Here's a thought I had the other day: Once Donald Trump became President of these United States, he had at his disposal the greatest array of investigators in the country as well as access to darn near every state secret and file in the government. Did he say to someone, "Find me proof that Barack Obama was born in another country and that the birth certificate he released was a forgery"?
Granted, if Obama was born in Kenya and did have someone whip up a fake document, that might be unprovable…but maybe somewhere in some file previously unavailable to Trump, there is some evidence. Did D.J.T. order a search for it? Why the hell would he not? His base would love it if he even hinted there is such proof.
- Our top story tonight is Frank Rich's long, long essay that flows from the new Broadway production of Tony Kushner's long. long play, Angels in America. It's about Roy Cohn, who might not be the worst human being who ever lived but he's still not too far from the bottom of the species. Cohn was a mentor of Donald J. Trump and Mr. Rich finds stunning and obvious similarities between the two men.
- Trump says that the White House Correspondents' Dinner ought to be discontinued. Any time I find myself on the same side of an issue as that man, I naturally must question my own wisdom…but no, I still think it's a pernicious institution. I just think that for different reasons. I think the press and politicians should not be intermingling as if the different roles they play are just make-believe they engage in for the public. Trump just thinks it's treasonous to make fun of the President unless, of course, it's not him.
- Laura McGann says that the reason some people are so outraged about Michelle Wolf's jokes about Sarah Huckabee Sanders is that so many of them were accurate — unlike, say, a Huckabee Sanders briefing.
- Matt Yglesias reminds us that impeaching Donald Trump does not poll well and could easily backfire on Democrats. Personally, I think…well, you know what I think of the guy currently squatting in the Oval Office but I have no stomach for the trials and legal machinations of impeachment, especially if there is no reasonable expectation of success. I also don't think Mike Pence would be that much better for the nation. All that could, of course, change with future revelations…and does anyone think there won't be future revelations? Trump wouldn't be working overtime to discredit the press if he wasn't expecting future revelations.
- Nathan M. Jensen asks, "Do Taxpayers Know They Are Handing Out Billions to Corporations?" I think the answer is no…and for some reason, when you tell them that, they kind of shrug and say, "Whatever." They aren't quite so indifferent when they think their tax dollars are going to help poor people buy groceries.
- Daniel Larison explains why it's stupid to try and rewrite the nuclear deal with Iran. But hey, it's an Obama accomplishment and in Trumpworld, deals are just things that obligate the other guy, not us.
So what would it have been like if Trump had shown up at the White House Correspondents' Dinner? Well, it might have gone something like this…