For some reason it occurred to me a couple of days ago to think about the sheer number of cranks and crackpots who roamed the White House and bent Donald Trump's ear about election fraud in late 2020 and early 2021. I don't mean people who are just a little conspiracy minded; I mean out-and-out loons like these:
- Michael Flynn
- Rudy Giuliani
- Sidney Powell
- Mike Lindell (aka "pillow guy")
- John Eastman
That's off the top of my head. Who am I missing?
This is why I've always wondered: Was Trump lying when he said the election was stolen? Or did he really believe it? Trump is capable of talking himself into almost anything, and after marinating in this crackpot circus for a while I wouldn't be surprised if Trump's id had truly convinced him that Democrats had schemed (successfully!) to steal the vote in thousands of precincts nationwide.
So maybe Trump isn't a congenital liar. But if he isn't, he's a mentally deranged lunatic. Take your pick.
I'd like to comment about A.G. Barr. We all know he's a guy with pretty terrible views about presidential power and someone who worked to cover up stuff for Trump. He says a bunch of stuff about how disconnected from reality Trump was, about how he tried to convince Trump he lost, etc and I have no problem believing that this is true.
But, he implies he resigned his cabinet post because he couldn't go along with the stealing-the-election craziness. THAT IS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. He was the AG; he should have been fighting it. He should have been investigating the coup plotting. He should have been telling the truth on TV. He should have been working to get the 25th Amendment into play. He should have been living up to his oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution.
Instead he deserted his post. An 18 year old draftee does that and he could be shot. Barr gets to write a book.
Dereliction of duty, pure and simple
Jeffrey Clark, who almost took over the Justice Dept in the waning days of Trump's reign of error. There was a fascinating story in the Washington Post today about his machinations to try to take control of the department, and overthrow the election results.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/06/14/inside-explosive-oval-office-confrontation-three-days-before-jan-6/
Legally, it probably doesn't matter. Willful blindness can be taken as knowledge of wrongdoing, and I think the 1/6 Committee has amply demonstrated that.