Two of the most common memes so far in the press coverage of the exit of Gary Cohn from his position as Director of the National Economic Council in the Trump (mis)Administration boil down to:
- there goes the last adult in the room
- a man of principle finally had enough after the "trade war" announcement
Uh huh.
If there is any takeaway to be had from his departure, it is that it epitomizes the grifter dynamic that pervades every "organization" Trump has ever operated. Anyone willing to associate with Trump as a private citizen, Presidential candidate or actual President either
a) lacks any intellectual honesty or hint of ethics
b) has their own agenda they seek to forward in the absence of any competent control exerted by Trump
Here are some questions to ponder.
After the public belittling inflicted on Jeff Sessions, do you really think he is sticking around to "serve the President" and properly manage the Department of Justice? Or could it be he wants to retain his position to continue rolling back civil rights by abandoning needed Federal supervision of state problems with police brutality, voting rights, etc.? Or could it be because he wants to continue pushing failed 30-year old get-tough-on-drug laws against USERS rather than going after doctors and pharmaceutical makers making billions off getting people hooked on opioids before they turn to street criminals for the final dose of cheap heroin that kills them?
Multiple staffers have been accused of inappropriate spending on business travel, personal travel disguised as business travel, excessive spending on office decorations and furniture, etc. Have any resigned in recognition of their impropriety? Or have they they all stayed on, clinging to the reins of their department to continue steering it into intellectual ditches via extreme policies, zero enforcement of regulations or leaving leadership positions vacant without nominations for replacements? Where do you think Scott Pruit can get a better chance at rolling back environment progress by DECADES?
Gary Cohn is publicly reported to be a Democrat but signed up to provide the semblance of middle-of-the-road economic thought to an administration led by someone who watches Alex Jones for insight. He provided that cover of sanity "serving" a President who spooked the markets twice with threats of government shutdowns and a President who wondered out loud about whether the United States should reneg on some of its public debt. He held his position even after trying to subliminally leak his disgust at the President's failure to unequivocally condemn racist, anti-Semitic Nazi demonstrators in North Carolina. What does Gary think he "accomplished" during his brief tenure? He supposedly somehow helped craft and push a tax deal estimated to add $1.4 trillion to the debt in 10 years that
- doesn't fund roads and infrastructures
- doesn't improve funding for schools
- doesn't eliminate loopholes for hedge fund operators
- provides $1xxx level reductions in taxes for low-income workers
- provides six-figure and up savings for the top 1%
I suspect Gary figured he did all he could do for Gary and his half-percenter friends back at Goldman Sachs and decided to get out before getting invited to a meeting with Trump where Trump makes another decision that puts Cohn on the subpoena list like everyone else.
That's not the last exasperated adult leaving the political equivalent of Romper Room. That's not a man of principals disappointed he couldn't do more and finally quitting in reaction to one final bridge-too-far policy decision.
That's the behavior of a grifter smart enough to exit the scene with his ill-gotten-booty after successfully conning the dupe. The dupe in this case is not his boss. The dupe is the American public that voted the boss in, turning the entire Executive branch into an unparalleled collection of gypsies, tramps and thieves.
WTH
