He’s a Criminal, for Heaven’s Sake

The mainstream media is pretty much ignoring Trump’s lawlessness as we get closer to the election, covering him as a legit politician. Are we missing a key warning about our future as a result? Maybe.

Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Rick Renzi, William Jefferson, James Traficant, Dan Rostenkowski, Albert Bustamante, Mario Biaggi, Harrison Williams, Anthony Weiner, George Santos, Bob Menendez, Andrew Cuomo, Eric Adams.

And then, of course, there’s Donald Trump

I came up with these names pretty much off the top of my head, thinking back over my 50+ years in journalism. If you’re as old as I am, or near as old, you’ll probably recall most of them too. What do they have in common? They’re all top-level politicians who have faced charges of either sexual or financial wrongdoing, and some have spent time behind bars. I expect a visit to Google could find me a great many more,

So why do so many men who have reached this high level in life turn to the dark side?

My guess: Many of them thought they were too big to fail, a belief leading them to push ethical boundaries with the assumption they wouldn’t be caught or that their public stature -- or their wealth, in some cases -- would protect them from any negative consequences. Think of it as “the arrogance of power,” a historic weakness among the alpha types within my gender since we began walking upright.  

Pretty obviously, you can include Trump in this group, who is rich enough to have a phalanx of lawyers at his side to push the idea that he’s been targeted by a politically weaponized justice system because of who he is, a threat to the Democrats in power, not due to anything he could have possibly have done.

Of course, the federal justice system also targeted Menendez, a key Democratic senator before the charges against him came out, and Adams, New York City’s sitting Democratic mayor. Why isn’t a politically weaponized system looking past such things for folks key to the party it favors? I don’t know, ask Trump.

The ex-president is now awaiting sentencing after being convicted of falsifying business records in a case in which a porn star – a porn star, for goodness sake -- was paid hush money so, during his political campaign, she wouldn’t talk about having sex with him. He’s also lost two civil cases in which he owes millions of dollars. In one, he was charged with sexual abuse and in the other he was charged with business fraud. Moving forward, he faces criminal cases for taking action to subvert the 2020 U.S. election, and for unlawfully keeping classified documents — in a Mar-a-Lago bathroom, if you can image that — after he left office.

Why do I bring all this up, in this way and at this time? For two reasons, really.

First of all, because Trump’s not all that different from bunches of other American politicians and businessmen who, buoyed by their own sense of entitlement, have turned away from the righteous path. And secondly, because the mainstream media seems pretty willing to ignore Trump’s legal transgressions in their coverage as we get increasingly closer to the election.

Just a mention, folks? One mention in each story that would identify him as a convicted felon who could face jail time if he doesn’t win the presidency? A single background sentence, maybe? Is that too much to ask?

The NYTimes and so many other journalistic and online outlets are essentially covering him as just another legit politician, not one who knows he has to win to keep from ending up in jail. I know many of these journalists would say, “hey, that’s old news” but, really, shouldn’t this be as significant an ongoing part of this election season as whether or not he and Kamala Harris will tax tips? Think about it.

I applaud the efforts of the mainstream media to track his lies, as when he says you can’t believe the FBI’s crime statistics, though I’d bet he would be pushing them if they instead showed crime was on the rise. And I know how difficult that effort is with a man who’s been known to spout lies at a rate of about one per minute. The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler stands head and shoulders above others in this realm.

But mentioning he’s a convicted felon in any story where his name pops up? That doesn’t happen in stories I’ve read lately unless his lawyers once again go to court to delay something on the oft-chance he becomes president before the case can be adjudicated.

So now, let’s take just a minute to imagine what could happen if he does become president, given his lack of respect for the laws of our nation and the media’s lack of care about his lawless past.

Would his administration deal with political opponents the same way Nixon’s did. Or would the guy who told us how easy it is for a celebrity to grab women by their genitals (and who’s facing millions in fines for doing just that), sexually abuses a female intern, as Clinton did. Or what if someone wants to tuck some gold bars in his closet to get their way on legislation, like what happened with Menendez, convicted of acting as Egypt’s foreign agent.

My guess? Trump as president could well act as a foreign agent for Putin, something he’s already doing in his statements involving the Ukraine war. And perhaps he might think of doing the same for the Saudi royal family, which has already given his son-in-law a $2 billion investment for his private equity firm. Meanwhile, the Trump Organization this year signed a deal with a Saudi company to build a residential high-rise tower in the city of Jeddah.

Constant reminders of Trump’s criminal past might well help us avoid such things in the future.

Of course, some of the folks I’ve listed above could potentially have fallen off the beaten path for other reasons. It takes a bunch of money to stay in office and politics often involves compromise and the bending of rules. Some politicians may develop a mindset where small ethical compromises seem necessary for "the greater good." Over time, this can erode their moral boundaries, making larger-scale corruption seem justifiable.

Or maybe, when politicians come from a middle- or lower-class background those expensive vacation trips paid for by someone else can look pretty jazzy to them.

I doubt, though, that’s the issue with Trump, don’t you?

Like anyone, leading politicians and top businessmen are susceptible to personal flaws, such as addiction, greed, or arrogance. Personal failings can cloud their judgment and lead them to make unethical choices. Will this be a continuing situation with Trump should he win the presidency?

The U.S. Supreme Court seems so sure of this with Trump, by the way, that they afforded him support to do whatever illegal things he wants as president without being charged with a crime, even after he leaves the presidency.

One mention, just one, that’s all I’m suggesting placed in every story where Trump’s name is mentioned by the mainstream media. Use of the words “convicted felon,” or perhaps the phrase “who may be facing jail time if he loses” wouldn’t really take up much space in a story about him, would it? Maybe these journalists don’t think that would be “fair,” but “fair” to who: Trump or the rest of America?

What do you think?