
Make America Guess Again
Make America Guess Again
Well, here we are again, a week has passed since president Trump and president Putin met in Helsinki. Once again Americans and law makers from both political parties are left confused and wondering, what is going on with Trump and his veneration for Vladimir Putin. We know that Trump has some issue with Putin and or Russia, going back to the presidential campaign. We’ve learned that once he won the Republican nomination he had received classified briefings showing that Russia had in fact meddled in the election. Though having knowledge of that information, he still refused to acknowledge that Russia did in fact interfere. Since that time, now two years later, many have gone from confused and curious to concerned, including members of the GOP. This concern is the culmination of two years of Trump defying U.S. Intelligence reports and the praise and perplexing comments Trump has made about Putin. To make the situation even more interesting, Trump had just attended a contentious NATO summit, leaving U.S. Allies doubting their relationships with the United States. Trump also went on the attack against Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau just prior to the Summit with Putin. Trump has shown this consistent pattern of going after the closest allies of the U.S. Yet persistently defending Putin and Russia. During the election Donald Trump blamed the DNC for hacking, he said it could have been China or a 400 pound person. Why China or anyone but Russia in Trump’s world? Why couldn’t he say from the information available from U.S. Intelligence agencies he believes it was Russia, consistently? It seems important to him to place blame on any other source, except Russia. This behavior has caused many to wonder and even create scenarios about Trump’s ties to Russia, from money laundering, Russian funding for his businesses to even prostitutes urinating on him during his stay there. Add in the firing of James Comey and Trump admitting he was thinking “of this Russia thing” when he decided to fire Comey. The fact that he has consistently called the special council investigation headed by Robert Mueller a “witch hunt”, yet that investigation has produced charges against 32 individuals regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election. Yet Trump continues his mystifying praise and admiration for Vladimir Putin, even inviting him to the White House.
Trump has on occasion stated that he agrees with the Intelligence community regarding Russia’s involvement in the meddling in the presidential election, with noticeable hesitation, then goes on twitter and contradicts his earlier statements. Those that follow politics are well aware Trump does this quite often regarding many issues. But Russia is a very unique subject. Many say Russia is our enemy, but perhaps calling them our adversary would be more accurate. As Donald Trump has said many times as a candidate and as president, “wouldn’t it be great if we got along with Russia?” Actually the answer would be, of course. But, if Russia did in fact meddle in the election and with the goal of helping Donald Trump win, shouldn’t all Americans be concerned? It seems like such a simple question that would have a simple straight forward response, but unfortunately, it’s not. We have reached a ‘cult’ environment with this president.
Cult: A misplaced or excessive admiration for a particular person or thing.
Let’s just stop with wondering or giving him the benefit of the doubt. There is absolutely an issue here between Trump and Russia! For those that lack the ability or desire to see it, they should be disregarded. This is the ‘cult’ mentality, follow blindly. For those that can clearly see an established pattern, there is concern. That concern isn’t only from Liberals, Democrats, Socialists or Aliens from outer space, it’s from many Republicans as well. We can take our hats off to Donald J. Trump for the fact he has convinced the working poor, rural voters, that he cares for them when in fact he never has. He has convinced Evangelicals that he cares about them yet he has never been a person of faith. He has convinced the hate groups he is for them, yet he would not want them at his hotels. These are the cult followers, and to expect them to take all of the information available to them, the consistent pattern that Trump has displayed regarding Russia-Putin and expect them to see there is an issue would be futile. These individuals are putting Trump before their nation, and most don’t even realize it. An example is how so many Trump supporters are against the special counsel investigation. If they truly believe that there was no wrong doing or collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, where is the problem, why the concern? Why are certain Republicans In congress behaving in a way that makes sane people furious? Two examples would be Devon Nunes and Trey Gowdy. These gentlemen have access to information regarding the Russian meddling, they’ve spoken of it, they admit it happened, yet are trying to discredit the investigation in defense of Trump. Devon Nunes has shown a pattern of behavior that should require investigation. His behavior is not of a member of the legislative branch, but as a ‘minion’ for Donald Trump, which he has continuously shown.
Guess What? We don’t know the answer to the question, ‘What is the deal with Trump and Putin-Russia?’ But make no mistake, there is something. It could be he has been involved in shady business dealings with Russians. It could be he was involved in profitable money laundering schemes with Russians. It could be the prostitutes situation. It could be Trump believes he will be President for a short while and is thinking ahead to the possibilities of making money in Russia, either through a Moscow Trump Plaza which we know he has wanted or financing for his businesses after leaving office. It could be all of the above or none of the above. This is why the special counsel investigation should go forward until the American people have the answers, not the cult members because they would only accept the results of the investigation if in fact it was what they wanted to hear, if not, then it’s a ‘witch hunt.’ Clearly how rational people do not think, ‘Ill believe the facts if they’re what I want to hear.’ That is not to demean Trump supporters, it is in fact how so many are. I know many myself and have lost interest in discussing any politics with these Trump cult members. Another interesting issue with these folks is their lack of knowledge of Donald Trump’s history, in his personal life, his religious life (non existent) and his business life. It’s amazing that so many blindly support a man they know so little about. But Donald Trump understands who to target for support, the very wealthy who benefit from a Trump presidency, the racist population that feel they have representation in the White House, and the very uninformed, most likely the largest group. The uninformed can form their opinions, based on……..nothing. For those that believe their country comes first, including those republicans that believe their party comes before Trump, all should demand the Mueller investigation go forward, and be thorough. There is a lot at stake. If this man as president is looking to implement policies with our allies and our adversaries based on his best interests, not the nation’s, there may be extreme consequences that will require a great deal to reverse, including restoring trust with our allies and trust with those politicians that have been enablers of bad behavior. So let the investigation conclude so that we may put an end to the guessing, and move forward with FACTS.
Lou Dos Santos
Photo credit: Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

