This is the shortest headline I’ve ever seen in the New York Times. But it’s a fine headline by journalistic standards. The key to writing a headline is to tell the story accurately in as few words as possible. That headline meets that criteria. One word, “GUILTY” above Trump’s shell shocked face, is the story in a nutshell. The rest is detail. With respect to the size of the type, the last time I saw that was late November, 1963 and the headline was “KENNEDY ASSASSINATED” above a picture of Lyndon Johnson being sworn in next to the slain president’s coffin, flanked by Lady Bird and Jackie. Again, the whole story in the headline and picture, the rest was details.
That pile of New York Times papers was delivered to Trump Tower that day, as well as all over the country and all over the world where people have paper subscriptions. Another periodical, the New York Post, reported on Page Six that “Melania and Barron were smuggled in through the side entrance. Reports said she was at Trump Tower when the guilty verdict against her husband came down.”
I’m sorry, this strains credulity. They were upstairs, to be at Daddy’s/Hubby’s side when he walked through the penthouse door, all dejected and convicted and sweaty and with a full diaper, and yet they couldn’t accompany him in the elevator this morning and stand beside him? Nor, could they get in the limo and go down to the courthouse with him? This story is a plant. I feel certain of that. Let’s look at it.
Melania Trump and son Barron were at Trump Tower, sources tell Page Six, in the wake of the guilty verdict against former President Donald Trump.
But the former first lady was keeping a low profile, after having not appeared at court in his case.
A source told us: “Everyone has gathered around Trump at Trump Tower.”
Another insider told Page Six of the scene yesterday in Trumpworld when the verdict came in: “It’s like a funeral … There was hope all day and then none!”
The source added, “Everyone says Melania and the entire family are rallying around the former president. But the mood is nonetheless gloomy and gloomier right now. It’s definitely viewed as a downer at Mar-a-Lago.”
Oh, and Ivanka posted an old photo with an emoji to Instagram. Isn’t that big of her?
If the family is “gathered” it must be in spirit. And these are people with plenty of money to get on planes, etc. Melania even owns an apartment of her own in Trump Tower, if she didn’t want to share the three-story penthouse with her husband. So there’s no lack of ability to get there, only the obvious lack of desire.
And again I ask, if Barron and Melania were in Trump Tower yesterday, why not show up at the courthouse or at the very least show up in the lobby when Trump made his crazy speech today? Since you’re here, let me share Rick Wilson’s perspective on today’s speech.
Trump’s speech today did more damage than anyone could have expected precisely because Trump felt the need to shore up his damaged ego with a bizarre, discursive speech that will go down in the annals of American rhetoric as a true, zero-of-five-stars flop. It was like Francis Mallman at a PETA convention. It was like Ron DeSantis at Wigstock. It was like Steve Bannon at the annual meeting of the American Society of Dermatology.
His head lemur was askew and frothed into some previously unknown configuration, his body language was low-energy, and he seemed to have shrunken two sizes. His makeup was greasy and more cloyingly obvious than usual.
He looked deeply, profoundly unwell, like a man who wakes up in a flophouse room coved in blood with the body of a dead hooker, a live monkey, and no memory of the night before.
He was a broken, defeated man behind that rickety podium today. Utterly bereft of his old swagger, his energy level was as tired and worn out as the lobby of the decaying office and condo tower of which he was once so proud. […]
Rather, it felt more sad and desperate, like a spelunker trying to navigate a dark and dangerous cave. Trump was alone in the echoing lobby of his decaying Tower, even in the crowd of media cameras. No family member stood on stage with them. No elected Republican in matching blue suit and red tie flanked him.
His biggest mistake was his attempt to keep litigating the case in which he was found guilty of 34 felonies. He’s making his sentencing even more problematic, and even causing complexity for his appeal process.
It was a massive mistake, and I assure you that Donald Trump insisted on it.
The man who shook American politics to its roots in 2015 in the same lobby today looks smaller, weaker, more exhausted and more defensive than most Americans have seen before. His defenses were the kind of rote, tiresome alternate facts that won’t work at the appeals level, and won’t work for the electorate.
Even his most fervent allies will find there’s not enough mayonnaise in the universe to make chicken salad out of today’s chickenshit.
It was a complete joke. Here’s what the Biden Harris campaign said.
“America just witnessed a confused, desperate, and defeated Donald Trump ramble about his own personal grievances and lie about the American justice system, leaving anyone watching with one obvious conclusion: This man cannot be president of the U.S.”
Not in the desperate position he’s in. Desperate people do desperate things and make no mistake, this clown will sell our nuclear secrets, anything to pay off his judgments and keep what’s left of his empire from going under. And the GOP is fine with that. They’re committed to following the Trumptanic all the way down to Davy Jones’ locker. So be it.
Ironic how the same metric for a font can convey historical sadness and respect, contrasted against contemporaneous giggling disdain!
At least it’s still called Trump Tower for the moment Mr. magoo. Just for the moment.
And has lost much of its value due to lack of maintenance. I doubt even the Russian mobsters want to live there.