The cynicism and soullessness here is off the charts. In every case the sub-text of her remarks is, "Yeah, he's not perfect, and I wouldn't have done some of those things in the way that he did them. But..." But what? He's not a pathological liar and a monster of corruption? He's not responsible for ruining lives, kidnapping innocent immigrants, and destroying institutions? It's like Pol Pot's personal secretary complaining she's had a hard day. Hell is too good for her and all these people.
A few Dems will respond to this in the right way but once again, aside from those few, my guess is nothing more than some strongly worded speeches, letters or tweets come of this. I hope I’m wrong.
As for the administration, they all need to cover each other’s asses in order for them all to retain their positions and continue to force their horrific individual agendas on the country and world. That includes Wiles. Some Republicans will be disappointed for a day or two but the whole gutless party will fall right back in line as they always do.
That said, some of the worst people in the country having so much unchecked power is really fucking scary!
This stood out for me: "His track record of honesty is as poor with her as it is with us." I think it was perfectly predictable. He lies to everyone, including himself.
What I wonder though: What was she thinking when she agreed to these interviews? I wouldn't agree to regular confessions with anyone, certainly not with a competent journalist. Even less if I were in a highly compromising situation.
Thanks Joe Biden. And to the degree they tipped the scales for Biden in the 2020 primary, thanks Nancy Pelosi and Jim Clyburn. Thanks Jack Smith (for filing the documents case in southern Florida instead of DC). There is also John Roberts, but we never expected much from him.
I guess I just see all of this as CYA. Wiles has been on her own personal revenge tour. Having been marginalized within Republican politics, she jumped on Trump's wagon, rode it to a reputation as some brilliant strategist, and now finds herself without a real role in governance, even as the thing she helped spawn devours the republic. And she couldn't care less about that, obviously, but she has a sense that if there is a post black hole reality somebody might and so she should establish some distance from the horror. I refuse to believe that someone as experienced as Wiles just idly chattered to Vanity Fair without imaging what she would saying would get out -- especially because she has clearly avoided any such media profile before. She just wanted to get some deniability out there for herself to cling to in the coming storm. Accountability will begin precisely when we stop paying attention to these head fakes and make sure everybody connected to this disaster is recognized for their role in it, regardless of what they say about their hidden doubts, struggle, whatever. I burn with white hot fury over her remarks about her doubts over USAID. She says she knew it was wrong to kill it. So what? You did.
She’s trying to protect whatever integrity she once had while at the same time undermining that effort by protecting Trump. Alternately bad mouthing him and then playing dumb. It’s as if this particular juvenile delinquent was her own son who gives her heartache, but she loves him nonetheless. Yech.
Not to seem ungrateful for your methodical parsing, Brian, but this seems an academic exercise, resting as it does on taking at least some of Wiles's statements at face value. We know that every one of the broken people in the GOP orbit chooses their words to advance their aims, not because the words are true (it's not that they lie, it's that truth vs. falsity is irrelevant to them). There's ample realm to ponder, collectively, why Wiles participated in these interviews and said some of the things she said, and certainly the Democrats should make use of that which shows the GOP in a bad light, but if anything she said is actually true, that's incidental.
The cynicism and soullessness here is off the charts. In every case the sub-text of her remarks is, "Yeah, he's not perfect, and I wouldn't have done some of those things in the way that he did them. But..." But what? He's not a pathological liar and a monster of corruption? He's not responsible for ruining lives, kidnapping innocent immigrants, and destroying institutions? It's like Pol Pot's personal secretary complaining she's had a hard day. Hell is too good for her and all these people.
A few Dems will respond to this in the right way but once again, aside from those few, my guess is nothing more than some strongly worded speeches, letters or tweets come of this. I hope I’m wrong.
As for the administration, they all need to cover each other’s asses in order for them all to retain their positions and continue to force their horrific individual agendas on the country and world. That includes Wiles. Some Republicans will be disappointed for a day or two but the whole gutless party will fall right back in line as they always do.
That said, some of the worst people in the country having so much unchecked power is really fucking scary!
This stood out for me: "His track record of honesty is as poor with her as it is with us." I think it was perfectly predictable. He lies to everyone, including himself.
What I wonder though: What was she thinking when she agreed to these interviews? I wouldn't agree to regular confessions with anyone, certainly not with a competent journalist. Even less if I were in a highly compromising situation.
So much corruption.
>sigh<
Thanks Merrick Garland
So much blame to go around.
Thanks Joe Biden. And to the degree they tipped the scales for Biden in the 2020 primary, thanks Nancy Pelosi and Jim Clyburn. Thanks Jack Smith (for filing the documents case in southern Florida instead of DC). There is also John Roberts, but we never expected much from him.
I guess I just see all of this as CYA. Wiles has been on her own personal revenge tour. Having been marginalized within Republican politics, she jumped on Trump's wagon, rode it to a reputation as some brilliant strategist, and now finds herself without a real role in governance, even as the thing she helped spawn devours the republic. And she couldn't care less about that, obviously, but she has a sense that if there is a post black hole reality somebody might and so she should establish some distance from the horror. I refuse to believe that someone as experienced as Wiles just idly chattered to Vanity Fair without imaging what she would saying would get out -- especially because she has clearly avoided any such media profile before. She just wanted to get some deniability out there for herself to cling to in the coming storm. Accountability will begin precisely when we stop paying attention to these head fakes and make sure everybody connected to this disaster is recognized for their role in it, regardless of what they say about their hidden doubts, struggle, whatever. I burn with white hot fury over her remarks about her doubts over USAID. She says she knew it was wrong to kill it. So what? You did.
She’s trying to protect whatever integrity she once had while at the same time undermining that effort by protecting Trump. Alternately bad mouthing him and then playing dumb. It’s as if this particular juvenile delinquent was her own son who gives her heartache, but she loves him nonetheless. Yech.
Not to seem ungrateful for your methodical parsing, Brian, but this seems an academic exercise, resting as it does on taking at least some of Wiles's statements at face value. We know that every one of the broken people in the GOP orbit chooses their words to advance their aims, not because the words are true (it's not that they lie, it's that truth vs. falsity is irrelevant to them). There's ample realm to ponder, collectively, why Wiles participated in these interviews and said some of the things she said, and certainly the Democrats should make use of that which shows the GOP in a bad light, but if anything she said is actually true, that's incidental.