By Emil Guillermo

Donald Trump plead the Fifth more than 400 times at his recent deposition with the New York Attorney General’s office.

As Trump has famously said in the past, “The mob takes the Fifth. If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?”

But that’s the Trump M.O. Acting like a gangster.

The case in New York concerns the financial structure of the Trump organization. Which is different from the FBI seizure of documents at Trump’s Mar-A-Lago home for possible violations of the Espionage Act.

Which is different from the Georgia case about efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Which is different from the House Ways and Means Committee investigation over his tax returns.

Which is different from the House Select Committee hearings on the Jan. 6 attack.

Which is different from the Justice Department’s look at potential criminality for actions or lack of action during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Now that’s what I’d call “which” hunt.

But it’s a for real “resume,” and if it were anyone else, like you and me, we’d be down for the count and not talking about being president.

At the rate Trump’s going, he’ll be too busy taking the Fifth to run for president in 2024.

Trending

Death of Angelo Quinto, Who Died Like George Floyd,  Haunts Filipino American Family

Besides, Trump is already at the apex of his political life as an FPOTUS.

FPOTUS?

That was the description on the affidavit attached to that historic search warrant on the property of the Former President of the United States, a/k/a FPOTUS.

But why stop at one ‘F’ when there’s a foultitude of F words. (That’s French for “oodles.”)

There’s also:

“Falsifying.”

“Failed.”

“Funky” even works metaphorically in a most foul way.

Add your favorite adjectival “F” word.

Never have we seen in U.S. history the figurehead of the world’s greatest democracy subject to a search warrant. And it’s all official and legit. One that’s signed off by a judge who believes there’s probable cause that a crime has been committed by a former president of the United States.

Jimmy Carter is an FPOTUS, but don’t be confused. Carter builds houses, not federal criminal cases that make him a threat to our country.

No, this FPOTUS is the most recent one, who wants to be an RPOTUS for “R” for Recidivist President of the United States.

But if charges are filed, he can forget about that.

We’re talking about real crimes in the U.S. code that normal people get thrown in jail for, people like Reality Winner, a former NSA contractor who got prison time for leaking a single classified document to the media.

That’s the seriousness of the possible charges here, the biggest one perhaps involving potential violations of the Espionage Act. FPOTUS a spy? Like James Bond? Or like Harriet, of the kids’ book fame?

If you are found with the most top secret of government documents, the kind that you need to open in a safe room, and they’re sitting in a basement at your Florida abode, that could be considered “mishandling” and get someone up to 10 years in prison.

Then there’s the possibility of obstruction of justice charges that could fetch up to 20 years.

And as the topper, there’s the possible charge of destruction or mutilation of federal records, which could potentially disqualify a person from ever holding public office.

Which may be why FPOTUS has taken the extreme tack of claiming political persecution. Victimhood!

But that’s what people say when they get stopped for a busted taillight. And this is no taillight charge. FPOTUS as victim? He understands victimizing. Remember how he used executive orders to invoke a Muslim travel ban? Or how he separated mothers from their children at the border?

Time to make him FPOTUS for life. That’s F for “former” and any other F word that comes to mind.

Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. He does a web talk show at www.amok.com

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post