Moral Relativism

A liberal friend asked me a question this weekend, “Is Trump dirty?” My answer was “probably.” My reasoning was based upon the fact that, as a successful skyscraper builder in major metropolitan areas, Trump had to deal with many unsavory characters, seedy union bosses, greedy contractors, corrupt politicians and building materials suppliers (many concrete companies are mafia controlled) ... therefore he couldn’t help but be somewhat sullied in the process. But was he any shadier than almost any politician you can name  ... including the Clinton crime family? I sincerely doubt it. And unlike the Clintons, Obama and many other polluted pols, I have no doubt about Trump’s love and loyalty to the United States.

And so I expect some mud in Mueller’s Trump witch-hunt report whenever it comes out. But I also expect no smoking gun regarding Russian collusion or obstruction of justice. The dirt, to whatever degree, will be revealed by Michael Cohen and the Southern District of New York prosecutors delving into Trump’s earlier business deals ... for which he can’t be impeached, but besmirched nevertheless. I have no idea whether any of the short cuts Trump took as a builder are felonies. It will all depend on the quality of legal advice he got during that period. But, in any case, it will have to wait until he leaves office and well may be mitigated by other politicians scrambling to cover their own dirty deeds.

Yes, in my dotage I’ve slipped into moral relativism. I am even regretting my sanctimony in condemning Richard Nixon in my salad days. My measure now is much broader when rating presidents. I ask what do they do to benefit America ... and do they put our interests ahead of their own personal ambitions and greed. I think maybe the only truly “squeaky clean” president we have had in my lifetime was Jimmy Carter... and you saw what that got us.