Word of the Day: TRAITOR

The President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, is a traitor.

He is now among the likes of the U.S. Revolutionary War's Benedict Arnold, World War II's Tokyo Rose, and the Cold War's Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, and is the first president to do so.  He also joins the ranks of perhaps lesser known traitors, such as CIA operative Aldrich Ames, Navy communications officer, John Walker, Jr., and former FBI agent Robert Hanssen.

You may be surprised to know that, while a traitor president has never happened before, such behavior did reach up to the vice-presidency.  Thomas Jefferson's first vice-president, Aaron Burr -- the same Aaron Burr who killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel -- tried to militarily bring about the annexation of Spanish territories in Louisiana and Mexico, with the intent of forming a republic separate from the Union.  (He was not indicted at a first court appearance, but fled the country when asked to return for a second appearance.)

The legal definition of treason includes someone "owing allegiance" to this country who: a) levies war against this country [which Trump is allowing, but has not done himself]; b) "adhering to [our] enemies" [which Trump has clearly done time and time again], and/or c) providing our enemies with "aid or comfort" whether here in the U.S. or outside the U.S. [which Trump has also clearly done both here and abroad].  The list of punishments for treason in the legal code include a minimum prison sentence of five years, a fine of at least $10,000, being disqualified to hold any office in the United States ... and even the death penalty.  (The legal definition is narrow -- which is why Aaron Burr was not convicted -- and any punishments would, if pursued, likely be tangled up in the courts for a long time, and likely not put into effect if approved.) 

President Trump has displayed behavior that clearly shows his admiration of, and possible desire to emulate in his presidency, authoritarian and despotic regimes.  He has been showing U.S. allies indifference, dismissiveness, and disdain -- take last month's G7 summit and last week's NATO summit as examples -- while showing such dictators nothing but respect, praise, and comradery.

And in the case of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the recent disastrous "summit" in Helsinki, Finland, sharing who knows what.

To begin with, Trump has a private meeting with Putin, just the two men and their interpretors.  With no one from Trump's cabinet present, there is no one else with knowledge of what was said ... or what Trump gave away to Putin, as he did with halting military exercises with South Korea as a gift to North Korea's Kim Jung Un.  He has displayed this shifty behavior for some time now, including hosting Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Oval Office in May of last year with no American press allowed.  Even the U.S. National Intelligence Chief Dan Coats knew nothing about that meeting ... and he knew nothing about Trump asking National Security Advisor John Bolton to invite Vladimir Putin to the White House in the Fall, which was announced today.  

Trump claims he told Putin no more meddling during that one-on-one alone time, but who knows?  His level of trustworthiness outside of his base is anything but stellar.  At their joint press conference, the world watched to see if the U.S. president, whose country was cyber-attacked during the 2016 election, would publicly condemn the attacking country's leader, Vladimir Putin, standing directly to his left.  He did not.  Instead, he blamed the United States for its lousy relations with Russia and said he believed Putin's words of denial of interference over all of his own country's Intelligence agencies' findings to the contrary.  His reading of a prepared statement two days ago trying to say he really meant to condemn Russia -- he meant "why it wouldn't be Russia" instead of "why it would be Russia" -- was disingenuous and visibly forced, with his own unscripted rote addition of "it could be others, too" added in for further deflection.

I have been saying among my friends for several months that I think Putin has something on Trump, some sort of dirt on him, that is keeping Trump in line.  After Helsinki, political pundits are asking the same, including many of them and their guests saying Trump is acting like he is compromised by Russia in some way.  Even some national security experts are not saying that Trump is a spy for Russia, but that he is acting like a "controlled spy".  Putin denied any dirt on Trump at their joint press conference, but he did admit he wanted Trump to win over Hillary Clinton.

At a campaign speech just eight days before the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton made the case against Trump regarding his connections to Russia.  (Her comment about Trump being Putin's puppet at the third and final presidential debate has been played far more than the video below.)  Three days prior to this speech by her, then-FBI Director James Comey reopened the E-mail investigation into Clinton, so this speech was overshadowed in the news, since Trump received more television coverage than Clinton overall and Clinton's saying this after Comey's reopening of the E-mail case might have been seen as nothing more than a desperate move by her to counter bad press, anyway.

Turns out, she was right after all.

With just 8 days left, this can’t wait. RT if you agree Trump should immediately disclose all of his ties and connections to Russia. pic.twitter.com/IqmC2wIDq4

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 1, 2016

To their credit, many leaders in the POT (Party of Trump) and commentators on the POT-loving Fox News (and even some on the Fox Business Channel) have condemned Trump's behavior in Helsinki.  It is the most speaking out against the president they have done the entire time of Trump's presidency.  However, what actions will they take to counter Trump's obsession with turning the U.S. into a rogue state, beholden to Putin, just as he is.  One has to ask here: without knowing what was said in the private one-on-one session, what specifically would they be countering?  Just as you cannot fix what you do not know is broken, so, too, you cannot counter what you do not know has taken place.  Talking on the floors of the Senate and House of Representatives so that it goes into the Congressional record, and talking in front of cameras so that it spills into the homes of the American public, are just words.  Appropriate words, yes, but just words. 

Just two days ago, members of the House POT blocked a measure by Democrats to simply condemn Trump's comments in Helsinki.  If the POT will not even allow a condemnation, what more can they be expected to do to serve the country and uphold the Constitution?

The actions in government in general are also suspect.  The Treasury Department announced on Monday that non-profit organizations will no longer be required to disclose donations of any donors who contribute $5,000 or more.  Included among those affected by this ruling is the National Rifle Association, which is now embroiled in controversy with the arrest of Russian operative Mariia Butina.  (The NRA did recently admit to accepting monies from nearly two dozen donors with ties to Russia.) 

Mr. Trump has not only shown a bastardized view of the world and of the U.S. presidency, as well as an unfitness for the highest office in the land, but he has shown himself to truly be a puppet of Vladimir Putin after all, a worshiper of demogogues, and a traitor of the United States of America.

Terry