Did Michael Cohen just write something that could get him in trouble with the DOJ and Secret Service? By Hal M. Brown
This story is about something Michael Cohen wrote when he worked as a personal lawyer for Trump literally, and as the photos below show, figuratively stood behind him.
Even before I read the article “Trump's ex-lawyer makes 'bold prediction' about president's 'king'-like ambition” on RawStory, I wondered why the headline writer just didn’t write “Michael Cohen makes 'bold prediction' about president's 'king'-like ambition." After all, by now every RawStory reader, like most Americans, know that Michael Cohen was once Trump’s personal lawyer and legal consigliere. From 2018, here’s an article about his backstory.
My not really relevant reaction to the title being pointed out, the RawStory article summarizes Cohen’s Substack for today:
Here’s how he begins:
I’ve never been shy about making bold, public predictions. And to date, as you have seen, I’ve been right almost every time. This one is no different. We didn’t just elect President Trump to a second term. We gave him power that looks less like a presidency and more like a monarchy. And this King is already using his courts to punish those who stood against him.
Even if you don’t read it, or just skim through it, go to his conclusion. This is where he writes something that could get him in trouble with the DOJ or the Secret Service, or both.
The proverb "when you strike at a king, you must kill him" is attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, although he was expressing an idea that goes back to Machiavelli. In The Prince he wrote "men ought either to be well treated or crushed, because they can avenge themselves of lighter injuries, of more serious ones they cannot; therefore the injury that is to be done to a man ought to be of such a kind that one does not stand in fear of revenge."
It is quite clear what kind of injury Machiavelli was suggesting.
It is a crime to advocate this for a public official and if someone does so it can get them in trouble. Just ask Kathy Griffin.
Addendum:
Here’s Michael Cohen on The Weekend on MSNBC this morning.
In his Substack today, “MAGA and Americanism are antithetical propositions,”Steve Schmidt blasted Laura Loomer for what she wrote about her disgusting attack on the fact that Florent Groberg was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the highest valor award of the Armed Forces of the United States. It was how he described her that hit me as an albeit crude, but spot-on description of her:
Here’s just a snippet of what Loomer wrote:
Are we supposed to believe the Army couldn’t find a Republican and US born soldier?
They had to find an immigrant who voted for Hillary Clinton and spoke at the DNC as Obama’s guest?
You can read the rest on Schmidt’s Substack.
Read here and watch the video:
As with most or all of you I often discuss who has the right stuff to beat whoever the GOP runs for president in 2028, assuming we have an election. All the names that come up have one or more negatives that could loose them the election. Corey Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Gavin Newsom, Josh Shapiro, Gretchen Whitmer all in a world free of predjudice would make excellent candidates. There is one White, straight, tell-it-like it is, not too liberal potential candidate. This is Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. The only thing not going for him is that he is overweight. As superficial as this is, many voters, perhaps enough to make the difference between a win and a loss, want their presidents to be fit and trim looking.
While Trump isn’t exactly svelte, the only really obese president we’ve ever had was William Howard Taft who weighted 340 lbs.
The 6’ 2” Prtizker weighs about 220 lbs. Unfortunately, it shows on his face. It would be possible for him to lose enough weight to make a major diffrence in his appearance. He could go on the keto diet and/or get a presciption for one of the newer weight loss drugs.
I wouldn't be surprised if Trump made a major effort to lose weight six years ago when he saw photos like this:
It is relief to have a bit of humor in these depressing times. Here’s D. Earl Stephen’s fake letter as penned by Donald Trump:
In this Salon article we see an example of how true patriots who were, or no doubt are currently, in top leadership in the military are hinting that there is a line many of them will not cross as Trump uses the armed forces to back his dictatorial blitzkreig.
The author, a retired Air Foce officer begins his long essay:
As a retired U.S. Air Force officer, I firmly believe in civilian control of our military. This country should be a nation of laws — not of special interests, oligarchs or kings. Before committing our forces to battle, Congress should always declare war in the name of the people. Our military should indeed be a citizen-soldier force, not an isolated caste driven by a warrior ethos. And above all, the United States should be a republic ruled by law and shaped by sound moral values, not a greed-driven empire fueled by militarism.
He concludes:
For tyranny to be stopped, for a catastrophic war with China (and who knows what else) to be avoided, America must have profiles in courage, not cowardice. Yet even despair is being weaponized. As a retired colonel and friend of mine wrote to me recently: “I don’t even know where to start anymore, Bill. I have no hope for anything ever improving.”
And don’t think of that despair as incidental or accidental. It’s a distinct feature of the present system of government.
Trump and Hegseth are not faintly what the founders of this country envisioned when they placed the military under civilian control. Yet power ultimately resides in the people (if we remember our duties as citizens). Isn’t it high time that we Americans recover our ideals, as well as our guts?
After all, the few can do little without the consent of the many. It’s up to the many (that’s us!) to reclaim and restore America.
End of day update:
Excerpt:
“The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Sunday morning, shortly after being driven from the White House to his golf club in Virginia. “We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital.”
The post was illustrated with four photographs, all apparently taken from the president’s motorcade along the route from the White House to his golf course.
Excerpt:
Alongside photos of tents and rubbish, he added: "There will be no 'MR. NICE GUY.' We want our Capital BACK. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
The specifics of the president's plan are not yet clear, but in a 2022 speech he proposed moving homeless people to "high quality" tents on inexpensive land outside cities, while providing access to bathrooms and medical professionals.
On Friday, Trump ordered federal agents - including from US Park Police, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI and the US Marshals Service - into Washington DC to curb what he called "totally out of control" levels of crime.
A White House official told National Public Radio that up to 450 federal officers were deployed on Saturday night.
Here’s an excerpt shown just below this photo of the mayor of DC standinng behind Trump:
“The Mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, is a good person who has tried, but she has been given many chances, and the Crime Numbers get worse, and the City only gets dirtier and less attractive,” he said.
Appearing on MSNBC on Sunday, Bowser said Washington was "not experiencing a crime spike."
"It is true that we had a terrible spike in crime in 2023, but this is not 2023," she said. "We have spent over the last two years driving down violent crime in this city, driving it down to a 30-year low."
Not exactly breaking national news: It looks like I am permanently suspended from Facebook. The only reason I can figure out is because I posted a link to BlueSky. I found this interesting article by an expert who tried to help someone who was also suspeneded.
