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The Verdict


I've long said that the best way to go after Trump is through the civil court.  E. Jean Carroll had no criminal case against him given the 20-year statute of limitations on rape charges, so she sued him for battery and defamation and won.  This sends a clear message and should give hope to the many other women sexually abused by Trump that he can be held accountable for his actions. 

The interesting thing to me is how Republicans are split on the verdict.  Some senators say so what, but others see this as yet another body blow to his pathetic campaign.  Opinion is mostly divided between party stalwarts like Cornyn and Romney, who believe Trump should stand down, and freshman senators like Rick Scott and Josh Hawley who don't seem particularly put off by the verdict, even if it affirms Trump's worst instincts.  

Yet, CNN plans to sponsor a Town Hall with the Orange One next week, treating him as a viable presidential candidate.   Kaitlan Collins will moderate the event, the news network's rising star, who they hope will challenge him to some degree, given how brusquely she was treated by the White House during her stint as chief correspondent.  She will certainly have plenty of fodder after this verdict.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Trump back out as he did testifying for himself at the court case.  The judge gave him a week to think about it but he chose to play golf instead.   

Despite all this controversy, his polling numbers remain high.  He even boasts a whopping 7-point lead over Biden in a recent Washington Post/ABC Poll that had George Stephanopolous visibly exasperated.  This far out of the election these polls don't mean much but it does make you wonder why so many voters would choose Trump over any number of other viable Republican candidates given Biden's poor approval ratings.

I suppose it is name recognition. Trump has achieved rock star status among conservative voters.  It seems there is nothing he could do wrong that would affect their level of idolatry.  As he once infamously said, he could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and he wouldn't lose any voters.  In this case, rape a woman in public.

However, this doesn't explain the number of so-called independent voters who are tipping the scales in his favor in these opinion polls.  He never reached 49 percent approval as President.

If Biden was truly the bad president many voters seem to think he is, I might understand this sentiment. However, he has had a good tenure.  There are mistakes, but overall he has handled the situations that have presented themselves remarkably well.  His job numbers remain high.  Inflation appears to be ebbing and Russia looks weaker than ever given the pathetic "Victory Parade" they put on in Moscow. This despite all the questions about his age.  

For the record, Trump is only four years younger than Biden and in far worse health.  You can cast aside the glowing reports by Ronny Jackson, for which he has been ridiculed time and again.  This is a man who needs help getting out of a golf cart on his famous links around the world, not to mention better coaching when it comes to giving depositions.  He couldn't even tell the difference between Ms. Carroll and his second wife Marla Maples.  Little wonder his defense team didn't want him testifying.

Yet, age seems to be the number one concern among voters, at least in regard to Biden.  I suppose it is because many conservatives greatly fear Kamala Harris might assume office in his second term, unleashing their worst nightmare - a black woman POTUS.  Fox and other conservative news outlets have been pushing this doomsday scenario for the past three years.  Even Nikki Haley, a woman of color herself, has jumped on the bandwagon.  So much of what is now the GOP agenda is anti-women that it is doubtful Haley will get very far in the campaign, although she has no problem catering to these sentiments.

It's just too bad we are forced to talk about Trump again.  This is a guy who should have been consigned to the dustbin of history after the January 6 insurrection, but is once again getting all this free air time.  He doesn't even need to make appearances other than an impromptu press conference from his golf cart.  As Alec Baldwin would often remark in his impersonation of Trump, "Are you not Entertained!"

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