath) and he's more and more blatant. The presidency is for sale, under this administration. I hope the mid-term elections see ALL these losers swept out of office. Those who see this and say nothing while working Americans get less and less while paying more and more taxes are just as guilty as the man in the White House.
It's been clear over the past eight months, which represents half of Trump's term in office, that this administration is the most corrupt ever, both economically and morally. Nevertheless, it could be worse, much worse.
After the notorious My Lai massacre during the Vietnam war, our military has been well-trained about "illegal orders." Every officer should understand what constitutes an immoral, illegal order. Should Trump issue one, we should pray that it will not be followed by those committed not to do so.
1
If I was reading these somewhere else besides the NYT, I'd think it's fake news. Not sure why the Republicans are looking the other way. It can't just be fear of losing the Trump voter base.
Something else must be going on that is yet to surface. I mean, this is still America, right? Supposedly the greatest nation on earth. And yet, an apparently corrupt president still in office.
If Obama had done 1/20th of what this president has done....
Uh, what do you think holding a Supreme Court seat open for a full year was?
The simple answer is Yes.
Right. Just imagine if HRC had done this with this republican congress. Or if Obama had.
The GOP are spineless, weak, and continue to put party over country.
This is normal behavior for trump. He calls it the art of the deal. He is just so wrapped up in himself that he doesn't even see that there is a difference between personal and government. I suppose that since he became president he just thinks EVERYTHING is his now. He certainly has no problem with using the taxpayers' bank account for his own personal slush fund. The real problem here is the Republican Party. We need to find a way to charge them with a crime for not charging trump with a crime.
It is good olde fashioned corruption that will do
Trump in.
Grifting is the family business
Trump: The Great Defender of CHINA JOBS.
2
Trump is obviously a criminal and needs to be arrested.
To assert that a sitting president is above the law violates "All men are created equal" and invites criminality.
This piece is loaded with good questions. They need to be resolved.
All of your questions are front page material.
I urge Americans turn out and vote on November 6, 2018. This is the first step in stopping the damage.
For your Big Pharma file. I just learned that the new Amgen and Novartis injection for migraine is $8,000 a shot. Absurd!
1
Me thinks it would be rather difficult to bribe the richest person in history to ever sit in the Oval Office. You better bring your complete monopoly board with you!
How loud would Republican calls for hearings and impeachment be if it was a President Clinton taking donations to their foundation by a foreign entity?
1
Of course, Trump supporters will back the President and say that there is no proof of a quid pro quo on either the ZTE deal or the Qatar episode. But the question is not whether Trump negotiated for something in return for these improbable moves. The relevant question is whether it’s remotely possible that Trump was unaware that these actions, contrary to national interests, could possibly influence those countries to support the personal interests of the President or his family.
Even our President, whose grasp of world affairs is shallow, couldn’t make these decisions antithetical to national interests unless there was some expectation of favorable treatment for Trump’s personal situation. The lack of questioning—forget oversight—by Congress is shameful and sickening.
1
If you are an evangelical christian, a kleptocrat or an avid Republican, there is only one commandment, that is, "I am Donald Trump, your lord and god, there shall be no gods or principles before me"
All else is irrelevant.
1
Awfully accusatory, Mr Krugman.
As a proud--and smart--American I am doubly proud (and smart too!) about my President, who released his taxes for public scrutiny and has been completely transparent regarding his private affairs--especially campaign monies. If there was anything remotely off about our President's motives and activities, it would be obvious to the public, because his private affairs are an open book.
I know many private corporations do not so readily share their story, but it is an American tradition for Presidential candidates to reveal their tax information. Every candidate does it.
I wish you elites would quit making stuff up about my guy. If you keep this up I am going to cancel my subscription to the Times and break the knob on my tv so it only receives Fox News.
Good thing you never showed your face on The Apprentice.
Somebody tell David Brooks it's not both sides...and meeting Republican charlatans and traitors half way is not a viable political option for the opposition Party.
Krugman: "All of which is to say that Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage."
Addition: "...enabled by a partisan voting block that is cries about fiscal probity (tea party!) when it suits them, but looks the other way when its their guys who blow up the budget...all because the voting block doesn't care about fiscal probity, moral values (impeach Bill Clinton!), patriotism (John Kerry's swift boats), etc. They only care about race, and racism. And the GOP knows that it can get away with anything."
Well, Paul, we're all just waiting for Trump to shoot that guy in the middle of 5th Avenue in broad daylight before we conclude, without reservations, that he's done anything wrong. Until then it's all just speculation, a big who's-to-say? shrug no matter how obvious the corruption appears.
This is one of the by-products of the Trump Mendacity parade. He hasn't lowered the bar for ethical behavior, he's raised the bar for identifying when he is actually doing something wrong. Of course any other president having done a small percentile of what Trump has done would have been ridden out of town on a rail, but Trump is the ultimate con artist, The Music Man come to life. He keeps running his con, and we keep saying.... well, it COULD be that it's all above board, it COULD be that he's not really doing anything wrong, it COULD be that we're not really seeing what we're seeing.
A recent issue of The Atlantic had a great article titled The Perfect Man. Read it. It will amaze you at how easily people are conned.
Donald Trump, The Perfect Man. And us, waiting for him to shoot that guy in the middle of 5th Avenue in broad daylight.
Who says Trump has no real friends? If you’re a first-rate global thug and can enrich Trump, as Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin can, then you’re invited to the Trump party, with a golden ticket. No longer do we have a U.S. president; we have a mercenary-in-chief. No longer do we have a GOP-controlled Congress; we have a controlling den of thieves, with no honor or patriotism.
It has been said that America will never be destroyed from the outside, that if we lose our freedoms, we will take them from ourselves.
We should remember that when we protest and when we vote. Otherwise, the promise of America will simply fade into a distant memory.
I can barely finish Mr. Krugman's piece without my head exploding. It's the kind of information that, in another America, would have provoked widespread outrage and condemnation. A Republican Congress has abdicated its' checks and balances obligation under the Constitution.
What is our recourse?
520
November 6, Cathleen. November 6.
68
Our recourse is to never vote for another Republican, Conservative, Libertarian, or courtesan of the oligarchs for any reason, ever.
Sorry to belabor the obvious, but a lot of people still just don't get it.
116
I fear that won't be a remedy. Between extreme gerrymandering, voter suppression, and welcoming Russian interference, the RepbuliKlan have become nearly election-proof. To get voted out, he'd practically have to shoot someone on 5th Avenue in broad daylight. Oh wait...
Will it even hit cable news? Corruption doesn't sell because it's taken as a given -- it's not sensational.
I just popped up Google News. Lots of stories about Meghan Markle and Mueller. Indonesia? 95% of Americans probably couldn't find it on a map. Obey the algorithm, give the people what they want, not what they need.
5
"95% of Americans probably couldn't find it on a map."
And 98% probably have clue that it's the most populous majority Muslim nation either.
But I bet millions of Hannity-watching trumpkins could tell you that our last 'Kenyan-born Muslim president' went to an Islamic madrassa there as a child.
As a loyal Democrat, I have to admit that the Clinton Foundation stuff always made me a little queasy. But this Trump thing takes the cake. How could those Trump loyalists call this "speculation?" The changes in Trump's views on Qatar and China are so startling and unexplained, together with the near-simultaneous financial activities, are far beyond coincidence; they amount to something like probable cause and demand investigation.
11
This is only the latest example. You mentioned the Clinton foundation, but at least that organization was funding multiple charatible efforts. At the time it was under the microscope, comparisons were made to the Trump foundation, which was shown to basically be his way of soliciting donations to pay for his own legal settlements and the famous 6' oil painting portrait of himself.
Of course for most people at the time this elicited little more than a shrug followed by yet another round of "But what about her...?"
The simple answer is YES. And sadly, it hasn't been the first time, and won't be the last. Equally concerning is the fact that the Republican party has been mute throughout this whole Trump fiasco.
4
I'm confused about this quote concerning ZTE: "the company had rewarded rather than punished the executives involved". Isn't that the American way? Weren't executives at financial companies receiving bailouts 10 years ago rewarded with bonuses which came from that money?
And another thing - I don't understand why you have a problem with direct payments, i.e., bribes, paid to American politicians in exchange for favors. This is a far more efficient way of doing business than making campaign contributions, which simply help re-elect a politician so he can receive much smaller and more discrete bribes as a result of his holding office. I mean, a million dollar campaign contribution probably only contributes about $50,000 to the future bribery receipts of a politician. Perhaps the advertising lobby has something to do with promoting this wasteful practice, which mainly benefits THEM when they get paid for political ads. Really - we still seem to have a long way to go in trying to catch up to third world countries where bribery, not campaign contributions, is the norm.
4
If money and the social values of the few are the only measures we have to think that we are making America great again, then we gradually working towards a society that will resemble likes of Russia in a few years. Who would have thought that the party of Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan will be responsible for it?
5
Reagan was the union boss (President of the Screen Actor's Guild) who killed unions.
2
Reagan was also the famously pro-gun president, who as governor of California helped push through restrictive gun laws when it was observed that the Black Panthers were arming themselves legally.
Mr. Krugman is absolutely correct. DJT is the tip of the iceberg, and under the waterline is the Republican Party. How have so many Americans turned their back on decency, honor and commitment to the values that formed the basis of our constitution?
10
In the Chinese trade dispute little has been said about the virtual Chinese monopoly on ores containing rare earth metals essential for the powerful magnets that make tiny motors possible, and that are critical for many other high tech products. An export ban would be a calamity for the US. Perhaps China played the rare earth card in private.
Just a policy-based alternate explanation.
3
Trump will sign anything that the Republicans put in front of him. He has weakened the government by failing to staff higher positions. He has filled up the Circuit Courts of Appeals with young conservatives. He has dropped a deficit bomb with tax cuts that have redistributed vast amounts of money to corporations and the extremely rich that will likely make all the programs that secure people from poverty possibly unaffordable in a decade. A century of progressive social policies are at risk, now. What is life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness equally offered to all compared to all of that?
8
Yes! It looks like Trump and his fine daughter have betrayed
our country with China, and anyone else that will give them
a dime.
5
You just explained it. On this scale, bribery is the by far the cheapest way for the Chinese to solve the problem.
6
I have voted Republican at times and I have always considered Republicans patriotic. Not any more! Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan have no shame and I consider them traitors! They have no backbone and will gladly allow our democracy to be sold away as long as they can pay tribute to Julius Caesar!! Oh, excuse me, I meant Trump Caesar!
17
We shouldn't even have to be asking this kind of question.
3
We have seen such behavior from Trump so often that it is no surprise. What is disgusting, however, is that neither the Republicans in congress nor his "base" seem to be bothered. I believe that Trump truly does not understand that his behavior is abnormal (approaching treason is an understatement), but that neither his "base", Fox News nor the Republicans in Congress seem to care is disgusting and horrifying.
The United States we knew is gone.
16
The republicans have gone tribal in their support of “don” Trump. But instead of despair, I would refocus energy on November. His/their behavior is not normal by our standards, but very normal by east European and totalitarian norms. We need to make heard loud and clear that we respect our institutions, believe in regulatory oversight, and welcome and respect all people into our community. Those are true American values.
1
Yes; it is gone.
The answer to your headline, Mr. Krugman, is "Yes," China has bribed Trump with convenient trademark approvals for Ivanka and other family members, a $500 million investment in an Indonesian resort Trump is building and who knows what else -- bribes our president happy accepted in return for allowing ZTE to break sanctions on Iran and North Korea while spying on the United States. Just as Qatar has apprently bribed the first family by bailing out Jared Kushner's debt-ridden Manhattan property and who knows what else. Trump, his kin, his lawyer and many Cabinet members hung out their "For Sale" signs before he even moved into the White House, blatantly violating the emoluments clause and all ethical standards. Worse yet, Republican members of Congress have done nothing to stop it, even to protect our national security. Forget collusion or obstruction of justice. The lot of them should be prosecuted for treason.
13
Paul can you and your colleagues create another list (like the list of Trump lies) of shady Trump Organization shenanigans you all have been tracking, and keep it front and center on nytimes.com? With any luck that would help kick-start the next big march on Washington.
12
As despicable as Trump consistently reminds that he is, we owe equal or greater disgust of Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan. McConnell makes no pretense of ignoring the national interest in favor of the GOP, and Ryan continues to equivocate when forced to react to Trump's latest, proving a lack of backbone worthy of an amoeba. Without these guys, Trump is a bilious blowhard. With their cynical connivance, he is an enabled and abetted pathological narcissist who endangers the welfare of all of us.
10
When this all comes apart, the scope of the story will be far, far deeper and wider than anyone can imagine. I don't know how Mueller can keep a straight face in public.
On another matter, it appears that the repub strategy for the midterms is "doubling down" on old white people while relying on young people to stay home. Boy, are they in for a surprise.
3
Boy, I hope that you are right.
right on Paul, this is further evidence that the US aided by the Republicans has joined that exclusive club inhabited by the axis of totalitarian opportunity namely Turkey, Russia, Venezuela and Iran.
3
China bails out a Trump property to the tune of 500 mil and creates jobs for ZTE. Qatar bails out a Kushner property. Meanwhile, on the southern border, children are being separated from their parents. Have to keep America safe.
7
If Democrats complain about the optics, the GOP will blithely claim that they are hallucinating. There is no solution other than removing the GOP from power and bringing charges against as many of these grifters, co-conspirators and enablers as possible. Lock `em up.
4
Paul Krugman! Your pants are on fire! I HATE Trump but I am a big fan of truth. You say, "Don't say that this suggestion is ridiculous--" and "Don't say there isn't proof---" You are saying this for exactly the reason that you are suggesting something for which you concede there is no proof. But, that's okay because China-bashing is always okay, on the left or the right. It's been like that since the Chinese Exclusion Act. So, let's get the ZTE story straight. ZTE has admitted that it violated trade sanctions. They SHOULD be punished for that. Effectively shutting down the company by withholding chips they need is NOT an appropriate punishment. If this was the standard, then Wells Fargo should have been shut down for their crimes long ago. Did people involved in the sale get bonuses? Very likely, sales people get bonuses for selling. Did they get bonuses specifically for violating sanctions? I'd like to see proof of that. Personally, I doubt it. In any case, ZTE should claw-back those bonuses. However, the idea that 75,000 Chinese people should lose their jobs over this is horrible. I've met some of these people at technical conferences. They are PEOPLE, with bills to pay, and beautiful children. They are NOT numbers. Trump is doing exactly the right thing by saving their jobs. Kudos to Trump for doing the right thing (as awful as he is) and rotten tomatoes to Mr. Krugman for his treatment of the truth and blatant China-bashing.
2
Why did Trump enact the penalties in the first place? Did his admin's analysis not suggest that ZTE's existence could be in jeopardy if the penalties were enacted?
1
How does the U.S. make money on the deal? We don't. But Trump gets a half million in Chinese financing for his new development.
to Barbara: You say: "But Trump gets a half million in Chinese financing for his new development." I think you do need to check your sources on this. This simply is not true. The Trump Organization is getting no financing from China. The money is being loaned to build a theme park in Indonesia. There is a Trump Hotel and Golf Course that is associated with the theme park, but they are not getting this money. Of course, it is true that the Trump Organization will benefit from the loans indirectly since a successful theme park will bring them customers. Personally, I don't think that President Xi is in the business of slipping bribes to the Trump Organization. I saw a clip on Morning Joe that seemed to promote this idea. I think it's nonsense, but I suppose I can't prove that.
Our nation's capital is filled with traitors and cowards -- Republicans who will not (or cannot) bring themselves to serve as an equal branch of government -- to serve as a check and balance on the executive branch -- which is their job and Constitutional duty.
We need to throw them out of office this fall.
6
In times of massive corruption let’s remember the wisdom of Abba:
Money, money, money
Must be funny
In the rich man's world
Money, money, money
Always sunny
In the rich man's world
Aha aha
All the things I could do
If I had a little money
It's a rich man's world
It's a rich man's world
3
Sadly, there is so much that is so bad and it happens so often, that even this true scandal is disappearing into the white noise of arguing talking heads.
2
Paul,
The DOJ has multiple avenues to report fraud. Spin the wheel and wherever it lands a Trump/Kushner actionable appears. You can’t lose! It’s known as a sure thing, and it stinks!
Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft
Disaster-Related Fraud.
General Fraud and Other Criminal Matters
Health Care Fraud, Medicare/Medicaid Fraud, and Related Matters
Internet Fraud and Lottery/Sweepstakes Fraud by Internet
Mail Fraud
Securities Fraud
State and Local Fraud
1
Wait until Robert Mueller completes his investigation. We will know all about Jared Kushner’s questionable business dealings, especially with foreign entities. We will also know all about the favors that other members of the Trump family received in their business dealings in Russia and China.
The Muller team has only started following the monetary trails emanating from the Trump business and Trump’s associates and reaching abroad. The team has yet to find out where they end. By the time it does, President Trump and his ilk will have learned that money cannot buy everything; that we are a nation governed by the law; and that none, not even the president, is above the law.
1
Wish it were so...but it’s not,
Turns out Trump (helped by his whole enabling posse) is the same money-grubbing con man he has been his whole life prior to the election. So sad that 40% of the populace couldn't care less.
5
Everyone could see this coming. Trump spent his life ripping people off and filing bankruptcy. He never released his tax returns. Americans cannot be surprised now that the president they elected is crooked, since he was crooked his entire life. It's what the American people voted for. At least he doesn't wear pantsuits and cackle, right? And those "lock her up" chants were super catchy. All worth it! In the end, this country has gotten what it deserves. I just feel bad that his administration's actions harm other countries and the environment as well.
5
But, but, but her Emails. Hey remember when the Republicans lost their minds over Benghazi. Of course nothing happened to implicate Hillary in..what, murder? Remember when lying about sex brought impeachment hearings for Bill? Remember when Obama pointed out at the State of the Union that a recent Supreme Court decision could lead to foreign investments in political campaigns and Samuel Alito shook his head dismissively. Strange to say, but those days might be considered the good old days compared to today.
4
If I remember correctly, I think Carter had to sell the family peanut farm to avoid conflict of interest.
3
Well spoken. My thoughts exactly. What say you Mitch McConnell? I have a question though. Does anyone else hear Robert Krulwich's voice when reading Paul Krugman. I wish Krugman would do his own podcast so I could stop confusing the two in my head.
Speculate if your heart desires it.
Don't make outlandish claims based on those speculations.
Krugman speculates then based on those speculations he makes a statement about how the Republicans won't hold him accountable and how there should be a congressional commission to investigate this based on Krugman's speculation.
Krugman please understand I don't care for you and there are more people like me then you know.
Unless you have more than speculation I ask you to please stop making statements that are bias but you pretend are not bias as if you are making comments as a object reporter.
1
Perception can drive a person's understanding of their "reality."
Once had a manager come back from lunch smelling like beer. Company policy did not allow alcoholic consumption at lunch. Another employee came to me and complained - that is how I found out. Talked to the manager - who stated they had consumed non-alcoholic beer. I suggested they should avoid that because of the perception it can create and as a manager, this person has the responsibility to avoid planting the seeds of uncertainty within the teams.
A true public servant should avoid the perception ....
Krugman's article is an op-ed - not a news article.
Throughout Trump’s entire career he always did whatever was best for him. Rules and regulations were there to be ignored.Always a Roy Cohn by his side.All that mattered was Trump and his bottom line. Why would he run the presidency any differently?
6
I am sure that Xi Jinping lies awake at night worrying about American jobs, just like he respects patents and trademarks. It would be be interesting to see into the future and read the books that will be written about the Donald J. Trump administration thirty years in the future.
2
Thirty years into the future? Unfortunately me and millions of other people are a lot less certain what those 5 words will mean for the world and humanity than we were just 5 years ago.
The poison of white supremacy was woven into our nations fabric right from the beginning and even after a bloody war that tore the nation apart, has remained there.
Since the Civil War both parties have utilized this poison for political gain. However, 50 years ago one party decided to exorcise this demon of hatred and division from itself.
The other one decided to continue down that road of division and hatred, and indeed in the last 10 years has accelerated and amplified their blatant peddling of this poison.
3
My take on Trump's increasingly brazen cash grabs (the China $500 million pay-off; and the Qatar 666 bail-out of Kushner) is that he's edging towards blowing town at year-end after the mid-terms.
He's counting on us being satisfied that he's gone and will let the money slide.
I say "give him the Nobel Peace Prize" for leaving office.
1
The perversion is incredible: The GOP, who seem to believe they own the rights to the American flag and are the true patriots, are actively abetting the Trump criminal enterprise in the destruction of the country.
The crucial attempt at damage control begins with the mid-term elections in November.
6
Trump gets away with debasing and selling our democracy because, except for the press (which he further and gleefully debases), there is no push back.
Where is the supposed equal branch of govt.?
Those bought-and-paid for- shills in Congress remain mute, regardless what the Orange Sociopath does or doesn't do, and regardless how much he damages our democracy.
When he is exposed as the traitor he is, they will still remain silent .
1
In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned the country of the dangers to the country of political parties. We forewarned these parties would place their interests ahead of the country's interests.
It does sound as if Trump has chewed off more than he can handle not only with China but with this Presidency. Always the last here, and clueless to figure out why Colonel Mustard was found in the drawing-room with a crow-bar or iron candle holder, I believe Mr. Krugman has not been bribed to write this tale of betrayal.
In all fairness, how can you expect a man who throws paper towels at Americans from Puerto Rico to make a deal with The Imperial Dragon? If you find this farcical, remember that our Nation is beyond troubled and in trouble with our Allies.
So what! Europe is fun to visit but we are the big guns in the world picture and we are going to take America back from these rapists. Russia is just fine and Reagan ended the Cold War.
Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin might be teaching Trump a few harsh realities, coated in sugar plum icing, but if his goose is being cooked, perhaps we should not be in ostrich-mode and remove our heads from the political sand storms.
"...a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage."
I think that's generous if not gratuitous use of the phrase "partisan advantage" when in fact it's nothing more tawdry than personal greed and political corruption.
If Republicans are partisan at all it's not to any coherent ideology or idealism; it's exclusively the perversion of politics for individual money-lust, tribal hegemony, denial of reality and degradation of our Constitutional values.
At present, and for some time now, Republicans have discarded partisanship for a fascist cult of personality we know as Trumpism.
National security has devolved into business opportunity; foreign policy is now scratch my back and I'll keep the Chinese leadership-owned ZTE in business.
When "partisan advantage" is GOP code for get-rich-quick, representation with no taxation for a privileged few, and taxation with no representation for the rest of us, it's hard to discern if what smells is acrid smoke from a fire or the pungent decay of the body politic.
The Fate of the Earth, once the defining vision of our common humanity, has become yet another real estate deal to enrich the emerging money-gods who have banked billions more than there are people in the world.
That's why Trump University is promoting a new seminar: How to make billions on the side when your day job is President of the USA.
4
Thank you, Paul, for bringing it all together.
1
Of course, it's all quid pro quo for Chinese government investment in Trump organization's ventures and Qatari sovereign wealth fund investments via a Canadian company in Kushner real estate. If the Clinton Foundation had accepted something similar under a Hilliary Clinton Administration, the Republican-controlled Congress would have already impeached her and she'd be facing trial in the Senate. Republicans need to stop enabling Trump/Kushner corruption and treason.
1
Don’t we now have grounds for impeachment, given the clear violation of the emoluments clause in the constitution? Where are the Democrats on this?
3
The very thought of a President selling out the country for money, instead of being unthinkable, these days makes perfect sense.
A challenge: Read the article and the related article on the construction of a highway and a theme park and see if you can find the implied content of title of Paul’s article. LOL.
The Chinese construction company will be compensated for the construction projects; that the business it’s in. That the theme park is located near Trump property in Indonesia adds a flavor in this era of Trumpism. So …?
ZTE proposals carries a little intelligence as Kim-Trump talks approach as China’s role will be needed whatever the outcomes; and the 7 year ban after the $1.2 billion fine is heavy handed and unusual – ideological? Think Financial Crisis and government punishing leading ‘bankers’?
It is unfathomable to me how the GOP "leadership" can look themselves in the mirror - allowing, backing even, this used car salesman of a conman to run rampant. Trump is blatantly disregarding the constitution (the Emoluments Clause), putting our nation in jeopardy (starting trade wars, egging on another lunatic (KJ Un), stomping on societal norms, doing it all in an inarticulate barely coherent 2nd grade level manner. The embarrassment he is to our nation is nothing short of disgusting.
2
Paul, the Republicans have been clear:
They'd rather we become a banana republic than be a nation OK with a black or female president.
No one should be surprised by these things.
3
Don’t leave out the the $150 million loan Deutsch Bank gave Kushner because trump tables the $125million fine the US courts levied against Deutsch Bank, in other words money that should have to the US treasury was given to Kushner.
2
Trump's personal corruption is the tip of the iceberg.
2
Everybody who reads PK' piece today should be calling or emailing their senators & congressman demanding an FBI and Congressional investigation. Likely GOP (the 'party of patriots' - no less) will block it right now, but if the Dems control the House next year (big IF), they can open an investigation. Will Jeff Sessions block the FBI from investigating?? If so, a House investigation would reveal that. Will
1
There is no rest for the weary. Special Counsel, Robert Mueller's just got more difficult. How does he keep tabs? There is Ukraine, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar off, Qatar on and now China. For that matter how does Trump keep up? Is that why he made that slip, "Too many jobs in China lost." Should'nt it have been, "Time to stop our jobs going abroad."? The plot thickens and thickens.
20th Century: defeat of fascism. then an ensuing Cold War between Communist and capitalist superpowers.
21st Century: In all three 20th Century superpowers, plutocratic dictatorships arise and form an alliance aimed at subverting the rule of law and collapsing the world order for personal profit and power. A resurgence in fascism.
We are all Russia now. Unless we stop it.
So what you are saying is the Russia thing is just the tip of the iceberg. And as a result, if nothing substantial happens as a result of the Mueller investigation, then all that has been accomplished here is the legitimatization of corruption by the Republican party. Taking bribes and money from foreign governments will be fine with them. Unless you happen to be a Democrat, then it is treason. What used to be back door corruption is now the welcome mat at the front door. The real question is: what do the American people want? For years people have been decrying how corrupt politicians are. Apparently the Trump supporters' view is if you can't beat them, join them. Watch how righteous Trump supporters become when the perpetrator is their mayor or school board. But the leader of the free world? What corruption? You see any corruption? I don't see any corruption. They didn't want a businessman to run their country. They wanted a corrupt mob boss. Can we put the evil genie back in the bottle?
Trump and his family are selling out the US. And the quid pro quo are the goodies they are getting from foreign governments. This is grossly illegal. They are regularly violating the 'emoluments clause' of the US constitution. For reference here are the 49 words in Article I of the Constitution.
“No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.”
This clause was put into the Constitution to prevent exactly what these greedy traitors are doing.
Dont despair, save that for later. I am sure worse, much worse is to come before this gentleman leaves, or hopefully, is forced from office.
The GOP is reflecting the desire of its constituents. Their adherents want a strong man way of life. Their ginned up fear is too palpable for them to support "weak" democracy. The alpha, white male is ascendant in GOP America until 2050 when whites will be a minority. Too late.
Did China bribe him? Ask him. If he says no, he was bribed. Did Qatar bribe him today? Ask his son-in-law. If he says no, he's lying too. Explain the sudden irrational 180 degree turns in both instances for NO COMPELLING NATIONAL INTEREST. It's "ridiculous" if it were NOT a bribe.
How about the Trump Tower Moscow shenanigans and change in the Republican platform on Russia-Ukraine?
Trump became POTUS to become richer and a global dictator. From nouveau-riche to nouveau-dictateur of the richest and corruptible country (under the GOP) on the planet, and to exploit with impunity.
Trump's vision is to be the biggest international Don and gangster with the power of the largest most expensive military paid by others. Watch as he implements a new protection racket for dictators like Mr. Kim.
Trump put Jared exclusively in charge of the most bribery-lucrative opportunities around the world - countries ripest with overflowing corrupt cash to be skimmed. Isn't that Jared's and trump's true expertise? Not mid-east peace, nor free-trade agreements with Mexico, nor bringing jobs back from China that doesn't include $500,000ea for him to pocket.
As for Republicans in Congress - I wonder how much Kompromat the Russians, via trump, have on them? Specially Kompromat US Intelligence agencies know about that the Russians have on them. Given a one party oversight, how do our intelligence agencies 'out' these politicians busy conspiring to cover up for the POTUS and consolidating their power?
2
Ahh, we've returned to the venality of the 19th Century's Gilded Age. And Ah'm a gits mine.
2
Does anyone remember The Manchurian Candidate (1962), where the North Korean spies operating in the U.S. acted like patriotic Americans, waving the U.S. flag and working with something similar to the McCarthy committee?
It seems life is imitating art -- those who are working hardest to undermine our nation's security are hiding behind the flag and a facade of patriotism.
1
Trump profiting from China's One Belt One Road. China's bid to become the leading influence in the world and to make the US second. Now that takes the cake!
It just hit me - Trump is actually the first president in my lifetime who actually COULD be bribed by a foreign power.
Make America Great Again indeed.
4
Yes. And Qatar, too.
1
You cannot be so naïve as to believe that your article will change the views of Trump's core supporters. As long as he continues his rants against minorities, muslims, gays, women, environmentalists and pro-lifers he can plunder at will.
1
The people get the government they keep voting for.
1
Profit before policy. Gain before good. Self interest before community. Greed before love.
The problem is that all of the cotton shirt Democrats and Republicans, those men and women who went to great schools, got great jobs, and make great money (and look great, too, to be fair), are figuring out that middle america doesn't pay their bills, or for their vacations, or for their second and third houses.
The corrupt system that use to masquerade as a 'Free Market' is now a closed eco-system, open for 'business'; (as in monkey business), and closed to honesty, decency, and fairness. All of those bright people are choking down their values, and dumbing down their intellect, just to keep their own money machine going.
And being silent - which is the biggest crime of all.
I think this covers it--to date.
Pure coincidence, move on...nothing to see here....wouldn't the good representatives McConnell and Ryan have defended America's interests if somethig was amiss?
That a particular family can be so corrupt is not surprising. Many humans display moral failure, especially in a country that so strongly worships money. The acquiescence of the GOP is the shocker. I had no idea. I thought conservatism was just a sort of backward and ignorant way of looking at the world. Now we see it's just another scam for increasing ones bank account at the expense of others, preferably those with the least resources. And they are proud of these positions, hoping to spread them throughout the world. And they pretend to take the moral high ground! I hope we see them all in shackles and orange.
2
So is this how it's done now? This is an OUTRAGE. And it's relegated to an Opinion piece? Is there any doubt what is going on here? A four-year old can put the giant pieces together. And yet, here we are again, opining, laying low, wondering. There's nothing to wonder about. This is corruption at the highest level...AGAIN. And we just sit here? NYTimes, where is your headline, front page, on this? TRUMP UNDERMINES NATIONAL SECURITY TO CHINA FOR HIS FAMILY'S GAIN/TO BE BAILED OUT OF TERRIBLE INVESTMENTS. I am at a loss. Now when I am asked--as I am weekly--if Trump really does represent the American people and their/our values, perhaps I have to gently nod yes.
To be blunt, the answer is: YES! We're witnessing "The Art of the Steal." Steal our security for personal profit and tweet how it's a "bigly" "easy" "win" for jobs (never mind they'll be mostly at ZTE)! In case you missed it, China also just slipped The Don $500 million to back a project of his in the region. It's called "pay for play." Son-in-law Jared with the Don's help has just forced Qatar to bail the Kushners out of potentially bankruptcy by purchasing a major interest in their failing 666 Fifth building that they paid too much for and could only rent out 30 percent of the space. As you may recall, when Qatar declined the loan at first, the U.S. immediately supported a blockade of that nation where we just happen to have our largest military base in the region. Well, the blackmail worked, and now suddenly Qatar is our best friend again. So, welcome to the bribe-ocracy.
The current GOP is the offspring of the Southern Strategy. Back in Nixon's days the the Republicans decided to cultivate the white backlash to the civil rights legislation of the 60's. Elimination of segregation, especially in schools and public accommodations, voting rights, and affirmative action cause very strong counter reactions. Politically it worked as hoped. morally it was a poison pill.
Prior to civil rights revolution, the segregation supporting politicians were Democrats. The Republicans mounted a clever "we feel your pain" campaign to woo the those politicians over to their side. The Old South is now very comfortably Republican.
It would be a fine ending if the Republicans managed to broaden the perspective of those segregationist politicians and ease the antagonisms to the civil rights revolution, but it went the other way. The Republicans adopted much of the very conservative and reactionary traits of their new partners, spreading those traits nationally. And politically it worked like a charm. The Trump presidency is a is now it's proudest product.
2
A complex question with a simple answer. Yes, of course he did.
1
Do you really think Trump's supporters care. As long as he is their bully, he will have their support. Since this is over 80% of Republicans, Congress will support and protect him; their base likes what they see. Trump and his enablers in Congress will grow richer, their supporters will grow poorer; but as long as Trump talks tough he will be here for a second term.
3
Another fine piece of writing that induces nausea, Mr. K. I was complaining about these issues last night, and the fact Trump never tried to follow the ethics rules that every other president has followed. The very fact the president has businesses all over the place that gain from the actions of the WH is disgusting. It's criminal, and the intent behind it is worse. Selling policy for foreign currency in China, Russia, etc. This administration is rotten to the core.
3
Don't forget the Qatar policy change for their support of Jared. Dr. Krugman's greatest column so far. He is, it appears to me, to be someone who tries to be measured in his tone. But now he has stepped forward as a patriot to say the Republicans will do anything in pursuit of partisan advantage. Is a liberal economist the only one with the guts to tell the truth?
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So, while Trump and his family openly and brazenly and in the light of midday engage in corrupt deals that enrich the family at the expense of American trade and foreign policy concerns, House Republicans call for an investigation of Robert Mueller and neither Paul Ryan nor Mitch McConnell utters a word of protest.
White really is black, isn't it? And black really is white. And two plus two actually equals five.
The scary part is that nothing seems to matter anymore. Not the grifting. Not the insulting. Not the lying. Not the cruelty. It doesn't matter that white is not black but white. It doesn't matter that black is not white but black. It doesn't matter that two plus two does not equal five but equals four. All that matters is...Trump.
You can also blame the broadcast television networks for abdicating their primary duty to report the news. Last night, for example, the CBS Evening News ended its half-hour program with a 3-minute story about two dogs in a humane society kennel that have become best friends. The broadcast television networks need to cover actual news and make the long overdue switch to a one-hour format. At the same time, they need to stop wasting hours of primetime programming during which they typically air so-called documentaries about sordid love triangle murders, instead of presenting actual news like Frontline on PBS does.
Let's pretend the President was named Clinton or Obama. Do we doubt that Republicans would be screaming and demanding prosecutions?
At minimum, they would have daily investigations--and leaks of selected "facts."
How can such hypocrites even look at themselves in a mirror? Apparently, pride, principle, duty, or even protection of legislative prerogatives no longer exist in the Republican party. Voters truly need to "throw the bums out" in order to have any oversight over Trump and his administration.
A century ago Mark Twain's Mysterious Stranger told us there is nothing so good that someone doesn't suffer and nothing so bad that someone doesn't suffer. Paul Krugman is a first rate moderate neoliberal economist. He is not an historian or psychologist.
Donald Trump is as much a creation of an economics system designed to grow as fast as possible as anything that can be done by Washington. Although Adam Smith was an ethical philosopher ethics and morality are not part of today's economic success. The world's two largest economies the USA and China are kleptocracies and Russia a military behemoth promoting strife and discontent is as corrupt as any thugocracy that has ever existed.
I do not believe the bible is anything but allegory but sometimes allegory better explains what is happening than history.
The story of Jacob and Esau tells the story of America better than I possibly can. I was brought up to believe in the evolving liberal democracy created by Jefferson Washington and Adams but America decided the mess of potage was more desirable.
It wasn't Nixon, it wasn't Reagan and it is Trump who made this Faustian again it is the American people who have traded their birthright for a mess of potage.
I hope a new phoenix can arise from the ashes but the USA is no more its birthright is forfeit Donald J. Trump and the GOP are America. Trump cannot commit treason he is America and China Russia, The Philippines and Saudi Arabia are just business as usual.
I, for one, have little doubt that trump's foreign policy decisions are predicated on what's good for trump or trump's business interests. That's how he's operated his whole life. He's immersed in himself and has no compunction about lying or cutting legal rules if it serves his interests. He doesn't even read briefing or intelligence materials, books, or non-tabloid newspapers. He gets his news from Fox & Friends. That's why his own "experts" question the motivation behind his policy decisions and reversals. And I agree that the lowest common denominator tying trump to his GOP co-conspirators is venality and no-nothing ignorance.
Wouldn't be the first time. I guess Trump is promoting a China First strategy.
Is Trump the problem here? Some say no. They say GOP is the real problem. GOP is the enabler. But is GOP the only problem? No. Democrats are part of the entrenched partisanship. Is that it? No. It is the political system that they all thrive in. It is American Democracy, aka the Swamp.
The game has its own set of rules: campaign financing, lobbyists, revolving doors, kitchen cabinet, king makers, gerrymandering, census questions, voter restriction, negative ads, fake news, big data, propaganda machines, religious alliance, etc. American Democracy is the substrate that politicians grow and multiply.
The science journal Nature (17 April 2018) published "Mass suicide documented in bacteria". What the scientists found: "... Some bacteria trigger their own destruction by making their environment uninhabitable, a process that researchers have named ‘ecological suicide’. ... The authors grew a soil bacterium in test tubes and found that the microbes quickly acidified their environment to a deadly pH 4, wiping the colony out within 24 hours. ... Further work showed that a sample of local soil contained five species of bacterium that could drive themselves to extinction by raising acidity to toxic levels."
Do these findings ring a bell in the Trump era? China & Russia must be watching and amused.
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The gop is a Clear and Present danger to the future security of The United States of America.
With each passing say, my decision to break all ties with the republicans in my life seems more and more justified.
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It would be a service to NYT readers if the resident Nobel Laureate in economics could rest his "resistance" agenda for just a moment and explain the import of China's apparently looming offer to reduce the U.S.-China trade deficit by $200 billion dollars.
Would this be a good thing for working people in this country?
Following his analysis, Professor Krugman could return to interweaving economic news with conspiracy theories. After all, a good conspiracy theory is entertaining whether emanating from Right or Left.
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Forces of light, we need to earn it in the fall midterms! Trump is lining up his dark forces, from the NRA (his recent speech at their convention) to the hypocritical, power-hungry “Christian” right (giving them what they want on Planned Parenthood, perfectly timed for the start of campaign season). And the electoral map is not in our favor. Yet victory is the only way to keep our country and the world from going further down the tubes of corruption. If we lose, yes we’ll fight another day, perhaps the uphill slog all the steeper. Or perhaps the dark forces in this world will dig their own grave deeper. Only time will tell.
Not only has Trump accepted bribes from foreign governments for his businesses, he has bribed his Republican cronies in Congress with jobs for relatives in the government, namely, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. His wife was appointed Transportation Secretary and now his unqualified brother-in-law will be head of a government pension commission. All but guaranteeing that no congressional action will be taken against Trump for his blatant crimes against the U.S.A. I still blame the Republican Party for not doing their democratic responsibility as a national party to appropriately vet their candidates for elected office. The Republican Party created the Trump Regime and I have no hope that they will take the necessary steps to end it.
The disaster is that no one cares. Congress would care if the voters cared, but they don't, and it doesn't.
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"But today’s Republicans have made it clear that they won’t hold Trump accountable for anything, even if it borders on treason.
All of which is to say that Trump’s corruption is only a symptom of a bigger problem: a G.O.P. that will do anything, even betray the nation, in its pursuit of partisan advantage."
PARTY OVER COUNTRY EVERY TIME.
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Dr. Krugman, i think you have hit
upon the overriding Republican principle in the last sentence of your column.
Either late in the transition or early in the first term of this abomination there was a lot of fuss about the Carrier plant in Indiana that was shutting down and the operation being relocated to Mexico. And a lot of press attention as Trump, Pence, and their henchmen and enablers so valiantly saved a few hundred jobs in Indiana at the last minute. The cost of saving those jobs was a very generous local tax abatement, which is bad policy in general and a race to the bottom in most cases. Once those tax abatements burn off, and they will, those jobs will be gone. But quietly.
Now this. An "America First" president working to save thousands of jobs in China. For a Chines company that has most likely stolen US intellectual property, which is the natural outcome of both corporate America's willing handover of our designs in the pursuit of lower labor costs and bloated stock options, the Chinese government's strong-arm rules that force, all foreign companies doing business in China to open themselves to their local "partners", and the Chinese intelligence services' theft of whatever they can't get by any other means. For a Chinese company that has flouted US export rules. And for a Chinese company who is most probably using its products here as an extension of the Chinese government's espionage program.
Now that the quid pro quo has been revealed, we see yet again Trump's true nature. This may not border on treason; it may actually be treason.
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Yes, the only plausible answer to Trump rushing to rescue Chinese firm ZTE is Trump’s own self interest.
Why do you find Trump’s ZTE choice shocking Paul? Federally elected House representatives & Senators routinely act in the best interests of lobbyists at the expense of the American public. There is no better example than the federal governments refusal to negotiate lower perscription drug prices for government run healthcare like medicaid (pharmaceutical lobbyists buy support through unlimited financial payments to elected officials reelection campaign funds).
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We all have learned a lot about the Republican Party in recent years; none of it good. So long as a president is a Republican, corruption, treason and incompetence don’t matter in the least. Even more revealing is the hardcore GOP voters also will tolerate literally anything from their party’s president. They just don’t care.
For the foreseeable future, when any Republican ever lectures anyone on any issue related to character, honesty, or patriotism, they need to be rebuffed with scorn. And, yes, the media need to treat them all (except for the handful of “Never Trumpers”) exactly the same.
Everything this "president"does is in his self interest.
This behavior was predicted. He has shown no deviation from a totally predictable path.
What is even more disgusting but no less unethical is the GOP's accepting this illegal, unethical, and unAmerican activity to keep the upper hand. What is this upper hand in service of? It's supposed to be the welfare of the citizens of the united states. But they lost sight of that a long time ago.
I'll just share that I'm very sad with where we are in this presidency (not at all surprised, but sad nonetheless). I'm not 100% why I'm commenting, but to my fellow sad sacks, I promise we, as the United States, will get through this - together. So let's support our free press, be vocal, be visible, and be kind. Maybe it was Superman who said it best, "Truth, Justice, and the American way!" Take care - literally and figuratively
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Xi, Putin, Kim, know that they now have their man at the helm here in our country. He wants to emulate them, hoping that he can become one of them.
As to 666 - Mr. Kushner perhaps has little need for back channels communications with foreign powers, although this reader would wager that they exist in some form, more for personal gain than service to country. He can get what he wants with a coo and a chuck under a particular chin. This is what the men listed above want. Should we suffer it, or make our outrage and disgust clear? I'm with the author of this column: I'm outraged, and I'll vote my conscience.
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Trump's conflicts of interest are a danger to our country. Not because he and his family might make some money from his influence peddling and extortion. While that is most likely illegal and most definitely unethical, the country will survive the trump family making money.
The real danger is that trump's conflicts of interest will lead him make decisions that are detrimental to our economic and national security. That is what appears to be happening with ZTE.
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The Republicans’ goal is to oppose liberalism at all costs. Trump’s goal is to make it look like he agrees, and to use this to his personal advantage. It all fits.
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Between this deal with China and Jared's deal with Qatar for his failed real estate company it appears that something is rotten in Washington.
Dr. Krugman's assessment, along with other rational interpretations of Tump's motives should be shaking the American public from its apathy. But we are emerging from the ennui that spread when things were going well to assault-fatigue from the daily and sometimes hourly assaults on our government. It would be bad enough if these were coming from foreign powers, but it is the rot within that is decomposing the very foundation that once made America a strong power in the world. We were filled with hope for a better world and shining ideals. Now we are filled with scandals that, because many Americans are so weary, doesn't even provoke outrage. Any one of the thousands of lies that Trump has uttered, or the self-enriching deals he has crafted, or the stealth of yet more financial hope for the poor, or the food that he has taken out of the mouths of babes, or the international standing of our nation that he has tarnished, would have been the downfall of any of our past presidents.
Let's hope that reason will return in the results from 2018, the Mueller investigation, and 2020. Otherwise future generations will not ever know what we might have been
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The scale of the individual "deals" would by itself tell the world how shameless King Donald is, and the clear pattern, one "deal" after the next, I think might even convince a jury, if only we could get him to trial.
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Don't worry, Paul. I'm sure the Freedom Caucus and other Republican national security hawks in Congress will organize hearings and start an investigation. And they will not stop until they get their cut.
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The fact that it is so obviously problematic and that no member of Congress or any oversight committee is sounding an alarm tells you all you need to know about the state of the country and the government today. The precedence being set now will have reverberations for years to come. We might as well hang a sign outside the White House announcing "Open for Business" (or bribery). This government is crawling with corruption
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When Trump said he could shoot someone om Fifth Avenue and not lose any votes, it sounded like exaggeration and hubris. But as it turns out, shooting someone might be one of the lesser things Trump could get away with.
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Thank you, Krugman--article saved for future reference. We ricochet from farce to tragedy to treason. Caving to China and protecting Putin's assault on our democracy--these are the stuff of treason. Tragedy unfolds daily in the foul attacks by Trump on foreigners and in the jack-boot tactics of his immigration forces. As for farce--I'm trying for a model for the behavior of that odd couple, Trump and Giuliani, and I can't yet get past Laurel and Hardy. But those two comics were bumbling, naive guys, while Don and Rudy have souls rotted with hatred. And as Paul K says, the McConnells, Ryans, and McCarthys of Congress sell out any principles they ever had, all for their mess of pottage.
Read that headline.
Then ask yourself why in heaven's name you think the answer might be "absolutely not".
When Trump campaigned, it was to protect American jobs he cared so deeply about.
Now he is worried that he might put Chinese workers out of a job?
Every day, when reading the news and watching TV news, I feel more and more like Alice and this administration like the rabbit hole.
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This is why the coming midterms elections are so very important. But alas some of the folks involved in the corruption are also working to sow confusion and undermine those elections. It’s time for the Democrats to wake up and shine the light on current election interference instead of trying to figure out what happened last time!
It is not the G.O.P. These people were elected by the American people and they lay down for the charlatan in the White House because they are afraid of electoral consequences.
Put differently: if the Republicans in Congress act to hold the president to account they will be punished by voters.
Whose fault? Our fault.
Please, nobody respond that he was elected by a minority. Congress is dominated by Republicans who are supporting this person. Voters chose them.
The government is corrupt, led by an unfit man and enabled not just by politicians but of country that votes for them.
Whose fault? Our fault.
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The problem that I have in all of this is that The Donald is unquestioningly corrupt; he is also breathtakingly stupid and may be incapable of connecting the dots that most first graders could.
What we take as his unmitigated gall may actually be an inability to understand complex scenarios like he and Kushy being bribed.
We already know that corruption and graft are part of the Trump DNA and, apparently, the marriage between Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump brought together two families made for each other.
It is not a “match made in heaven” though. Its roots are definitely of the New York and New Jersey variety.
Politically, in the case of serial corporate outlaw, ZTE of China, Donald Trump has the duty to prove that he and his extended family and company did not accept a large bribe to compromise U.S. national security.
Trump also has a moral duty to prove his innocence, although using the words, “Trump,” “moral,” and “innocence” in the same sentence is improbable – unless the sentence is for a minimum of ten years.
We are no longer shocked by Donald Trump’s misconduct. Even the rolling disclosures about his personal fixer, Michael Cohen from the First National Taxi Bank, become old news in a week.
The thing which stays in the forefront and outrages all of us is what Paul Krugman points out: The Republican Party allows Donald Trump to get away with what seems to be treason.
The G.O.P. not only puts political advantage above loyalty to country, many a Republican in the Senate and House is probably busy trying to figure out how to get a personal piece of the action.
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Dr. Krugman's second-to-last paragraph states:
"But today’s Republicans have made it clear that they won’t hold Trump accountable for anything, even if it borders on treason."
I might suggest that the phrase "borders on" is inappropriate. I believe the correct wording is "constitutes."
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This is sickening. I am sorry to say that I believe Trump has no ethics whatsoever; he doesn't even carry through on his sleazy deals. Not with Americans at least.
Do I believe he was capable of colluding with Russia? Yes. Do I believe he is capable of turning the office of POTUS into a personal cash cow? Yes.
So then do I believe he would jeopardize national security to make money or win something or other? Yes
His supporters need to start paying attention. I do not believe that they want this from our President and Congress
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It’s a sad country indeed when we automatically accept that the president and family are corrupt. The complete about face has nothing to do with policy - it’s just Trump winging it - my guess is he does not remember anything from one day to the next. His buddy buddy fetish will lead us to the worst deals ever - all while his base dons their Chinese made hats and cheer make China great!
Why has the BRIBES paid to Dotard's lawyer, Michael Cohen, by various companies both domestic and foreign left out of this article? These way out of proportion payments to a person with no particular expertise beyond ambulance chasing who is part of Dotard's paid staff have nothing to do with lobbying. They are plain and simple BRIBES for favored treatment of organizations with particular issues with the federal government. When the investigation is complete, there should be a number of people who go to jail for corruption, Dotard included.
One appreciates Dr. Krugman’s restraint in saying Trump’s actions “border” on treason.
But I’ll take the next step: I believe Donald Trump is a traitor.
He has acted in favor of a foreign power, and clearly done so on several occasions.
He has put the interests of that foreign power ahead of the interests of the United States.
Trump’s meeting in the Oval Office with Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and ambassador to the US at the time, Sergey Kislyak, a known spymaster, with all of the laughing and scratching and beaming smiles, right after Russia’s meddling in and attack on our democracy, Trump’s release of classified information at that meeting, his horror when he realized pictures of the meeting would be made public, the fact that he barred all American media from the meeting...how much more is needed to seal the deal?
And remember last July when Trump had a secret meeting with Putin at the G-20 conference, and no one was present except Putin, Trump and a Russian translator?
The list of Trump’s actions and statements tell a clear story of treason.
If it looks like a duck...
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Also, what does it say about a citizenry that continues to allow these practices to exist?
"But today’s Republicans have made it clear that they won’t hold Trump accountable for anything, even if it borders on treason."
Thank you Dr, Krugman, for pointing out that the operating principles of today's Republican party can be summed up in the acronym IOKIYAR - It's OK If You're A Republican.
Years of Fox TV and right wing radio talk shows, subsidized by billionaires, has brain washed a large part of America and Trump is the logical extension of the very wealthy buying the American political system. We are in a lot of trouble and shall shortly see if there is really anything called American exceptionalism. Right now, only the American people can save the Republic. Will we?
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I read the story twice to see the evidence of bribery of President Trump by the Chinese government. But it’s not there.
The only extraordinary assertion I see in this column is that government officials are presumed guilty.
That certainly seems to be the presumption of the New York Times.
Every bit of this problem-Trump-is in every way directly related to the failure of the electoral college. Intended to prevent the election of a popular madman, it rubber-stamped his election. This should be the conversation every day. It’s how we got here.
What has happened to the Republican Party?
Ronald Reagan apologized for the “appearance” of trading arms for hostages.
Trump ignores his own cabinet and vows to save the jobs of a Chinese company that produces parts designed to spy on our military. That alone is alarming.
Worse, he does so immediately after the Chinese government promises to invest half a billion dollars toward his personal fortune.
While members of a President’s party might be reluctant to criticize apparently minor transgressions, we are well beyond that point.
Are Republican members of the House somehow compromised as well?
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Yes, absolutely, without a doubt...yes...
Now, I understand why Kim Jong Un has made trips to China.
China promised him that he would get stolen US technology legally and probably gave him a stake in ZTE.
Win-win-win for everyone. China and N. Korea get American secrets and cheap phones to the US and Trump gets financing for his personal investments and kudos for another agreement with N. Korea, which will be broken in due course.
Trump is the Transactional President. Unfortunately, he is acting
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I wish I could say that this is something new but it isn't. The republican party has been effectively betraying this nation since Iran-contra. Somehow, a huge number of American voters never got the memo or put two and two together. I'm not sure how long a nation can go on like this but I don't think it is a sustainable path. It's a little like a marriage in a pre-divorce state. Eventually, something has to give.
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What we are seeing in slow motion is what I call Systematic Treason.
It is not the treason of an individual, but the collective action or in-action of a group of people that taken together is treasonous.
The problem is that the founding documents of our Republic never anticipated that such systematic treason could ever happen.
Therefore, we have no mechanism to deal with it with in the framework of our founding documents.
So, what are we to do?
I suspect that either we sit back and watch as we wallow into a quasi police state or we will have to push back using means that are not via the ballot box.
Either way, it will lead to an America that be bad for most.
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How many Special Counsels will be needed to fully determine the extent of this President's malfeasance?
While Special Counsel Muller is focussed in crimes and abuses that may have been committed before and during the election, new and bigger ones are being reported almost daily now that he is President.
Never in the last hundred years has a President been suspected of taking bribes directly. Some have taken decision that favor a particular industry or region that they like, but never has a President been thought of taking money that went directly to his pockets in order to influence his decisions, and from a foreign country like in this case from China and Qatar and decisions that put American safety at risk.
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Mr. Mueller's investigation should be for corruption , not collusion or obstruction of justice. Any investigation should not be limited to the Trump Administration. Corruption is the likely explanation of Paul Ryan enabling Nunes. Corruption is evident at the EPA, the Department of Treasury and the Department of the Interior. Questionable decisions are being made in the Department of Education and "Net Neutrality" is in jeopardy.
What more evidence is needed to accept that Trump and his family are only the tip of the iceberg? Just "follow the money" .
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This whole sad episode in the history of the US point to the obvious, the system is broken. The sad part is that there is no plausible way to fix it. Money in politics is corrupting, citizen united helped and the “play to win at any cost” divided the country into two distinct tribes, where loyalty to our own Trump patriotism, at least for the republicans. We can hope for a democratic party win in 2018 but the long term prognosis for the state of the union is grim, history will tell that greed led few rich men (and women) to destroy the United States as we know it.
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With little distinction between the US administration and the Trump family business the demarcation lines between national and personal too remain obliterated and bribery and pay offs by the foreign governments turn out to be a routine official transaction, however threatening this could be to the US national interests.
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My observation over the past 20 years or so is that, in the minds of the Republicans, the nation has slipped into a distant second place. The highest priority of Republicans is their party. Examples abound, for one look at the Republicans conformation process of Supreme Court nominees. When President Obama nominated a centrist the Republican congress refused to even consider him, only extreme right wing justices are allowed. Another heinous act on the part of the Republicans is their continual attack on the voting rights of Americans: using trumped up charges to discourage (prevent ?) the underprivileged from voting, and the wholesale gerrymandering of voting districts. These are not the actions of loyal Americans.
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"If there had been even a whiff of foreign payoffs to, say, Gerald Ford or Jimmy Carter, there would have been bipartisan demands for an investigation--and a high likelihood of impeachment."
Mr. Carter famously--and I'm sure, painfully--divested himself of his family-owned peanut farm. Carter's desire was to serve his country, in much the same way he served when he was in the US Navy.
I look forward to someday seeing Mr. Trump's tax returns--perhaps as part of an impeachment investigation.
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