Robert H. Workman

Lock Haven

Editor’s note: This is part two of a very long letter to the editor. Part one ran Wednesday. Nov. 12.

May 2017 to March 2019: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation: Following accusations that Trump’s 2016 election campaign involved illegally conspiring with Russia, former FBI investigator, Robert Mueller, spent almost two years investigating any possible wrongdoing. Mueller’s team were unable to find enough evidence to prove Trump’s team directly “colluded” with Russia, but it ascertained that Russia did interfere with the first US election that Trump won by spreading mis- and disinformation online. Some of Trump’s known associates, such as Paul Manafort and Roger Stone, were ultimately convicted but Trump was not. He denied any wrongdoing. See, he has his dogs do his dirty work then acts like he knew nothing about it.

April 2018: Trump University found to be a ‘sham’: Between 2005 and 2010, Trump ran a costly course promising to help real estate hopefuls break into the business, something he called Trump University — only its false promises of success proved a total flop. In 2018, a judge ruled that Trump must pay out $25 million as part of a settlement that saw some students get part of their money back. ABC reported that New York Attorney General, Eric T. Schneiderman, said of the case, “Judge Curiel’s order finalizing the $25 million Trump University settlement means victims of Donald Trump’s fraudulent university will finally receive the relief they deserve. This settlement marked a stunning reversal by President Trump, who for years refused to compensate the victims of his sham university. My office won’t hesitate to hold those who commit fraud accountable, no matter how rich or powerful they may be.” Again, this case was settled without any admission of wrongdoing on Trump’s part.

June 21, 2019: E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her in a department store: In an article for New York Magazine, former ELLE columnist E Jean Carroll claimed Trump raped in her in the spring of 1996 while she was working in a plush department store, Bergdorf Goodman. As part of the powerful imagery accompanying the article, Carroll wore the same all-black outfit she says she was dressed in on the day of the alleged rape. She also discussed the incident in her book, What Do We Need Men For? Trump denied the rape ever occurred and said Carroll’s story was “fake, like the author.”

Dec. 18, 2019: Trump is impeached for the first time: Trump is charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, after being accused of pressuring Ukraine to launch an investigation into his political rival, Joe Biden and his family (by threatening to withhold military aid). The House of Representatives impeached Trump in December 2019, however the Senate (which had a Republican majority) voted to acquit him in February 2020. After losing to Biden, Trump and his team repeated false information and claimed he lost due to voter fraud. He also tried to coerce Republican state officials into throwing out very legitimate results, as they weren’t to his liking. This, along with plenty of fiery social media commentary, resulted in a group of die-hard Trump supporters descending on the Capital on Jan. 6, 2021, and rioting, resulting in the death of a police officer who was assaulted by rioters and a Trump supporter, who was shot at by the authorities. A handful of officers who responded to the riots also ended their own lives within a year of the event.

November 2020 to January 2021: Trump tries to overthrow the 2020 election results.

Jan. 13, 2021: Trump is impeached again following the Capital riot. Two months after losing out to Biden, Trump found himself accused of inciting a violent attack on the Capital, carried out by his supporters who he directed to go to the Capital. He was accused of fanning the flames of violence through his posts on social media, claiming the was rigged. He was once again acquitted by the Republican controlled Senate a month later.

May 2021: Trump is asked about missing classified documents: It’s reported that in May 2021, the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) contacted Trump’s legal team alerting them to the fact that two boxes of classified documents had gone AWOL following his departure from the White House.

January to August 2022: Missing documents found at Trump’s home: After 15 boxes of unauthorized materials were found in Trump’s possession in January of 2022, the FBI continued an investigation that culminated in a raid on Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 8, 2022. Many more classified documents were unearthed. Yet now, he’s claiming, against his distractors, of doing what he had done. Remember, his words were “in his mind, he declassified them.”

November 2022 to Spring 2023: E Jean Carroll wins her case: After initially struggling to build a case against Trump, largely due to his presidential immunity at the time, Carroll filed a defamation lawsuit against Trump who called her a ‘liar’ after her New York Magazine article — and made a claim for battery in November 2022. Following a trial in the spring of 2023, a jury found Trump was liable for sexually abusing Carroll and defaming her by falsely denying it, which impacted on her reputation. Trump was not found liable for rape but rather for sexual abuse. However, when Trump later filed a countersuit against Carroll, the judge dismissed it and said Carroll’s rape accusation was “substantially true.” In total, Carroll was awarded $88 million in damages.

Jan. 13, 2023: The Trump Organization is fined $1.6 million: The Trump Organization (not Trump personally) was convicted of tax fraud and fined $1.6 million in relation to 17 charges, which included falsifying documents and allegedly inflating asset values for loans and insurance purposes, while simultaneously undervaluing them for tax purposes. As part of this case, Trump’s other business practices were also investigated. Like he didn’t know what was going on in his own organization.

June 2023: Trump charged with 37 federal counts relating to classified documents: Following the FBI raid and recovery of classified information, Trump was hit with 37 federal counts related to the unlawful possession, retention, and mishandling of classified documents, as well as obstruction of justice for attempting to hide the documents. However, the case was thrown out after his election win. Again, by a judge he appointed.

March 13, 2024: Trump charged with trying to overturn election results in Georgia: A case against Trump, along with 18 others, begins, hooked on accusations that Trump tried to pressure Georgia’s Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, I think we all remember the call to Georgia, into overturning the vote count which saw him lose the 2020 election to Joe Biden. In this incident, there were 13 felonies levelled against Trump, spanning racketeering, conspiracy, and false statements. He has denied wrongdoing. This case was later dropped following the 2024 election. Again, one his judges.

May 30, 2024: Trump is found guilty on 34 counts of fraud: Trump was found guilty by a 12 person jury of 34 counts of fraud in relation to the paying off of Stormy Daniels. During the trial, Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen alleged that he paid Daniels the money $130,000 from his own account at Trump’s instruction and under the premise that he would be reimbursed. Trump denied this, but the court found Trump had repaid the sum in instalments falsely recorded as ‘legal expenses’. The trial was not focused on the paying off of Daniels with hush money (that in itself is not a crime), but rather the falsifying of legal documents relating to it and on Trump violating a New York law on corporate record-keeping. According to the BBC, Trump was also accused of election interference by paying the hush money, as it was viewed as an attempt to prevent voters from accessing vital information about him and his character.

Jan. 10, 2025: Trump gets an ‘unconditional discharge’: On 10 January, Trump received an ‘unconditional discharge’ from Judge Juan Merchan in relation to his 34 counts of fraud, which essentially means while he is still guilty in the eyes of the law and has a conviction to his name, he avoided any jail time or probation. During the video call in which the judge relayed the decision, Trump appeared with his lawyer and declared that he is “totally innocent” and lamented that he had been treated poorly by the judicial system, implying the case was only brought against him for political purposes. “I would like to explain that I was treated very, very unfairly, and I thank you very much,” he stressed. Not true. He was treated differently than any of us would have been. He was given a lot of leeway, etc.

So I ask. How is this man our, correction, your president? I don’t accept him as mine. The King, so far, has gotten his flying palace. He’s gold gilded the WH. He’s building his grand ballroom. Says not paying with taxpayer money. UMM! Suing the DOJ for over $260 million and says he’ll use that to pay for the ballroom. He’ll lie his way out of it’s not taxpayer dollars.

I’m not sure what more I can point out about his destruction of this country. How he and his family have been crooks all their lives. He’s ignores our laws and Constitution. He does what he wants and doesn’t give a damn about the people, our judicial system or the Constitution. Please, tell me what is so great about that. Again, lower prices? No. Higher? Yes. Is he better off? Yes. Are you? No.

Some say they are getting better wages. Guess what. They joined a Union. Something he and the Republicans want to do away with. He had nothing to do with them making more money. Can they see that? Nope. I just don’t understand some of these people.