And the pope is a pacifist, a holy man, and a catholic. This analogy sums up the obvious and anti-climactic nature of Michael Cohen’s overhyped congressional hearing.
I watched enough to suggest that the following three sentences from his opening statement were the most interesting things anyone said all day:
I am ashamed that I chose to take part in concealing Mr. Trump’s illicit acts rather than listening to my own conscience. …
Donald Trump is a man who ran for office to make his brand great, not to make our country great. … Mr. Trump would often say, this campaign was going to be the ‘greatest infomercial in political history.’
(The Washington Post, February 27, 2019)
Frankly, the Republicans seemed hell-bent on assassinating Cohen’s character and camouflaging Trump’s lies and misdeeds. In a truly remarkable moment, Cohen pointed out that they were doing in this hearing what he spent a decade doing, namely acting as Trump’s fixer.
Alas, like Cohen used to be, the Republicans are so blinded by loyalty, the damning irony/hypocrisy inherent in this seemed completely lost on them. This was simply pitiful to see.
No doubt this blindness also explains why ranking member Jim Jordan — his lips dripping with indignation and condemnation — asked Cohen how he could work for a racist like Trump. After all, Jordan has spent the past two years as the ring leader of Republicans who have unconditionally supported this racist, misogynistic, homophobic, xenophobic, lying, bullying, incompetent (I-could-go-on) buffoon.
Meanwhile, the Democrats seemed committed to rehabilitating Cohen’s character and laying the predicate to impeach Trump. This, even though impeachment was the word that dared not speak its name today.
I have written many commentaries denouncing the myriad reasons Cohen had just cause to call Trump a racist, con man, and cheat. Unfortunately, these reasons are now so “normalized,” they strike most people as more high jinks and political incorrectness than high crimes and misdemeanors.
This is why commenting anew (e.g., on birtherism, emoluments, and Stormy Daniels) would be redundant to the point of annoying.
Related commentaries:
Cohen, Manafort, Trump…
Birther…
Charlottesville…
Trumps getting richer…
Trump for pres? Don’t be a sucker…
Stormy Daniels…