I am laughing wistfully because this trump demise story is getting to be indescribable. It is a plethora of leaks. Trump himself is not wrong to throw up his hands and cry enough.
My late, great friend the Civil Rights guru from Liberty, Mississippi, Will Campbell, said it best: "We are all bastards but God loves us anyway."
But a binary world that should know better keeps picking villains and saints. When this is all over we should all wash our hands and bow our heads.
Deep Throat is a team these days
This mornings' leaks, via Mike Allen of Axios, begin with the assertion that we are now in survival mode.
deep throat now appears to be a growing cadre of individuals who feed Mike Allen, the New York Times, and others, the tidbits that now make up the conclusions of the media so hated by the President.
Train going backward
A well-known Republican will win the "best leak award" with the following verdict -- "A week ago, we were talking about the agenda grinding to a halt," the Republican said. "Now, the train is going down the hill backwards."
The to-do list of the Trump circle in the West Wing and beyond is headed by the imperative to get a lawyer. We seem to be entering legal limbo where you don't even know what you might get put away for having done or said or written.
Obstruction for the general?
Then there is the NY Times featured story that Trump asked Comey to lay off General Mike Flynn, conspiracy theorist and certified liar. This qualifies as a leak and is exacerbated by also creating more leaks to the effect that obstruction of justice might be a bit like Hamlet's play within a play where he captures the conscience of the king.
Allen says the flood of leaks suggests President Trump has a growing list of enemies in the swamp.
Trump is the author of his own doom
At a Besieged White House, Tempers Flare and Confusion Swirls https://t.co/LxmVft97sf
— Stephen C. Rose (@stephencrose) May 17, 2017
The gold star member of Trump's administration is Lt. Gen. H.
R. McMaster, the national security adviser. He was asked by Trump's communications team to go out and stop the bleeding on the matter of Trump having tried to get Comey to lay off Flynn. McMaster did as he was told and the story threatened to go away until Mr. Trump decided to publish two tweets contradicting what McMaster had said. Now people are waiting for McMaster to jump ship.
Trip fears?
My own theory for this week is that Trump has no desire to make a foreign trip. He may dread it, If so what his circle hopes will be a reboot of the faltering Trump administration could fail, leaving little hope for change back in the swamp.