Down the Rabbit Hole

Conspiracy theories fascinate me. Not because I think they have any validity, rather, I am interested in the psychopathy behind it. I want to understand what twists a mind to the point it readily embraces the most preposterous ideas, how they can cling to beliefs so easily disproven. I don’t believe the moon landing was faked, that the earth is flat, that 9/11 was an inside job, or that Obama was born in Kenya. Those theories are ridiculous and the evidence to support those claims are laughable. Yet the people who believe these conspiracies intrigue me.

When presented with a conspiratorial idea, the skeptic in me is quick to dismiss the theory. There’s usually a simpler and more logical explanation. Even with the Trump presidency. As much as I don’t like our president, I tend to view the most outlandish claims about him with skepticism. He’s corrupt enough on his own, I don’t think his opponents need to make up stories to make him look bad.

Then a couple weeks ago, I awoke earlier than normal and began to skim through Twitter. I watched a few videos and read a few news stories. Everyone seemed to ask the same question: has Rudy gone crazy? I don’t think he has. And as I read various accounts, watched and re-watched the mind-blowing interviews where Rudy contradicted all of Trump’s previous claims, I began to (as the saying goes) connect the dots. I clicked the new tweet button and began to type:

All this Giuliani chaos seems absurd right? It doesn’t make sense. Even Politico posted a headline claiming he’s playing into prosecutors’ hands. Some people think Giuliani is bonkers, which is possible but there might be a better explanation. And one I think is far more logical. So, follow me down the rabbit hole. What if Giuliani is doing all of this on purpose? And what if he hasn’t gone rogue? What if this is Trump’s legal game-plan?

Throughout the course of the Russia investigation (AKA: WITCHUNT!) there’s been talks of pardons. Trump has already made two questionable pardons: Joe Apario and Scooter Libby. He’s also hinted at pardoning more. The pardon talk is (allegedly) a sign to his loyalists to keep their mouths shut as if Trump is telling them they have nothing to fear. Anyone charged in the investigation into Russia’s interference will be pardoned as long as they’re loyal. There’s also been speculation that Trump will try and pardon himself. There’s debate to whether he can or can’t legally do that. I don’t think he can, but I’m not a legal expert. Let’s assume for now, he can’t.

Things are looking bad and getting worse. Multiple charges filed. Multiple guilty pleas. Multiple cooperating witnesses. To everyone except the most ardent in the MAGA crowd, it’s obvious the Trump’s presidency is not going to end well. I think Trump knows this. Contrary to many of my liberal friends, I don’t think Trump is an idiot. I think the buffoonery is an act to play to the lowest common denominator. He wants undying admiration, and this is the easiest way to get it. Trump is smarter than most people give him credit. What rational people see as the most inane ideas are his specialty. After all, he did win the electoral college. He knew he’d never win the popular vote, so he didn’t even try. It worked.

His current legal strategy is (as far as I can tell) more of the same. What looks like complete insanity is actually subversive genius. Trump knows he’s going down, so his best option is to look incompetent. Is there a better way to look incompetent than to hire the worst possible lawyers to represent you? Between the turnover on Trump’s legal team, Giuliani’s baffling media blitz, Trump’s constant self-contradictions, and blatant lies, what we are seeing in the Oval Office is the biggest display of incompetency ever. Actually, faux-incompetency. They’re not all idiots. It’s a show. Why would they go through the effort of making themselves look stupid? Simple answer: like Doctor Strange said in Infinity War, “This is the only way.”

Trump really only has one way of avoiding serious legal charges - to get them thrown out in court. How? Because we’re all entitled to adequate legal representation. It doesn’t matter if you’re so poor the court appoints an attorney or if you’re as (allegedly) rich as Trump and can buy the most expensive attorneys in America. An ineffective attorney violates our 6th Amendment rights. Trump is hoping to muddy the waters so swampy that it’ll be impossible to get a guilty verdict. And if that fails, get the ruling overturned for reason of incompetent or negligent representation. To do that, Trump must prove two things.

1. Trump must prove that Giuliani’s performance was deficient with serious errors.

2. That Giuliani’s deficiency unfairly biased prosecution against Trump, depriving him of his right to a fair trial.

Giuliani’s performance and media appearances since joining the Trump legal team could be evidence supporting gross incompetence unfairly prejudicing the defendant. Trump’s statements since then are already playing into this plan. All of it is an elaborate ruse. If you act dumb enough for long enough, people will start to believe you’re dumb. I don’t buy it, I don’t believe Trump is that stupid. Calculated? Manipulative? Vindictive? Yes, yes, and yes. Dumb? Hell no.

But what do I know, I’m just a nerd from the middle of nowhere. All I know, is I’m not alone in my thinking. On his Late Night show, Seth Meyers said, “Trump’s going to be the first client who pleads insanity on behalf of his lawyer.”

photo courtesy of Politico

I could be wrong. It’s possible. However, I’m a fan of Occam’s razor, the philosophical rule that states problem solving explanations become increasingly unlikely the more assumptions you make in your answer. In other words, the simplest explanation is often the correct one. If the problem we want to solve is to explain the rationale behind Giuliani’s recent performances, the simplest answer that requires the fewest assumptions is that he’s doing it on purpose.