George Graham

Behind the Scandals

Tell the truth, which story are you likely to read, the one about Trump paying hush money to a porn star or the one about erosion of American democracy?

They’re both in the news.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump’s lawyer paid X-rated actress Stormy Daniels” (photo) $130,000 to keep quiet about her affair with the president.

And the Associated Press quotes watchdog group Freedom House as finding that:

Basic rights and political freedoms in the United States are deteriorating at a faster rate under President Donald Trump, exacerbated by attacks on key institutions like the press and the courts.

I bet it’s the porn star story that gets read. But the story about Americans losing their democracy is the important one.

The porn star affair dates way back to 2006. Isn’t it suspicious that this old scandal is coming to light now?

Don’t you suspect Trump’s minions might be tipping off reporters to divert public attention from what he is up to behind the scenes?

The public is far more likely to pay attention to porn star stories than to activist groups exposing the systematic dismantling of democracy in America.

And Trump knows it.

I bet he’s laughing up his sleeve as he commits one “outrage” after another and lets old scandals keep leaking out to distract us while he craftily lays the groundwork for a dictatorship.

I know it sounds like one of those far-fetched conspiracy theories we usually get from the right-wing media. But wouldn’t it be a shocker if it were true?

The Journal’s story

The AP story

About the author

gwgraeme

I am a Jamaican-born writer who has lived and worked in Canada and the United States. I live in Lakeland, Florida with my wife, Sandra, our three cats and two dogs. I like to play golf and enjoy our garden, even though it's a lot of work. Since retiring from newspaper reporting I've written a few books. I also write a monthly column for Jamaicans.com