Day 707 – What do we know? What have we learned?

Saturday, December 24, 2022

Christmas Eve

Okay, so what do we know?

Well, Trump’s tax returns reveal, if nothing else, that he’s a terrible businessman.

Also, he doesn’t pay much in taxes, and there are a lot of questionable deductions and accounting things.

Shocking, I know.

Then there’s the Jan 6th Committee Final Report and associated transcripts. Wow. 

They have outlined eight – count ‘em eight – schemes for Trump to try and stay in power.

One involves seven states that were directed to send in fake electors – and they knew it was fake.

One state, Georgia, has made a referral to their Attorney General. We’ll have to see what happens.

Michigan made an investigation and referred it to the Justice Department.

But what about the other six states? We don’t know.

Then there’s the testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson. There is a great deal of backstory information. She had a lawyer, who wouldn’t tell her who was paying him (Trump) and he said to her, “I don’t want you to commit perjury.” And then gave her advice that would have her committing perjury. How serious is that? Well, as soon as the information came out he resigned from his firm. I am told he should face disbarment and criminal charges.

Even more interesting is how Ms Hutchinson came to her decision. She read Bob Woodward’s book about Watergate. Not once, but three times in one weekend. She related to the man who revealed to the Watergate Committee that there was a recording device in the Oval Office and all the conversations were recorded.

Now we get to Jan 6th. The committee has laid out that this was a coordinated, planned, well financed event. There was nothing spontaneous about it. Even more terrifying is what Trump wanted. He wanted 10,000 National Guard to “protect” his people as they marched on the Capital. He wanted to be there too. He wanted to be in the chamber as they counted the votes and he planned to speak.

Imagine if those rioters with Trump in their midst and 10,000 armed military had descended on the Capital?

It is part of the reason the Pentagon was hesitant to send the National Guard to the Capital. Whose side would they be on?

Finally, and this is incredible, more than 30 people who pled the fifth in their testimony to the Committee. You plead the Fifth if you think what you will say could incriminate you.

Roger Stone pled the Fifth when asked if his name was Roger Stone. He also pled the Fifth when asked his age. Michael Flynn did a similar kind of pleading.

Another person said they could not recall if they were in the White House or home on that day.

Now, here’s the problem with that, it’s the fact that certain events trigger a response in a population. My parents remember VE (Victory in Europe day, when in WWII Germany surrendered).

For my generation it was the day Kennedy was shot. We remember exactly where we were and who told us.

The Challenger was a similar case.

9/11 was another case.

And, perhaps, Jan 6th. It is incredible or rather it strains credulity that someone “forgets” where they were that day.