The collusion with Russia case, short and simple: On the one side you have Donald Trump, who is primarily driven by making money, enhancing his “brand” and feeding his ego. On the other side, Russian President Vladimir Putin wants U.S. sanctions lifted.
Mr. Putin has “dirt” (thousands of stolen emails) that may help Donald Trump get elected president of the U.S., promoting his brand and tweaking his ego. Mr. Trump, if elected, can lift Russian sanctions.
Follow the dots. All the denying and lying about communications with Russians—for what purpose if not to hide collusion? Then all the talk about sanctions. It does not matter that the lifting of sanctions was thwarted by the deal’s eventual exposure.
On the other hand, follow the money. All the shady business dealings—money laundering and pay for access. (Russian oligarchs overpaying for Trump condos, Russian bankers bailing out Mr. Trump’s failing real estate deals.) Why didn’t Mr. Trump make public his tax returns?) And there’s Mr. Trump’s persistent praise of Mr. Putin.
Conspiring with a foreign government to influence an election is a crime. Accepting bribes is a crime. Obstructing the investigation of those conspiracies is a crime.
As connecting the dots gets closer to Mr. Trump, look for a rise in Republicans and Trump media (Fox News and Rush Limbaugh) calling for special counsel Robert Mueller’s firing. And look for more, and perhaps dangerous, acts of distraction from Mr. Trump.
ART WILAND
Monroeville
