It was a bit jarring yesterday to actually hear world leaders laughing at—not with, at—Donald Trump as he lumbered through another factually-challenged recitation of what he tries to pass off as his administration’s unparalleled-in-American-history successes. I think it fair to say that this is the first time in the history of the United Nations that those attending the opening session of the General Assembly actually laughed at an American president and his remarks.
Afterward, Trump claimed he was joking and the U.N. delegates and delegations were laughing with him. They were all “having a good time,” he said.
No.
Nikki Haley, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, tried this morning—on FOX News, of course—to support the president’s narrative and claimed that those laughing were, uh, showing “respect” for Trump’s “honesty” and for America in general.
[Memo to Nikki: If you ever serve what are advertised as chicken salad sandwiches at a picnic to which I’m invited, I’m going to make sure they pass the smell test before I take a big bite out of one. Unlike you, I’ve actually spent time in chicken coops and chicken houses. Those experiences educated me as to the difference between the smell of chicken salad and the odor of, well, you know.]
That heads of state and U.N. delegates from around the globe were rightly amused at Trump’s bloviating—to the point of guffawing at it—says something about just how far worldwide regard/respect for the United States has fallen in the 20 months that Donald Trump has occupied the White House.
However, while attention was lavished on the spectacle of an American president being laughed at by world leaders, another more important factually-challenged statement made by The Donald in a meeting later in the day flew somewhat under the radar. This involved Trump’s accusation that China was retaliating for the raging trade war between the U.S. and Beijing by meddling/interfering in the upcoming mid-term elections: “Regrettably, we found that China has been attempting to interfere in our upcoming 2018 election, coming up in November, against my administration,” Trump said during remarks at a U.N. Security Council meeting on nonproliferation.” Making it personal—per usual—and assuming the role of the righteous victim, he continued by saying that the Chinese “do not want me or us to win because I am the first president to ever challenge China on trade, and we are winning on trade—we are winning on every level.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has seemed to accuse China of potentially trying to interfere with an American election. In August, the Twit-In-Chief used his tiny fingers to tweet the following from his unsecured cell phone: “All of the fools that are so focused on looking only at Russia should start also looking in another direction, China.”
Trump’s national security team responded to questions about the August tweet by saying that, other than Russia, they had found no evidence of any interference by any foreign actors in the run-up to the 2018 mid-term elections. No. Evidence.
And, following his latest claims about Chinese meddling, Trump could provide no evidence to substantiate them. No. Evidence.
Neither could any of his national security officials.
It was simply another blatantly false claim made by a president whose relationship with the truth is as fragile as his ego.
Count me stunned! (Sarcasm intended!)
It is worth noting, however, that, unsurprisingly, the president, per usual, saw fit to omit any mention of the one foreign country that we know beyond the shadow of a doubt to be making attempts to interfere in the 2018 mid-terms: Russia.
Which begs three questions: (1) Why won’t this president admit that Russia and Vladimir Putin interfered with the 2016 presidential election and did so with the intent of helping elect its preferred candidate, Donald Trump? And, (2) Why won’t this president admit that Russia and Vladimir Putin are still trying to interfere with the U.S. electoral process? And, (3) What do the Russians and Vladimir Putin have on Donald Trump that prevents him from speaking the truth about Russia/Putin to the American people?
I am well aware that credible answers to those questions will never come from Donald Trump—he is easily, easily typed as a narcissistic borderline personality, which tells us he is virtually incapable of speaking any truth that casts him in a negative light. He is a pathological liar.
I am well aware that credible answers to those questions will never come from Lindsay Graham—who borrowed John McCain’s spine in order to walk upright and, in the aftermath of Senator McCain’s death, has devolved into just another Republican invertebrate unwilling to speak the truth about Donald Trump—or any congressional Republican. Elected to protect the American people from unethical, abusive or criminal behavior on the part of government officials—including the president—Republicans have chosen to defend the indefensible, to protect Donald Trump by casting aspersions on the truth and thereby placing the American people and their country in peril.
But I do believe that credible answers to those questions will come from Robert Mueller, the Special Counsel doing the due diligence necessary to truthfully answer those questions. And, whatever those answers may be, I’ll believe them. If only we had a president who inspired my trust as does Robert Mueller. If only we had senators and congressmen who inspired my trust as does Robert Mueller.
Alas…