5 Thoughts for June 11, 2017

1. Easy Hostage: Donald fancies himself a top-rate negotiator, yet all it took to get him to pledge to testify under oath was to challenge his truthfulness. It's almost embarrassing, how easy it is to nudge him into putting himself into a corner. Now, if he tries to back out he will be mocked mercilessly for cowardice, and any attempts to pull back from his public statements through weasel phrases ("I don't recall", "that's not how I remember it", etc.) will be met with accusations of further lies and a further eroding of trust.
2. Cleveland - Golden State: I haven't paid attention to the NBA ever since most of the games (including playoffs) were moved to cable. This year, apparently, something exceptional occurred. The two finalists, combined, had just one defeat in the playoffs. They just blew past the competition this year and that's never happened before in the history of the NBA. Even in the best of the Lakers - Celtics years, they never both blew past the competition. That's the culmination of a 3-year rivalry where the two were a combined 72 - 13 in the playoffs, headed into the finals. This is a historically epic reign of two powerhouses set far apart from the rest of the field.
3. It's NOT He-Said/He-Said: A lot of people, particularly those in the news media, have called Comey v Donald as though it's a he-said/he-said thing. It's not correct. Comey is on record, under oath. He willingly placed himself in jeopardy of criminal prosecution. Donald extemporaneously committed to testifying under oath yesterday, but until he actually does so, the value of his statements is worth a lot less than Comey's.
4. Leaks: Not all leaks are illegal. In fact, the only illegal leaks are those of classified information. If such leaks were illegal, the entire White House would be in legal jeopardy right now, including Donald himself. Imagine, how did word leak out about the leakers who were expected to be fired? Unclassified leaks can result in termination of employment or other punitive measures, but they're rules-based, not law-based restrictions. If James Comey broke an FBI rule by releasing his memo without prior authorization, it's not like he can be fired. I said the same thing about Hillary's breaking of the rules regarding her casual setup of a personal email server.
5. The Tapes Don't Exist: I'm sure most people already suspect it, but I'll just say it: Donald does not have tapes of his conversations with Comey. Donald's simple strategy -- one that he's used for most of his life -- is predicated on creating a false image of leverage. However, by suggesting that there might be tapes, he's trapped himself; he's facing the possibility of being exposed -- yet again -- as a liar, but also opened the door to demand that an investigation looks into whether or not he deleted his tapes. I'm especially relishing the possibility of seeing that door open up and watching another Donald meltdown.