While I thought it was John Kelly for while, and that may still be true, an s-word of a thought popped into my head.
With the op-ed, when you really, really think about it, while potentially giving him some sort of savant-type credit, who makes the most sense from a pure risk/reward, game-theory standpoint?
Donald J. Trump.
One thing we have seen with our own eyes (and while I could site them, that is likely not needed), is that Trump has consistently used psychological projection as a defense mechanism. He has been proactive, and fairly consistent about it. “Trump responds to controversies by lobbing the same charges at his opponents”.
Trump has been unpredictable, in an almost purposeful fashion.
Trump is self-serving, loves to appear as a victim, and has been trying to look like a martyr for awhile now. There has to be a motive. Why not feed us what we all want, which is to confirm our suspicions, and give us enough rope to prove what his followers already believe.
Lets posit for a moment that Trump knows the gig is almost up, and he needs to get in front of it, or at least in front of the Woodward book at this point. Desperate times call for desperate actions. Maybe its Trump himself doing a trial balloon, perhaps with Pence’s speech writer. Why this latter part? Because it’s about the most shallow, most obvious (lodestar), stupid thing you could do, which is sort of his MO, but I digress.
Trump may be trying to make a heroic exit. There is nothing more dangerous than a powerful person attempting to make a heroic storyline come true.
If fulfilling your term is not an option, and you don’t want to be impeached, there is only one option left. Blame others, “prove” the conspiracy against you is true, be replaced with Pence via the 25th, and still look like a heroic victim to your base, while fighting it all the way.
Sometimes it really is the one you least suspect.
Oh, almost forgot. You all remember when Trump sent the tweet in the image above? To me it captures everything.
Blame Obama, declare yourself a victim, lob some of the exact same charges at your opponents before they can be lobbed at you. This tweet has it all. Projection, the eerie part about Nixon/Watergate, even the bad (sick) guy part!
His tweets sound quite different if you treat them as confessions. Treason?
Indeed, how “low” will he go?