From bad to worse.

February 11, 2022

[Audio edition here.]

          On Thursday, the scandal regarding Trump’s failure to comply with the Presidential Records Act rocketed from presumed recklessness in handling documents to deliberate destruction to conceal Trump’s crimes. In quick succession, we learned about three disturbing new developments involving deliberate failures to comply with the Act. As a result, FBI agents are fanning out across the nation to interview dozens of witnesses to learn details of the new reports. Oh, wait, that was when the FBI discovered that Hillary’s server contained errant emails with pictures of Anthony Weiner’s not-so-private parts.

Tonight, FBI agents are not investigating Trump’s criminal violations of the Presidential Records Act. We know that because after the National Archives asked the DOJ to investigate Trump’s removal of 15 boxes from the White House, the DOJ told the National Archives to investigate the matter itself. More on that sorry development in a moment. Let’s look at the three new disturbing disclosures.

          First, the official log of presidential telephone calls has an hours-long gap for the period from the inception of the assault on the Capitol through Trump’s statement to the insurrectionists that “We love you.” That gap makes the 18-minute gap in the Watergate tapes look like amateur hour. There is no innocent explanation for the gap in presidential phone calls during a period that coincides with an armed insurrection. Reports from witnesses appearing before the Special Committee establish that Trump spoke to at least two members of Congress during that period. See ABC News, Jan. 6 investigators find gaps in Trump White House call logs, sources say

          Second, a forthcoming book by NYTimes journalist Maggie Haberman reports that White House maintenance personnel repeatedly encountered printed documents jamming a toilet in the family quarters of the White House. There is no innocent explanation for the effort to destroy documents by flushing them down the toilet. The only three people living in the White House residence were Trump and Melania, and their son, Barron. I will let you create your own ranking of likely suspects. See CNN, Book reveals Trump staff found flushed papers in White House toilet.

          Third, new reporting says that among the documents Trump removed to Mar-a-Lago were documents marked “top secret.” See Washington Post, Some Trump records taken to Mar-a-Lago clearly marked as classified, including documents at ‘top secret’ level. In response, Trump made the unbelievable claim that “I was told I was under no obligation to give this material [to the National Archives] based on various legal rulings that have been made over the years.” That defense is ludicrous and idiotic. If Trump was relying on advice provided by legal counsel, he just waived any claim of attorney-client privilege.

          These revelations should sound a five-alarm fire. The good news is that the Special Committee is investigating the gaps in the presidential call log, and presumably will soon be tracking down the reports of printed documents being flushed down the toilet. The seriousness of Trump’s conduct can be seen in a comparison to “Hillary’s emails.” Hillary Clinton retained and turned over her emails related to her service as Secretary of State. The infamous “missing emails” were reviewed by Hillary’s lawyers and determined not to be related to state department business before they were deleted. In contrast, no one flushes documents down a toilet unless they are trying to conceal something illegal. In other words, the Trump scandal is orders of magnitude worse.

          But while Hillary’s emails resulted in multiple FBI investigations under the auspices of the DOJ, the DOJ does not appear to be investigating Trumps deliberate lack of compliance with the Presidential Records Act.

          When the National Archives learned that Trump had taken 15 boxes of documents to Mar-a-Lago, it referred the matter to the DOJ. Per the New York Times,

          The discovery, which occurred after Mr. Trump returned 15 boxes of documents to the government last month, prompted the National Archives to reach out to the Justice Department for guidance, the person said. The department told the National Archives to have its inspector general examine the matter, the person said.

          To be clear, having the National Archives Inspector General “examine the matter” is not sufficient. An Inspector General does not have the subpoena powers of a grand jury. It cannot conduct criminal investigations or issue indictments. Its mission is to

promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in the administration of, and … prevent and detect fraud and abuse in … [the Department's] programs and operations.

          It is possible that these most recent disclosures will prompt the DOJ to open an investigation. As I said, it is a five-alarm fire. It deserves an appropriate response.

Latest inflation report poses new challenge for Democrats.

         On Thursday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that prices rose 7.5 percent over the past year. That fact will be a challenge for Democrats going into 2022, and they are appropriately worried. See The Hill, “Democrats see inflation as growing problem for their agenda.” There are plenty of explanations as to why Democrats should not be blamed by voters for inflation, but it will take a lot of explaining to convince voters of that fact. In case you get into a discussion about his topic, here are a few points to remember:

• The current bout of inflation is caused by pandemic-related factors, especially pent-up demand after consumers increased their savings rate during the pandemic.

• Government spending helped end the steepest recession in history; to the extent that it contributed to inflation, it was a wise investment.

• The quick recovery from the recession created more than 6 million jobs.

          The components of the Build Back Better bill will help families deal with expenses that will persist after inflation is gone—like childcare, taxes, tuition, and medical expenses.

          The mainstream press, as usual, has been giving more coverage to the inflation report than to the outstanding jobs report last week. But Trump has created a diversion (for now) by his mishandling of the scandal relating to presidential documents. Expect Trump to create more diversions. While we can’t rely on Republicans to defeat themselves, we should remember that Democrats aren’t the only party with problems. Indeed, Republicans have many, many more. So, let’s power through the inflation issue as we remind people of the facts.

Senate passes important protection for victims of workplace harassment and abuse.

          The Senate passed an important bill (H.R. 4445) that removed mandatory arbitration for victims of harassment and abuse in the workplace. See Politico, Senate clears bill banning mandatory arbitration.

          Separately, the Senate appears to have reached a compromise to allow for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. See CBS News, Bipartisan group of senators say they have reached a deal on Violence Against Women Act. The bill still needs one more Republican vote to overcome the filibuster. While the reauthorization is good news, the compromise removed a provision that would have allowed courts to enter orders taking guns away from abusive partners in dating relationships. Everytown for Gun Safety is running an automated campaign to send letters urging Senators to close the “boyfriend loophole” in the bill. Click the link in the preceding sentence to send a letter to your Senators.

Concluding Thoughts.

          I feel like I have said this before, but it has been a rough couple of weeks. It was only seven days ago that the RNC issued a statement saying that the assault on the Capitol was “legitimate political discourse.” A few days earlier, Trump admitted that he wanted Pence to “overturn the election,” and called for his supporters to engage in “massive demonstrations” (read: violence) if he is indicted. And the cascade of information regarding previously unknown crimes by Trump has been difficult to absorb in light of apparent inaction by the DOJ.

          While it has been difficult to watch, it is apparent that Trump and his acolytes have gone too far. Their outrageous statements proved too much for a handful of GOP leaders who have spoken out—and for the hundreds of congressional Republicans who have been ducking and weaving to avoid answering whether they side with democracy or tyranny. The enduring symbol of the last two weeks will be that of Rep. Kevin McCarthy fleeing through the halls of the Capitol to avoid reporters’ questions. McCarthy was as buffoonish as Brave Sir Robin (of Monty Python fame), meekly protesting that he was not “running away” as he was running away. Kevin McCarthy will lie at the drop of hat without batting an eye. The fact that he could not bring himself to answer questions about the outrageous comments of the RNC and Trump is saying a lot!

          Here’s my point: Every GOP candidate on the campaign trail in 2022 will be forced to answer the same questions that even the mendacious Kevin McCarthy could not answer. And it is only going to get worse as Trump spews even more outrageous lies as he is cornered by the Special Committee and enterprising reporters. That will make our difficult job in 2022 a bit less daunting. As always, we have every reason to hope, but no reason to be complacent.

          Have a good weekend everyone! Talk to you on Monday!