I know from a few polls I posted that most of you don’t have subscriptions to the Washington Post and New York Times so occasionally I come across an article or OpEd I think it is worth excerpting and summarizing.
This one had the clickbaitable OpEd title "Only the scoundrels and weirdos are telling the truth about working for Trump" (The “adults in the room” aren’t getting the job done when it comes to criticizing the president.) It is by Rosa Brooks (about the author), a professor at Georgetown University Law Center and the author of "How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything."
Just who did Rosa Brooks consider the truth telling scoundrels and weirdos? I had to check it out. You can read the article if you have a subscription.
You may wonder, as I did, who the truthful scoundrels and weirdos are according to this Georgetown Law professor.
Before you scroll down see if you can guess who they are.
Hint: there are four. Take the poll for smarty-pants points.
Or read on but be honest, how many did you predict would be on the list.
Here they are.
They are Trump’s former fixer, the quintessential sycophantic sleazy lawyer Michael Cohen (called his Roy Cohn ), Anthony Scaramucci, nicknamed the Mooch, who was Trump’s former White House communications director (fired from the administration after days for a foul-mouthed tirade), reality television villain Omarosa Manigault Newmann (known simply as Omarosa) , and former GOP congressman and radio host Joe Walsh who changed his mind about Trump big time calling him a 'traitor' to US and said 'no way' he'll vote for his reelection (Fox News story). He was previously so devoted he tweeted this:
Scaramucci has become outspoken in his opposition to Trump and not too looking ago considered running. He is very publicly predicting Trump will be impeached and removed from office, for example in this interview.
Omarosa has also been active on Twitter, for example:
Michael Cohen recently tweeted his address.
Here’s the link to this article: Cohen turns to Congress in bid to shorten prison sentence
The following is an excerpt from the Post OpEd:
Cohen, Scaramucci, Manigault and Walsh make unlikely heroes. They’re scoundrels: disreputable, cartoonish figures, each of whom has long been mired in scandal and controversy.
But this is the painful paradox of life in Trump’s America. The adults in the room — those we counted on to keep Trump on the straight and narrow, or at least to bear public witness to his unethical behavior — are the people least likely to save us. Their strong internalized norms about duty, loyalty and honor leave them paralyzed and silent in the face of a leader who consistently flouts those norms. Meanwhile, the scoundrels — those who most resemble Trump in their shamelessness, desire for attention and willingness to bend the rules in their favor — are the ones coming forward to warn America about the threat Trump poses.
Perhaps this shouldn’t surprise us. Humans are social animals, and in ordinary times, those willing to sublimate their own needs and preferences to the needs of their social group are those we praise and admire. But decades of social psychology research suggests that in times of moral crisis, the very traits we normally value can discourage dissent. Mattis, McMaster and Kelly are all military men, used to respecting authority and suppressing their personal views for the sake of group cohesion. This works well in normal times, but not so well when they find themselves in a group that’s going haywire, led by a president who’s wholly without scruples. Meanwhile, the scoundrels may have certain built-in advantages in times of political turmoil. Reckless, ruthless and unrestrained, the Cohens and Scaramuccis of the world are accustomed to social opprobrium and live their lives unfettered by ordinary social norms of appropriateness and self-abnegation. And unlike the dutiful company men, the scoundrels have little to lose. If everyone already thinks you’re no good, why not be the one to gleefully point out that the emperor has no clothes?
I could not put it any better.
On the poll:
All four: You really are wearing the best smarty-pants.
Three: You are a stylish and natty dresser
Two: Not too shabby
One: Your socks don’t match
Zero: Your shoes don’t match