David Frum: Trump's Legal Threats Backfire

[babylonsister]

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/03/trumps-legal-threats-backfire/556505/

Trump's Legal Threats Backfire
The president is used to getting his way by bluster and intimidation, but the strategy that once worked for him is now working against him.
David Frum 10:26 AM ET Politics


Minutes after the Stormy Daniels interview on 60 Minutes, Team Trump fired off a heavy-breathing lawyer’s letter, bristling with phrases like “cease and desist” and “retract and apologize.”

This is exactly the approach by which Donald Trump inadvertently made millions for Michael Wolff. Having so spectacularly backfired the first time, why do it again? The short answer is: Team Trump knows nothing else.

Back when he was a private businessman, Trump learned how to use law as a weapon. The lesson he took from that is that if your pockets are deep enough—and your conscience dull enough—it doesn’t matter that you are wrong. The other party will go broke before you will lose.

USA Today tallied the heavy-handed Trump litigation strategy back in June 2016. Over three decades, Trump fought 3,500 lawsuits—and faced 200 mechanic’s liens—mostly arising from disputes over unpaid bills. His strategy was to contest everything, and never quit: “The Trump teams financially overpower and outlast much smaller opponents, draining their resources. Some just give up the fight, or settle for less; some have ended up in bankruptcy or out of business altogether.”

snip//

Trump’s cease-and-desist letters no longer frighten. They function as virtual currency, denominated in the millions of dollars. One of those letters enriched Wolff; now it’s Daniels’s turn—and who knows next who else? Now it is Trump who cannot afford to litigate, not because of the monetary cost but because of the reputational risks. As a skeezy reality-TV star in a third marriage governed by a tight pre-nuptial agreement, Trump could shrug off those reputational risks. As president, he cannot. They show up in polls.

Trump University set the precedent: after years of stalling, an election eve settlement. Michael Wolff sent the message: Even without a settlement, it’s still lucrative to defy the president’s lawyers. Stormy Daniels is now executing the plan. Her success may embolden still others.

The heavy-breathing threats that Trump consigliere Michael Cohen formerly growled at stiffed subcontractors, cheated creditors, enraged ex-girlfriends, and abused auditionees for The Apprentice are words that now redound against the president: “Go ahead. Sue me.”

[riversedge]

1. Over three decades, Trump fought 3,500 lawsuitsand faced 200 mechanics liensmostly arising from

I would not enjoy my life surrounded by lawsuits. Nope.

USA Today tallied the heavy-handed Trump litigation strategy back in June 2016. Over three decades, Trump fought 3,500 lawsuits—and faced 200 mechanic’s liens—mostly arising from disputes over unpaid bills. His strategy was to contest everything, and never quit: “The Trump teams financially overpower and outlast much smaller opponents, draining their resources. Some just give up the fight, or settle for less; some have ended up in bankruptcy or out of business altogether.”

[central scrutinizer]

2. New portmanteau word: skeezy!

Skeevy + sleazy

Perfect for Spanky Dennison