Since the release of the Access Hollywood tape last week, Donald Trump now finds himself in the “Cosby Effect” – victims coming forward and reporting their assaults sometimes decades after they happened.
Some of these cases have previously been reported, but now that women are coming forward it may encourage others who were too intimidated to speak out to also come forward. There is no telling how many women may come forward. NPR has compiled a list of claims to date. A List Of The Accusations About Trump’s Alleged Inappropriate Sexual Conduct. The list is almost certain to grow.
None of us are in a position to judge whether these claims are verifiable or not, but the media is going to publish each and every one, just as they did in Bill Cosby’s case. The sheer number of claims being tried by the media will create a public perception that the claims are true — especially when Trump has a well-documented record of making comments that lend credibility to the claims.
Donald Trump crawled out of the fever swamps of the right-wing conspiracy theory subculture with his Birtherism. His campaign is being run by Breitbart, and he has advisers and supporters from World Net Daily, Info Wars, and other conspiracy mongers. Many of his campaign themes come from this fever swamp.
So it should come as no surprise to anyone today that Donald Trump unleashed a grand theory of conspiracy: “The whole world is conspiring against me!” Trump says groping allegations are part of a global conspiracy to help Clinton:
Donald Trump issued a breathtaking call to arms Thursday as he emphatically denied allegations that he groped and kissed multiple women without their consent, charging that his accusers were part of a global conspiracy to extinguish his outsider movement.
Scrambling to turn around his floundering campaign, Trump declared war on the media and multinational corporations, alleging they are colluding with Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton to orchestrate “the single greatest pile-on in history” and undermine his campaign, which he said was an “existential threat” to the global establishment.
“The Clinton machine is at the center of this power structure,” the Republican nominee said at a rally in West Palm Beach, Fla. “Anyone who challenges their control is deemed a sexist, a racist, a xenophobe and morally deformed. They will attack you. They will slander you. They will seek to destroy your career and your family. . . . They will lie, lie, lie.
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Trump’s remarks, which he read from teleprompters, were laced with the kind of global conspiracies and invective common in the writings of the alt-right, white-nationalist activists who see him as their champion. Some critics also heard echoes of historical anti-Semitic slurs in Trump’s allegations that Clinton “meets in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty” and that media and financial elites were part of a soulless cabal to destroy “our great civilization.”
“It’s a global power structure that is responsible for the economic decisions that have robbed our working class, stripped our country of its wealth and put that money into the pockets of a handful of large corporations and political entities,” Trump said.
The speech bore the imprint of Stephen K. Bannon, the Trump campaign’s chief executive, who until recently was the executive chairman of Breitbart, a conservative website that serves as the virtual town square of the alt-right movement.
This is a derivative of the New World Order conspiracy theory that has lived in the right-wing fever swamps for years. Remember the Trilateral Commission? The Bilderberg Group?
It has its roots in the much older international Jewish conspiracy. Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo explains. Nationalism Into the Abyss:
Is it desperation? The themes and instincts of the anti-Semitic radicals and extremists his campaign stews in? A “global conspiracy” of the political elites, international finance and the media who have “robbed our working class, stripped our country of its wealth and put the money in the pockets of a handful of large corporations and political entities.”
Trump is thinking or means, the white nationalists and neo-Nazis he’s activated will hear his speech with glee because he’s channeling text book anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, with all the code words and emotional tenor. I genuinely don’t know how much of this he even understands or cares about. But his rage and anger is in tune with these movements. And he’ll cast about for the most coherent and resonant storyline that captures it. It doesn’t matter what he thinks. It matters what he does.
It’s possible these are simply the tropes and storylines of international Jewish conspiracies repurposed with the Jews removed from the picture. But it hardly matters. The substrate of traditional anti-Semitism is just as toxic as what grows from it. These are the kinds of conspiratorial, revanchist fantasies that spur violence and attacks on the mundane ordinariness of democracy itself.
Steve, what’s the truth about the bombed out office having filled out absentee ballots? Isn’t that a federal offense? I think it was nice that the Dems did a gofundme to restore the office to the tune of $13,ooo. What is your take on this?
I think it was good that the bombing was condemned by everyone. That is the way to deal with lunacy like this. I would hope that if it were reversed and it was a Democrat Election Office that was bombed, the Republicans would speak out just as quickly and just as outraged as the Democrats did in this case. I was very impressed with the Democrat response. Given the weirdness of this election, it was good to see something decent occur for a change.
As to the question of filled out absentee ballots, I hope it isn’t true. I hadn’t heard anything about it, and I don’t know if it is a federal crime, but if it is true, someone should be held accountable and punished for what would appear to be outright voter fraud.
Thank you, DeeAnn, for sharing the information!
Steve, check again. Not all the women coming forward are Hillary supporters. The intern from his show is Republican. Several others that wanted to do business with him or visited events at his Florida estate are Republican. That in no way indicates they are “Hillary” supporters. Why should it even matter, except as an attempt to discredit them? Most have stated that they want him stopped and that there is safety in numbers. Remember Clarance Thomas and Anita Hill? She was alone and discredited. Wonder if the lady charging statuatory rape is Republican, how will we ever know and why does it matter?
DeeAnn, thank you for getting back to me. I guess, for accuracy’s sake, instead of calling these women “Hillary supporters” I should call them “not Trump supporters”. I was not aware that any of them were Republicans, but given the nature of this election, I should have done my homework better to double check. Thank you for the correction.
As to whether it matters if they were not Trump supporters or not, this is politics and it does matter…a lot. People do very strange and often outlandish things either in support of, or opposition to, a candidate. This election has brought out the worst in many people. The recent bombing of a GOP Election Office in North Carolina is an example of such extremism. It is not hard to think that some women would be so outraged at Trump that they would step forward and say things happened that didn’t if it hurt his campaign. I am skeptical, but I appear to be in the minority…but I am almost always in the minority on this blog, so I can live with it.
Actually Steve, it is never convenient to confess being groped. A lot of those women telling are republicans and one had been an apprentice on his reality show. It is time to change things and In my youth I felt helpless and powerless when a superviser or management would come on to me. I would wonder what I had done to bring on such unwanted advances. Was it merely being in the wrong place at the wrong time? Men can control their urges and women need to turn on them when they don’t. I scream, holler, and confront now. No more crying, it is time to hit back at anyone who bullies and demeans. I am not a piece of meat! You “never” get over it, you repress it. These women are enpowering themselves by taking down a bully.
Deeann, thank you for sharing your life experiences. It was brave of you to do so.
I am not familiar with what it means to be groped or pawed by someone. I can imagine it would be most distressing to have that happen, especially if you felt your job was in danger if you complained. I think one of the great lessons in life that a woman can learn is too speak up when she is harassed in spite of the potentialities. It is hard and difficult but some men are pigs and you cannot be subtle with them. You are a good example of someone who has made the correct decision.
I guess my skepticism here is because of the politics involved. I say this in light of my not holding the same skepticism where Cosby is concerned. There is just something about the Clinton Political Machine and the almost fanatical support Hillary receives from some quarters. I can easily imagine women coming forward with false testimony if it hurts Trump. And no, I am NOT a Trump supporter…
Of course they are Hillary supporters. Who would vote for a guy who have raped and sexually assaulted them? Duh!
On rare occasion, when posting here, I come across someone whose intellect is so sharp, so focused and so able to see right through the fog and confusion that they are able to spot the important thing in whatever they encounter. Second rate minds like mine can only stand agawk with our mouths open at the grasp these people have of the blindingly obvious. It is a wonder that only a few have the privilege of experiencing in their life times. You, Michael, (I have tears of wonder, amazement, and sheer gratitude in my eyes that I could be here to say this), are one of those people.
It does seem obvious that all those women Trumped raped would be Hillary supporters. I mean why they even consider supporting the man who raped them? That doesn’t make any sense at all. So let me try, in my feeble way, to explain a little further what I thought was my point. You see, it doesn’t matter why they are Hillary supporters, it only matters that they are. Since I haven’t seen any or heard anything from the women who Trump raped, I can’t speak to what they are doing, but the women he supposedly assaulted with his groping and unwanted advances have said they were strong Hillary supporters. Is this, perhaps, another way of supporting Hillary? I don’t know, but given the timing of their coming forward it creates a climate where skepticism is justified.
A very nice lady named Deeann told me I am wrong. Perhaps she is correct. So far I have seen nothing to make me think I am wrong but since this is a “she said/he said” situation, I could be.
Thank you, Michael, for providing me with a blinding glimpse of the obvious. I do appreciate it…
The Cosby thing notwithstanding, I tend to be skeptical when it involves politics. So far, all of the women who have come forward admit they are Hillary supporters which tends to taint their testimony in my eyes. Trump is a scalawag and may very well have done what they say he did, but the timing of their accusations is just a little too convenient for Hillary.