White Wing Talking Points Could Topple Trump As Soon As May 2023
So much #winning on #bothsides — but though Trump’s sexual violence may survive standing trial, it will never stand the test of time
Some speculate that the coming trial concerning rape allegations against Trump could be a knockout punch to his presidential campaign.
Trump is about to take another major body blow
On April 5, 2023, Chris Hayes posted to Twitter: “I don’t think it’s really penetrated everyone’s consciousness that in a few weeks Donald Trump will be the defendant in a civil trial for rape.”
Coverage for the upcoming trial extended to the NY Daily News: “In her lawsuit, Carroll alleges that in the mid-1990s Trump raped her in a dressing room at the luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman located just two blocks from Trump Tower. Although Carroll told two friends about the alleged attack shortly after it occurred, she did not publicly reveal this incident until she published her 2019 memoir…”
“Trump has repeatedly denied the rape occurred and claims that what Carroll wrote is total fiction. He publicly stated “shame on those who make up false stories of assault . . . to sell a book,” asserting this was a “hoax,” that he never even met her and “she’s not my type.”
“Carroll sued Trump for defamation for impugning her truthfulness and for the tort of battery permitted under the recently enacted New York Adult Survivors Act that extended the statute of limitations for sexual assault victims to sue the perpetrators for damages. The trial evidence appears to be heavily stacked against Trump.”
“On March 10 Judge Kaplan ruled that as part of her direct case, Carroll can introduce the testimony of two women who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Trump, one on an airplane and one at Mar-a-Lago during an interview of Trump for People magazine. Both women provide evidence of Trump’s propensity to commit such sexual assaults, as permitted by the rules of evidence.”
Ready to defend an alleged rapist? Here are your White Wing Talking Points
Elie Mystal tweet #1: “I tried to explain this on [Chris Hayes], but what really stands out to me: If you think that Bragg has a weak case, THEN TRUMP SHOULD BEAT IT. And THAT should be your white wing talking point. “Let the process play out, our MAGA King will beat the rap.” That’s a “rule of law” take
Elie Mystal tweet #2: “Trump has OVERWHELMING resources to defend himself. He’s not, and never will be, “railroaded” by the system. His corporate media sycophants could just say “I’ll see you in court” and be done with it. INSTEAD, all they want to do is this pro-authoritarian rending of garments.”
Elie Mystal tweet #3: “The whole point of having a legal process is that, THERE IS A PROCESS. And the process is NOT “oh no the prosecutor should be JAILED for trying to hold a white man accountable for anything less than murder 2.” People are OFTEN charged with this crime. Let’s see if this one sticks.”
Elie Mystal tweet #4: “Put another way: Trump, his supporters, and his media spokespeople at the New York Times have decided that Trump is weaker and less able to defend his own actions in a normal court process than Gwyneth Paltrow.”
Truth is truth regardless of scale
Does it really matter whether Trump intended to rape a woman if what he did is rape? Trump’s strongest allies includes any self-identified “moderate” and “Centrist” who argue for the nuance between legal guilt and literal guilt for sexual violence.
Chris Hayes: “I don’t think it’s really penetrated everyone’s consciousness that in a few weeks Donald Trump will be the defendant in a civil trial for rape.”
From NY Daily News: “The civil case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll claiming that Trump raped and subsequently defamed her is scheduled for a jury trial on April 25. Unlike the indictment that could take a long time to reach a jury, this trial could result in a blockbuster jury verdict as early as May finding that Trump is guilty of rape.”
There are, of course, easy objections on technicalities
I predict countless self-identified Centrists and Moderates will write and invade as many articles as possible on Medium, Substack, and beyond in order to debate whether a civil trial verdict means Trump is guilty of rape.
Pay attention to what people feel compelled to debate. People of sexual violence in particular use humor and debate to shift the Overton Window. It’s how you get men like my identical twin brother who write about whether 99 nos but 1 yes mean you’re guilty of rape.
Thought experiments aren’t just thought experiments, especially for people facing credible allegations of a long history of sexual violence.
In the case between Trump and E. Jean Carroll, the case is actually about defamation. Trump called her a liar when she named his actions as rape.
Does it matter whether Trump is criminally guilty of rape if a civil court rules that the people he raped are telling the truth?
Guilt does not depend on a jury being capable of time travel
For the Carroll case, Judge Kaplan ruled that Carroll can have two other alleged rape victims by Trump testify as evidence of a pattern or practice of rape.
The Judge will also allow the Access Hollywood tape to be used as evidence.
Judge rejects Trump offer to provide DNA sample in E. Jean Carroll rape defamation case
- A New York federal judge rejected a conditional offer by former President Donald Trump to provide a DNA sample in a lawsuit accusing him of raping a writer in a Manhattan store in the 1990s.
- Judge Lewis Kaplan said Trump’s offer, which came after years of litigation in E. Jean Carroll’s suit, was too late in the process.
The judge’s order speculated whether Trump’s “patently untimely request for the appendix reflects either tactical shift or just an afterthought.” Kaplan wrote that avoiding the topic may have just been Trump hoping to avoid “renewed demands for Mr. Trump’s DNA.”
Yeah. Like there aren’t decades of history to help us make an educated guess. Then again, some people don’t have malicious intentions. They’re just incompetent.
I’ve met more than one sexually violent person who argued that just because they didn’t mean any harm, they will never take any responsibility for that harm.
Does it matter whether Trump is criminally guilty of rape if a civil court rules that the people he raped are telling the truth?
The judge also wrote that Trump’s lawyers had “a negligent failure to read the report with any care over the entire three-year period and thus the failure to notice the lack of the appendix.”
Did they neglect to challenge the appendix…or did they never read enough to know it was there?
I describe that as negligence equal to sabotage. They could never have erased their guilt. None of us can. We are all imperfect people and imperfect allies. What defines us is whether we show up with grace for those who are neither us nor extensions of us.
Intentions define our character, but so does whether we cultivate grace and compassion for the impact of our actions beyond our awareness and intentions.
The NY Daily News reports:
As the evidence now stands, this is not the classic case of “he said, she said.” Rather, it is a case of “he said, she said, she said, she said,” all supported by Trump’s own “Access Hollywood” words and Carroll’s witnesses. Trump appears to be left with no witnesses to call to rebut these charges other than himself.
Trump is faced with a conundrum — the only way he can rebut Carroll’s case is to testify in his own defense. That will subject him to a blistering cross examination concerning his predatory history. That coupled with his propensity to lie puts him in a real bind.
What’s next for Trump and other allies for abusive white men?
There are many men and women — as well as trans, non-binary, and other gender non-conforming people in the world — who feel compelled to expand the boundaries and limits of sexual violence.
I donate each year to Writers For Hope so as to empower other survivors and champions for those who will need to survive the sexually violent actions of perpetrators.
Whether on the scale of abusive white men born and raised with me in Mississippi or orange-tinted icons of fraud, people across the world are facing consequences for their violence. Even if it’s just public awareness of who that person was all along.
There is no vengeance, just as there can never be justice. But by bringing light to each other’s stories, we empower each other to live beyond the hope that those same perpetrators would ever serve to help us heal.
Stephenie tweet #1: “I can’t promise it will get better for you, but it did get better for me ❤️
I name the fake identities my twin brother uses so as to empower safety for his past and future victims.
Aliases include: Daryl Wakeham, Alison the Celtic Chameleon, and James the Argumentative Penguin”
As for Trump?
Lawyers are willing to take the case, even if they accept they’re as likely to get stiffed as Trump’s previous attorneys. He doesn’t just defraud war veterans of millions of dollars to pay for things like self portraits. He also simply doesn’t pay his bills.
But what’s also become clear?
The guy is just an asshole. Most assholes don’t actually have a gender. The only thing they seem capable of doing is causing a stink.
Other stuff I made this week
- TRANSlating Everything Recaps The Power: Episode 1
- TRANSlating Everything Recaps The Power: Episode 2
- TRANSlating Everything Recaps The Power: Episode 3
- TRANSlating Wakanda Forever: The MCU’s Greatest Transition (Yet)
- More Than Our Genitals, More Than Our Brains
- Heartless: French Trans Singer Redefines A Kanye West Classic
- Dear Cis Sisters: Please Sit Down Before You Get Us Killed
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