How many people do you suppose are blackmailing Donald Trump?
by digby
Eric Boehlert writes:
More evidence of Trump’s long history of reckless behavioremerged Friday morning, with the New Yorker reporting that Trump had an affair with a Playboy model while married in 2006.
More importantly, the woman, Karen McDougal, last year signed a $150,000 contract with the publisher of the National Enquirer, David Pecker, a close friend of Trump, who then made sure the story about the affair was never published. The contract also made sure the McDougal couldn’t discuss the matter publicly.
That payoff looks an awful lot like the $130,000 hush money payment Trump’s personal attorney made to a porn actress on the eve of the 2016 election. In 2011, she had discussed her affair with Trump. But the 2016 payment barred her from doing so going forward.
In the wake of Trump’s attorney conceding he made the $130,000 payment, the actress, Stormy Daniels, is now threatening to go public with her story.
For Trump, it all points to an elaborate system he and his handlers have in place to cover up embarrassing information about his past. However, it also exposes the possibility that Trump can be blackmailed because key players know embarrassing secrets about his past.
Indeed, at the National Enquirer, stockpiling dirt on famous people is a common practice. “Pecker also used the unpublished stories as ‘leverage’ over some celebrities in order to pressure them to pose for his magazines or feed him stories,” one former employee told The New Yorker.
“These dirty stories about high-profile individuals would be used as leverage over these individuals,” New Yorker writer Ronan Farrow told “Good Morning America” Friday. “Obviously, national security implications here when that happens to be the president.”
Incredibly, this is a White House drowning in blackmail possibilities.
Recall that the reason the White House recently became engulfed in controversy over a top aide who was accused of abusing his ex-wives is because he could not land a security clearance in part because of the fear that he could be blackmailed over the explosive allegations of abuse.
I've never placed a lot of stock in the "pee tape" thing. They've phonied up such things in the past and nowadays could probably make it look very real.
But isn't it obvious that this man is a walking blackmail target? Recall what Steve Bannon said:
"Look, Kasowitz has known [Trump] for twenty-five years. Kasowitz has gotten him out of all kinds of jams. Kasowitz on the campaign — what did we have, a hundred women? Kasowitz took care of all of them."
And that's just the women. There's also the mob, both foreign and domestic, and God knows what financial shenanigans he's gotten into here and around the world.
I'm pretty sure the president of the United States couldn't pass a background check to become a school crossing guard much less get a full security clearance.
He sees everything and can classify and declassify any piece of intelligence he wants.
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