Because there’s so many lies and the media typically reports on them individually, it’s hard to realize the full width and breadth of the corruption in the White House.
To help and because it’s the Christmas season, I thought I’d put some of it to song.
You know the tune. On the first day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
1. A wall
This lie is at the top of the twelve days of Trumpmas because it’s a lie to his base. Trump and the Republican Party are not interested in building a wall between the border of the U.S. and Mexico. What they’re interested in is using this issue for the votes.
The wall is the perfect wedge issue. Trump can keep shouting about it to the Republican base and then blame someone else for not building it. Why do I say this?
Because Republicans had all three branches of government for two years. If they really wanted a wall they would have a wall. Instead, there was only one piece of significant legislation they passed in two years: Tax cuts that primarily benefited America’s wealthiest.
On the second day of Trumpmas, Trump lies so merrily . . .
2. Two hush money payments
In an interview with ABC News, Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, discussed the hush money payments made to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal to keep their affairs quiet:
Nothing at the Trump Organization was ever done unless it was run through Mr. Trump...He directed me to make the payments, he directed me to become involved in these matters. You have to remember at what point in time that this matter came about, two weeks or so before the election, post the Billy Bush comments. So, yes, he was very concerned about how this would affect the election.
On the third day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily …
3. Three years in prison
If the charges aren’t criminal, why is Cohen going to jail?
On the fourth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
4. 42 percent unemployment
This one’s a whopper. Trump once claimed that the unemployment rate was as high as 42 percent.
Politifact rates this claim “Pants on Fire.”
On the fifth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
5. $1.5 trillion in tax cuts . . . for the rich
At the number 5 spot, $1.5 trillion in tax cuts that largely benefit the rich. Trump on his plan:
The rich will not be gaining at all.
There’s also numerous other lies that were told to justify these tax cuts—that they’d create jobs. That they’d pay for themselves.
On the sixth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
6. Six investigations
CNN breaks down the six different Trump organizations that are under investigation.
The Trump Foundation recently announced that it would shut down operation as a result of an investigation concluding it was largely a front organization used for personal gain.
On the seventh day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
7. Seven words about “truth”
This seven word quote about truth is one of my favorite from Trump. It really says everything you need to know:
When I can, I tell the truth.
When Anthony Scaramucci says you should probably “dial down the lying” . . .
On the eighth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
8. No deals with Russia
There’s so many lies in this one tweet that it’s almost easy to miss that he said he had no deals with Russia.
We now know this is one of his bigger lies. Throughout his campaign, Trump was trying to work a deal for a Trump Tower in Moscow. In fact, he’d actually signed a letter of intent for a Trump Tower in Moscow four months after he announced he was running for president.
On the ninth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
9. $30 million from the NRA
Okay, so I couldn’t find anything for nine and wanted to work in the $30 million in campaign donations from the NRA. That also may or may not have come from Russia.
On the tenth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
10. 10 possible chiefs of staff
It’s simply not true that Trump was having trouble finding anyone to work for him. Why, over 10 people were vying for the job.
He just can’t name any of them. Then he reshuffled deck chairs to finally move Mick Mulvaney into the role.
On the eleventh day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
11. 7-Eleven (instead of 9/11)
Another personal favorite. Trump confuses 7-Eleven with 9/11:
On the twelfth day of Trumpmas, Trump lied so merrily . . .
12. Twelve articles of the Constitution
Mark Sanford on meeting Trump:
I wasn’t particularly impressed. It was the normal stream of consciousness that’s long on hyperbole and short on facts. At one point, somebody asked about Article I powers: What will you do to protect them? I think his response was, ‘I want to protect Article I, Article II, Article XII,’ going down the list. There is no Article XII.
For the record, there’s only 7 Articles of the Constitution. Because it’s Christmas, I’ll give him a pass on this one. He probably meant to say Amendments.
Happy Holidays!
I still talk to people who don’t seem to grasp how crooked Individual 1 really is. They think it’s all hyperbole because this is what FoxNews and AM radio pundits do to liberals. They think it’s all the Democratic team saying something about the Republican team.
Maybe this will help. If not, I hope it at least brought a little cheer. Enjoy whatever holiday break you can and see you in the New Year!
David Akadjian is the author of The Little Book of Revolution: A Distributive Strategy for Democracy (print or ebook).