Harry Litman - Caught In His Own Trap
The defamation lawsuit Donald Trump filed against the Wall Street Journal Friday night is at once the most predictable and stupidest move he could have made. So long as he pursues the case, it virtually ensures the Jeffrey Epstein scandal now roiling his second presidency will continue and grow—and that it will culminate in a train wreck.
Trump has made a career of using meritless lawsuits to browbeat opponents, change the narrative, or delay other proceedings. He has generally remained indifferent to the blowback he receives in court or in the press, reasoning that he could weather any storm so long as his base remains steady. From Charlottesville to January 6 to the classified docs in the Mar-a-Lago bathroom, Trump has survived scandal after scandal because his base was always willing to look away. The same voters who cheered family separation and shrugged off his call to terminate the Constitution have stayed firmly in his corner.
But the Epstein story is different. It touches something that many of his most devoted followers care about more than him: the conspiratorial obsession with pedophilia rings and global elites.
And he is taking on a publication—The Wall Street Journal—that has bet its reputation on the story. He’s not going to be able to shake down the Journal for a cheap settlement and a claim of victory.
https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/caught-in-his-own-trap