Within hours of the public release of the audio recording of Donald Trump threatening, cajoling, and berating Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, the Trump White House attempted to change the news cycle by announcing a new literal shiny object: Trump would be near-immediately giving the Presidential Medal of Freedom to the blazingly corrupt Rep. Devin Nunes and, next week, to fellow Trump crime-dodger Rep. Jim Jordan. The announcement was so sudden that it appears the White House could not even arrange for a formal ceremony: Nunes instead received the medal behind closed doors this morning.
There is a White House statement on why Nunes is receiving the award, and there is no attempt to be subtle. Nunes is receiving the medal from Trump as thanks for his extended efforts to sabotage federal investigations of the Russian election interference on Trump's behalf. He is not getting the award for service to the United States. He is getting the award for his involvement in Donald Trump's own crimes.
While the funniest part of the Nunes announcement is how blatantly it's meant to distract from a news cycle in which the sitting president of the United States was caught on tape attempting to undermine U.S. elections, we can't overlook that Trump is now simply acting as a mob boss. He's handing out Medals of Freedom to co-conspirators in his past crimes to deflect from the discovery of his new crimes.
But that said, it is funny and we are allowed to laugh—well, except for previous Medal of Freedom winners who, aside from the skunkish Rush Limbaugh, may be contemplating melting down their own awards rather than share honors with the anti-American and corrupt Nunes and Jordan. Trump literally responded to the exposure of a new crime with the rough equivalent of knighting those that helped hide evidence of the last ones.
And he thinks that's going to work.
And it was all done in such a rush that there wasn't even time to prepare a White House room to do it in, so the Devin Nunes Award Ceremony is going to happen "behind closed doors." Where Trump's handlers won't have to worry about Trump ranting on for an hour with too-specific praise of Nunes' efforts on his behalf, as he hands a literal medal to a co-conspirator.
Trump could never survive as a mob boss. He's just too simpleminded; the man broadcasts his intent with every move. Announcing a new award for those who helped you stonewall a criminal investigation, within hours of the release of evidence that will almost certainly result in a new criminal investigation?
Pffft.