The taint of criminality

Maggie Haberman underlines what a bad day Trump had.

First came the events in the city where he was born and raised.

Translation: his own NYC bit him in the ass.

In New York, the jury that heard the case brought by the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, deliberated over two days before returning guilty verdicts on all 17 counts related to a tax-fraud scheme, a sweeping condemnation of the company that bears Mr. Trump’s name.

The company will face a seven-figure fine, and the verdict could hinder its future endeavors. While convicting a company is not convicting a person — Mr. Trump himself was not charged in connection with the case — the taint of criminality is something that the former real-estate developer and promoter has sought to avoid for decades.

He’s sought to avoid the taint of criminality while engaging in criminality with enthusiasm and zeal.

On Tuesday night, as the trial’s impact sank in, attention turned to Georgia. Herschel Walker, a former professional football player who was a member of the New Jersey Generals, a United States Football League team owned by Mr. Trump in the early 1980s, was waging an uphill battle in the state’s Senate runoff against incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat. In the end Mr. Warnock prevailed in a tight election.

Mr. Trump endorsed Mr. Walker early in the campaign, even as some Republicans in Washington were squeamish about a personal history that included allegations of abuse. Yet Mr. Trump was adamant that Mr. Walker would not face consequences with voters for his history, appearing to see the athlete as living proof that the ex-president himself, who survived one scandal after another, had changed the alchemy of campaigns.

Because in Trumpworld and Trumpbrain, abuse doesn’t matter, it’s only the allegations that matter. If you can hide or laugh off the allegations then there’s no problem. It doesn’t matter at all that the dude you want to see elected to the Senate has a long history of abusing women, because women don’t matter and abusing them is a perk of being a famous rich guy. Trump was sure Walker wouldn’t face consequences for his history, and he didn’t give a rat’s ass about the history itself.

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