Trump said he would bring the best people into the administration. He lied. Take the odd case of Stephanie Grisham, whose resume boasts two DUIs. She is his putative press secretary. But after two months on the job, she has yet to have a press conference. Not that she is publicity-shy. She has attracted attention with two tone-deaf tweets. First, she snarked at CNN after they had put up a map misidentifying Alabama as Mississippi.

Stephanie Grisham @PressSec Sep 5

CNN’s publicity department swatted that away. Relying:

CNN Communications @CNNPR

Was Grisham abashed? Who knows. But being smacked down once on social media did not teach her much. The next day Grisham accused the Washington Post of ignoring Trump’s historic trip to North Korea — of being so eager to besmirch her boss’ reputation that they failed to report this diplomatic triumph. 

Stephanie Grisham @PressSec Sep 6They could have written about the first time in history, a sitting United States President Walked across the DMZ into North Korea. Not a chance.

The Washington Post’s Lost SummerAs the summer came to a close, the Post set out to ”report” the President’s summer accomplishments, but reporting is not what the Post does.whitehouse.govGrisham also claimed WaPo had ignored injured veterans’ student loan forgiveness, ending the Flores agreement, and the trade deal with Japan. Except they had reported all of it. Stunningly Grisham’s tweet linked to the WaPo’s story of Trump stepping into North Korea even as she denied the paper had covered it.(Here it is: “They could have written about the first time in history a sitting United States president walked across the DMZ into North Korea. Not a chance.”)Grisham may be the first Press Secretary who doesn’t read newspapers. Or even check the links in her tweets. Does anyone in the White House care about looking like an idiot?However, we should remember who she works for – a man who has no use for talent. A boss whose only qualifications for a subordinate are sycophancy and loyalty.

Mike Pence fits the bill. Here is a man whose piety is so superficial that he has no qualms latching on to his boss’ orange ass with the fervor of a disciple — ignoring that the man has broken the ten commandments, reveled in the seven deadly sins, and has elevated immorality to a governing principle.

His fealty was so absolute he dragged his entourage to a Trump property in Ireland, 180 miles from his meetings in Dublin. When asked whose idea it was to line Trump’s pockets he stared into the distance and after a pause replied “It’s good to be back in Ireland”.

William Barr, Trump’s personal lawyer, who moonlights as the US Attorney General, has forked over $30,000 for a holiday party at Trump’s DC hotel. It reminds you of the tribute the captains of a crime family pay to the ultimate boss.

And in a move further reminiscent of a mobster’s arm twisting, the US military is being ordered to keep Trump’s Turnbull Hotel afloat. This money-hemorrhaging enterprise is benefiting from the decision to use nearby Prestwick airport as a refueling stop for transport planes. Revenues improved at Turnbury from a loss of $4.5 million in 2017 to a loss of ‘only’ $1.5 million in 2018. Even as the taxpayer shelled out for a premium price for fuel bought at a civilian installation.    

And, as it is with our war machine, so it is with our peace-making efforts.

One of the most intractable problems in American foreign policy is achieving harmony in the Middle-East. For years Presidents enlisted the brightest and best American minds to move the ball forward. But Trump gave the responsibility to his son-in-law Jared Kushner, who brought his slum lord background to the table.

That, of course, failed as you should have expected. But rather than chagrin, Trump reacted by appointing a man so unqualified to the position he makes Jared look like the second coming of James Baker.

At 29-years-old and fresh out of law school with a background in showing celebrities around the White House, Avi Berkowitz’s sole qualification is that Kushner knows him. And I’m guessing he gave a master class in ass-kissing when he met Trump.

In fairness Berkowitz, almost uniquely in this administration, is reputed to work 18-hour days. On the other hand, he is reported to spend most of his time on twitter and Drudge.   

But back to Grisham. She’ll be just fine. It doesn’t matter she was (is?) drunk. Or that she was ethically challenged in state government in Arizona. What brought her to Trump’s notice was her belligerent stance against the media, which is a job guarantee in this administration.

She is a perfect fit in the group of snarling, lie-telling, incompetent, private-jet loving, indolent, expense-padding, incoherent, groveling grifters that comprise Trump’s governing team. 

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