I’m old enough to remember when Trump promised to “drain the swamp” in his first term. I remember a MAGA relative of mine endorsing that promise. I thought she was, perhaps, naïve, but agreed with the laudable goal. As a retired attorney, I like evidence and facts. Let’s review those in relation to Trump’s promise to fight corruption.
First, it bears remembering that Trump is a convicted felon on 34 counts of falsifying business records in relation to his payments of hush money to a porn star prior to his election in 2016. In November 2016, Trump agreed to pay $25 million dollars to settle the fraud claims of 6,000 individuals who had been defrauded by Trump University. In 2019, Trump was fined $2 million for the misuse of his charitable foundation in New York, which was ordered to be dissolved. He has also been found civilly liable for fraudulently inflating asset valuations in order to get favorable financial terms from banks. Some of these cases remain on appeal. Despite this history of fraudulent behavior, Trump nevertheless won re-election in 2024.
Early in his current administration, Trump gutted the Public Integrity Section of the Justice Department. This is the group of attorneys responsible for prosecuting political corruption and election crimes. Trump, of course, was charged with multiple election crimes after the 2020 election. His gutting of the Justice Department’s ability to punish fraudulent public corruption sends a troubling message regarding the upcoming election. The FBI’s squad that investigated congressional misconduct has also been disbanded. Moreover, Trump pardoned multiple Republican members of Congress convicted of felonies over the past 15 years – no Democrats, just Republicans. In addition, he fired (and did not replace) many inspectors general at government agencies, whose job it was to investigate corruption and waste. Recently, corporate donors to his Ballroom have been awarded billions of dollars in Federal contracts.
In more recent days, Mr. Trump has engaged in arguably blatant corruption. He has accepted a $400-million-dollar jet from the country of Qatar. Unlike any prior presidents, his personal wealth has increased by billions of dollars over the course of the 18 months of his second term. His Justice Department, under the leadership of Todd Blanche (Trump’s former personal attorney), recently agreed to earmark nearly $1.8 billion dollars in a slush fund (ironically referred to as an Anti-Weaponization Fund) that could be used to pay off criminals from the January 6 insurrection; convicted criminals who threatened Congress and Vice President Pence; criminals whom he has already pardoned; nearly 100 criminals who have gone on since those pardons to commit more serious crimes including rape and child sexual abuse. Although Mr. Blanche has since backed off on the slush fund, Trump has said that he still likes the idea. Included in this alleged “settlement”, is a provision protecting Trump, his family and businesses from audits by the IRS, which could deprive the U.S. Treasury of millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. Does this sound like draining the swamp of corruption?
George Orwell wrote the novel 1984 to warn about what could happen to a country under authoritarian rule. The word “doublespeak” was inspired by the novel to describe the upside-down use of language in an authoritarian regime. In Trump’s world, the free and fair election of Joe Biden in 2020 was “rigged” and “stolen” from him. Criminal insurrectionists are now painted as patriots, with stories of their attacks on Capitol police scrubbed from the Justice Department website. Immigrants who have been involved in no violent crimes are called “the worst of the worst” and held in detention camps. Current statistics show that less than 15% of detained immigrants have a violent criminal history. Trump claims that the Biden Administration “weaponized” the legal system against Trump and his allies. Meanwhile, Trump is the one pursuing his perceived enemies, such as James Comey, Letitia James and elected leaders who reminded the military that they have a duty not to obey illegal orders. Up is down and down is up.
Why does this all matter? Because we strive to be good people. Because of the Golden Rule. Because corruption is plainly wrong and immoral. Because corruption by our leaders provides a permission structure for others to engage in such behavior. Because corruption undermines the rule of law. Because at a time when millions of our citizens are struggling to pay for food, housing, healthcare and gas, we can’t afford it. Next time you listen to politicians telling you they want to drain the swamp, look to see if their actions live up to their words. It’s often said that actions speak louder than words. Judge them by what they do, not what they say.
