The detailed report by The New York Times disclosing that Donald Trump is not the self-made billionaire he claims to be and that numerous shady tax schemes helped him, his father and his siblings rip off millions in tax money that should have been paid to the government, makes one thing clear about the president. He is the conman-in-chief.
That's ironic because Trump has been accusing Democrats of running a "big, fat con job" by opposing his Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, who has been accused by three women of sexual misconduct during his high school and college days.
Trump is pushing hard to win Senate confirmation of Kavanaugh despite those allegations, now claiming that we are living in a world of "guilty until proven innocent" when it comes to such accusations. Democrats, he claims, are willing to ruin Kavanaugh's reputation purely for political purposes.
But is that, in and of itself, a con?
Maybe Trump wants Kavanaugh confirmed because he figures the judge will owe him and so he'll have some cover should a criminal case involving him come before the Court. During his confirmation hearings, Kavanaugh said "no-one is above the law," but declined to say whether a sitting President could be indicted.
The Times expose, however, reveals many other Trump cons over the years.
His claim that he became a billionaire on a $1 million loan from his father that he had to pay back with interest, The Times says, was a lie. Over the years daddy gave him upwards of $400 million -- in fact, he was a millionaire by age 8. But Trump used that story to convince voters he was a financial genius who would "#MAGA. Many believed him -- despite his bankruptcies and known swindles.
And, according to the report, the Trump family used myriad questionable schemes to dodge the tax man saving millions. The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has launched a new investigation into the activities reported by The Times.
Of course, it is my contention that Trump was elected President because he conned millions of Americans into believing he was in their corner and would use the expertise that made him a billionaire to help them get a piece of the American dream.
One day after his Republican pals in Congress have dismantled Social Security as we know it, privatized Medicare, wiped out Medicaid, decimated our oceans and national parks, fouled our air by killing environmental regulations, and more...then perhaps those voters will realize they were conned.
But by then the damage will be done and it will be too late.