Cloak and Dagger

Only during the Watergate probe of President Nixon do I remember such a cloak-and-dagger atmosphere in Washington. With scant evidence, the Democrats are pushing the Trump-Russia connection. And the Republicans are pointing to the Deep State antics of Obama holdovers, the tainted intelligence agencies and possibly B.O. himself ... together with his henchperson, Valarie Jarrett ... with their implied intent of invalidating the Trump presidency.

The headlines are full of charges and counter charges that have Americans on edge. We are losing confidence in the process of government ... which could be the real purpose of this intrigue. Congress, like it often does, has hearings on these back-and-forths which are composed of more back-and-forths. Nothing is clarified ... and illuminating questions are lost in Congress' attempts to emulate William Jennings Bryant.

Most of the media has taken the Deep State side in this dogfight when Trump-friendly revelations occur, the media attack the messenger in order to bury the message. Watching cable channels is a depressing experience since the "news," as they relate it, is so full of pejoratives that the truth is fully obscured. Over and over again the squishy message of the Russian-Trump "collaboration" is forefront while the more sinister possibility of Obama administration's "surveillance" of the Trump campaign is dismissed out of hand.

It would be nice to know the truth in these matters, but there is so much at stake here that obfuscates this quest. My instinct is to inspect the motivations of the players on both sides. It seems to me that the potential loses on the Deep State side so overwhelm the potential gains for Trump and company, that I tend to believe the current administration over the last one and its fellow travelers.

But my bottom-line hope here is that this current contretemps can be settled with just the cloak and not the dagger.