Early on in the trump nightmare, Micheal Cohen reminded me of the Gottis. Any of them, take your pick. They’re a collective, an archetype. Years ago, I ghostwrote a book for one of them and spent a weekend at the Gotti estate on Long Island. We were followed by cops or feds the entire weekend. Followed to a grocery store, a restaurant. “Ah, not to worry,” the Gotti said.
This is business as usual. But hey, John Gotti is just a plumber. Really.
But, just to be clear, this was the 1990s, when the Gottis were constantly in the news for one thing or another, one travesty or another. They were persons of interest – not only to the feds, but to state officials, publishers, TV networks.
So when I first became aware of Michael Cohen, I thought he was Mafia. I thought he was just another Gotti. Then Cohen got charged and convicted and released and wrote his book and started his podcast. Now, during this pandemic, there’s a group of us at the dog park who talk politics and Cohen’s name and podcast are often mentioned.
The consensus is that we like his podcast. When a trump loyalist is fucked over as badly as Cohen was, when he loses everything – family, freedom, law license – and sees the proverbial light- the revelations are often really insightful. Cohen knows trump, understands his weird psyche, can anticipate his moves, decisions. He’s trump’s Bobby Fisher and trump has lost and, like some petulant child, can’t accept being a LOSER.
Forget the peaceful transfer of power. Trump is facing a zillion lawsuits once he’s no longer prez and all this publicity about his silly lawsuits have brought in over 170 million bucks for him. From his supporters. Most of whom are NOT in the upper percentage of Americans who have benefited from his tax cuts. A big percentage of that $ can be legally used so that trump can live a lavish lifestyle and still exert power in the republican party that refuses to admit Biden won.
Biden: 80 million he won, votes that scream, Help! We need to heal!
Regardless of what you feel about Cohen, he provides insights into trump – why he was elected, the conman and grifter that he is, and why he won’t disappear once Biden becomes the 46th president and Kamala Harris becomes the first female VP of color.
After all, 74 million Americans voted for trump. It’s still a mystery to me why.
I have only listened to one and a half of these podcasts but I am inclined to agree with you. I especially recommend the one with Penn Jillette who worked with Trump on The Apprentice. Mea Culpa is what they are called and I see them as addressing an imbalance that needs to be corrected. Michael Cohen has my respect.
He has mine, too.
After watching this petulant child pitch a fit since the election, I am having a hard time wanting anything to do with any of my friends and family that still support him and his assault on our democracy. I’m not sure it’s going to go away.
Same here, Nancy.