Soon I hope we refer to Don the Con not for his con-artistry, but for his misdeeds.
I remember well the Nixon debacle, Clinton and the meaning of the word "is". Now, we have a despotic moron bleating and braying about what was done to "traitors" in years gone by, the bleating of civil war should the wannabe sovereign be removed from whatever throne he believes he rules from, and now a member of Congress should be elected, along with those women members of Congress who should go back to where they came from.
Given Trump's actions, which are becoming more loony every day, makes the actions of Nixon and Clinton to be child's play as those two presidents never mentioned war if they were removed or advocated for the arrest of a Member of Congress.
The incessant damage his twitter storms are causing this country, and now we are beginning to see the "winning" as a result of his moronic trade war, makes it more imperative the wannabe despot is shown the door.
68
There is so much talk about how dangerous Trump is. Donald Trump is not dangerous, those who surround him are. Donald Trump is an idiot who would have done something to get himself impeached years ago, and then proudly announced it to the world. Trump is only still in office because of the minions who serve him that have protected him from himself. Pompeo, Barr, Guiliani, Ross, Miller, Flynn, Manafort, etc. etc. etc. These are the dangerous people. He appointed some real idiots as well like, Scott Pruitt who ran the Environmental Exploitation Agency, and Ryan Zinke who exploited the Department of Interior. But these two guys were too stupid to realize that egregious displayed of grandiosity are only acceptable for Trump.
Focus on the minions and the Trump will fall. Just like every other organized crime investigation.
75
Trump is like a poison pill, whoever come in touch with him gets destroyed by trump`s venom.
Trump is going to go down in sewer all right , this sort of lies and distortion can not go for too lomg.
But you are right Frank, longer it takes more will be pulled down to the gutter.
22
Oh please just make up something as usual, BUT resign. Quickly is not soon enough.
8
Trump should be removed from the Whitehouse in a straightjacket so he won’t be able to press any buttons on the way out.
66
From your mouth to God’s ears!
15
Oh, no doubt Trump’ll scream and bluster and whine. He’ll try and get the suckers whomped up enough to get violent, even.
But stand up himself? Not a chance. Never has, never will.
22
Have you seen the latest outburst from raving maniac, everyday he's in the office we're facing existential danger.
It gets so bad...
Just terrifying!
On the other side of the globe Putin is gleefully joking watching how our country goes of the rails.
Simply psychotic!!!
35
Most of us have known it for quite some time. Donald Trump is mentally unhinged, mentally unstable. He identifies his personal interests and the national interest as one and the same. The man is incompetent.
29
When the writer chooses to defend Bill Clinton to try to make a point vs. Trump, it shows how pathetic his reasoning is. Totally pathetic!
3
TRUMP IS RIGHT!!! - He can shoot himself in the middle of Park Avenue during rush hour and NO ONE will care.
20
Love the photo with Trump’s little fingers.
1
Trump completely melted down during 2 pressers today. It was like watching him audition for the lead in "One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest."
I hope he does take them all down with him. Good ridance to the insanity.
34
It appears Schiff has lied to you people, which only casts doubt on this entire rouse. #upschiffscreek
2
Talk about Russian roulette...
2
So Frank Bruni still has his TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome). Nice to know there are some things one can depend upon.
3
Learn to say, "President Pelosi."
20
Impeach. Impeach with extreme prejudice.
9
You Republicans are responsible. You are the most corrupt, unpatriotic, UN-American, immoral political party in the history of the United States. Great job!
65
“Trump should be tried as an adult.”
— Michael Moore
In May, the president wanted to:
-shut down the entire border by noon the next day
-build a water filled trench stocked with snakes and alligators
-electrify the wall with spikes on top that would piece human flesh
-shoot migrants in the legs to slow them down.
I feel like a deck hand on the Bounty. As Jeb Bush said, “Trump will be a chaos president.” The only thing worse is a cornered chaos president. Now he’s accusing Congressman Schiff of helping to write the whistleblower report. Trump is in full Roy Cohn mode.....deny everything, then obfuscate. His present performance with the President of Finland is prime justification for the 25th Amendment. The full “mad king” onslaught has begun.
44
Lock them all up.
9
We deserve the Trumpocolypse for allowing this sociopath to run amok unchecked. The republicans deserve to go down and I am sure they will take a few dems with them. It will be worth it if we can excise this malignancy from our republic.
21
Donny:
Are these the Nazis, Walter?
Walter Sobchak:
No, Donny, these men are nihilists. There's nothing to be afraid of.
5
Tou're seeing what a pathologically-lying narcissistic sociopath fears most - EXPOSURE. Trump is melting down. All of his lies and blame will now get him nowhere and all of his buried crimes are floating to the surface of his swamp.
No, it's not pretty, but it's necessary. He ruins everything he touches - lost all of his father's millions and a lot more. Failed airline; failed casinos, fake University, thousands of bilked contractors and unpaid lawyers, more NDAs than the NSA, etc., etc. Such an honorable gentleman (choke).
Everyone who has been stupid enough to enter his sphere of disaster will go down with him - his crooked Congressmen, his sycophant Senators, his bullied businesses, his corrupt Cabinet and, faster and deeper than the rest, Steven "Tokyo Rose" Miller. Tillerson and his early cronies that were smart enough to exit early won't be indicted for quite a while, but everyone on the WH Crazy Train now is going to get it.
It's NOT POLITICAL - it's a matter of a rogue and illegitimate fool in the WH and all of the damage he has done and the lies he has told, the undermining of our Democratic underpinnings and the rule of law and the total lack of morals of his base and co=opted cult of Trumplicans.
17
Our supposed president is barking mad. Lock this pariah up and throw away the key. His minions are just as guilty.
Crazy, crazy crazy.
14
Remember when Trump, referring to "2nd-Amendment people." made a not-so-veiled dog-whistle threat against the life of Hillary Clinton? It was somewhat shocking at the time, but the next 24-hour news cycle brought the next round of shock, only to be out-shocked by the one after that . . .
A scant week into the impeachment inquiry, he is already in full meltdown mode, talking treason, spies, executions.
Much sooner than we think, he will be rallying his "2nd-Amendment people" to once again take matters into their own well-armed hands . . . except that it won't be an individual in their crosshairs, but the government of the USA itself.
Yes, he will take us all down with him . . . just Hitler did Germany in the final days of his fiery Gotterdaemmerung.
6
Trump has been narcissistic at every turn, well before he became a global plague. His core narcissism is in full display as he is publicly undressed. His only loyalty to his flawed sense of entitlement. It is shameful to witness an American President Squealing like the stuck pig that he is.
11
As crazy as Caligula, with the all the good intentions of Nero.
14
If he takes them all down, then good riddance.
2
Trump should be scared. He has the real possibility of being jailed and perhaps executed as a spy for Russia. At first, I thought he was a UI (Useful Idiot). Now, I am more and more convinced, as Trump slowly destroys American foreign policy, making it easier for Putin to conquer or control eastern Europe, that he is, in fact, a Russian asset.
13
Dear Mr. Bruni and Mr. Bennet (the head of the opinion pages),
This is becoming political porn. You are teasing and goading your audience who hate Trump to the degree that they all salivate and go nuts with pleasure at the ideas you are selling but we all know this impeachment will not topple Trump and will not change the minds of any of their supporters. You know Trump will not be impeached my the Senate. You know Congress has only 11 percent approval rating and people look down at all the infighting. You know people hate the idea to have their right to pick a President by vote taking away.
And yet you keep doing this. Every day since Trump rolled down the escalators in 2015.
You need to go to rehab!
4
Anyone who was listening during the Nixon Impeachment hearings and its aftermath remembers how unhinged he became. General Hagg basically took over the White House. Henry Kissinger was down on his knees praying with Nixon. These memories put a real shiver down the spine. But, you know what? We've already been living with a totally unhinged Trump since 2016. Yes, he'll take everyone and everything down with him...he already has.
11
...he has suggested — repeatedly — that government officials who tattled about his crooked conversation with the Ukrainian president are spies who deserve to be executed. Had any other president done that, many Americans would speak of nothing else for the next month. ....
No, his supporters are not speaking about that and I believe that they like what he said.
They are like the mob that was waiting near the gallows to watch the lynching of the black man.
6
"Had any other president done that , many Americans would speak of nothing else for the next month". How many times has this statement or something similar been made about this corrupt individual equating his behavior with other presidents. Meaning that other men who occupied the Oval Office in a similar fashion would not last in the presidency as long as trump?
Personally I need no reason to compare this grotesque man to other presidents, since my suspicions started when he road down the escalator at trump tower.
At the beginning I was with Speaker Pelosi willing to wait patiently for the next election voicing my disgust voting him out of office. trump operates from a bottomless dungeon of hell and his removal by impeachment needs to be efficiently quick. Even then the awful smell and taste will linger in the American psyche for years.
2
Expect many more headers into the cesspool.
1
And the first ones to go under the bus are the suckers and aging bullies who voted for President Queens Mobster
1
He’s already taken us down. Way down. This country is going to hell in a hand basket. We’ve gone as low as we can. Impeach presi-tweet now!
4
The man has no concern for the country. Only himself. If he happens to destroy the country with his thrashing, he could give a gnat's backside about it.
3
I look forward to the day he starts naming his buddies as co-conspirators. Whoopee! See GOP run. Run GOP run. His head will explode and out will come all the venom his snakelike body has. You did a crime, you did a crime!
I think I’ve been reading too much. I’m going to take a break from News. A rest will do me good.
PS( once a criminal always a criminal by Henry Gibson). Couldn’t help it. Now I’m done.
4
Trump isn't Nixon and this is not Nixon's time. Trump never really lied to the American People, everyone knew he was an immoral, egotistical, unscrupulous malignant narcissist. Yet Americans installed him in the White House. They did that because eight years with a black man as president was more than they could tolerate and wanted someone they could identify with, someone who could undo what the black boy had dared to do without the white man's permission. So they elevated a gloating immoral egomaniac to the Presidency. Now they will defend him at all cost because Trump isn't just their president, he is their Prophet.
18
Every time a trumpie supporter parrots his line “This is the worst witch hunt in history!”, counter with “Oh, has he been burned at the stake?”
Every time a trumpie supporter parrots his line “No one has been treated worse in the history of American politics!”, counter with “Oh, has he been shot dead?”
Call out the lies.
9
I fear that whenever Trump's time to leave office comes, he will try to bring off a coup using his die-hard followers. We could have a civil war. He is egotistical enough to think that God has placed him in the presidency and he should be president for life. When he took office, he did proclaim that he would be president for maybe 20 years. I was a professor of history before I retired; I taught about egotistical leaders. When Trump was elected, we had a special service at my church for us to pray for the future of the country. I got to the podium and fearfully spoke about Trump trying to pull off a coup such as Hitler did in Germany in 1933. I fear he is crazy enough to try it here.
8
Those of you who feel Trump is demented should examine him more closely. His behavior is completely rational for someone whose options are thoroughly limited by his corruption, and who now believes he has nothing to lose. . A smarter man would at least restrain himself from appearing so vile under scrutiny. Trump would as soon burn the country to ashes as be found guilty of anything. It's just that the idiots he'd rely on to help him do it are no more competent than he is.
3
Elizabeth Warren just keeps hitting one home run after another. Her latest two were saying that she doesn't know anyone who loves his/her insurance company (kerpow!), and then taking on Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook for their monopolization of social media.
Why is the Democratic establishment trying to muzzle her. Why are Democrats ot allowing a big home run hitter like Warren to be asked to go to the prom? For shame, Democrats.
3
Oh, the good days of presidential philandering when the Russian president Yeltsin considered Clinton a "muzjik" and gave him thumbs up!
2
did you order that CODE RED?
There for Clinton Mr. Bruni, but not there for Nixon who was the perfect icon for self pity and self-inflicted martyrdom. "Everyone" hated him, beginning with the "media", "elites" and the "Eastern establishment.
Trump is a simple variety in the ongoing American garden of rancid bigots that come to the fore in a democracy. His election was a middle finger to the likes of Clinton and Jeb Bush for whom politics is a gravy train for their families. Trump is a flyspeck and will wander away when the time is right and more sack cloth and ashes-whining from the NY Times will not make him go faster. It stirs the pot just as hard as he does.
1
It’s impossible to try to compare the impeachment process between Don Donald, Clinton and Nixon. (And of course – Jackson)
The title of the movie might be the same but the screenplay, characters, crew and cast are completely different.
Nixon was a smart corrupt politician – and had some dignity and respect for the office of the Presidency.
Clinton was a brilliant womanizer surrounded but intelligent people, disciplined – able to compartmentalized problems.
Donald – a moron surrounded by stupid sycophants. (BTW, my emoticon of a sycophant is Lindsey Graham) No longer in company of adults – just a spoiled brat – ignorant of his own ignorance. Which makes this entire political quagmire an extremely dangerous one.
But there is no escape for Congress for doing its job. It would have been political-congressional malpractice not do so.
The problem from doing its job properly is the actors themselves. The egos are too large – each member will try to start a question with his/her political monologue. Booker, Harris, et al in the same room – each one doing their acting role – longing to be Denzel Washington stealing the scene.
A suggestion already done by some is to let Adam Schiff do what he does brilliantly…..interrogating witnesses. But that’s the movie – unfortunately.
1
Love the very apt description of Lindsey Graham as the "sycophant of the century" - OMG- sadder, wiser words never written - and you could describe most of the GOP the same way.
9
He should take everyone. We need a good cleansing.
" Lindsey Graham, the sycophant of the century..."
Donald Trump is in process of going down & he has already taken Lindsey Graham with him.
1
Let's be clear - If Trump lied under oath about oral sex, it wouldn't even be the biggest scandal of the day, no matter what day it happened.
9
You nailed it Frank Bruni: "Lindsey Graham, the sycophant of the century..."
sycophant: servile flatterer;
SYN:creature, groveler, minion, reptile..,(Merriam Webster).
Graham's continued support and defense of the "very stable genius" in our White House is an national embarrassment.
6
A rat in an Armani suit is still a rat.
1
The column rings true.
Trump is a coward, as are most bullies. And cowards get bellicose and rant and rave. Trump has just ended Pompeo's dream of the Oval Office as he has admitted his lies. Rudy G. will implode.
I believe that the public will lean on at least 20 Republican Senators to throw him out. Will he go? Sure or they will turn off his electricity.
He is so unraveled that he referred to his son Barron as "my wife has a son" ten days ago. His working vocabulary is dwindling. His armor is rusting. He is suffering the little dog Toto pulling back the curtain.
He will have a presidential library on a bus with no books that rides through the red states selling Trump approved hair bleach, hair spray and self tanner.
America elected this charlatan and now it is getting what it wanted, a foolish creep with nothing beneath him. The question is how many does this drowning man take with him? Ho got Pompea today. He got Rudy weeks ago.
Back on the Access Hollywood bus for him. He will start Trump TV, a cable channel of all Trump 24/7 with infomercials for his resorts, wine, steaks and a book about parenting adult kids.
9
“If I were to run, I’d run as a Republican. They’re the dumbest group of voters in the country. They believe anything on Fox News. I could lie and they’d still eat it up. I bet my numbers would be terrific.”
They did and they were.
11
Even better, time to get all these crooked, co-conspirators out as well. Pence likely knew all, thus complicit; and as you move down the line there are those defending trump against all odds and facts. Why do they take this risk, how are they involved as well?
This very might well be the end of the Republicans as we know them. They should start a new party now and let the other one die with Trump. He has tainted and soiled the party so deeply that it is in shambles.
Trump has turned the presidency and the party into a group of Americans actively or submissively supporting laws, judges, and policies (and law suits) so immoral, anti-democratic, and holding onto Nazi and White Supremacist core ideals very often.
America, stand up. We are a proud nation, a nation known for goodness and laws. Men and women in power, now is the time. Save yourselves, save our country. This trump is the worst of our nation. Those who follow him have shown how craven they are; they will be judged under the law and at American dinner tables for decades. He, trump, must be judged as all citizens and face the music. Those in power can let our Constitution take care of this with truth, dignity, and honor.
3
Expect him to start a war somewhere as his paranoia goes ballistic and the election becomes up for grabs. SOP.
Innocent until proven guilty—that’s America’s standard
So far there is just an investigation. Not even a charge. So let’s not get ahead of ourselves
Trump’s a truly a horrible human being. He has publicly admitted that. His tweets show he is a pig. It’s plain to see
But we elected him anyway. We will likely elect him again. We should stop pretending that we have ever looked for saints for the job.
3
Beautiful writing. But sort of madman? Sort of?????? If this isn't the behavior of a madman, what is?
2
Every sycophant left in the White House and GOP congress persons deserve what they get when -- as former Ambassador Nancy Soderberg stated today -- the truth comes out, it always does. They should all go down with him for aiding and abetting a dangerous narcissist who is NOT upholding the US Constitution and is, and has been, abusing the power of his office over and over again.
1
This is not a "normal" political battle for obvious reasons.
For every lie Clinton told, tump has told 10,000. Not condoning any lies, but they are not in the same ballpark.
Tump is so totally abnormal, immoral and ignorant that it defies comprehension to witness it. He's failed at everything he's tried to do throughout his life.
He clearly has no conscience. He constantly fakes sincerity and knife's anyone who isn't a sycophant in the back. At some point the sycophant also gets the shaft.
Plainly he thinks he's above the law and constitution; he's clearly a threat to our existence as a nation.
And if he is voted out in 2020 he'll likely declare a fake emergency and assume absolute control via a self created emergency powers act.
And in many ways the fact the spineless GOP just sits and watches, and has his back...is even more frightening.
What can we do but pray if we're inclined, and most importantly support impeachment and vote.
Maybe too the Generals who have some integrity will also help remove such a threat to our existence. Who knows what will be required. Scary indeed.
1
He's not taking Pence down with him, unfortunately. No Democrat should want a President Pence: vastly more conservative, and a Taliban-like Christianist fundamentalist. No thanks.
4
Please take Pence too!
4
I pray that everyone ever associated with this hobgoblin goes down in flames. Let him take them all! I confess that I will take delight in learning that Corey Lewandowski is having trouble finding a job and Steve Bannon is living under a bridge.
What I am actually concerned about is how the hobgoblin is weakening and destroying our institutions. Using the EPA to promote pollution. Using the Education Dept to prey on all students-- K-grad school. Using the FCC to weaken net neutrality. and on and on. I believe we can recover from most of this damage, but the climate damage will prob be irreversible.
Those who don't see him as a criminal will never come around. When our corrupt R-run senate fails to remove him, let there be a landslide in 2020. And then let the Secret Service put on the straight jacket and put him in the ambulance to Walter Reed.
3
Looks like Schiff is working with the CIA to stage a coup.
1
Exactly.
Best line of the day: "Lindsey Graham, the sycophant of the century."
Mr. Bruni, you are a scholar, and a poet.
2
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together – mass hysteria.
Lighten up Francis.
Good i hope this will be the end of the Republican /GOP party for good. Lock them all up. Treason is a felony and needs to be hard labor punishment.
1
It's what Bill Maher said: you're now either with the mobster or the non mobster
1
Trump has mental problems. How was he able to elected? How could so many voters think this monster would be a suitable president? How does anyone still support this freak today? Literally insane.
4
If you wrote this colum before today's news conference (with the President of Finland as a first hand witness, and boy do I fell sorry he had to put up with this), you should view the tapes and re-write this piece. It's not strong enough. The Dotard is GONE, man. He soiled and debased the conference with a litany of vile, accusatory, rambling, babbling loose associations, jumping from one thought to another. He was blatantly discourteous and insulting to a reporter who had the temerity to ask him a perfect question. He is a stain on the office and a threat to the country. He's got to go. Now. Period.
10
Trump has only two plays in his playbook:
1. Accuse your accuser of the crimes that you have committed.
2. Use the courts as an expensive obstacle and hope to run the clock out.
His dimwitted crew will botch any attempt to defend Dishonest Donald. All that they can do is too keep throwing out ridiculous charges against nay who dare to seek justice.
BTW - how in the World did Rudy ever get through law school and pass the bar? This man makes bricks seem sentient.
9
Trump has Narcissistic Personality Disorder and if you google DSM-5 you can look it up and see that he has every attribute. I am a retired nurse with psych experience. When Narcissists decompensate they take everything with them; they are extremely destructive. They are amoral so have no problem causing the most harm possible. They are the victim here and justified in burning the town down. We are in for a bumpy ride, fingers crossed.
8
I keep rembering what Cohen said (that in time everybody in trumps orbit becomes corrupt) We see that playing out more & more everyday
5
As a Jew, I can only look back in history and see what's coming. This time it'll be the Jews and anyone brown. Germany seemed like a stable place for the Jews pre hilter. Many were educated, well off, and young Jewish men fought in the German army during WWI...
Trump's comments are decisive and foment hate. And his platforms (ie Twitter) are too scared and too enthralled by the traffic he drives to the site to do anything about it.
5
Donald Trump is nothing more than your crazy Uncle Larry if not for the roughly one-third of American's who believe he's doing a good job, a fact which seems to terrify Mitch McConnell into blocking any moral accountability among Republican legislators.
Blame Trump? Blame your fellow Americans. He's nothing without them.
8
Here comes the new Nero. And what does history tell us? History tells us nothing.
3
The issue is lack of shame, as Mr. Bruni mentioned. Trump has no empathy genes, no sense of propriety, no sense of right and wrong. He is one scary dude--and to think half the country voted for this misfit.
7
Trump and his blind supporters need to recognize that when he points his finger at someone else and accuses them of some outrageous and unprecedented crime, the other three fingers are pointing back and him. It is called psychological projection.
6
Lyndsey the weasel says it's a setup because he knows that Clinton's impeachment was a setup. Comparing Clinton's impeachment to Trump's is like comparing a pea shooter to a nuclear bomb. Nixon was a crook, but he wasn't even close to Trump's level of deceit.
5
I'm well aware that references to Hitler and Stalin are off the table, but folks ought to read or re-read "The Last Days of Hitler." As much as anything it's about an extreme narcissist surrounded by sycophants to the very end, and also about the impact of the bunker mentality on rational political thought.
Here's a very condensed synopsis:
"Finally realizing that it's over, that the army he'd conjured in his mind was not marching to his rescue, he insists that his nation should go down with him, ordering wanton destruction. His finals words on the matter are that the nation itself doesn't deserve to survive if it has let him, its savior, down."
This is why we are at a dangerous crossroads, as Bruni points out.
8
Love to see these unhinged, delusional, hypocritical evangelicals threaten to start a civil war.
Go ahead, I dare you. How about this Sunday when you're all jacked up on the lies of prosperity gospel? Where to begin? Sheriff's office and jail? Closest military base? Occupy a national park? Boycott SEC football?
Civil war. Riiiiight. Good luck with that.
7
Lay down with dogs ....
I have no sympathy. Not perfect!!
Trump is running America like the mob boss he is. All patriotic Americans - like McMaster, Mattis, Kelly, Comey and Tillerson are long gone. Today, we are left with Trump's B-Team loyalists - sycophants all - and "acting" leaders that are Trump's short leash. Trump is looking for the Republican Party to stand with him, as he turns the USA into a right wing, racist autocracy.
8
Trump is a wounded dragon, and will do even more damage to our nation in his political death throes.
2
If enough voters support a candidate with corrupt, malign, ignoble intent, what will follow is corrupt, malign, ignoble government. Expressed in shout, blurt, sucker punch, and tweet, the purposes of Trump's government are Black Lives Don't Matter and You Do the Work, We'll Keep the Money. No one can credibly pretend surprise at how this sad circus turned out. There are the inconvenient matters of private citizen Trump's repellent pre-2016 record and of the innumerable impassioned warnings his opponents sounded throughout that election year.
"Once you give up integrity, the rest is easy." -- J.R. Ewing, "Dallas"
5
Does "everybody" include Rudy Giuliani? I certainly hope it does.
In another article today we are told that the President, in one of his rages, demanded a moat with snakes or alligators along his wall, and that those trying to cross simply be shot, as was done in Berlin.
This sociopath, paranoid, ignorant, frequently enraged, and transparently unstable and deranged, still, unbelievably, holds the nuclear codes. Every hour that he does, our lives and those of our children hang by a thread.
5
In a saner time, somebody as blatantly godawful as Trump wouldn't have gotten anywhere near the White House. That he got in and now we're fretting just how to get him out, fearing that he might actually get reelected if we don't go about removing him the "right" way, shows how nutty our country has become, how putrid our politics.
3
Good to see you're coming around now, Frank.
1
No, Donny, these men are nihilists, there's nothing to be afraid of.
Let's hope he takes his kids with him. Lindsey is already old, bad news.
Trump talking about Adam Schiff to the press: “He couldn’t carry his blank strap!” He said this in the presence of another world leader. He continued to go on and on about other Congressional members, about cities, about other citizens, other current events. And everything is “fake news” ?
Now tell me that is mental stability coming from a world leader....
7
Is he wanting to go down like Carmine Gallante?
I wonder if that evangelical pastor's church is a tax exempt organization.
1
Words can be fought with words. In a crisis time much can be "creative disaster". Informed, multi-dimensional thinkers, mystics, lightworkers. the enlightened can process mayhem into poetic prophetic works. In San Francisco The Playwrights Sanctuary is establishing a base for mentoring newer & younger dramatists & poets finish their works. Director Award winning playwright & university professor of 40 years arts activist Dr. Larry Myers participated in the Pershing Square Climate rally & in San Francisco his concern with animal rights was fueled by the Whole Foods demonstration. Onto Washington D C for October 7 - 8 he will participate in Supreme Court LGBTQIA protests. transcribing, analyzing, exploring, investigating & creating can be an innovative way to counteract omnipresent chaos. Antonin Artaud ' s Theater of Cruelty the plague & Jerzy Grotowski's Towards a poor Theater are newly minted NOW by post-cyber millennials & elders too. Myers' "horizon hiccups/hemisphere hemorrhage"& ""...Living in Ellipses.."capture this fervor .
2
“There has been no President in the history of our Country who has been treated so badly as I have,” he tweeted last week.
Awwwww. Too bad we can't ask one of the assassinated presidents, Lincoln (he of the cool hat but worse hair), Kennedy, et al, if they think it would be worse to be expected to put the country before personal wealth and ego stroking. Somehow, the crybaby in chief is seeming so tedious in his whining. My son tells me his fans love him because he's got such moxie and bravado. Well, I doubt those Dirty Harry fans will stay with him if he keeps crying on screen. It's just sad. But I won't be sad when they see him for the pathetic bottom feeder that he has always been.
7
Guys like Trump still won’t put their own skin on the line.
2
Honor and civic concern? Donald Trump?
1
that's one way to drain the swamp
1
I knew I should have invested in popcorn and bomb shelters...
He was profoundly ignorant, arrogant, unintelligent and an egomaniacal sociopath before the whistle-blower complaint. Now he's all that and hysterical.
If the media keeps its focus on this, and doesn't allow Trump to re-focus their attention on his next theatrical show, we might force him to resign, or convince enough Republicans in the Senate to convict.
Or, we can all just pour onto his Tweets, and the emails of McConnell and other Senate Republicans, that the American people demand Trump's resignation...Now.
1
"When you churn out a disgrace a minute and no one expects anything nobler, you’re inoculated by your own awfulness." I couldn't agree more.
2
The very definition of hyperbole.
Turn the volume down Frank.
It's way too loud in here.
Clinton lied about an improper sexual encounter. Who doesn't when caught? Human nature I guess.
In this case, The Grifter has been lying ever since he was born and continues up until today. He is the President! I will be laughing each time one of his enablers is sent to jail after criminal indictments are brought. I will roll on the floor when New York gets their hands on the Liar himself.
4
I wonder why the Times persists in placing Trump's picture before every article about him. Like we we forgot what he looks like? Many of us thought the MSM contributed greatly to Trump's success in winning the Presidency by headlining the news with Trump day after day during the campaign and since.
Surely you can find other angles to the news besides Trump.
3
“I'm going to whine so much. You're going to get tired of me whining. you’re going to say, ‘Please Mr. President, I have a headache. Please, don't whine so much. This is getting terrible.’ And I'm going to say, ‘No, we have to make America grate again.’ You're gonna say, ‘Please.’ I said, ‘Nope, nope. I'm gonna keep whining.’ " - Donald Trump
6
A cornered Trump is lashing out to the point that Article XXV of the Constitution may come into play after all. The ever-scarier thing is that his finger is on the nuclear trigger.
1
The current White House occupant says "it's not an impeachment, it's a coup."
Maybe our best recourse is to apply the 25th Amendment to our "coupcoup president."
7
His rant this morning is one for the ages. It's literally cringe inducing to watch this empty vessel flail and scream and deflect and lie and wail and moan. He is so juvenile that he doesn't even have enough self-respect to temper his reaction and maintain some dignity in the face of adversity. God, this cannot end soon enough.
7
To NYT photographer Pete Marovich. That's the best Trump image I have ever seen. The hair and the pointed finger. It's perfect.
Congratulations!
2
I won’t be surprised if Trump ends up having a complete mental break down over the impeachment trial.
3
Trump deserves to be impeached because almost everything he does is beyond dubious, he's done America a favor though by exposing the fraud of European American meritocracy for what it is. It's a good ol' boys and girls palm greasing network to this day, and always has been.
Trump's latest gaffe with the Ukraine only re-iterates that the Mueller report should have seen him impeached, except everyone was talking about the poor "optics" of an older Republican in Bob Mueller. Really America? Appearance comes before substance? Mueller's a lifelong Republican!
Trump's done America another favor though by exposing the Democrats willingness to put their kids on the board of foreign energy companies when they are not qualified to be there, and rake in $50k/month for being Joe Biden's kid. This smells like the Clinton Foundation, or the Hollywood college admissions scams for rich white liberals, or that snotty Covington Catholic teen suing WAPO for $250 million or whatever it was, the bipartisan rich white folks fiddle while the US public burns for 10-15 bucks an hour at MacDonalds, Walmart, Amazon etc.
Bernie just had a heart attack, the only honest American running for president left appears to be Tulsi Gabbard.
Here's hoping Bernie makes a speedy recovery before next November.
2
Maybe we can drain the swamp for real this time.
1
There's no question. No question at all. A 250-year-old democracy with 330 million people? What's that compared with the majesty, the exquistry, the omniscience of Donald J. Trump, D.S.1*?
*Devil, First Class
trump is clearly delusional.
"When you churn out a disgrace a minute and no one expects anything nobler, you're inoculated by your own awfulness." That about sums it all up.
1
Southern's and Mid-Westerners need to decide if they want this country of laws or Mafia nation. The later of which is the enviroment tr.... (I cannot even use his name, sorry) grew up in and has lived in his entire life.
If McCain were alive he'd have some very choice, memorable words for Mr. Trump over his Ukraine dealings. I think the old GOP officially died with John.
2
As they say in the NFL, a good offense is the best defense. The current “President” rages, snarls, and sneers as his anger seethes. He, the treasonous one, accuses others of his crimes. He, the liar, accuses the media of his own sins. He, the would-be autocrat, accuses the Democrats of attempting a coup. These are the rants of a criminal, cornered with no legitimate way out. His reactions to stress are those of a Kim Jung-Un who simply executes a few of his relatives, a Stalin who used Siberia as storage for his bodies, and a Castro whose opponents disappeared more than conveniently. Treason? Patriots? What does Trump know about loyalty other than to bully the Senate Republicans into submission (see Lindsay Graham). Nixon acted in a similar manner, but in the end he just slithered away showing the world the type of snake that he was. Trump will go down, as well, snarling and salivating until the helicopter takes off and rids us all of this demon. Impeach him until he and his enablers are reminded that we live in a democracy and that “We the people” means exactly what it says.
1
As long as this president has an iron grip on the Republican Senate and House, the Supreme Court, the State Department and the Justice Department headed by his hand-picked flunky, there'll be no limits to his neurotic behavior.
He's a modern day Caligula, an emperor without scruples. He would destroy America to hold on to his power and authority. He destroys friends and foes alike. He's the devil incarnate.
1
If Donald Trump doesn't dig his own grave then Rudy Giuliani will.
2
The US President has considered asylum seekers to be shot in the leg, for Adam Schiff to be tried for treason, considered Nancy Pelosi as banished from the House Speakership.
Breathless, my friends and I await the next episode from this Reality TV presidency, expecting to hear calls for heresy, blasphemy, and appropriate punishment. Like burning at the stake, crucifixion, oh yes! I forgot his pal’s bone saw.
1
Good work, Democrats! You and your liberal media henchmen started this insanity with your inane prattling about the illegitimacy of the Electoral College, spurious accusations of Russian collusion and all your other attempts to destabilize the Trump presidency, when the correct thing to do would have been to let him rise or fall (more likely) on his own merits, especially since he only became President because of your political ineptitude. As if that weren’t enough, you’re now whipping people into a frenzy over the unlikely prospect of Trump refusing to leave office if legally compelled to do so. It’s no wonder Trump and his supporters are digging in their heels. You’ve destabilized the entire government and country!
If you sleep with dogs, you get fleas....
"Shoot them in the legs". This too needs to be added on to the list of Trump's abominable words. Human life means nothing to him, just like his friends Putin and Rocket Man from North Korea. And that unfortunately tells me most of our Republican representatives and Senators also do not care. It's as if they drank that special Kool Aide(Lindsey Graham) and have lost all common decency. As this impeachment inquiry goes forward, I am hoping that some of those republicans and possibly some Trump supporters, unsure as to what to do, will come to the realization that our Allegiance is to our Country, not to one hateful man.
2
This is your ”Hitler” moment, meaning if the 60-65% of Americans that are relatively reasonable get their act together and vote in 2020, Trump will loose quite big and you can heal as a country and learn from the experience, just like Germany had to do.
If that doesn’t happen, your role as a superpower will diminish faster than you could imagine, and the federation itself could be in peril.
Who would’ve thought that when i was living in the US 1997-2001?
1
That this is allowed to stand for another nanosecond is a pox on this country. It. Must. End.
7
Many were skeptical about consequences for the Watergate scandal, but in the end Nixon resigned and Mitchell, Haldeman, Ehrlichman, Dean, and several others went to prison.
The system worked.
8
The photograph is the best psycological portrait of Trailerpark Trump, yet. It should end up in the National Portrait Gallery. All darkness and the outline of a tiny-fingered vulgarian.
6
There are similarities between Trump’s crazy, rage filled, accusatory, self centered, inappropriate response and Kavanaugh’s pathetic display in Congress. It still didn’t stop enough people, congressmen and congresswomen from supporting his nomination.
4
trump is unhinged. If you need evidence of how far off the sanity reservation trump has wandered, just listen to his press conference. He is an existential treat to America's very existence.y.
Republican supporters are complicit in this degradation of our country. Vote them all out.
8
"The impeachment inquiry is laying Trump bare."
The office of President of the United States has already done that. The rest is just the scent of the putrescine and cadaveral coming out of the rotting corpse of that man's character.
Sometimes the cynic in me wants to say that America deserves what it is getting, because what is happening now was easily foreseeable to any reasonable person long before Mr. Trump was elected. Yet America elected him. But America deserves better; the good people of America deserve better. The only question is how to achieve that. My internal cynic is wrong, but boy, does he shout loudly!
5
What absurd hair splitting. Clinton's "serious accusations of sexual violence" make the claims against Al Franken, that effectively forced him from office, look like child's play. People who become president are seriously narcissistic and when a narcissist feels threatened they go scorched earth. Now, Trump completely lacks empathy, making his behavior more extreme than Clinton's, but Clinton's was still egregious. Moreover, where Clinton was elected under the guise of being a "feel your pain" empath, his true behavior, when exposed, felt like more of a betrayal. Trump, on the other hand, never hid who he was. People voted for him either because of, or in spite of, his personality. In many ways, Trump is the most honest politician ever. He openly declared who he was during the campaign, through word and deed, and continues as president.
3
Trump did say he'd drain the swamp.
1
No, Mr. President, you don’t have absolute power, thus through your alleged criminal actions, you deserve to be taken down due to your complete ignorance of our Constitution. You have to be taught the hard way like a spoiled, rebellious, out of control child, that you have continuously violated your sworn oath of office by abusing your presidential powers. Those around you caught up in all this mess, are just all collateral damage. Too bad for them all!
3
Taking everyone with him? Then the swamp will be empty!
5
Donald may be impeached but he is not going down.. He will face Warren in November,2020.
3
"If Trump Goes Down, He’s Taking Everyone With Him"
Do you promise?
5
There is a ditty in South Asia: "Iss hammam mein sab nangay" (Everyone is naked in this bath). No one is blameless - Republicans, Democrats, Others.
Yes, when Trump goes down he will take everyone with him, and that will be the best for America.
This pot has been boiling for at least 100 years now (1920-32) when 3 Republican Presidents (Harding, Coolidge, Hoover), the most corrupt in history until GWB and Trump, transformed this Socratic republic (Lincoln's govt of the people, by the people, for the people) into a democracy (rule of the demos, the 5% moneyed males over the rest - women, plebs, slaves).
Then the two US Parties switched roles - the Democrats today vye for a republic, and Republicans push democracy at home and abroad.
The Athenian 5% demos are now only 1%. Only a new Civil War can save America and the world. The old system must die for a new one to be born. Civil wars are neither bloodless, nor short.
We wish our southern neighbours well. Can we help somehow?
Bruni says that the dumpster's "...response, which is untethered from any sense of honor, civic concern or real patriotism." And I would suggest he add "reality" to that list. With every day that goes by the dumpster is showing severe signs of a mental disorder that not only plagues him but us as well.
Impeachment is the only remedy we have as a nation to effect a cure of the viral poison that is destroying our nation.
Meantime, listen to what the dumpster says. He projects onto others what is so true about himself - and that he knows is true. Thus, when he tells Adam Schiff to resign he's actually telling himself that it's time he gets going out of the White House. Pay attention, buddy, you're giving yourself good advice.
4
Lindsey Graham's not the sycophant of the century. That's not Bigly enough. He's got to be the greatest sycophant in American history, maybe of all time, even the whole Universe and all the other multiverses. The absolute PERFECTION of President trump deserves nothing less!!
2
It is amazing how Americans can/will/do upload fights, fires and all manner of human tragedies to Facebook and Twitter, yet cannot muster the energy to hold our elected leaders accountable: Why are hundred of thousands in Hong Kong marching and protesting for change and not Americans? We have become the proverbial Frog-in-the-pot, never realizing our brains & will have boiled to mush. Never realizing all we take for granted as free citizens are being taken away...because we're too busy being- too busy.
3
Watching Trump, his sycophants, and the cowardly Republicans implode in plain sight is some of the best entertainment I've seen in years.
I love the look of frustration and fear on Trump's face. I have never seen karma play out so brilliantly.
I hope it all ends poorly for Trump and his flunkies. Our country deserves no less.
5
It is mind boggling to see how shameless this man is, how little he is concerned about the welfare of this great nation of ours and most importantly how lying and treachery come so easy for him. But worst of all how can the Republican sycophants be this numb to the damage to our democratic system of checks and balances he is causing! Did they not take an oath to protect the constitution of our nation? God help this country and its people:(
4
“While there were fellow narcissists among his forebears, was there a single nihilist like Trump?”
Nope, and that includes Harry Truman, who dismissed Oppenheimer’s concerns about deploying atomic bombs on human targets, snidely labeling him, “too much of a poet.”
“Lindsey Graham, the sycophant of the century...”
I may have come around on the notion of objective truth. Did Lindsey Graham go through some kind of hypnosis to wipe John McCain from his mind? Or is he just that much of a pathetic opportunist?
3
Calm down. He is not going anywhere.
You're right, Frank: It is "histrionic" behavior. That's all it is. Let him try to take everyone down with him, but going down he is, finally. This guy is all smoke and no roast, as the Italians say, a petty boardwalk mafioso with the too-strange-for-fiction luck of Forrest Gump. He's not doing any lasting damage to this country, just as he hasn't so far, no matter the handwringing and doomsaying in these august pages and others.
1
This president tosses language around to the point where I would think even his staunchest supporters would grow tired. "Treason" "Coup" "Savages" "Civil War."
There is evidence this President compromised American assets to try to get dirt of his political appointment. To be able to investigate that is one of the greatest gifts our constitutional forefathers has provided us. To scream and cry otherwise is unworthy of the office of the presidency.
1
I am disgusted (but that's nothing new). What I am NOT is afraid.
This dunce is going to self-impeach after all! Every time he opens his mouth he adds detail to at least one article of impeachment. Neither he nor ANY of his minions have read the Constitution which they SWORE to protect. Swore on various and sundried family bibles and other bound whatevers.
It meant absolutely nothing to them. Nothing!
Donald Trump is the logical end of a long Republican/Libertarian fever dream... they can't go down in flames soon enough for me.
3
I just saw a rant about the Southern fence. He mentioned snakes, electrification, spikes at the top of the fence gleefully like he was getting sadistic pleasure from saying that. Doesn't this suggest the 25 Amendment? Ah, he doesn't have a cabinet because they they are all actings. How did that happen? Have they sworn loyalty to him and won't move a finger concerning his derangement?
3
Trump is indeed a madman, with a lot of followers...
Having just read an excellent book on the run-up to The Civil War, I'm afraid this may get much worse, before it gets any better. He may have to be forcibly removed from the White House at some point, the sooner the better. Luckily, our armed forces are a very diverse organization, and hopefully they won't follow any crazy orders from the "Kook in Chief"...
2
Does no President being treated as bad include Lincoln and JFK who were assassinated while in office?
3
"If Trump Goes Down, He’s Taking Everyone With Him"
Well, I hope he is taking with him his family too.
5
Translated: Your president trump would do well for a while in Russia. He fits perfectly in V. Putin's world. Until Mr. Putin becomes tired of him.
28
"I wrote last week that the prospect of Trump’s impeachment terrified me, and one of the main reasons I cited was what we’re seeing now: his histrionic response, which is untethered from any sense of honor, civic concern or real patriotism."
Frank, he was untethered from any sense of honor, civic concern or real patriotism for his entire life --way way way before impeachment was a issue. I refuse to be "afraid" of his histrionics. Let him act out. Anything is better than letting him think he can get away with destroying this republic.
29
Your boy Schiff should worry about avoiding his own impeachment investigation. Since when do ranking Congressmen preview private whistle blower complaints? Isn’t this - wait for it - collusion?
3
I wonder just how many of the rats are willing to go down with Trump and the sinking ship ?
I think it's safe to say, it won't be pleasant and it certainly won't be a pretty sight when the lackeys turn on their master.
14
I am so tired of the hyperbole sorrounding these events. Bruni and the other columnists should take a collective deep breath. And, they should devote at least a little more column space to other news and issues, of which there are many. People are too wrapped up in this very banal political moment. While I find Trump, the things he stands for and the actions of his Administration all detestable, I certainly don't think he or they represent any real threat to our institutions or our country. If he isn't impeached and forced from office, then there will be in any case another election cycle to make things right. Calm down!
5
Since when did the Democrats stop being the tough guys?
Stop being scared Frank and start getting angry!
7
If this what Trump meant by Drain the swamp then I am for it.
5
One has to assume the President is innocent. I mean, after all, "he denied it very strongly"........
5
Excellent take down of imposter president. I could feel your anger Mr. Bruni. And its ALL TRUE.
Americans deserve to watch Trump crumble before our eyes after he has so dishonored the whole country. At least in REAL PATRIOT eyes.
Luckily, we have governmental institutions that believes in America, the Constitution, and that too often used phrase "rule of law." No one is above it, and I'm grateful that finally our national nightmare may soon be over.
8
Just caught part of the Q&A session he held with the visiting Finnish President. President Trump is flat-out scary to behold. I could not actually believe what was coming out of his mouth—just vile lies about the whistleblower, about Schiff, about the Bidens and perhaps even worse, about the national press assembled in front of him. I felt ashamed and sickened for all the well-meaning people of our country, along with our allies across the world. How did we sink this low? Our citizenry cannot believe him nor can anyone on the world stage take “our” word on...pretty much anything of consequence. It’s all about his ego, the grievances he cannot let go of and his need to force Americans to tune in to our demise.
24
Time to re-watch that great movie from the Watergate era - 'All the President's Men'.
9
Trump's temper tantrums will be the final straw that brings him down. Caused only by himself, executed only by himself, everyone can understand the dangers of having a such an undisciplined, unhinged child acting not only as an adult, but as the president of the United States.
Is this really the person to rule a country when he is incapable of ruling himself?
Please, open your eyes fellow citizens and vote not only him out, but his bully playmates as well.
18
He did say he was going to clear the swamp, so he's just living up to his promise.
2
It's ALL entertainment, Archie Bunker on steroids; his fans love him and will never abandon his rude profane bacchanal!
4
Not a “sort” of madman but a truly mentally disturbed individual. The evidence is there for all to see. The tirade today should be exhibit enough that he is wholly unfit, completely dishonest in every way, and ignorant of our laws. He must be removed. Spare the country and stop him. NOW
17
“a sort of madman at the helm”. I would venture a President as nutty as a fruitcake. One could think that politically a tactic of swamp the news scene with saying everything the opposite of what is said by his opponents, tarring them with exactly the same brush, might push the public towards total cynicism and/of confusion. It’s been tried and tested and can work for a while.
But after a life in the mental health field, it seems to me there is more. The president’s ravings sound paranoid and delusional. To me he appears unfit for office.. There are clearly constitutional safeguards against a President who has a mental breakdown. If Pence is caught up in this scandal, it would indeed be deeply ironic that Mrs Nancy Pelosi could end up being a stop-gap President. I think she would do it with intelligence, adult maturity, respect for her opponents, and the diversity of the US public. There is a clear and present danger to the US Republic that demands action. Everyone should take a step backwards. The White House is indeed a Mad House.
13
Stop misleading yourself and your readers by thinking this is over.
It's definitely not. We've still got a long, long way to go. Predicting the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end is a fool's game that makes everyone prone to playing it mimic the narcissist who created it.
This is nothing more or less than Chinese handcuffs: The more you try to pull them off, the harder it is to let them slip off.
Detach, take a walk around the block several thousand times, count to 6 billion, then rinse and repeat.
And if that doesn't work ... Vote.
4
Humpty Trumpty will bring all his horses and all his men down with him while looking for his missing strawberries. I thank all those in Congress who are willing to speak out, loud and clear, for those of us who have but one vote for renewed democratic governing . Would that more fence sitters join those courageous legislators to resurrect a more united , bi-partisan country with honesty and truthful leadership. That should not be a fairy tale.
7
The Dems had better present an ironclad case that even the most ideologically minded Senators cannot deny. Anything short of removal from office will result in a stolen election in 2020 and dictatorship. In that scenario expect to see wholesale arrests and prosecutions of the dictator’s political enemies. Do not bring a kitchen knife to an artillary barrage.
3
That’s fine. They all need to go.
5
I remember a psychiatrist telling me once that when a pathological narcissist like Trump goes down, they take everyone and everything with them. We've witnessed this these last 2.5 years as Trump has undermined the world order, glorified dictators, blown up relationships with our allies, undermined every institution of civil society, debased our political discourse and tarnished America's standing all over the world. We must stop him before he takes our democracy down with him.
15
The entire country as well.
4
He’s a businessman, don’t you get it! Good or bad, they can do no wrong or someone would have gone to jail in 08.once he saw that well, guns away!
3
As long as he is only ranting and raving, but not acting, we will be fine. What if he orders the DOJ or the FBI to start rounding up his opponents? Who will stop him? Barr?
2
If Trump goes down--and even if he doesn't--his enablers should go down. Pompeo admitted today that he lied about the Ukraine call, having first said he knew nothing about it and now admitting he listened in on it. Miller hatched many ugly immigration plans, some illegal. Conway lies for Trump at every opportunity. It goes on and on.
Trump violated the ethics and oath of his office. He has lied over 12000 times, often when he knew the truth. He has insulted people of every color and incited violence through his rhetoric.
He should go down.
10
That performance in the White House today was certainly more unhinged than usual. How can anyone think this man is sane?
7
What's a "perfect" phone call, anyway?
11
He knows he is going to prison once he is out of office. We ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
8
I disagree with Trump's many policies but there is a reason why american people voted him including me. If you need to blame someone then blame Dems cannot found someone better than Trump to ran for president. Who's fault is that? now you guys rooting for Joe Biden? why not Andrew Yang I will vote him, This guy is for future and not establishment. I know you guys will ignore him. You guys are helpless. Since Trump's day one Dems chanting to impeach him, it has gone for three years so far. This impeachment is just Dems trying to appeal far left radicals before next year's election. Political drama in DC never sleeps..
2
He's just setting up his insanity defense.
6
A continuation of the illegitimate Trump presidency is far, far, far more terrifying that his impeachment. Yes, Donald Trump seems like an unhinged psychopath, especially when cornered. He is capable of saying awful things and behaving horribly which shamefully endears him even more to his base but impeachment is the first step to remove this stain on US democracy and restore some order to a world that seems to be spinning out of control.
That being said, why does the NY Times feel so compelled to diminish the Clinton's so frequently, especially when discussing Donald Trump? There is no one even remotely equivalent to Trump and this attempt at "balanced" journalism only benefits Donald Trump. Bill Clinton's impeachment was a travesty of justice for an adulterous affair foisted on American by a Republican party steeped in hypocrisy about all things moral The high crimes of Donald Trump make Bill Clinton's, and perhaps even some aspects of Richard Nixon's behavior, seem so inconsequential.
9
if Trump gets impeached, every crooked member of the CIA, FBI, NIA, and other agencies, as well as illegal foreign espionage will be exposed. Trump will declassify everything shady the government has participated in under the guise of national security, It might be worth losing a president to find out how corrupt these democratic governments have treated their citizens.
The Donald Trump "pity party" is now in its umpteenth month.
Those paper towels he threw at the Puerto Rican hurricane victims should be sent to the White House, for mopping up his buckets of tears.
With Christmas coming up, we can expect another "Woe is me!" message from the White House as all of Trump's people (including his family) head for the exits to avoid ruining their holidays in his presence.
3
He said his call with the Ukrainian president was “perfect”. Now with the House investigation picking up steam, it’s hard not to agree.
3
Watching Trump self-destruct is almost sad. I almost feel sorry for him, want to start an intervention, get him some medical help, get him a glass of warm milk.
Then again, watching him set himself on fire (along with Pompeo, Barr, and the rest of the gang of crooks he has around him) feels pretty good. Seems like a fitting end to a despicable man. Nice to know this is his legacy.
7
I tend toward the evangelical, sometimes, even the charismatic, in my faith in God and His Son. I am also more Democrat than Republican having voted more often for the Democratic candidate than for the Republican - but I have voted for both depending on my own conscience and faith. Having said all this, it appalls me that any person of faith, Christian, Jew, Muslim, or other, would ever speak out in favor of the odious criminal sitting in the White House. I recommend that you look deep into yourselves to find and purge the devils who are contaminating your souls.
11
A few republican rats have already jumped the sinking ship for their own self preservation and the good of the country. Trump has made so many enemies within his own party the rest will bail out once they realise Trump is no longer invincible.
5
I can't wait. They're a pack of thieves. Looking forward to the "apocalypse."
4
I think Barr is digesting that message right this minute.
3
Stephen King's Cujo and George Romero's Night of the Living Dead depict Trump and his followers. How perversely apropos that life imitates art.
3
The damage this man and his staff have done is untold. Every govt. employee hired on his watch is suspect as far as I’m concerned. He says that he hires only the best people but we know that is not the case. He hires bootlickers. People without a backbone. People who are as unethical as he is. It will take a at least a generation to undo the damage this man has wrought.
5
If Trump goes down, everyone in his orbit needs to go down too. No sympathy for any of them.
As far as his supporters, ugh!
6
This has turned into a comedy. "The Gang Who Couldn't Shoot Straight".
On day one Trump admits something. On day two he denies he said what hr said a day earlier even though he was shown audio and video proof.
On day three he says all this is a hoax perpetrated by the Deep State, whoever they are.
On day four he states that the perpetrator and a leader of the House should be tried for treason and wishes they could be hung.
Trump is Trump. He lies, deflects, bullies, and threatens. He adjoins the public sector rules with the government. The government is not going to go away.
Ergo, this is all a witch hunt.
4
the witness that works for the cia needs to be .
testifying a.s.a.p.,
what is the wait? a subpoena for protection?
if, *IF* it's found out that the 'cia operative' is just
another media potted plant / "skirt", how bad
will it look that this inquisition was started from soo
little.
you should be scheduling WHEN this person testifies,
ASAP. seriously.
MAKE THE INTELLIGENCE CREDIBLE
comey was latent, didn't know what direction he wanted to
go, and that made it pretty bad so
1
Unless Trump is removed from office -- by impeachment or honest election -- he will, in effect, be what the USA deserves ... even, arguably, an embodiment of today's USA or, at least, its shadow side (in the Jungian sense).
To have elected him as a historical accident (the Electoral College's arbitrary delegate math combined with Russian interference) is one thing; to let him serve out his term with impunity -- or to re-elect him -- is quite another.
As a wise man once said, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on ... shame on ... shame on ... we won't get fooled again!"
4
trump is not "inoculated by his own awfulness", although he perhaps wishes that he were & maybe that is his intent.
Rather, his awfulness is why he must be impeached and removed from office.
Journalists need to maintain strict standards for the rule of law in this era of trumpian misbehavior.
Normally journalists get to drum up excitement, but right now we all need sober minds and clear vision.
Just like if you're driving a psychotic to the hospital. Don't add to the histrionics, but don't deny their deep importance either.
2
Like Nixon but on steroids not scotch. And less filling.
2
How sad it must be - believing scientists, scholars, historians, economists, and journalists have devoted their entire lives deceiving you, while a rich reality TV person with decades of fraud and exhaustively documented lying is your only beacon of truth and honesty.
This is the twisted and backwards thinking of a Trump supporter...
12
I hope there's a gland in Trump's brain, missing in most rational and compassionate people, that explains his behavior. His brutality and threats of violence to foreigners and opponents are appalling. His supporters remind me of Ivan the Terrible' s oprichnina. Jeff Sessions still supports the boss who fired him. The battered wife syndrome? Hillary was right: this is a vast right-wing conspiracy.
7
He is definitely loosing it, is words and actions speaks for themselves, he knows that peoples around him are starting to think about saving their jobs and integrity, that freak show is coming to an end.
7
Trump is the conspiracy to demolish the republic.
5
Trump is haplessly fulfilling his destiny as a child who would be king brought down by sheer greed and bottomless need. He wears his rage on his sleeve and shamelessly stays on point, speaking of his enemies and his wish for their heads to be served up to his residence in short order, if you please. The Greatest Ruler of Any Country on Any Planet Past, Present or Future has spoken. Does he wonder why no one respects him?
9
In addition to bringing on impeachment all by himself—stupidly, brazenly going mob-boss with Ukraine and then providing a corroborating transcript—his behavior now essentially answers the long-running public question, “Impeach, really?” A majority of Americans now say “Yes” without hesitation.
10
I like Rick Wilson's suicide bomber analogy. There is no reset. The entire GOP is strapped in and when Trump trips the fuse it's curtains for the lot of them.
8
Trump will be gone one way or another in little more than a year. What we really need to focus on now is getting rid of the entire Republican Party which has revealed itself to be a very infected and diseased organism. The Republican support for this mentally ill, illegitimate president tells us everything we need to understand, that is, they place their selfishness and greed above our Constitution and the rule of law.
8
"For grotesque example, he has suggested — repeatedly — that government officials who tattled about his crooked conversation with the Ukrainian president are spies who deserve to be executed. Had any other president done that, many Americans would speak of nothing else for the next month."
The most terrifying thing about this statement is that I fully believe that more than half of the GOP would pay to watch the executions on pay-per-view. Seriously.
4
Get ready for a delightful few months of seeing exactly what happens to a person with severe narcissistic personality disorder when he is exposed and cornered.
5
I certainly hope he takes everyone with him: Barr, Pompeo, Guiliani, Mulvaney, etc.!
5
McConnell will bring it up and it will immediately voted on as dismissed. You need to focus more on the sycophants that are furthering this destructive man. Trump's behavior frankly is not surprising. What is more disturbing is the failure of the Republican Party, career politicians, to recognize that the Republic and our Constitution are more important that supporting this fool. That is the true disaster unfolding here.
8
Trump will go down alone, a lonely man. A few will tweet for a day or two but the evidences will be so convincing that people will flee like an open sewer on Park Avenue.
5
"They mean to put truth itself up for grabs, no matter the fallout." The goal of propaganda - not the free expression of ideas that Trump and his servants would like to call propaganda, but the flood of lies - is not to persuade, but to destroy belief that truth exists. In that world, the members of the party of Lincoln, the chosen party of evangelical Christianity, can call Donald Trump their leader, can tell their followers that everything is OK, because one lie is as good as another.
Unfortunately, the flood of lies has unearthed a truth - that the American people have been largely OK with this man, that our promises to other countries, to our friends, to our children, just don't matter so much. That is a hard pill to swallow.
5
Will there be a public unraveling of the personality that is Donald Trump? I'm thinking about a missing full gallon of frozen strawberries. Republicans, please manage the denouement with empathy and care.
8
But Both Trump and Clintons have something in common and that is a lot of their “friends and associates” have/will suffer greatly as a result of their associations with them. Clinton’s saw many of their friends sent to jail, prosecuted, reputations destroyed, etc. likewise with Trump the carnage is amazing already with Cohen and Manafort with lengthy prison sentences, and others await. No doubt people associated with Trump will have destroyed their and their families lives as great suffering awaits them. Truly, the Clintons and Trump are toxic.
2
So, now Trump is trying to take Pence down with him.
Pence (Washington Post) is claiming he did not know of the Biden angle when he dealt with the Ukrainians. But he's now in the what did he know and when did he know it seat, because it would be unbelievable that he did not know what Trump was saying.
8
That is precisely the reason that he goes down because that is the plan one way or another.
1
After D T is gone Congress needs to address the enormous powers the presidency has been granted by Congress over the years. Congress has relinquished so much of their constitution responsibilities to the Executive branch that their main duty is to continually campaign for re-election. It’s all fine and dandy until you have a nut case in the Oval Office.
Second, Congress needs to address the requirements for a candidate for president. First and foremost tax returns for 10 years must be submitted. And the list could go on.
I’m not holding my breath.
6
we must look to ourselves and wonder how much we'll miss the drama when and if it ever ends. as mr. trump would rather destroy the game than lose it we in the overwhelm of fact and anti-fact might just throw up our hands and let the whole thing collapse. oh for the strength and clarity to step out of our own little lives and become the ordinary heroes we need to be to right this tempest tossed nation.
2
All you have to do to figure out how this will all end is to read up on how Trump exited other controversies and problems he had when in business for himself. It's one thing to make threats, bark loudly, etc. It's entirely another to see through things to a proper end. Like most bullies, they bark loudly, then fold up their tent and leave. All I know is Trump's Dad must have had the best trust lawyer ever known to man because despite all the financial failures of the son, much of the father's wealth passed down to his kids was preserved. Just when the Allies started turning the tide against Germany during WW2, Winston Churchill made a comment which applies to where we are today with the Trump administration: "This is not the end, it is not even the beginning of the end, but it is perhaps the end of the beginning."November 1942 Winston Churchill.
4
While Trump does need to be impeached, it's funny to me that the Democrats have settled on this whole Ukraine/Hunter Biden thing to impeach him on. Seems to me that Hunter Biden's sketchy job on an energy board in Ukraine IS just blatant corruption, and will reflect poorly on all the establishment Dems. I feel like the whole process will just leave Americans disillusioned with both parties.
1
Yes. People who are protecting him take note and stop fooling yourself.
1. Trump will throw you under the bus quicker than a blink of the eye.
2. Trump doesn't know the meaning of the word "loyalty".
3. If Trump can pin something on someone else, he will - regardless of their connection to him (with the exception perhaps of Ivanka).
4. The economy is good 'on paper' now, but it will go down. It already is.
Why are you allowing him to continue?
4
as the public becomes more aware, the Senate GOP will have no choice but to cave and convict. same scene as nixon.
the difference here is that Trump won't resign in the
face of the inevitable.
Trump knows that he will be prosecuted if he leaves the whitehouse for claims that may be outlawed ivy the statute of limitation if he serves another term. hence, he will hang on desperately.
Scary, very scary as to what this increasingly desperate
mad man may do.
1
“There has been no President in the history of our Country who has been treated so badly as I have.”
Kennedy, Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley beg to differ.
9
Some men just want to watch the world burn. This is great theater and I hope something exciting happens. The news networks actually live him as he is juicing their ratings.
3
"...the prospect of Trump’s impeachment terrified me, and one of the main reasons I cited was what we’re seeing now: his histrionic response, which is untethered from any sense of honor, civic concern or real patriotism."
And the way he is fighting back is not surprising. We've all seen it.
I think most of the country is terrified by his antics.
3
I think it’s a beautiful sight.
1
Most of what Trump does is against the law. His response is basically "so what"?
3
I'm in a particularly nihilist mood today. I'm thinking if there is to be a fight, let it be final - and if we have to rebuild our Constitution and country out of the ashes of the old - let it be so. I'm betting on the liberal good winning over the corrupt, establishment, with the template being our 19th century civil war.
1
Living his life for so many years like this -- how did he think it would end?
6
Trump is doing exactly what one friend of mine wanted when they voted for him - taking a sledge hammer to the entire corrupt Washington establishment.
Perhaps we will all be well served if not only Trump but other big time Washington insiders are exposed as utterly corrupt. Maybe we’ll get a generation worth of honest people into politics.
3
To quote Valery Legasov in the excellent miniseries "Chernobyl": "It means the meltdown has begun."
4
There may be "a swell of support for impeachment," but he has also seen 15 million dollars in his war chest of small dollar donations. Don't count him out until it's over.
3
I am anxious to see who choose to go down with this captain's ship and who bails. More importantly, we need to applaud those who bail before it peaks.
Romney has the chance to charter his own boat now by raising his voice so that he can convince others to join him. If not, he might be left at sea all alone.
3
They say we need to clean the swamp in DC. Fair enough. The likes of Mitch McConnell and Lindsey Graham are evidence enough of the venal corruption that is poisoning our democracy . But - and this is a huge 'but,' in my opinion - this swamp would not be so irredeemably infested were it not for the right-wing media, led by Fox News, that has been created, nurtured, and supported by a well-heeled right-wing movement. This has happened over the last 50 years, first gradually and then roaring into being with the insanity of Clinton's impeachment and the travesty of Bush v. Gore. The media swamp must be cleaned for us to be able to breathe freely again. It is my fervent hope that the destruction of Trump will bring with it the destruction of the false victimhood that animates the brainwashing and hateful right-wing media.
3
Well, he did promise to drain the swamp. This is an unorthodox way of doing it, but, uncannily clever at the same time. He has effectively lured out and granted permission to the nastiest aspects of the individuals who surround him, and the constituents they represent. His hate-filled speech was a trumpet call for those who had kept their loathing of "the other" hidden, albeit in a sketchy manner.
He has torn open the veneer of kindness and equality that has shrouded the bitter reality of terrible inequity and despair wrought and perpetuated along with elitism.
There has never been a better time to pull the plug and empty that malodorous pool. Do it.
5
I feel like Bruni keeps saying that we shouldn’t impeach Trump, because he’s exceptionally unfit for the office. Bruni — please enlighten us as to your logic. It fails to make sense to me.
1
Thank you, Frank Bruni, for so eloquently expressing the lunacy and horror that is the Trump presidency. Nobody does it better . . . although I wish you didn't have to.
4
I just hope that we can watch this chapter and learn (a few things among many!): how bullies operate, especially when they are empowered; that bullies are afraid and aggressive and greedy, not captains of themselves; that a misogynistic (slowly changing) culture enables men who bully (Trump is unable to even look at women who hold positions of power, and has fired those he could); how right-wing talks shows and the end of the fairness doctrine allowed the rise of infotainment instead of news and filled the heads of those who are uneducated with myths and fantasy and confusion; that we have become a society that has given in to greed and corruption and Trump is not a bad representation of how economic values....
1
If the Senate doesn't convict him, then the silver lining will be the effect on the 2020 election.
That would repay the Republicans for the grief their sycophancy has caused our country, now and into the future.
And hopefully, give the Senate to the Dems.
3
After Trump is removed from office, a RICO prosecution will strip the Trump Crime Organization of all its criminally-obtained properties. That will be the sweetest revenge of all.
8
Brilliant article, enunciates my disparaging mindset in such an articulate way. I sat here incredulous at the accuracy of which you portray this conman. He is a clear and present danger that history will show as an aberration, one which defied logic and somehow scarred many forever. This is the craziest reality show of all time, one which will be a Netflix series not requiring any embellishments. Let’s just hope the nightmare ends soon.
2
Great News! donald is getting his wall! shortly it will be surrounding his family and close friends, America will be happy to pay for his wall.
2
I hope Trump has a lot of handlers. We are nearing the time when he will look for a way to keep out of jail. He will either have a fake medical emergency and have to resign, or he will board AF1 and defect to Russia. I don't care if he defects , but don't let him do it on our national plane. Also he really doesn't need access to the codes right now...
4
Trump is the creation and mascot of the Republican Party. They must go down with him.
9
Here here!!!!
1
Trump doesn't UNDERSTAND why he's being "persecuted." Therein lies the crux of the problem!
3
Trump has a moral compass, however the needle to point the way was never installed.
2
From the article:
'Bill Clinton didn’t prophesy that his impeachment would lead to a kind of “civil war” from which the country would “never heal,”'
In fact, the nation never healed from the Nixon impeachment effort, which is exactly why we are where we are now. It's "tit for tat" - Clinton was about Nixon, and this is about Clinton.
And why did it start with Nixon? Because he was seen as the loser of the Vietnam war, and nobody rallied to support him.
Why was Obama skipped? He was remarkably clean - a truly great man. If only he could run again! Another Obama would crush Trump to dust, but men like Obama are not common.
Note: While this is about Clinton, Trump happens to be a super target, as low as Obama was high. Nevertheless, the effort will fail, because the Founding Fathers rigged the rules to make a successful impeachment nearly impossible.
4
In order to truly make America great again, Trumpism must go.
3
An air of desperation/panic appears to be hanging around Mr. Trump and his enablers. This weekend's talk show appearances were by all accounts disastrous for Trump.
In particular, Pompeo lied by ommission suggesting that he was unaware of the content of Trump's infamous call with the Pres. of Ukraine, subsequently having to confess that he in fact, was on the call.
He is just as culpable as Trump.
3
Reading the title of this article, my first reaction was, How cynical of Bruni. But considering the character of Trump, if he's cornered he will strike out like any other wild animal, not caring a whit about the consequential destruction.
3
The only thing that is certain so far is that impeachment (which he once supposedly welcomed) is getting at him like nothing else - except maybe the tanking stock market. Twin threats to his narcissistic aura of authority and re-election prospects.
1
Why do you continue the narrative that the Senate probably won't convict him?
The narrative should be Country first, Oath first for everyone in Congress - regardless of Party.
Do not give them an out not to serve the people!
3
This summer I met a very nice American visiting Rome. We sat down having a good meal together.
When he asked me, I told him I thought Trump would win the election, as there is no other candidate to really challenge him.
The right is strategically seeking chaos. Palosi is walking the weak cord.
So, if can Frank explain....What if the Trump WH wins?
Whereas Bush and Cheney were worse, far worse than Trump in other ways (Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis dead, the Syrian civil war, rise of ISIS, the Afghanistan debacle, and on), Trump is extremely dangerous domestically.
Watch out. Get your passports ready.
2
Trump and his school of bottom feeders have established their place in our history books. People like Graham, Miller, McConnell and Barr, to name just a few, have helped America's reputation fall into the muck.
What will come of this latest collection of established law- breakings' is anyone's guess. He will tweet them into the ground and his followers will dote on his every word.
I suggest these three terms for our Party: Reject Repair Rebuild. Apparently, the Democrats are the only Party who are willing to do that and it will take a long time to accomplishment after Trump's classic fraudulence and grotesquely bad leadership.
3
There goes Pence. Could not be happening to a better person.
4
Is there anything about Trump that hasn't already been said? Probably not. He is the arch-villain as depicted across history. Nothing is below him, and thus is totally predictable. As the old saw goes: "Of course I bit you, I am a snake."
3
All his allies deserve to go with him. Good riddance. This nation needs to have a moral, smart President who will lead us back to peace and sanity.
2
As Trump paints himself into his corner of extortion, lies, cover-ups and obstruction — he lashes out with increasing ferocity and aggression.
I fear that he might decide everyone really IS going to go down with him — and he will send nukes all over the world, annihilating humanity and all life.
Why stop with just one person on Fifth Avenue?
He already believes he can be neither indicted nor investigated for any crime.
He does not seem to believe in a Judgment Day at the Pearly Gates either.
2
Enough talk. Enough evidence. Enough of trying to figure this guy out. Impeach him and then vote him out on '20. Period.
4
We are in a 5-alarm fire. I hope some responsible person is keeping an eagle eye on "the football."
3
Not to be petty, but I hope President Warren cuts off the Red State voters who gave us Trump from the Federal trough...
4
It's like a breath of fresh air.
1
This should come as no surprise to anyone. It's the way Trump rolls. "Take all prisoners!" It's already begun with his loyal minions and it won't stop. This is going to be a hellish season for America.
2
Frank, if, no when, he goes down he’s not taking his base down with him. They glorify and praise him, singing the hallelujah chorus to his name. They feed on his every word. Worse, they believe his lies. They idolize him ... lock, stock and barrel. (Imagery chosen on purpose.). So, we know what we know but what we don’t know is what about them? They won’t just go gently into the woods. He won’t either but he is just one and they are the hordes.
3
The silence of those of hundreds of elected Republican members of the national legislature is thunderous.
Their universal inaction, given the implied threat of civil war from the individual who is charged with preserving domestic tranquility is frightening. The President has previously alluded to how his supporters have a greater number of lethal weapons than the "opposition,"
Our political system is imperfect. It functions not because it can't be corrupted, but because no leader has ever chosen to make the attempt. In the 1960 election when JFK was leading by a handful of votes his opponent Richard Nixon made the decision not to contest the count as described here: "The day after the election Nixon officially conceded the election to Kennedy. He told his friend, journalist Earl Mazo, that “our country cannot afford the agony of a constitutional crisis." He chose to lose a hard fought election rather than expose the country to the accusation of cheating by the opposition.
President Trump has escalated this current conflict with tweets branding his opponents as spies who covertly undermine our country
Passivity at this moment becomes a statement of support of this president's actions. What has been initiated by the Democratic house is the first part of a complex procedure to ascertain his culpability. His exaggeration of this process as being a preliminary to civil war is poisoning what is left of good will among our diverse population.
1
All Democrats should register Republican to vote against sitting members of Congress in the primaries and then vote democratic candidates in the general election Let’s ensure these “representatives” are voted out of office.
2
America is strong and resilient. One man, however vile and vicious cannot bring the house down. Even though a fire is spreading on the outskirts, the house and its foundations are strong. Dawn is near. Waiting for the morning to start repairing.
5
The floodgates are opening, finally. I think the going assumption that the republicans in the senate will not support removal from office is not solid anymore. There is too much material and the President is coming off the rails completely. It’s ugly either way but the GOP must finally realize that it is time cut losses and move on..
4
@TFRE ...
Nobody expects the Republican party to do the right thing for they repeatedly choose the wrong side of history... and morality.
But it is important for history that the Democratic party demonstrates that no President... nor politician... is above the law... ever.
Otherwise the political future of this nation will only be for the corrupt friends of hostile foreign powers.
My thoughts are...when he crosses some criminal line on his Twitter feed, take away this mouthpiece. Twitter must mute him when he violates their rules. He has used it as poison broadcast for years and if he gets into criminal speech, which seems days away at the rate he is going,...then at the very least, turn down his broadcast, neuter his ability to foment rage and instill lies in one important mass medium. It will be a salve to the nation. Not a full solution clearly, though it will probably expedite the mental breakdown that seems to be coming.
13
I disagree with any Twitter intervention. He must be allowed to destroy himself.
1
As Trump’s claim to kingship slips away we’ll witness the meltdown, inceased agression and incoherence. But with every new revelation justifying an impeachment pursuit comes ever more fierce proclamations of loyalty from his base. With every new exposure there are loud retroactive calls from the gun-toting flag-waving bible-thumping base to investigate Obama, Clinton, any Democrat whose name they might know. So. The survivial of this democracy really does rely on how many adults are in the room.
13
If we all survive this madness, I hope there will be bipartisan laws protecting our constitution put into place so our country never has to experience such anxiety ever again.
23
A proper democratic way to solve this problem is by eliminating the Electoral Colleges and let THE PEOPLE CHOOSE not the establishment
33
I hope the younger generations of the USA are learning from the dangers our nation is experiencing under a Trump/Republican led government. I thought we learned our lesson after WWII. My mistake for not thinking such a dangerous individual and his enablers/minions could attain such power in our land of the free and home of the brave. It can happen anywhere.
Now the monster is out of his cage, broken the chain and the Republicans are running out of food with no walls to hide behind.
One term or less.
17
Possibly one of the great ironies of the whistleblower/impeachment process is that it's main accomplishment will be to precipitate a meltdown in Trump that is so transparently pathological that even people pre-disposed to support him will now see him as dangerous. Ideally this will be true in the electorate; it is almost certainly true across government.
It feels sadly superfluous to point out that among all of Trump's rants about "treason" and "spying" there is no claim that I am aware of that his actions on the phone call to Ukraine were in fact justified by American foreign policy and security interests or even a legitimate law enforcement interest (either American or Ukrainian) in whether Joe Biden actually did something wrong. I would like to think that this would get noticed in Trump world also. I will settle for the out of control ranting.
10
When Trump threw out that folks should check out VP Pence's Ukraine-related phone calls, my immediate thought was that he wants GOP Senators to realize that if he goes down, Pence goes down and Pelosi is next in line. He is just applying his usual leverage in case GOP Senators begin to be pressed by the facts and are tempted to be critical and even to abandon him.
23
Most, or nearly all of our presidents have understood the concept of res publica, the public trust on behalf of which they govern. Even the Roman Emperors understood as much, generally speaking. Trump has no such understanding. The State is his personal property, an extension of himself as absolute monarch. Louis XIV: "I am the State." I suppose this is where he and his supporters want to lead the rest of us.
Agree with the observation: watch out for the Evangelicals on this one.
26
Regarding Senate Republicans turning on Trump and removing him from office, an article in today's Politico opines that a President Pence might actually have a better chance of winning next November. Be careful what you wish for.
10
@Phillip Usher You mean, the Mike Pence who used a private AOL account to conduct official business as Indiana's governor? The AOL account that eventually was hacked?
21
@Carissa V. The very one. The point was that after Trump, his plodding, sanctimonious style might be construed as a return to "normalcy"
by a significant chunk of the electorate.
He would have to be nominated. Kasich and Wells would like a shot at it too.
The Apprentice was a Trump reality TV show that seemed believable. This time the Trump TV show is reality and seems unbelievable.
17
Behavior under stress defines character. A man void of principle is a character.
18
Now that Trump has fired all the handlers and is a one man show with his enablers singing back-up for all to see, his base will start diminishing. How incredible to see how Barr, Pompeo, and Lindsey Graham are ruining their once estemed careers for a mob boss.
The base will catch on when they put 2+2 together and realize all of this craziness is Trump being Putin's asset. The goal is to erase opinion of Russia interfering in the 2016 election to help Trump, and Russian interference in Ukraine. If Russia is found innocent there is no reason for the US sanctions against Russia, and Putin gets what he desperately wants: US sanction against Russia lifted.
The Republicans who have enabled Trump will have a lot of 'splaining to do at re-election time.
All that's left is to see how far to the extreme Trump, Pompeo, Barr, etc. will go. Mitch is being very quiet. He's not going to do anything substantial, just some placating ruffled feathers here and there.
28
"While there were fellow narcissists among his forebears, was there a single nihilist like Trump?"
Nihilism is the belief that the universe was created with no objective or subjective meaning or purpose. As such, it's not intrinsically evil. Trump is more of an existentialist. An existentialist agrees with the objective (universal) part but not the subjective (personal), meaning that in a meaningless and purposeless world, it's the duty of the individual to create meaning and purpose in their own life. Since there are no universal guidelines for how an individual determines what is meaningful or purposeful to them, this philosophy can produce a Camus, but also a Trump.
4
But--and I understand the House is going to do what it is going to do--President Trump is not going to be removed from office by the Senate. If anything, the entire impeachment process will help him. Those who think the opposite are the same who thought Georgia was "turning purple" in 2016. It is just not happening anytime soon. This impeachment process will be a disaster, and not the disaster House Democrats want.
2
Joe Biden will go down and is sinking in the polls. President Trump has been receiving millions In donations for his 2020 campaign. That does not sound like someone who is going down. He has lots of supporters and has received $125 million in the third quarter. He is still quite popular with his party and the people. This impeachment inquiry has had little effect on his campaign.
3
@KMW Hillary far exceeded Trump in money and proved that money doesnt mean a hill of beans in a presidential election.
3
The impeachment inquiry is very upsetting to Donald Trump's white nationalist supporters and those who don't mind having a criminal for a president. It's important to them to have a president who embodies their bigoted ignorance, and who makes them feel better about never having made anything out of their lives. Many of them, despite not being gainfully employed in any measurable way, have donated to lardboy's campaign. It's taken a long time to get an overt white nationalist and bigot into the US presidency, and Trump's embittered supporters are not going to give up. In any case, they have nothing better to do than carry water for the guy who conned them.
3
@dtm
7th Grade Social Politics mentality. And Trump isn't popular with "the people," only "his people."
2
Guessing this will become less pretty as the minutes tick by. But so necessary.
10
Bravo, Frank! He expresses my sentiments exactly.
At least Richard Nixon had enough respect for U.S. institutions to resign, rather than burn it all down.
18
Great reflection. But, I am sorry, Frank, all other previous presidents (and in the case of Clinton, also his partner) the did not have, none of them, "at least a few scruples and the capacity to feel shame". The only difference, as your analysis shows is just the way, "the strategy" as they say, the took to try to get out their situations.
He is not going down. Yet. And if he were, no one would go with him. This matter is just not serious enough. No one even went down with Nixon, a much more serious case.
The Republican Party will not be in the least affected by any of this. He has been their ideal President. He has done everything they dream of. They all know this will die in the Senate, and he will sail to a second term.
1
@Mr. Little I beg to differ, 40 government officials were imprisoned over Watergate and so was Mitchell, Nixons AG for obstruction.
21
@Mr. Little - I am an old man preparing to dance with death. And there are two things I fear: dying in an institution and Donald Trump continuing to butcher our country.
Leading up to the last general election, Obama clearly informed the nation as to our fate in the event of the election of Trump. Having studied the downfall of civilizations, including the litany of inevitable causes over the past 5,000 years, I recognized President Obama's observations to be accurately predictive of what is ongoing this very day. There is a grave darkness on the horizon ... and I am glad, in a way, to know I will not have to watch as it envelopes our world.
11
@Mr. Little Yup, their ideal president. I wonder what my evangelist brother and his evangelist wife would say if I started quoting their beloved POTUS in front of their young children. The older child would ask me to explain the words; I'd explain the words and I'd imitate his gestures (the groping, the mocking of the disabled, ...) Maybe I'm a fool for thinking it's desirable to be able to quote the POTUS in front of one's children. Maybe I'm naive for thinking it's a good thing to have a POTUS who's a decent human being, worthy of respect. (I notice that Trump supporters never ever claim or even hint that Trump has any redeeming qualities as a human being.)
I suspect, though, that my brother and SIL would rip my lungs out.
3
I fear even with impeachment which I think may not be successful Trump would still be elected. I never thought I would say this but I hope the markets tank next year. I think bad economic climate from his tariffs are the only thing that can stop Trumps train.
20
In the ideal world, he'd take a cue and follow Nixon down the path of resignation. That would be the least traumatic all around. But, if, as has been asserted, his strong-arming the Ukrainian president has "mob qualities," then in Trump we see the inverse of "Godfather" psychology. The fictional relationship was "business, not personal." Trump's narcissistic ego sees everything as "personal, not business." If he's castigating everything and everyone as enemies, Nixon's list has nothing on this. How far must he go, how much will we tolerate, before the 25th amendment is invoked? Impeachment? Perhaps psychological dismissal is more the better course. Will we get there? If he keeps pushing, we just might have to. Unprecedented, yes, but so has everything else been these last few years.
11
I thought last week's column was good as is today's. However, I think you opinion loses power by comparing the 'bad' things Clinton did with the 'bad' things The Donald does. If memory serves, arguments by analogy may be illustrative, but are logically fallacious.
12
Dear readers – please indulge me with a bit of childish comparisons in Trump’s current predicament to the end of the movie The Lion King.
In the comparison I visualize in my mind, the Donald is impeached and summarily removed from office, just as Scar was defeated by Simba and left bleeding from his wounds. But instead of the hyenas waiting on the outside to come and devour his incapacitated frame, it is the prosecutors in the Southern District of New York that will finish him off for good.
I am so hoping to see that play out in real life.
32
I share the same wish, but I’m convinced that Trump will flee to Russia to save his hide (despite the historical damage that will do) before he spends a day in jail.
Question is, will he try and save his children as well?
Thank for you the good column! It’s pretty underwhelming impeachment case right now. Trump is not the first President this sort of thing. Let’s hope Trump pulls it together and comes up with a coherent defense strategy, other than scorched earth.
Coherent? Trump? Surely you jest.
@Mike Todd Yeah right.
My husband is in North/South Carolina on business. He is in his car, traveling to his appointments. He is listening to the radio (Am).
They are calling for civil war. Because of Trump. God help us.
40
That’s really hard to hear. Did what you can in Michigan.
@Tired I think that has more to do with the content on AM radio than my state.
1
@Tired
Wow. Wish I could say I'm surprised.
As much as I dislike Trump and find him abhorrent, he does have a point in saying:
"part of the federal government (the intelligence services) was an evil cabal intent on undermining our democratic processes"
History has shown this to be true.
Iran-Contra alone made this clear, while JFK's death, 9/11 and so any more events have raised questions about who knew what and when, never mind who was directly responsible. Those running these agencies take pride in deceiving and manipulating the American public and have publicly said so multiple times.
Dismiss such questions as 'Conspiracy Theories' (a disparaging phrase invented by the CIA to belittle any questioning of official explanations) if you wish but a huge number of Americans agree with Trump in this case.
Carter was the last president who tried to stand up to the CIA and he was kneecapped. The old guard came back with a vengeance under Reagan - care of George H.W.
It seems that Trump has 'played ball' with the vested interests in DC as much as he would like to claim 'independence' from them.
The problem is that what started as a publicity seeking effort in running for President (an effort to 'expand the brand') ran way from Trump and actually got him elected - though he is completely unqualified in temperament and experience. Everything becomes a personal challenge or affront to him.
3
@cynicalskeptic, Explaining Trumps behavior and position to readers suggests that you do not find him as abhorrent as you state. In fact, it is Trump that is actually doing the undermining of the democratic process. If there really was a evil cabal intent on getting rid of him he would've been long gone. And his followers have agreed with everything else he has said, why not this? As for conspiracy theories, they will remain theories until proven to be true.
13
Aside from Gingrich and almost every other republican admitting to it, doesn't the last 20 years fully confirm the "vast right wing conspiracy" against everything right and good in the USA?
63
DT has already taken the country down, the world economy, and now the stock market. It couldn't get any worse, or could it? That is the scary part of the whole thing!
20
While I like your column and read it regularly, in the context of that approval please allow me an observation. I do not think you are fair in the least to the Clintons. They were affable, caring, and productive. I have talked to over a hundred people (this was a hobby for a time) who were sure they were "criminal" and "immoral." In each case, I tried to get them to tell me a few details. Any! Exactly ZERO of them could produce any evidence, or even define a detailed "crime." They all had the FOX/Jones/Limbaugh/GOP code words. They had broad pronouncements. Nothing else! Your description of the hardworking and excellent Clintons plays into this. Let's give our public servants more consideration! Thanks, Frank!
38
Why do you say the impeachment investigation is scary for us? Nothing is more scary than Trump's disregard for the Constitution and the Congress of the United States.
49
The universe's smallest violins weep for the Liar in Chief.
28
@Not my President
Pssst, It's a white house recording.
Such a nasty man!
51
Leaving this until AFTER the 2020 election would be best. IF Trump is reelected then at that point the majority of Republicans in the Senate would have less to lose by voting to impeach.
3
Why couldn’t Congress do it in both terms?
Sure, just sit on our hands while he commits crime after crime. Let’s just wait and see what happens. That’s the right thing to do.
The title of this editorial is far more relevant than its content. In discussing the difference between the Clinton and Trump impeachment investigations Bruni missed the point.
Clinton's was a clearly politically motivated one that turned on his lying to Congress about having sex out of wedlock - certainly a moral turpitude issue but hardly a crime and misdemeanor. It was highly technical and hardly represented something warranting removal. In fact, it doesn't even meet the definition of perjury.
Trump, on the other hand, has active and ongoing violations of the emoluments clause known to all and potential enlistment of foreign powers in an election that would clearly warrant removal and possibly prosecution for treason.
The important point Bruni never gets around to is who is an accessory? Certainly Barr, probably Pence, Giuliani, and Pompeo, and possibly many other high Republicans beginning with McConnell and Graham (the ultimate hypocrite considering his actions in the Clinton impeachment).
In other words, when the Republican establishment hitched its wagon to Trump, they made it impossible to remove him without admitting their own guilt. That is the impeachment conundrum they find themselves in - painted into their own corner.
48
Unbelievable. Trump is completely off his rocker and should be committed. This is not going to end well for anyone.
34
Any person who is still a supporter of Trump really needs to get some help. Just when you think the man's gone completely bonkers, he takes bonkers to a whole new level.
We're praying for you America. And we're real Christians - not Reverend Jeffress' Christians.
42
Thank you, Tim and other good Canadians!!
1
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)is a classic film that reveals what can happen to an unhinged, bully-boy persona who orchestrates those around him through his money, position, greed, and narcissism is. It's a revealing crime-drama parody which ends with The Thief, a coarse gangster with delusional pretensions of being a respected, gourmet restauranteur, wreaking destruction on everyone around him. He has a particular animosity towards an erudite bookshop owner who dines at his restaurant, every night, while reading a book. The restauranteur eventually has him murdered by having his thugs stuff the pages of a book - on the French Revolution - down the book-reader's throat. Daily, The Thief dines on every conceivable, rare thing that the Earth can produce to put on his plate. Eventually, unwittingly, he becomes a cannibal (metaphorically and literally) and as he is choking he is brought down.
The film is hard to watch - but not as hard as living inside a similarly expressive script. Even with the horrors on screen, it's hard not to laugh at the entourage of thugs, protecting The Thief who do his bidding and allow his behavior.
487
@Susan, Great metaphor, Susan. I hadn't thought of the parallel between Peter Greenaway's prophetic film and the current White House occupant. I wish Melania would embrace: Drowning by Numbers.
35
@Susan
If I remember correctly, in the end, the revenge was exquisite.
26
@Susan
This is so accurate. The movie is Trump personified. And if you are outside the USA, you may be able to see the full original. It is such strong stuff that the version released in the USA had some scenes removed.
19
This article is spot on. However, it's a bit on the late side. This characterization of Trump has been patently obvious since well before the 2016 election. Scorched earth is not just his defense, it has been his offense as well, since day 1. I, for one, have been anxious since the networks called Florida for Trump on that tragic day in November 2016. We are right to worry about the damage he might yet do to our country. However, the damage he has already done is considerable, and it may take decades to fix.
25
Trump and the GOP are nothing more - or less - than the Mob. Other mobsters were taken down by their tax malfeasance or by other more suspect means. Is voting enough? Or, are we so weak as a country that the mob wins?
30
Trump is not well or "normal". When pressure is applied to such person, results are more unpredictable... thread lightly.
24
While attempting to prove even-handedness with your indictment of the Clinton's response to his impeachment, you seem to be conflating wild accusations with no proof with solid evidence based, from Trump's own mouth, solid admitted crimes.
It never has been part of any women's empowerment faction that I am aware of or would have any respect for, to support false accusations as if they are real.
7
“There has been no President in the history of our Country who has been treated so badly as I have,” —DJT He must missed what happened to Lincoln.
27
And the Republicans, for whatever reason, did not charge him with lying to a federal judge which would have been fatal. He would have been convicted and removed from office.
8
Excellent points, thanks for writing this.
5
It couldn't scare him enough, in my opinion.
6
NPR had a nice piece today on how Limbaugh and Fox "news" helped to usher in such a beast as Trump. He was an answer to the radio and TV masses yearning to be free.
16
Yes, it's scary for us, but also very dangerous for the country. The most accurate remedy today is to remove trump for his inability to fulfill his role as POTUS, as outlined in the 25th Amendment, on the grounds of his severe mental illness. Of course, that's a very unlikely outcome, given the sycophants in the Cabinet and the VP himself. The risk to his remaining in office as the impeachment hearings go on is that his fragile ego will completely crack and to patch and sustain it he will do something desperate - start a war, for example. Now that is scary indeed.
12
Fine article, Frank. Let's take a moment to reflect on the elevation of Brett "I like beer" Cavanaugh to the highest court in the land. What did/does that say about the state of the union?
17
I'm a little frustrated when scare tactics on the right are met with so much fear on the left. It's a scary time, but we need to practice fortitude, not to keep repeating that we're terrified. That's a distraction. Let's insist on the truth and not let ourselves be easily intimidated.
32
Trump and his supporters don't believe in democracy, so the next step towards ending it could be a shooting war, and some form of martial law on national security grounds. This may sound extreme, but consider that Trump is also facing dying in jail after disgrace and public humiliation. He may chance a risky foreign policy adventure instead.
9
@michael "(Congress) ... can reject the President's imposition of martial law, which could set up a power struggle between the Congress and the Executive that only the Judiciary would be able to resolve."
Given that the GOP-controlled Senate rejected Trump's 'national emergency' excuse to get $5 billion for his wall, there is hope they would reject a call for martial law. I have faith that even the Supreme Court would reject such an action without a true and apparent emergency.
6
They are gonna need a bigger bus to fit EVERYONE except Ivanka under it when the final chapter is written - they are ALL headed under the wheels: Pence, Rudy, Pompouspeo, even Jared, if Ivanka sees an opening that can be exploited for her own gain. Start the engine...
16
@Mr. Mike
Ms. Ivanka was recently asked by an interviewer what she gotten from her father. She said (unironically) "his moral compass." Undoubtable she'll soon be running for office.
9
I remember the Republicans in the 1990s, and their paranoid, scorched earth attack on the Clintons. They accused the Clintons of murdering Vince Foster, of running drugs out of Mina, Arkansas. Numerous financial crimes of course.
I remember Gingrich and GoPac using language to compare the Democrats to traitors and tyrants -- when they weren't comparing them to weaklings and appeasers.
Many Republicans now pretend that Trump is an aberration. But this fever swamp has been in full croak since the talk radio boom. Long before social media, and long before Trump. He's just the star pupil of the right wing "class".
34
". . . one of the main reasons I cited was what we’re seeing now: his histrionic response, which is untethered from any sense of honor, civic concern or real patriotism."
What are we to do? Do we hunker down in fear and let this lawless President do his worst? Or, to paraphrase Teddy Roosevelt, do we stand with those who at the worst fail while daring greatly . . . so our place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat? Our republic is circling the drain. I'm afraid that if we do nothing now, we may not have a republic for which we can fight when 2020 rolls around.
13
Captain Ahab comes to mind. Fixated on the whale, he took most of his crew down with him.
18
If the GOP wants a free for all then let them have it. Check manners and decorum at the door, Last one standing wins. No prisoners. I am tired of playing nice, observing the rules, maintaining civility. When they go low, kick them in the teeth!!
18
'If Trump Goes Down, He’s Taking Everyone With Him' Early Christmas present to America? Hope so.
8
President Pence as the collateral gift. Markets return to normalcy. Pence wins a full term. 8 more years of prosperity. The GOP gets its party back.
Hate to break it to you, but he's talking about the entire country not just all the Republicans.
Sorry but the average impeachment is 500 days or more!
Everybody knows Trump likes Putin his hands where they don't belong. Donald Trump is the Coney Island Godfather, huge under pressure. In 2008, as the Florida real estate market begins to crash, Trump sold a Florida residence to Dmitry Rybolovlev (Guess what country Dmitry is from?) for $95 million. The transaction was at the time considered to be the biggest single-family home sale in US history. After leaving Bayrock, Felix Sater (brokered deal & Michael Cohen's childhood friend) becomes “senior adviser to Donald Trump,” according to his Trump Organization business card. He also has a Trump Organization email address and office. The phone number listed on the card had belonged previously to a lawyer in Trump’s general counsel’s office. In 2010, a Putin controlled bank funds Trump’s Toronto Towers at a key moment for the financially troubled Trump property, the Russian-Canadian developer of the project receives $850 million from the sale of his share in a Ukrainian steel mill. In 2012, according to later reporting by The New York Times, financial records filed in December 2015 in the secret tax haven of Cyprus show that Trump’s future campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, incurs debts totaling as much as $17 million to pro-Russia interests, including a Russian oligarch, Oleg Deripaska, who later sues Manafort and his partners for $19 million over a failed investment in a Ukrainian television business. Impeachment doesn't scare DT. NYC rent control, is another story.
2
He will never leave the White House willingly. He'll have to be dragged out kicking and screaming. Even if, god forbid, it's after 8 years.
4
Yep, his mouth will, eventually, do him in. Keep talking, Trump.
15
But why has Ukraine been a cesspool for corruption for big money for the political class in the US? The political does not let go any opportunity go to waste.
Manafort was milking them as much as he could but did not pay taxes and of late owed the oligarchs some debt for undelivered services which he thought he could pay off by leveraging being Trumps campaign manager.
But surprisingly we are not hearing about Tony Podesta these days. His consulting firm milked it the most during the Obama presidency. Did not register as a foreign agent and the firm was named in the Mueller indictment of Manafort and Podesta quickly folded tent that day. But Mueller punted his case to the State AG who would rather get Trumps tax returns for now.
Podesta or his brother arranged hundreds of millions to the Clinton foundation and also directly to Clinton for speaking fees in Russia. Even Chelsea Clinton complained in an email on the guy Doug Band who set up the whole thing for Clintons and she found charity and business intermingling. And Doug Band responded that Chelsea does not know a lot of money she is enjoying for her lifestyle where it is coming from and should be thankful instead of complaining (Wikileaks) as reported by Politico and others that u can search online.
And why should the VP Joe Biden be left behind. But taking money himself from Ukraine from Oligarghs owning Burisma gas in trouble would be illegal but not for his son.
2
our worst presidents such as Buchanon and Andrew Johnson in their sometimes vitriolic and ineffectual way tried to keep the country together despite violent forces ripping it apart. This is not to defend their horrible policies, but in the end they did not seek the dissolution of the country for persona l gain. Even Nixon though trying to keep his own power resigned for the sake of his country and his own shame. Trump as the title of this piece states will bring the whole edifice of our country down with him and knows no shame.
5
Trump, the life long Con Man, son of a Con Man, can’t understand why he sees his comeuppance steamrolling at him. He’s never done anything wrong in his life at all.
10
The ship of state has a sort of madman at its helm? Sort of? If he isn't a madman, who is?
10
America, get ready to see "Everything and the kitchen sink."
Save the country.
5
What are we as a nation supposed to do when the president is pathologically unable to tell the truth? He appears to be unstable, babbling, and reckless. Lock him up of course!
The security of the nation is at stake.
Corral the enablers, Pence, Pompeo , Mitch McConnell, the biggest beneficiary, along with Willian Barr and the Republican follow travelers guided by their handler V. Putin.
Power, and washed Rubles turned into $ is all it took.
5
The trouble with Mr. Trump is that he has no sense of proportion. He uses the equivalent of Niagara Falls to put out a match, and turns every rain shower into a category 5 hurricane. What he fails to understand is that all his wailing, ranting, and raving is desensitizing the very people he hopes to convince, and only makes him sound like the raving lunatic he is.
960
@Bob Considering the media pores over every syllable and utterance, to the point of fact-checking whether burgers are literally stacked "a mile high" or that he cited a 1-in-3 statistic which was "ackshually" only 31%, I think it's fair to say that a lot of people are discrediting themselves with a lack of proportion.
But no, let's make sure the whole world knows he takes two scoops of ice cream, and dumps fish food into a koi pond.
9
@Bob and the media ravenously reports it all. It would bug him more if they remained silent on some issues - but no, it all is reported in a frenzy. They feed right into the show and further it.
26
It's worse than that @Bob
The Donald doesn't understand the concept of laws.
24
It has always been my fear that if we came to this juncture in our history Trump would not go lightly. I believe he will slash and burn, pillage and incite violence from the intractable 30% of his followers who will go down with him and take our democracy with them. I pray we can recover from this long destructive nightmare. And to those cowards in congress, the courts and other government agencies who do nothing, or enable him, I warn you that history will not be kind to you. Thank god for the fourth estate in these dark times. I pray for us all
10
@Lorraine
Praying is fine, but I say lets watch those wheels of justice finally start turning. Make lots of popcorn, settle in and sit tight. It's guaranteed to be quite a show!
1
"The impeachment inquiry is laying Trump bare. As scary as that is for us"
In the sense that many Americans were content to lie to themselves, and others, about Trump. People were willing to whistle past the graveyard and say he would grow into the office, or that the Campaign Trump was just an act and the President Trump wouild be different; or that his Cabinet or Congress would contain him.
It was all a lie, and not by Trump to America so much as by America to America. We didn't want to believe that our great nation would elevate someone as evil, as ignorant, as pproaching clinical mental illness as Trump seemed, so we told ourselves that Trump must be better than he seems.
9
So the message is, fear Donald, do nothing. I disagree: do what the law says, do what is right. Otherwise, one is complicit, de facto and morally, of any damage to the Republic.
5
Wouldn't the Senate have to vote to convict?
Chance of that happening:
17 Republican defections, unlikely.
3
@Dave
So, we should never have prosecuted OJ Simpson, since he was acquitted?
Okay, I got it.
1
Mr. Bruni's allusion to THE HANDMAIDEN'S TALE is an apt one; the insanity of the man in the White House and his actions are indeed the new normal in our country. And while we are all hoping for impeachment, let us also consider who is waiting in the wings to replace him. File under...be careful what you wish for. Very frightening times for our beloved country.
3
Trump going down is one thing. But Trump actually getting himself “fired” is another. Imagine him chaining himself to the resolute desk, cursing, threatening, screaming about “executive privilege”, the 2nd Amendment giving him the right to do whatever he wants and simply refusing to leave the Oval. Given that its Trump, that’s not hard to picture, right? And it’s not a pretty sight. But if somehow he does go, taking everyone with him may be the only way to clean up this very toxic, deeply septic system of an administration.
7
I just watched Trump's news conference with the Finnish Prime Minister. Never, in all my 70 years have I witnessed such an appalling and disgraceful press conference by the President of the United States. It was a full on rant in front of the head of foreign country, the nation and the world. Trump has a profound personality disorder, is totally unhinged and is clearly capable of anything - including inciting his supporters to violence - to stay in power.
I have long been of the view that an election is the only mechanism to remove Trump that will be seen to have any legitimacy. Not any more. We can't wait any longer. Impeach him and now. I think the Senate GOP delegation is beginning to turn against him and if they don't they will feel the heat for a long time.
28
Well, this man has been harassed from his first day in office.
Mr. Schiff’s parody of Trump’s call is all I needed to switch sides. And I am a registered Democrat.
2
@YMR
I wish foreign leaders would just stop meeting with him. I don't understand why they continue to do it.
@Jana A Do you not recall the campaign and how he conducted himself during it? The name calling and the lies from the day he announced? Or for that matter, the life of this man, the bad business relations, the bankruptcies, the abuse of family that has been on display for so long,
that he never litigated because it was all true. That is why he has been harassed.
1
The sobering really here is that, though Trump is unprecedented in every way in terms of his hideous behavior and lawlessness he has solid support and cover at all levels of government save the House. That includes Justice, Senate, State, Supreme Court and rank and file Republicans nationwide. You just can't keep up this Houdini-like act without help. And lots of it.
How we put this genie back in the bottle is way beyond me.
5
Keep up the pressure - soberly - resolutely - relentlessly.
10
What for? Fat chance that he will be removed. And I will vote for him for the first time.
1
We are not the same country that we were in 1999 during the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. Maureen Dowd succinctly expressed it in 1998: "These are not grounds for impeachment. These are grounds for divorce." Back in Nixon's America (which seems like a long-ago fairy tale), the villain had the decency to step down. But this is not your mother's impeachment. The Don in The White House will go postal. With every word out of his mouth, he will move closer and closer to the straight jacket and handcuffs awaiting him. And his baseball-hat-wearing Greek chorus will learn a new chant. Can the Democrats harness their own rage and shout, "Lock Him Up! Lock Him Up!" We're going to need more than just thoughts and prayers, America.
9
To fellow commentators, the use of the term "Deplorable" by Hillary Clinton was one of the great political errors of all time. No matter how terrible the transgressions of an enemy is, unless you are prepared to exterminated them, you should make every effort to avoid humiliating them. Humiliation is the gift that keeps on giving, and was an important driver leading to Trump's election.
7
@Eben
And "humiliation", the gift that keeps on giving as you say, is Donald Trump's weapon of mass destruction.
2
@Eben That logic doesn't pencil out. Trump's incessant humiliation of EVERYONE got him elected.
Since it DID work for him, that would imply it's okay for male candidates to name-call and belittle and encourage chants of "Lock her up," but for a female to say, one time, "They're deplorables," and all is lost means we're still living in an age when women had just better keep quiet.
9
Richard Nixon was in a much better state of mind during his impeachment. Just imagine that.
11
Trump and his cronies are undermining our democracy. Trump needs to be impeached by Congress. The life of our republic depends on it.
6
Nina,
Study US government. Congress does prepares the case but not impeach- the last word belongs to the the senate.
1
@Jana A "Congress" means both houses.
I hope he goes quietly .....
Though I fear the worst in that man. His ego and narcissism cannot grapple with this failure and infamy, frankly he is capable of inciting or invoking, God knows what.
One thing is massively clear !
We MUST change the constitution around the powers of the 3 branches, the executive branch has to be more accountable to the other 2 branches. Transparency and day to day executive documented records must be strengthened.
Bring back the tape machines for ALL POTUS minutes.
5
Watching Trumps performance today I was reminded of the scene in the Caine Mutiny where Captain Queeg melts down on cross examination.
10
Thank you, Frank. Your reasoning against impeachment made sense, and your reasoning why impeachment makes sense does too. Interesting how sparse so many comments are. I think we’re feeling like deer caught in the headlights. I look forward to your upcoming columns. Take care. Hey, take care, everybody.
2
"Clinton and his defenders raised the specter of a “vast right-wing conspiracy,” to use Hillary Clinton’s infamous phrase,"
She turned out right again, yes? It was just more slo-mo than we thought.
Frank B.,
Following your own advice from a recent piece, don't the Dems and all of us need to learn to 'look around the corner' for what's coming at us from Trump?
Are we not at the point he will actually attempt to arrest his political, press, and other opposition leaders and critics?
Shouldn't we be asking, how will he try to accomplish this?
Shouldn't the Dems, the press and everyone who ever crossed him have a personal legal plan in place.
He's ready to pop and it's gonna be dreadful.
That light at the end of the tunnel almost always turns out to be an onrushing locomotive.
9
@Chris Morris You wrote: "She turned out right again, yes?" My thought exactly.
4
"Tattled"? The author of this op-ed thinks whistleblowing is tattling? I stopped reading right there.
4
Impeaching a United States president does not have to be scary. In fact, in a way, we should all be celebrating the fact that this country has a legally sanctioned way of keeping a president (or other official) answerable to his or her questionable behavior.
Other countries' governments might have violent overthrow, or they become totalitarian or military regimes, or they devolve into dangerous "democratic" rogue nations. Not us.
Our government is held together solely by the beauty of the rule of laws. That's really apparent in the case of impeachment: the Constitution itself speaks to the working apparatus for legally-bound impeachment inquiries, formal procedures for voting whether to impeach, and finally, offers direction to the other body of Congress (to balance the separations within one branch of government) to vote on whether to convict a president of a crime that has been publicly tried using extensive documentation and testimony as evidence. Impeachment is no easy process.
Personally I find this highly comforting that our system of governance follows a prescribed, legally bound set of directions which offers an uncompromising and objective function to rid the presidency of an unfit holder of that office.
This process of impeachment is something to look upon with awe, respect and, yes, even reverence.
I'm not a bit scared.
11
Stating the obvious... Just ask Michael Cohen, Mike Flynn, Paul Manafort and so on and so on... You sleep with dogs, you wake up with fleas....
8
At this stage in our “National Nightmare”, to think this ‘matter’ will be ‘clean & clinical’ is as naive as thinking DJT would ... live up to his promises! Strap yourselves in boys/girls, this is going to be a Bumpy Ride!
2
In Clinton's case, there was absolute 'truth' about his bad behavior and lies about it.
But, now there is only different 'interpretation' on a certain behavior of Trump.
This time, anybody can clearly say republicans and democrats will have totally different opinion on his behavior and it's totally political matter.
Democrats enjoyed their political freedom maximally with enough tolerance from Trump for almost three years. After Trump was dismissed from that Russian collusion allegations, anybody can expect there should be some 'political' counter attacks from his side and that's what's happening now. Political attacks and counter-attacks will never end in this country and it's perfectly normal. However, taking political confrontation to the impeachment process but election cannot be justified. It's the most outrageous violation of norms in Trump era and its responsibility is up to Democrats and liberal media, not Trump, Republicans nor his supporters. It's literally illegitimate declaration of civil war. Withdraw yourself. Otherwise, this will be recorded as treason in history.
4
There may be different interpretations of what he did, but there is no doubt that his White House blocked the correct process of the whistleblower complain. Thus, an impeachment investigation (which is what this is, looking into the facts) is allowed, necessary, and perfectly constitutional.
It is neither treason nor a literal (or figurative) declaration of civil war. To claim such shows that trump supporters have fully embraced him as a dictator and are no longer supporting the constitution of the USA.
Um...impeachment is about curbing a president who abused his power. Extorting a foreign country to dig up dirt on his political opponent is a gross abuse of presidential power, or at least it is in this country.
If Putin actually ruled our country, no viceroy of his could have caused as much havoc, like Trump.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, well placed, powerful Russians took hold of all the foreign countries' currency Soviets held in reserve. (To subvert and win over numerous Asian and African countries to their side, the Soviets had agreed to trade with those countries in the latter's local currency).
That treasure trove was just sitting there for the taking, and the influential Russians just did that. They are the billionaire oligarchs of today. To park their ill-gotten wealth the new rich went to known corrupt Western middlemen and banks, like the Cyprus and Deutsche Banks and individuals, like Trump.
Trump and his older children have had eye-popping glimpses of the Russian reserves. They have benefitted from those piles. Given their infamous insatiable hunger, Trumps want evermore. The way they run their businesses, without fresh infusions of money, the Trump-Kushner clans cannot survive.
The newly acquired power and position have become their lifeline - at once an oxygen vent and a feed tube. Separated from the lifelines, both these clans go down with the loudest thud, just a wee bit smaller than the Big Bang. Worse, Trump knows well his creditors would come after him for their money the moment he loses power.
So expect a desperate Trump to do desperate, despicable stuff. GOP really has no choice except to walk away from him, if they want to outlive him.
11
I am curious as to whether anyone believes that Trump would not attempt to destroy the entire country if he's either impeached (with or without being convicted in the Senate) or loses the 2020 election?
Does anyone believe his ego is not so big that he would rather end the U.S. entirely than be disgraced and/or forced from office?
22
@dtm
My fear exactly.
There is a considerable span between a November election and the January swearing-in of a president, enough time for Trump to irreparably damage this country.
Isn't this the man who wants to serve 10 or 14 years or more as president?
I can foresee Trump starting WWIII. As a supreme narcissist, I think that he is enraged that the world will continue without him when he is gone.
5
There is a very good chance that the Senate given the evidence that will come out of the investigation will vote to either dismiss the trail or acquit Trump of what ever the final list of charges will be.
There is very much two kinds of American justice and though I would cleanse myself of this gross orange stain on the flag, I think we it will get far worse before reason returns to us as citizens and elected officials.
I'm just not sure what the plan looks like past all this Trump nonsense. Theoretically American, will still be here in some fashion.
3
Ha, he's taking everyone with him even if he doesn't go down! It is a matter of that "everyone" can answer one's conscience.
2
He has made the dismantling of it all look almost effortless, hasn't he?
11
@Sam18 And it goes to the bigger tragedy. There are people in positions of power who are looking the other way and others who've joined Trump on the Dark Side.
2
He'd have been much better off silently letting this play out. Instead he is choosing to fight as he always does, but in this case his actions prove he doesn't understand much about the constitution. This is one fight he can't win.
I think he'll have a few supporters until this hits the Senate, but then I think they'll scatter and leave him to fall all by his lonesome. Pence, we all know, respects the constitution as this president does not. I think many Republicans will help remove him.
He's acting irrational, dictatorial and dangerously. He might even be able to preempt removal by Senate trial to a 25th amendment solution.
2
I believe this will be a swift action. I think Republicans would like to have this over with so it provides Pence some time to form a campaign of his own. I think he'd be a much better candidate than Trump.
Trump can't be given enough time to formulate a war with Iran. The military needs to hold out and resist until we get rid of him.
1
@Dave You wrote: 'Pence some time to form a campaign of his own. I think he'd be a much better candidate than Trump'. Good heavens, Pence hides behind the bible to acknowledge he can't be trusted to be alone with a woman. That doesn't make him better than Trump!! Pence is just showing he is delusional.
I would be more afraid if I didn’t have regular contact with Trump supporters who, rich or poor, often have more sense than the media cares to acknowledge. It’ll get bad, but we’ve been needing to hit reset for a good while. Hold on for the ride and God help us all as the handful set a horrible example.
3
When Trump's ship starts to sink, the rats on it will all leave. It will take some time to reach the tipping point, but I don't see many Republicans continuing to defend Trump after the country decides his actions were indefensible.
8
Whatever the outcome, I do hope that the damage to the Republican Party will far exceed that done to the country. But I fear this is a forlorn hope.
15
Guilty clients usually rail against the "system" that caught them, innocent ones listen to their lawyers and invoke their right to remain silent --
4
When you used the word "insanely" you hit the nail on the head. What we are seeing is the thrashings of a man who is mentally ill. And I mean that. Clinically, not just figuratively.
14
Well, there you go, Frank. Trying to use honor and Trump in the same sentence.
6
Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook and Jack Dorsey at Twitter should suspend Trump's accounts. That would be a good first step to diminish his ability to spread his crazed rhetoric to his die-hard supporters, but it would also send a clear message to Senate Republicans that they ignore their responsibilities to We, the People, at their political peril.
8
It is crystal clear that this evil maniac is fomenting civil war as his only defense strategy. Would be surprised to learn if that wasn't the play from jump street.
2
We have to have faith in, as Abraham Lincoln did when he said that you can fool some of the people (up to 35%?) all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time.
6
His infantile behavior is so extreme I would not be the least bit surprised if he ended up on his back, kicking and screaming on the lushly carpeted floor of the Oval Office.
Although the Senate is unlikely to remove him from office, I expect Chief Justice Roberts will not hesitate to draw the line when it comes to suffering Trump's foolishness at the expense of fundamental logic and the rule of law.
3
Man, that was cruel! I had just finished a nice lunch and then I read the line "laying him bare" and I nearly spewed my fettuccine all over the keyboard.
1
Clinton was impeached for saying "oral sex" wasn't "having sex." A little different from Trump's treason and abuse of his office. Even without impeachment, the Federal government will be so gutted of experience and expertise after Trump, that it will take decades to recover. Tearing down is quick and easy, within Trump's skill set - building up takes time.
8
@Michael
Clinton was impeached for obstruction of justice
all of this is pointless speculation because, unfortunately, Trump is not going down. This paper already makes plain the impossibility of that...the Republicans don't care if the people don't care, and by people we mean Republican voters, and Republican voters departed from reality and morality some time ago. They are sticking with sack of human waste until the end. So, let's get the formalities over with, expose the crimes, impeach in Congress, reject in the senate, and move on to hopefully voting this black hole out of office.
5
"The Clintons possessed and projected a moral arrogance that was laughably oxymoronic under the circumstances. And they and other prominent Democrats junked the party’s supposed concern for women’s empowerment to savage Monica Lewinsky, Paula Jones and others who came forward with claims about the president’s extramarital sexual activity ..."
Please stop.
I want you to explain why it is that any time Bill Clinton is given credit for a good act, it's his alone ("Bill Clinton balanced the budget") but whenever he's being criticized, somehow it's suddenly "The Clintons" who are responsible. My understanding is that HRC made a single, private remark to a personal friend dismissing the claims of one woman, and on that basis she has been forever tagged with "savagaing" women who had consensual sex with her husband?
Why is she always being blamed for the bad stuff her husband did, and never being credited for the good?
11
Well, there is an "evil cabal" intent on delegitimizing Trump's victory in 2016, and it is called the Deep State, the incestuous relationship between the liberal media and the DNC, which is why ABH has suggested to publisher that he hire conservative columnists who look at all sides of an issue, like Coulter, Buchanan,Reilly, Jason from WSJ who described impeachment inquiry as "weak tea!"Talk about choosing the "mots justes!"Re the word narcissist which you apply incessantly to Trump,look word up in dictionary which defines it as egotistical, and who is not egotistical. Just getting up in the morning, doing 1's daily ablutions is an act of egotism. W/o an ego 1 cannot function.Re the pastor who predicted something in the nature of a civil war if Dems.were able to delegitimize 2016, there is a talk radio host in Fla.former NFL star, encouraged by Howard Cosell to enter radio and who is "raisonnable" has also predicted civil strife were Trump and his supporters robbed of their election victory.1 should also remember milieu in which Trump functioned as a builder, and had to deal with Teamster officials many of whom had ties to the underworld. Look at Tony Tony Pro Provenzano, once considered successor to Hoffa before he went to prison on RICO charges. He was Trump's adversary in negotiations re the building of his properties.Friend said Trump talked like a mobster. Of course: that's the milieu in which he functioned as a builder!
2
If it isn't clear by now, Trump doesn't give two hoots. His notions of propriety, ethics, public service, love of country, and principles of honor boil down to one word: "me". Our own sense of fairness and protocol are such that this pathologically narcissistic person cannot immediately be certified and be carted off to a psychiatric ward or a sanatorium and so we keep giving leeway to his warped mind to play havoc with this country. Other borderline minds similar to his which have lain undisturbed until now have been stirred into life by his coming. Undoubtedly Trump will make this country suffer as perhaps it has never suffered and while that is happening his distorted personality will show no concern with any of that. Let us hope that two hundred years of vibrant democracy will have given us the strength to withstand this despot.
6
He’s already throwing his peeps under the bus. “If I go, you are going down, too.” seems to be his motivating message.
1
One detail: Monica Lewinsky never "came forward" about her affair with Clinton, she was forced to testify under threat of indefinite imprisonment until she did.
7
Not going anywhere until 2024. Thankfully.
They took themselves down when they decided to go to work with an incompetent reality TV show buffoon and Page 6 figure playing the role of demagogue.
4
There are good people in government trying to do right by their country and their fellow citizens despite the obvious perils of being targeted by a corrupt and vengeful, violence-invoking President and his dangerous enablers who refuse to see, hear or speak any evil regarding this President. I hope they remain safe.
I wonder if the election were Trump (R) vs. Jesus Christ (D) who would win?
4
I've said this since he was elected. We're dealing with one of the most proficient and obscene spoiled brats in the history of the world. His past tantrums will be NOTHING compared to the epic meltdown he will pitch if the heat gets turned up too high. A true disgrace across the board.
7
It's official. The American people have gone insane.
I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry.
But I don't think I can honestly draw any other conclusion at this point. We're also going through an election right now here in Canada. One of our election issues is how to deal with refugees fleeing the United States of America.
Did you read that? I hope you read that. It's how to deal with people who are fleeing the USA and seeking asylum in Canada. Yes, some people are passing through the US on their way to Canada, but some people are trying to escape the US, because they are scared out of their minds.
You have a President who is literally calling for people who are equal to him in government to be jailed and executed for doing their jobs. He's cursing and swearing using the Office of the President's voice, and he's doing it because somebody quoted him using the words his own White House released. Your President is literally calling the normal legal process a coup.
That is insanity.
And if you are ok with that, either you are ok with living in a dictatorship, or you are insane.
Do you want to live in a country that people need to flee from, that people fear the march of boots, where the seal of government is a sign of terror, not the sign of freedom? Right now you are well on your way.
You've already deployed troops on your soil, remember? Already imprisoned 20-year members of your communities. Already have people fleeing. Where do you go from here?
16
@C Stop being so dramatic. I live across from Canada and none of the things you're saying are accurate. Trump is awful but there're no legions of Americans fleeing for Canada.
3
@Jonathan
Well, sure, they aren't crossing over from Minny-sota into Manitoba to raise wheat. they're going to places like Toronto or Montreal. That's where I'd go. You can stop watching your "border."
No other president in modern times - say FDR forward has ever faced a co-ordinated effort by the opposition party and the entrenched Washington bureaucracy from day one of his election to overturn and delegitimize said election as has Trump. He certainly hasn't helped himself with his obnoxious Twitter feed but the vitriol and hatred by the leagcy media and his Democratic opponents is indeed unprecedented.
2
Yeah, well we're sick of having presidents elected by a minority of voters in our alleged democracy. They're elected unfairly - by ideological S.Ct. justices (see, Scalia: Bush v. Gore), and by gerrymandering and voter suppression. And not just any presidents, but incompetents who ruin our economy, & embarrass us internationally (see, Geo. W. Bush & Donald J. Trump). It's a national crisis.
3
@Tim Just because you're elected president it doesn't follow that you automatically deserve respect.
Trump made his own bed from the get-go, belittling, name-calling fellow debaters, encouraging chants of "Lock her up," saying, for example, to his rally crowds, if you get arrested for ejecting someone at my rallies, I'll pay for your lawyer. The MSM is just reacting.
He, and for that matter, all conservatives have engaged in a war against liberals since the late 1980s when Rush and then Fox smeared, distorted and exaggerated and floated a dozen conspiracy theories on how Democrats, esp. Hillary, are dismantling the Republic. We are the ones who have been under attack. Finally, we're fighting back not to pick on Trump, but to save the Republic.
4
Trump really can't help himself. The insane rants about treason are truly deranged. Yes, they tend to fire up his base but they'd be fired up to a fare-thee-well by the mere fact of his impeachment.
How will they be received by all the moderate voters who gave the House to the Democrats?
1
Why drag Hillary Clinton into this nightmare?
President Clinton admitted on national television that he lied to his wife and told her everything was a conspiracy. He then let her go on a morning news and repeat it. He later admitted that he didn't tell her the truth until much later. She was just as conned as the rest of us.
You can't compare President Clinton's Presidency to Trump's. Clinton was dealing with a moral issue--cheating on his wife and lying to her about it, not colluding with Russia and Ukraine to rig elections.
8
The "Yes, master, emitted from the slavish Republicans as they obediently respond to Trump's ridiculous tantrum is the reason our country has come to this unforgivable state. Isn't there anyone in that party who can lead? Is the only solution a straight jacket?
There are children in school who have more intelligence, grace, and appropriate responses than that lunatic.
No way on earth should that ancient brat get another term.
3
This president is so toxic and hazardous that there is not enough funding available from EPA, THE UN, ECU or World Bank to save him and those close to him from self destruction.
3
Well I think it is pretty clear that it has, or will, take down Joe Biden. Trump world are now parroting as biblical the talking point that Joe was corrupt in calling off the (corrupt) Ukrainian prosecutor.
But, as always, be careful what you wish for. Biden was always, at best, a 'hail mary' candidate. I think the next year would have found him wanting in the eyes of the voters. So Trump gets rid of one candidate. But the ones coming in his place are far less receptive to the Good Old Boy way of doing things, are smarter and much more in tune with the mood of everyone, including die-hard Trumpists.
Bring it on, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris. And Mayor Pete, and Beto. Trump is being laid bare by him many abuses of his office, and by his use of Giuliani as his attack dog (surely one of the great political misjudgments of all time). He is there for the taking.
2
We should be wondering about the third branch of government, our corrupted Supreme Court. Trump and his legions of lawyers will bring this impeachment process to their doorstep. What happens next could be one of the most unimaginable political moments.
4
Trump is behaving like Lieutenant Commander Queeq in the witness chair--from the famous film, The Caine Mutiny. He's testifying again and again that some unknown evil person has stolen his strawberries. The louder he yells, the more completely a shocked silence steals over the courtroom. And we know how that film ended.
718
@Outspoken Grandma Well, just to keep the record straight the movie did not end with a conviction of Queeq. There was an exoneration of the men charged with mutiny and who (well I guess some people did forget) could forget Jose Ferrar's valedictory tirade in which he said it was men like Queeq who fought to save the nation while schoolboys were playing in college?
10
@Outspoken Grandma
The film ended with Queeg being exonerated. He was given a new ship to command. The complainers were vilified, and then reassigned as well.
18
@Outspoken Grandma, unfortunately, Trump loyalists are digging in on social media, exchanging "news" they've read on far-far-way-out-far-right websites, conspiracy theories, the latest Q anon "messaging", and, in general, their expressions of unrestrained outrage.
It's easy to write these people off as crackpots, but there are a great many who are well-educated and experienced, who hold responsible jobs and positions in our military and in mainstream American industry, government, health care, communications, science & technology, and education. They ignore news reported by respected journalists and sources, and, instead, immerse themselves in media that produce propaganda that corresponds to their sociopolitical beliefs. The fact that the entire GOP congress, almost without exception, has stood by Trump throughout every reprehensible word and deed has reinforced the conviction of his supporters that their faith in Trump is entirely justified.
It's tempting to envision a shocked populace coming to their senses as the "real" Donald Trump - histrionic, delusional megalomaniacal - is exposed. But I believe that Trump will continue to retain the allegiance of his core supporters, and that such fealty leaves them extremely vulnerable to "suggestions" from an enraged, mentally unbalanced POTUS, who is more than willing to sacrifice our country and its people in his desperate attempts to maintain his power and position.
31
"I wrote last week that the prospect of Trump’s impeachment terrified me, and one of the main reasons I cited was what we’re seeing now: his histrionic response". A nation that is terrified by one man has no place trying to rule the world.
11
@ nocommon nonsense
The best comment I’ve read or heard in two and three quarter miserable years.
Whether Bruni does so intentionally or not, I think he correctly traces back to the Clintons much of the current "poison in the well" that has beset American politics. Unfortunately, sadly, and perhaps inescapably, we are now scraping at the bottom of that same poisoned well with Trump. Even as the nation is wholly covered in the muck and the mire at the bottom, I hold out some hope that the only way out of the well is up.
I am a Democrat, but not a particularly big fan of Warren's policies (sacrilege!). Yet I genuinely and strongly admire one aspect of her character: she hasn't given up on this country, even as it is sullied in the muck. She has energy and determination, and maybe she's even got a rope and a bucket.
6
@A History has documented that the 'poisoning of the well' was a stated strategy of Newt Gingrich's.
The well was poisoned during the Clinton administration by the vast right-wing conspiracy, as Hillary correctly asserted. Nothing Bill Clinton said or did warranted the witch hunt the Republicans initiated against him for having an illicit affair. They were merely angry that a Democratic president had the audacity to be successful and popular, demonstrating the failure of the Reagan Revolution. And they still are.
6
Of course there have been narcissists of the same type as Trump, but the United States has experience with only a handful of them as presidents. Nixon was also willing to stop at nothing for power, as was LBJ and probably Roosevelt. Now, if this article did not only consider United States history, you could fill an entire article easily. Our memory is too short generally, which is the major cause of Trump's presidency.
2
Why don't Republicans do as Ross Douthat suggested, get rid of Trump and run a slate of primaries which might include folks like Kasich and Haley? The Democrats have moved so far left that there's plenty of room on the center-right.
Is the state of the Republican base so debased that mainstream Republican politicians think they can't win? What kind of party is that?
4
Can the impeachment proceedings be dragged out until the elections, and if Trump looses, might Republicans be more willing to impeach him before a new president is sworn in? If possible, that would be justice.
3
A person of genuine integrity, honor and courage, one who truly believes in his innocence, would welcome an inquiry into their behavior; would demand a bright light be shone on their actions; would insist on being given the opportunity to set the record straight.
Donald Trump is not that person.
17
@RJ Steele THAT person would not need to be investigated.
2
I served in the military and fought for freedom of speech and the rights of others. I don't believe President Trump knows what sacrifice means, values it or knows when to work with others to ensure peace and unity continue. His attacks on the press and whistleblowers ensue detention in our society, in our families, and in our workplace environments. He doesn't seem to have the penchant required for freedom of speech prevail for future generations. His actions since election have been to subvert this freedom. Take the off blinders America.
19
One would suppose that a good number of Trump's co-conspirators are thinking hard about ratting him out to save their own soon-to-be-tanned hides because a great reckoning is coming, be it in five weeks, months or years. If there is no reckoning, it's because America will have been totally wrecked by them. We must urge some of Trump's gang to come clean, save themselves, and help Congress prosecute him.
9
Bill Clinton’s impeachment was a mistake for the Republicans because Mr. Clinton was president for 8 years.
If Trump is impeached it would be a mistake for the Democrats. Trump would be president for 8 years.
And by the way, I voted for Mr. Clinton twice and I voted for Mrs. Clinton once. I don't want Trump to win but he will win.
3
If Trump serves 8 years, I don’t think that the country can be saved. But if we can’t impeach someone this corrupt and incompetent, then the country isn’t worth saving.
14
@BobC
Bill Clinton was impeached in his 2nd term. Big difference compared to Trump, in his 1st term.
5
@John Harper
I looked it up. Thanks for the correction.
Trump’s reaction to the specter of impeachment provides the best hope for an impeachment. Each new day brings manic social media tirades and reports of conduct more egregious than was reported or seen the previous day.
10
@Jacqueline
Be assured this political period will pass, but the problem here is a deranged media. I think Mr. Trump might have stumbled forward and and done a lot of good, but the NYT and others have not had a single kind word or acknowledgement, period, Mr. Trump was outraged that children were killed by chemical weapons in Syria and did act. Nobody could possibly be as bad as the media make Mr. Trump to be. They are all bad in my opinion, Schiff, Pelosi. I may again not vote in 2020.
His one “act” in Syria was barely even symbolic. And the media reported it, and did not criticize him for it.
But it certainly does not absolve him from all the other things he has done, many of which are morally reprehensible at best and illegal at worst.
1
Republican senators should seriously consider voting to convict this president once he is impeached. That way he will be forced out of office immediately. God help us if Trump is allowed to run for a second term, gets defeated in the election, then has nearly three more months in office to take the nation down with him.
9
Trump seems to be desperately trying to hang onto power regardless of how much upheaval he creates in the process. Calling for a civil war is enough to have him be removed from the White House. He incites violence and unrest. The US will remember him for many decades, and history will describe him as the worse president ever. Hopefully, this will create major changes to prevent someone like him from ever ascending to power. These changes should include:
- Eliminating the electoral college
- Requiring full disclosure of finances including tax returns from presidential candidates
- Barring candidates who under investigation for fraud or other major crimes from running
- Requiring that presidents get rid of their conflict of interest before stepping into the White House
- Prohibiting the use of social or mass media to incite violence against any one or any group
- No private campaign financing. There ought to be a federal fund that pays for presidential campaigns
- Term limits
- Appointing judges with no investigation or accusation of major crimes
- Appointing judges within a specified period of time
- etc., etc...
The time has come for major reforms or democracy in the US will perish.
16
@Hoping For Better
There should be a requirement to pay a nominal "poll tax" on income tax forms. The cost of campaign advertising on TV, radio, internet, etc. could be offset by tax credits and donations. This would cost the government much less than it is costing us to have tyrant Trump in office.
1
Why are we suddenly expecting politicians to do the right thing ? It has been shown through out time that politicians are not in the business to make the average citizens lives better. They are in the business of protecting their own interests. This has never been a secret. The extent of that commitment today is being shown on a frightening level.
5
@CO Smith, why suddenly? Because we’ve now seen what naked, in-your-face corruption looks like.
We’ve never seen such a corrupt sociopath in the front office like this, and we haven’t seen a craven gang of defenders so careless of their manhood — ok womanhood too — circle around the Don.
In this new environment, ethics are coming back in style.
Again, from the perspective of a Canadian monarchist, one's gotta love Donald Trump. Best argument for monarchy we've seen in a long time. He makes even George III look like an absolute statesmen, in that (at least when he was healthy) George III understood the English constitution and his role within it. Including an understanding of the limitations on his power as set by that constitution. And the odd time when he did overstep the bounds -- well George III did suffer from a diagnosable physical illness which affected his mental stability. What's Trump's excuse?
One might also point out that -- as a consequence of George IIIs mental instability -- the UK's government and monarchy was able to smoothly manage a transition of power to his oldest son via a regency. Americans not only chose to put a madman in the office of President, but now that the madness has become manifestly and painfully evident American institutions still don't seem to be able to do anything about it.
Ironic, isn't it? Kinda' makes one wonder if that whole Revolution business wasn't a gigantic mistake.
4
@curious
He can be removed, but there must be the will and desire to do it.
To see how this ever-darkening era unfolds we need only look to the downfall of other democracies into autocracies. We're well into the playbook at this point. The escalating dangers will abate if a significant portion of the electorate that is enjoying this show decides to turn it off, admitting the gamble they made in the 2016 election was misguided, that the costs of continuing the show drastically exceed the costs of admitting the mistake and turning the show off. When that happens hopefully it won't be too late.
3
Impeachment proceedings give Trump the opportunity to resign and claim he was framed, while giving Republicans a chance to reclaim their honor by (belatedly and transparently) being troubled at his actions. It also gives them a chance to put up a more electable candidate in 2020 without voters blaming them for what came before.
3
@Detached trump will never resign, he will take down America with him, because in his fevered mind, an America that doesn't love him deserves to fail.
Trump finally went too far when he tried to undermine the 2020 election. He finally forced the Democrats' hand.
11
@Jess
He went too far when he undermined the 2016 "election"
Hillary ( never charged ) was smeared for 2 years, which is a horrible thing that should really happen to nobody.
4
Trump may strike an objective observer as a Schrodenger's cat, but he really is like Thorndike's cat- suddenly in a panic emitting sundry behaviors to see which unlocks the door's box.
But you might say the system is rigged, the law certainly is for someone like Donal J Trump, but his streak of magical escapes from the law may have run out.
Donald J Trump is no Harry Houdini after all.
5
The Ancient Greeks has a word for this. It was hubris. It's the illusion that temporary status or position of advantage has made you both untouchable and even (hope springs eternal) somehow immortal.
Well, although many have tried, none have succeeded in achieving that achieving those Olympian heights. All men (and women) eventually die and surely Trump and those around him will be rewarded for their unflinching ignorance and arrogance with their own irrepressible denouement. Call it karma.
Trump's purge of anyone who contradicts him has been his downfall. There is literally no one left to prevent him, now, from repeatedly falling on his own sword. That's what happens when you surround yourself with a chorus of yes-men. And that's why democracy requires healthy dialogue and divergent opinion. That's because the real world is, indeed, divergent.
This entire post-inauguration interval has been an unparalleled playing out of a 21st Century version of the Emperor's New Clothes. An increasingly exhausted general public (including the electorate) has been forced through political torture to come to grips with the fact that the man's as naked as a jay bird and that there truly is no there, there. Not only is he the proverbial nothing-burger (to use a Trump-land expression). He's less than nothing.
His scurrilous legacy will be deficit spending, deficit thought, and deficit morality. And let's hope that suckered once, shame on you, will not become suckered twice, shame on me.
14
The key question remains, "Why?" Why have Trump's political appointees, as distinct from the politicians wanting to cling to their sinecures, put their reputations and futures on the line for an unstable, unhinged and corrupt boss who has repeatedly shown his willingness to throw under the train anyone whom he perceives as failing to advance his personal agenda? One would like to think these people are sacrificing themselves for the sake of the Republic. But once it became clear that it was impossible to restrain the man's grandiose and grotesque instincts, why stay?
9
I’m thinking Stockholm Syndrome.
I'm confused. If Trump knows what he did (and one has to assume he knows) why is he the only one who knows who is corrupt and who isn't and what's real and what's fake and who is a patriot and who's treasonous and who deserves to president for a lifetime and who should resign immediately and who should be "very proud" and who should be ashamed of themselves? Unless Trump really did have a perfect phone call and whistleblower really was a spy or made it all up?
2
If he goes down.
If he takes the republican leadership with him (starting with Moscow Mitch).
If his closest advisors end in jail.
If if if.
Except that this must be done by democrats. And they don't have the intelligence or the spine.
3
Like any wife beater, if you make excuses for the inexcusable, it only gets worse. If you fail to report the beater to the cops, the beatings only get worse. I am an expert, unfortunately.
For two years we tolerated Trump's irrational management and despicable comments. Even now, you hear: "Oh, that's just Trump being Trump" as though it's expected and acceptable.
Our failure to hold him accountable allowed him to assemble sycophants at the highest level of government who will expand the reign of terror about to unfold.
Trump had time to buy all the cops on the beat and so now he is free to commit ever more heinous crimes.
The efforts put forth by the Dems are mere parking tickets. Like stage 4 cancer, there is no easy cure for the disease our inaction facilitated.
9
The thought that the leader of Finland might be uncomfortable sitting next to him as he recants "wall" stories and rants with political venom against half the universe, never crosses his mind. He's the personification of a severe adverse pathology gone awry. Zero control. #UNFIT
12
When does the investigation into the Bidens begin?
5
When they ask the Justice Department, after having a shred of evidence of wrongdoing. Conspiracy theories based on rumors don't count. And right now, that's all they got.
1
This merely shows the lack of fitness not only of the president but of Senate and House Republicans. They are intent on destroying the country because a visible cloud of evil and madness hovers the earth and lands every now and then in places like Germany, Cambodia, and yes, America.
And McConnell? My guess is that if there is any history to write after all of this he will be perhaps the most hated man in American history, maybe even more than the creature whose name I now refuse to write or mention.
9
Please cite all the public statements HRC made about the women in her husband’s Life.
She may have been hurt and angry privately, but I don’t recall any public statements where she made these women the villains of the drama surrounding her husband’s affairs
5
If Trump doesn't go down, the rest of us do.
1489
@ralbert The Brooklyn Dodgers had a rallying cry when they failed to win a pennant or a world series: Wait till next year!.You'll always have 2024.Don't despair.
1
@alan brown Let's set aside whatever beliefs we have that may divide us for a moment. This man, regardless of the political party he represents and whatever personal interest you may have vested in his success, is not a patriot. Set aside whether or not you think Joe Biden is corrupt, or whether or not you think the whistleblower is legitimate. This man only cares about making money, he's been clear about that for decades. He's leveraged you and I against each other to effectively torch what it means to actually be an honest American, because as long as he's being sensational, we don't have time to stop and see what kind of big picture damage he's done. You absolutely should despair.
40
@alan brown very clever but this game cannot allow us to wait.
12
The Ancient Greeks had a word for this. It was hubris. It's the illusion that temporary status or position of advantage has made you both untouchable and even (hope springs eternal) somehow immortal.
Well, although many have tried, none have succeeded in achieving that achieving those Olympian heights. All men (and women) eventually die and surely Trump and those around him will be rewarded for their unflinching ignorance and arrogance with their own irrepressible denouement. Call it karma.
Trump's purge of anyone who contradicts him has been his downfall. There is literally no one left to prevent him, now, from repeatedly falling on his own sword. That's what happens when you surround yourself with a chorus of yes-men. And that's why democracy requires healthy dialogue and divergent opinion. That's because the real world is, indeed, divergent.
This entire post-inauguration interval has been an unparalleled playing out of a 21st Century version of the Emperor's New Clothes. An increasingly exhausted general public (including the electorate) has been forced through political torture to come to grips with the fact that the man's as naked as a jay bird and that there truly is no there, there. Not only is he the proverbial nothing-burger (to use a Trump-land expression). He's less than nothing.
His scurrilous legacy will be deficit spending, deficit thought, and deficit morality. And let's hope that suckered once, shame on you, will not become: suckered twice, shame on me.
1
Kind of heart breaking to watch this witless clown tear down so much, that was, and is good, even great, about our country.
And when one steps back in order to take in the full measure of this disaster the first thing that comes to mind is; what in the world are my rightwing fellow Americans thinking, if you can call it thinking.
5
Meanwhile something even is getting out of the hand ?
What is this Trump obsession about CIA whistle blower?
A whistle blower has two option.
1- He files his complain to relevant superiors. ( legal way)
2- He goes out of the way and gave the info Journalists. ( illegal way)
In both case a sacrosanct is being staying anonymous.
However this whistle Blower totally followed legal proceedings, Our so called President is commuting a crime and trying to hint execution ( murder) of this person. He is insisting, insisting, insisting.
A president wants CIA agent killed by one of his followers.
I am horrified how this is not much bigger scandal than Ukraine phone call.
4
Whatever the outcome, the Democrat have made the right move. They will probably not obtain an impeachment, it may even cost them the election, because Trump and his clique have prepared the field for years.
However the Democrats need to understand the weaknesses of the opponent, and for this they must fight. Sooner or later it will pay off.
In addition, in 10 years from now, the guilty ones will be the ones who don't act today.
6
It's the electoral college, stupid.
Trump is a distraction. The electoral college will send you another Trump soon enough.
Get rid of the real problem and say hello to democracy.
8
i hope thay dont impeach him he is the onely one that stands up for the U.S.A.
@sharon He couldn't stand up to a stiff breeze.
@sharon
Please tell me one thing he's done to benefit this country. ONE.
If we get out of this, we need to disallow a corporate communications network from promoting proven lies. It is tolerance of lies that is infecting the world and the US. To foment insanity in the name of free speech an abuse of public trust it is an attack on civilization. THIS is how the Third Reich rose to power. Tolerating lies is the road to Hell. Clearly ..... demonstably ...... about of 1/3 of people in the US are unable to separate truth from lie - or even worse, literally don't care that they are living lies and creating a deadly mobster world.
7
@quinn47 Agree.
Also, get rid of the electoral college. One person. One vote.
3
UGH.
4
Bruni writes, "[The President is] inoculated by [his] own awfulness."
Those are -- perhaps -- the most frightening words I have ever read. Do, or can?, we still call our country the greatest one on earth? Do we still believe that there is no better place on earth to live? If Frank Bruni is correct, and I think he is, the whole planet is screwed.
The the leader could be protected by the daily atrocities he commits scares the hell out of me. We're not living in an Antropocene...this is the first level of a fresh hell that is the subject of movies and memes alike, but with one stark difference. We may have no hope to abandon.
2
I agree with many here, congress needs to reestablish its authority as prescribed by the constitution. This drift toward the overreaching, above the law presidency gave rise to a country that thinks Trump's behavior is just fine, IT IS NOT. Clearly Trump has established a shadowy presidency. It was patently clear when reporters wanted information oh his conversations with Putin to which he answered "none of your business", That was the point where we all should have slapped him in the face because damn right it's our business,
Yes, Trump will leave a scorched Earth, Much as Hitler ordered Paris to be burned to the ground as he was withdrawing, clearly losing the war.
Trump is a petty, desperately needy narcissistic moron, under educated, and full of spite and venom,
Whenever he leaves the WH there will be all kinds of retribution on his part, even if he wins a second term,
And speaking of a second term, if he wins, be prepared for an enemies list that will span the entire 3000 miles of this once great country,
MAGA now for sure, to recover from the horrible and vile stench of Don the Con Trump.
11
All the Don knows is ratchet-up the fear and hatred.
He sucks the wind.
Americans are so burned out by his thrashing about that the pursuit of happiness has become more difficult on every score.
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are now in question as "unalienable rights" which the Declaration says have been given to all humans by their creator, and which governments are created to protect.
This alone virtually guarantees his removal but the process will be extraordinarily excruciating for us because he may require restraints heretofore unheard of.
We need to have sand and steel our wills for the fight. We can't just watch his self-immolation; we have to tend his fire carefully so that we aren't scorched.
His biggest gift to the USA is the unveiling of the GOP and what the party has come to at its end. He sings their swansong so will. The GOP will be undone because they watch the cobra swing in their faces, frozen and immobile. If they bail at all, it will be too late.
6
OMG! Why is anyone surprised? I love to say "I told you so," so here I go. I TOLD YOU SO! Trumpzilla came out of Mary's womb giving his finger to the world. Satan's spawn. His own Nazi-sympathizing, KKK-loving daddy couldn't control him, so he shipped him off to military school. A lot of good that did! li'l d has been living a life of crime in the tri-state area for decades and now he is defecating on our constitution while he pokes us in the eye. All of our lives hang in the balance of his treason, criminality and insanity.
I'm relieved Nancy Pelosi finally came to her senses and moved for impeachment - well, an impeachment inquiry, anyway. Democrats need to understand that you don't beat a bully by trying to strategize against him. Bullies are insane. You beat a bully by beating the crap out of the bully metaphorically, in this case. You hit him hard and relentlessly in legal terms. Of course, if he spirals out of control in such a way to put us all in danger which he will most certainly do, our Pentagon has a clear shot and they should take it.
10
As far as the swell of support for impeachment, the overwhelming question is where have all these Johnny come lately's been? Did they not think all of Trump's many other impeachable offenses, such as those relating to the emoluments clause, were just cause for taking action?
2
Yeah , exactly, he can and he will bring everything down.
He can burn down white house even
"August 24, 1814, after defeating the Americans at the Battle of Bladensburg, a British force led by Major General Robert Ross burned down buildings including the White House (then called the Presidential Mansion), the Capitol building, as well as other facilities of the U.S. government"
And
entire Government structure, Mitch will be included.
You have a president , He is the pal of Putin.
3
Trump couldn't commit his crimes without the willing enablement and guidance of those around him. They are as culpable, if not more so, as he is.
3
if the nation pays attention to the misdeeds of this man, we can all come together to remove him and move ahead. come together or come apart. our choice.
5
If Mr tRump does not tell the truth, has anyone thought to check to see if the GOP reports of $150 million or more in donations this week are true? Has anyone checked the bank accounts for the truth??
Sincerely, KD-
2
If he takes VP Pence with him, I'll be quite satisfied. A US government led by an erratic plutocrat is only one step above that of a religious zealot.
9
A little rush to judgement from the Fake News population?. Another case where the President did nothing wrong and no offer was extended to Ukraine as its President has ably stated. A request to investigate corruption by American citizens in a foreign country is not wrong but is actually required.
This is a great article by Mr. Bruni, and what is most important to remember under these unprecedented circumstances is that being aggressive and swift in our actions with Donald Trump does not necessarily mean that we have to throw a temper tantrum to accompany aggressive responses to his impeachable and in some cases illegal behavior. You cannot remove someone from office for being odious, and while his mental instability does suggest invoking the 25th amendment, it is unlikely that’s such a thing will happen. What will make a difference will be for the House to corner him , and show his wrongdoing to the country to see in the coolest and most clinical ways. This is why he is now off the rails ,speaking about treason and Civil War and sedition, the common language for maniacal dictators. In this way it will eventually not matter how many Lindsey Grahams there are making a fool of themselves. Eventually the mountain of wrongdoing will make it impossible for Republicans to behave this idiotically in support of such a person .
In the end Donald Trump will do himself in, just as all tyrants have destroyed themselves in the past. We also have to make sure that we don’t allow to drag on the tremendous damage he has done and will continue to do. We need to move quickly, but thoroughly, and without commensurate histrionics.
2
Remember when Trump shut down portions of the Federal Government over his ridicule’s grievance? and the GOP complied?
Buckle up it’s going to get bumpy.
Get ready to turn the amplifies up to 11.
3
Pity poor Donald. What he is experiencing is likely a first for him. He can't settle out of court. He can't pay someone to make a problem go away. He can't outlast the other side with frivolous motions and delays. In other words, his money can't be his friend right now.
Consequently, he is throwing a temper tantrum. The problem is that that won't work either.
2
Frightening. Treason, civil war, coup, spies. These words can only be designed to widen the split our nation is experiencing. This is a test of our judiciary and legislative branch. If they fail to support the framework, democracy is in danger.
3
It's quite obvious this demented man will attempt to tear it all down in a misguided effort to protect himself. He doesn't care if he maligns our democracy or the Constitution. He's willing to compromise himself, his family and anyone in his administration's trajectory.
How do intelligent, observant and uncompromised people deal with this level of frightened, narcissistic dysfunction? We rely on the media to tell us the truth at every turn, utterance and rage-tweet.
Give us the unvarnished truth. Let us understand what evil lies beneath it all.
I look to the NYT's for in-depth reporting, clarity and the wisdom our country needs at this moment in time. Let the truth be our guide and the memory of past president's greatness ring in our ears.
6
As one continues to focus on Trump the President and his ongoing, harmful, personally unaccountable threatening -words, done-deeds, and those which need doing because of realities’ demands to effective policy making, a caveat is necessary.
Trump and his minions have re-empowered parts of America’s diverse and divided Peoples who now feel free to misuse democratic values, norms and ethics to empower past legacies and traditions which enabled a toxic, WE-THEY violating culture to operate. To harm. Lives. Limbs. Norms. Values. Civility. Ethics. For menschlichkeit. For equitable wellbeing and health for ALL.
Trump and his minions did not “cause” this unAmericanism to BE.
Their personally unaccountability, supported by the complacency of all too many of an US, and the complicity of so many other ordinary folk,
continues to “greet,” seed, feed and harvest...
Impeachment of ONE will not immunize the ever-present toxicity of MANY. In the quest for sharing the fruits and gifts of democracy with and for ALL of US, equitably, many relevant questions need asking. Many people and systems need to give an accounting.
Impeachment, as a beginning, is a gift.
Impeachment as an end in itself can be a powerful delusion with unexpected implications and consequences. For ALL of US.
3
Good; let em all fall down with Trump. A true cleaning up of the swamp in DC. We can then start over with new laws and better people with honor, integrity and a real allegiance to all the people of this country.
669
@kay Be wary of what you wish for. The structure and people composing our government are very imperfect, but they have kept our country together for almost 250 years Trump, Barr and McConnell are the bath water drowning the imperfect baby of our democracy which admittedly needs adjustments. But Its like Winston Churchill said, Many forms of government have been tried and some say Democracy is the worst except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.
34
@kay It's up to us to vote those kinds of individuals into office - if those kind of people decide to run for office.
16
@kay Let's start by deleting the Electoral College, shall we?
21
Is there no way to call a time-out and prevent him from holding his self aggrandizing rant rallies? I think we have reason to fear that he'll now double down on the 'civil war' trope and take those opportunities to incite his fans to riot. What then? He calls martial law and takes over completely?
But then I also believe that there is already so much hard evidence of his crimes against the Constitution that the GOP should stop him from running in 2020 altogether.
4
I have problems with both parties. The Republicans are beholden to cheap labor industrialists, and to untethered extraction industries, and to medical/industrial complex pickpockets. The Democrats are beholden to bullying unions, and to open borders, and to medical/industrial complex pickpockets.
I feel that Trump is president because of the asylum issue. He's right, (or at least right enough), when he tells us that the invasion from the south is giving us criminals and drugs that are killing our children. The colonists dealt with a similar issue early in the American revolution. British and Hessian troops were pouring across the border from Canada, ravaging towns and killing colonists. That united the countryside against the invasion.
History repeats itself.
1
"The impeachment inquiry is laying Trump bare. As scary as that is for us, it may be even scarier for him."
There is no reason for us to be scared by the truth and by laying Trump bare. Getting out the truth is a necessary step before the Nation can start healing and rebuilding what Trump and his Republican accomplices have torn down. When justice prevails, Trump and his immature emotions will not matter any more. If postwar Germany could come to grips with its horrible past, we certainly face the facts about Trump and the Republican party - and emerge a stronger and better nation.
5
One can't help but wonder in the short time Trump has been at the helm of government how much dirt he has dug up. Considering that anyone who crosses him for the slightest of reasons is an enemy, Democrat or Republican, doesn't it seem strange the power he holds over the political party that supports him.
4
If you've read any of the books by North Korean defectors, you'll note the parallels between Trump's threats/behavior and Kim's brutal regime. From legions of approving generals to a starved and brutalized population, Kim expects them all to jump on cue or face execution. Trump's ideals re leadership are similar.
People in NK know nothing very little re truth, independent thought. Their survival depends upon the ability to obey without question. Americans have been taught to think and defend the principles behind our nation's birth & revolution. Trump's only MO is to "win". He is publishing his expectations to freeze w/ fear the reasonable thought of those elected to represent the voters. Congress is as much on trial now as he will be later if they don't rise up in unison and resist this nonsense they're being fed. He works like a hypnotist with his own selfish objectives. He is not conscious of morality and consequences.
2
Seriously, the biggest issue seems to be lack of moral judgement (or any judgement with this guy). Why have so many people followed this guy blindly without question? Republicans should have been pushing back on every questionable thing this guy said and educated their voters along the way. It's too late now. They're all in and criticizing Trump now just makes it look like they're trying to save themselves a year before an election.
2
It is time for Republicans of conscience to pay Trump a Midnight Visit, as was done with Nixon. Perhaps the situation must ripen more before that can happen.But why wait-- the entire world can now smell its rottenness.
3
This column is germane, accurate stuff. As Trump raves on, it might be worthwhile to consider it as a further sign of the inveigling nature of so-called Democracy in the U.S.A. The fact that 70 or so of the lackeys for the Heritage Foundation occupy positions of advisors in this administration points not to Democracy, but plutocracy. Trump is, as he says, "really rich", but he has not reached the pinnacle of largess acquisition, which entails buying enduring influence in government. His ravings are those of a figure head for those moneyed powers which have held sway for so long, in the midst of poverty and reckless management of the land. Optical illusions are one thing, but this steady stream of invective from the demagogue underlies the deep disdain which the rich have for the less fortunate. The ideas coming to the fore, if indeed they are, from the Democrats, regarding taxing the rich are long overdue. If they are enacted, it may be a way of forestalling what ever illusions persist about our ability to reverse climate change; how strange that only lip service to infrastructure reform has been paid up to now-- it is the status quo and the complacence of the rich plutocrats which maintains the former. It is time for Trump and his ilk to go.
4
President Trump is, in a way, the best advertisement for therapy. I've been practicing the craft for over twenty years and can affirm that almost all my clients have been decent people with empathy and a capacity for brutal self-insight. Whether these qualities are the cause or the effect of therapy, matters not. The legions who remain outside the office -- they are where the problems live.
If you step back, and ask what do Trump and his various enablers have in common, you find two things: a dislike and fear of representative democracy, and a total disregard for honesty of any kind. Their preferred forms of government are libertarian anarchy, oligarchy, religious authoritarianism. or simply autocratic thuggery, none of which have anything to do with representative democracy. They consider any lie or made up story and even hidden criminal schemes are fine in the service of their self interests and various agendas, including religious agendas, financial agendas, and political power agendas. These characteristics are found in the leadership of virtually all non-democratic governments.
7
Time to invoke the 25th amendment while investigating Pence's involvement in foreign meddling starting in 2016. I would think we could get an army of psychiatrists that would say Trump should be committed and is a danger to others based on threats he has made in past week.
12
If The Times is going to take Trump and the Right seriously and forecast war, it must stop just expressing dread, and start asking the hard questions about how, who, and where; about what this war will look like, and about how one side will prevail.
It becomes apparent fast that anger, not cool tacticality, is what Trump wants. He needs a wave of rage to drive his voters to the polls. He's hinting at violence, demanding to be treated as a monarch, but those how who where questions have just one answer. If he incites violence directly he'll be defeated on the ground, renounced politically, and disgraced. He can't get communities or states to secede. He can't wreck the Constitution. These are tantrums, not tactics.
What he certainly will do, however, is rig the vote any way and anywhere he can; and also insist that the Democrats are rigging the vote. We can assume that this process is already underway, with complicity by the GOP on the ground in the districts that Trump needs for anywhere fake win in the Electoral College. There hasn't ever been and there will never be an national election reversed by recount. Trump will cheat to win and accuse his enemies of cheating either way. Mitch McConnell will let him do it. The GOP will let him do it.
Cover that. That's how, who, and where this war is already happening.
27
What could be more emblematic of this turn of events than to watch Chris Collins quit Congress in advance of his guilty plea for insider trading?
All the GOP retirements are also a clue. The TEA Party destroyed the GOP while having no interest in governing-- they were content to be anti-{insert enemy of the moment}. There's no where else to go except fishing.
14
I have had this same thought recently, that he will not voluntarily relinquish power even if he loses the 2020 election fair and square, but instead will kick and scream and try to incite violence. This column along with Thomas Edsall yesterday is sobering. We have to have faith that our institutions will stand up to the imminent assault by Donald and his far-right wingnuts. But I fear that we are in for a crisis like nothing in our history and it is impossible to predict what the damage will look like.
15
Why don't we investigate everyone, Trump, Pence, Biden (Joe & Hunter), Obama, Pelosi, McConnell, Schumer, et al. The investigation should be done objectively which disqualifies people like Schiff, Nadler, Cummings, Waters, etc. who have already made up their minds in advance. Provide the American public with the facts and then let the electorate decide who will emerge from the 2020 election victorious, Trump or the Dem challenger. That's how a democracy is supposed to work.
Not all the politicians you mention have engaged in activity that warrants investigation, obviously. Trump wouldn't either if he hadn't chosen to say and do the things he has. His outrageous behavior has invited exactly the scrutiny he's receiving right now. This is on him. I would think that would be obvious.
6
@mwilson "Not all the politicians you mention have engaged in activity that warrants investigation". How do you know? Hunter Biden getting $50,000 per month from some Ukrainian company? For doing what, exactly? Sounds fishy to me, and if it doesn't to you I can sell you some prime real estate. Well, it will be prime real estate anyway as soon as the water recedes.
This may backfire, if/when the Hunter Biden "thing "is exposed for what it probably was: 83K/month paid to his son for access to Joe, the VP holding the keys to a billion in aid.
I want very much for Trump to be out-but we should have just nominated a candidate that will beat him, and toss him out in the normal course. This drama will just muddy
the waters...
2
@DJSMDJD When he started messing with the upcoming election he left the Democrats no choice. Remember he made this call right after it appeared that the Mueller report would not bring him down, so he had gotten away with it.
If he gets away with this...
12
Trump showed his true colors long ago, and now, finally, you've started impeachment proceedings? You should be ashamed of yourself.
4
Donald Trump called Ukraine to get dirt on the Bidens to win an election. Trump with held $391 million to force them to help.White House covered it up by hiding the call in a top secret computer. Pompeo pretended he knew nothing about the call but now admits he was there. Investigate. Ray Sipe
21
Do you know why he gets away with it, Mr Bruni? Because he knows full well that you and others in the media will immediately detail the impeachment of Clinton and find a way to blast Democrats. He knows this. He knows you are incapable of the courage needed to truly stand up to evil.. So he wins.
12
@Sage613
All Bill Clinton did was have a measly affair and raging Republicans impeached him in a nanosecond.
What's worse is that House Speaker,
Newt Gingrich, who lead Clinton's impeachment parade was cheating on his 2nd wife with his mistress of 6 years at the exact same time.
Compared to Trump's mountains of crimes, Clinton looks like Mother Theresa.
3
Last week's column disturbed me because your reasoning for being against impeachment seemed based on fear. It surprised me, too!
Today's column outlines the fears and concerns, but you now seem willing to endure what follows, as must we all! Thank you!
Fingers and toes crossed....
9
Frank,
Again, how do you write a column and never once mention Mitch McConnell? He's acting as Trump's biggest fixer in all of Washington, DC., akin to Officer Barbrady, "OK people, move along, nothing to see here."
This is more than a one man, one phone operation.
1718
@chandlerny Mr McConnell has ably stated that if the house impeaches there will be a Senate trial as its rules require. It would nice if commentators would know facts before slurring anyone unfairly - it only seems fair.
5
@Larry That would be fine if McConnell had behaved this way re: Merrick Garland, gun reform, voter reform, equal pay, DACA, etc., etc. The self described "Grim Reaper" has consistently been more of a hindrance to the democratic process than a help, so I'll wait to offer any congratulatory praise for the majority "leader."
157
@Larry In the interest of fairness, you should probably cite the entire quote from McConnell. He immediately followed his statement about following the rules with one inferring that the trial wouldn't last long. He can dismiss the whole thing without it ever coming to a vote, and given his track record, that wouldn't shock me if it happens.
150
Conservative Peter Wehner makes a very convincing case in his NYTimes editorial, "What’s the Matter With Republicans?", which reads in part: " ... [Trump] is an extreme narcissist, pathologically dishonest, shameless, a man who delights in flouting norms. He has a mobster’s mentality. Mr. Trump’s behavior isn’t governed by moral standards; he doesn’t seem to believe objective moral standards even exist."
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/30/opinion/republicans-trump-impeachment.html
This is not the kind of person we need as POTUS.
21
Here's a thought for everyone. Remember his divorce from Marla? This is gonna get even messier. And just as fun to watch from a safe distance.
4
I can only imagine that Pence is considering erasing the “Vice” on his business card. He’s as much as a snake as the Donald....but much more shadowy.
12
“There has been no President in the history of our Country who has been treated so badly as I have,” he tweeted last week”.
So says the sadly deficient president. He has forgotten about Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, and Kennedy.
Of course, we know he is not a ‘reader’ among many other personal shortfalls. He is lazy and unproductive as president also. He is a known prevaricator of grand scale. He trusts no one and no one of substance trusts him. So what does Trump represent? A waste of time is the correct riposte.
16
At 73, Trump is for the first time being told NO. A firm NO, not from Mother Pence, but from a strong woman, Nancy Pelosi and he is definitely freaking out.
The Oval Office con he was running with his unqualified family was going great. More power and more money. He found his fellow corruptors across the oceans in Putin, MBS and Kim to name a few. And finally the Democrats grew a spine and started to play hardball with this grifter.
What does "perfect" mean anyway in Trump's mind? He is completely incapable of recognizing that he may have done something wrong. Ethics, moral consideration, the law, norms and best practice are concepts he has never ever thought about and they certainly never applied to him. So let's not worry about trying to make him see or think beyond 'What's in it for me'.
The Democrats must every morning remind Americans why they have initiated an impeachment inquiry. We can be awfully obtuse and need the constant reminder that this is about the rule of law in our country and government and the powers of Congress.
13
@Elizabeth "What does "perfect" mean anyway in Trump's mind? " Simple really. It means that he got what he wanted. He got praise, fealty and submission to his demands. Thus it was 'perfect'.
3
A real coup might be necessary.
2
The irony of all of this is that Trump likely will keep one of his biggest campaign promises: He will drain the swamp--of the corrupt and immoral Republican party.
In that respect, he may turn out to be a good president after all.
5
Yes he will go down and he will take everyone with him. Unfortunately, his malignant narcissism prevents him from understanding the value of resignation over burning down his presidency and the GOP. Instead, he just keeps throwing more and more fuel onto the fire.
7
I believe we are past impeachment; 25TH AMENDMENT NOW: djt needs to be put in a straight jacket and hauled off to a padded cell; the rest of his henchmen brought to their knees in disgrace. Just get it done. The harm he and they are doing to our country, our world, is intolerable.
Also: daines and gianforte who support djt are complicit and must to be voted out of office, Montana.
13
if trump is impeached...can he still run in 2020?
Yes
Yes, Trump's limitless narcissism will definitely take himself out of the picture. As the old saying goes, "the man of X is ruined by X.", et cetera. In Trump's case, his lack of shame and exorbitant egomania - the two things that allow him to lie and swindle with impunity - will not provide much in the way of a defence when it comes to impeachment. Godspeed, Pelosi.
6
If Trump goes down, it is only right that everyone around him goes down. After all, they have all been complicit in his criminality.
8
Do you think Dick Cheney had any idea of where his theory of "the unitary executive" would end up in the hands of someone like this?
3
@ChicagoWill Cheney is OK with this. You know this by how his surrogate is acting. Full voice in support of Trump. It's O-K because it is a Republican.
"...the current waters are in fact uncharted, because the ship of state has a sort of madman at its helm."
"'Sort of?'" Mr. Bruni, you are generous to offer that on someone who is a stark raving, violence-promoting sociopath.
13
Why should we put up with a raging toddler in charge in the Oval Office? Enough already, examine the evidence and then Senators do your duty to the Country!
10
I just listened to Trump's "press conference" with the Finnish president.
Madness personified.
10
If this impeachment process lays bare for all to see the complete and utter irrationality, ineptitude, ignorance, and inability of Trump to lead this country, then we should all be excited for it, not terrified.
7
Yes Trump, there has been no president in the history of our country that has been treated so badly as you...
I'm guessing here, but it seems as if his great Wharton education managed to leave our current chief ignorant of presidents Lincoln, Garfield and Kennedy...
13
The requirements for a presidential candidate need to be more stringent than just minimum age and proof of having been born in the US. The idea that this obscene, ignorant individual - currently ranting in front of a European leader - should ever have been allowed to be a major political party's nominee is frightening beyond words.
My fear is that he won't leave when he is defeated - or worse yet - after he serves out another term.
8
I believe Nancy Pelosi has said, "Trump will impeach himself." She obviously has foreseen the present and future evolving predicament of the POTUS.
In incompetence we voted!
3
If you haven't seen the painting "The Death of Sardanapalus" by Delacroix for a while, take a look again.
3
If Trump goes down he will certainly take all those who have continue to work for him down with him. Their reputations will be severely damaged by aiding and abetting his outrageous behavior and actions. Anyone with a moral scruples would have resigned by now.
6
I think Frank Bruni is right. This will get worse, because it KEEPS getting worse. Once Trump hits rock bottom, he takes out giant drill, makes a big hole, and pulls everyone around him deeper, to a new rock bottom. Repeat that cycle, and here we are. And now he is drilling, again.
Trump playing king and castle with our border, talking about installing moats with snakes and alligators, was enough to make me want to fall out of my chair. I couldn't believe my eyes watching CNN last night. Kamala Harris had to navigate a question about our president wanting to shoot immigrants in the leg, wanting to install moats with alligators. It felt like a surreal bad dream -- no, a nightmare -- but it wasn't. How many times have you said, "Is this really happening?" in the past few years?
12
No he will not!
Our Government will work if people like you will stop writing this negative thinking. Trump is a crafty criminal who has used the legal system to get away with doing whatever he wants. This time is different as he got caught red handed with his fingers in the cookie jar! That’s the story. He will suffer the consequences.