Fifth Avenue in New York City just south of Central Park has some of the most expensive stores in the world.\u00a0\u00a0Armani, Dior, DeBeers, Omega, Gucci, Tiffany: they all are lined up just two blocks south of the Park and north of St. Patrick\u2019s Cathedral.\u00a0\u00a0In the middle of all that opulence with gold tinted windows is Trump Tower, the headquarters of the Trump Organization, and home of the President of the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So when Donald Trump said,\u00a0\u201c\u2026I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn\u2019t lose any voters<\/em>,\u201d he knew exactly where he would be standing: \u00a0right outside Trump Tower, aiming down the street towards St. Patrick\u2019s.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump believes that if he did shoot someone on Fifth Avenue, he is protected from legal consequences.\u00a0\u00a0What we didn\u2019t know is that this would be Trump\u2019s overarching philosophy:\u00a0\u00a0as long as he acted in full public view, his core backers would stay with him and he was safe.\u00a0\u00a0And it\u2019s not just his supporters; he depends on the Attorney General, Bill Barr, to protect him from Federal investigation, and even intervene in state and local matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So on Thursday, on the White House lawn, in full view of the world, God, and MSNBC; Donald Trump asked China to investigate his potential opponent in 2020, Joe Biden. He called for a foreign nation to intervene in the US elections, in direct violation of US campaign laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump can be unpredictable on many issues, but when he\u2019s in trouble he always follows the same pattern.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s \u201cdouble-down,\u201d time. It’s as if he was saying, \u201cif you think that was bad, watch this.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He then proceeds to accuse someone else of doing exactly what Trump himself has done.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cCorruption, I know they\u2019re corrupt, and you do too.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n We know that President Trump linked desperately needed military aid to Ukraine to the Ukrainian government\u2019s willingness to investigate Joe Biden and his son.\u00a0\u00a0That’s in plain sight, in the summary transcript of his phone conversation with President Zelensky. It\u2019s backed up by the text messages from Ambassador Volker.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump was always doing this.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cRussia, if you\u2019re listening, find Hillary Clinton\u2019s thirty-thousand emails,<\/em>\u201d wasn\u2019t a joke, it was asking \u201cfor a favor.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0The Russians attempted to do exactly that, within hours of Trump\u2019s request.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when the President told George Stephanopoulos of ABC that he would accept foreign information in aid of his election campaign, in his own mind he was simply stating the facts. That it would violate Federal Election law didn\u2019t seem to be a problem. He could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This isn\u2019t a unique situation in American history.\u00a0\u00a0We\u2019ve had Presidents willing to break the law before.\u00a0\u00a0Richard Nixon made the famous statement to interviewer David Frost,\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWell,\u00a0when the president does\u00a0it, that means that\u00a0it is not illega<\/em>l\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0Nixon acted on this, setting up a squad in the basement of the White House who broke into homes and offices, sabotaged political enemies, and organized disinformation campaigns.\u00a0\u00a0One of the victims of Nixon\u2019s \u201cPlumbers\u201d was the leading Democratic candidate for President in 1972, Senator Edmund Muskie.\u00a0\u00a0As \u201cDeep Throat\u201d said in\u00a0All the President\u2019s Men:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026they were frightened of Muskie and look who got destroyed–they wanted to run against McGovern, and look who they’re running against. They bugged, they followed people, false press leaks, fake letters, they canceled Democratic campaign rallies, they investigated Democratic private lives, they planted spies, stole documents, on and on\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nixon\u2019s actions echo through today\u2019s news.\u00a0\u00a0The Trump team is trashing the man they see as their strongest opponent.\u00a0Whether Joe Biden wins the Democratic nomination or not, his candidacy is damaged by Trump\u2019s false allegations.\u00a0\u00a0Trump has calculated that making Biden look dirty is worth the risk of his own impeachment.\u00a0\u00a0As poker players say, \u201che\u2019s all in.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nixon ultimately left office in disgrace, caught by his own voice orchestrating the cover-up of the Watergate burglary. But not every President committing crimes has suffered Nixon\u2019s fate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ronald Reagan committed much grander violations of law.\u00a0\u00a0In what we now call the Iran-Contra Affair, He decided to ignore Congress by selling weapons to Iran in violation of US sanctions. He then used the sales profits to support insurgents in Nicaragua, also breaking the law.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0Reagan insulated himself from the legal ramifications, making the term \u201cplausible deniability\u201d famous.\u00a0\u00a0He wasn’t accused, but eleven of his subordinates were charged with various crimes. His National Security Advisor, John Poindexter, was convicted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many of those convicted were pardoned by Reagan\u2019s successor, George HW Bush.\u00a0\u00a0And here\u2019s another echo in our present conflict, the Attorney General then who recommended those pardons is back today, Attorney General Bill Barr.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The US Constitution states that the President can be impeached and removed from office for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.\u00a0\u00a0Most Americans think that “high crimes” are legal felonies, and they can be. But the Founding Fathers had a very different definition in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0A \u201chigh crime\u201d is a crime that impacts the state, the government, and the Constitution.\u00a0\u00a0It could be a legal felony, but it could be a less legally defined action as well.\u00a0\u00a0Abuse of power for personal gain might be difficult to prove under the US Criminal Code (though there is a statute addressing that action,\u00a05 CFR \u00a7 2635.702) but it clearly is an action that threatens the government.\u00a0\u00a0And this President has openly admitting to doing so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The current President of the United States has used his power for personal gain. He is using government money, our taxpayer money, to promote his personal campaign.\u00a0\u00a0The proof is in his words, and buttressed by growing evidence.\u00a0\u00a0Just like a shooting on Fifth Avenue, it\u2019s in plain sight.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n The House of Representatives will do their job, and bring the President up on charges. Will the Republican controlled Senate act, or will they hide their eyes to what is plainly in view?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Would we really let him shoot a man on Fifth Avenue? That is America\u2019s question.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"No Consequences<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
In His Own Words<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
When the President Does It<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Plausible Deniability<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Constitutional Duty<\/h3>\n\n\n\n