What they call "cable news" these days often is a repetitive exercise in speculating that the worst for Donald Trump is always right around the corner. On Monday, the doomsaying ghouls of Morning Joe reveled in Trump's troubles, prematurely dancing on the President's political grave. But not even the prospect of Trump being hounded from office satisfied them. No, they gleefully predicted that even as an ex-President, Donald Trump would be beset with problems "for the rest of his life."
Former Obama-appointed U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance set the table, insisting that the legal problems for the President are increasing:
"It's not just campaign finance. There could be bank fraud, other fraud . . . the obstruction, the ongoing coverup."
Mika Brzezinski took it from there, suggesting that Trump has either "lost his mind" or is "what's the word for stupid, that's more polite?"
Donny Deutsch then delivered the coup de un-grace, proclaiming that the President's current predicament is:
"Just the beginning. This is not going to end two years from now. This is, throughout the rest of his life . . . He is going to pay for that the rest of his life . . . This is just the beginning . . . It's going to crash and burn . . . This is just the tip of the iceberg."
No doubt: President Trump is faced with a range of problems. But to see pundits so gleefully delight in his troubles is likely to elicit revulsion in millions of Americans. Careful liberals: you could be turning Trump into a sympathetic figure.
PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT
JOYCE VANCE: This, I think, is a problem that's just increasing for the President, because it's not just campaign finance, there could be bank fraud or other fraud sorts of violations that go along with this. And then, as you point out, the obstruction, the ongoing cover up will ensnare him at the end as well.
. . .
DONNY DEUTSCH: It's kind of laughable and pathetic at this point.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Well, the other option is that he's lost his mind or he's completely -- completely -- what's the word for stupid that's more polite?
. . .
DEUTSCH: I think we're going to see up close and personal a guy, a man, a President, completely unravel. We have a guy who at best is not playing with a full deck and now is under a pressure he's never seen his entire life. And it's just the beginning. This is not going to end two years from now. This is, throughout the rest of his life, every U.S. Attorney, the Southern District, U.S. Attorneys in Virginia, are going to be picking at this man and his empire.
This is a man who came in and said: I'm bigger than the House, I'm bigger than the intelligence community, I'm bigger than checks and balances, I'm bigger than the judicial community, I'm bigger than the free press. And he is going to pay for that the rest of his life.
This is just the beginning. Trump Tower is just the beginning. I've said if from the beginning: forget the Stormy Daniels -- not forget the Stormy Daniels stuff and the Karen McDougal stuff, it's obviously a felony. Where it's going to crash and burn is on the entire Trump organization, which is built as a criminal enterprise, which was built with Russian money laundering. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
