Louisiana Voice

If you watched Pam “Barbie Doll” Bondi in yesterday’s SENATE HEARINGS, you saw for yourself the arrogance, the deflection, the evasion and the outright lies this administration is capable of.

As the nation moves more and more into the abyss of political and social chaos and ever-closer to authoritarian rule, we are witnessing a weaker and weaker Congress and a compliant Supreme Court, both giving full leeway to a man sliding into the darkness of dementia who has:

• Declared war against American citizens,
• A president who has ordered the murder of foreign nationals in international waters,
• A president who has ordered the shaky indictment of a perceived political enemy while advocating for the jailing of a governor and mayor of a major city,
• A president whose policies are bankrupting farmers and small businesses,
• A president who promised but failed to deliver on numerous campaign promises,
• A president who refused to serve in the military via five medical deferments but who thinks he is qualified to lecture 800 generals and admirals on “warrior ethos,”
• A president who fires any government employee who dares submit an economic report that is not positive to his administration,
• A president who is not beyond bullying TV networks, law firms and universities to obtain the kind of treatment he thinks he deserves, respect that is certainly not earned,
• A president who is desperate to keep the contents of the so-called Epstein file secret, and
• A president who shamelessly lobbies for the Nobel Peace Prize.

And we have Barbie Doll siting before U.S. senators and declaring him to be a “great president.”

Well, lets examine her own past performance that has apparently led her to become the nation’s chief legal officer.

Before TACO Don entered the Republican primaries for the presidential nomination, he was operating a shady outfit called Trump University, aka Trump Wealth Institute, aka Trump Entrepreneur Initiative LLC, down in Florida, ostensibly educating suckers on how to become rich in real estate.

You really want to see how dirty politics can be? Check this out. Back on March 2016, there was this U.S. Senator from Florida named Marco Rubio. In a campaign PRESS RELEASE, he called Trump University “an absolute scam” and offered “facts about pending litigation.”

In August 2013, the Florida Attorney General’s office announced it was contemplating joining a New York lawsuit against Trump University which had been the subject of numerous fraud complaints. About this same time, Bondi, who was running for state attorney general, solicitated a campaign contribution from Trump.

In September 2013, The Donald J. Trump Foundation sent a $25,000 check to a political action committee supporting Bondi. Political contributions by a tax-exempt charitable foundation such as the Donald J. Trump Foundation, by the way, just happen to be a violation of the law.

In October 2013, Bondi’s office announced it would take no action against Trump University.

In 2016, news reports surfaced about details of the donation and the subsequent decision not to investigate. The IRS fined Trump $2500 over the illegal contribution and he personally reimbursed the foundation.

In November 2016, Trump settled the fraud lawsuits (there were at least three) related to Trump University for $25 million. (Remember, Bondi had decided – after that $25,000 donation – not to pursue an investigation. Coincidence?)

In 2017, the Florida Ethics Commission reviewed complaints against Bondi but ruled that while the situation “may raise suspicions,” there was insufficient evidence that she personally violated any state laws (boys and girls, can you say “quid pro quo”?).

So now, Rubio is Trump’s Secretary of State and Barbi Doll Bondi is the U.S. Attorney General, refusing to answer a single direct question from senators.

This, folks, is the nation we’ve become. If the republic survives, it will not be because of Trump, but despite him.