The Depravity of Chief Executives

While some people keep trying to “protect” Americans from learning about the worst aspects of America, lawyers have no choice. From the moment we enter law school we are confronted with the best and the worst of America. We have no choice – our job is to deal with it and help others deal with it. One of the first cases we read in my class on criminal law dealt with the trial and conviction of a well-connected Indiana politician and Klan leader for kidnapping, imprisoning, raping and killing a young woman.[1] Once having had our noses rubbed in the cruelty of other people, we look at the world with our eyes open.

Are presidents decent? Some of them. But some were demonstrably corrupt, held slaves, started wars for political purposes that killed enormous numbers of soldiers and civilians and lied about the reasons. I want to believe that presidents are honest, decent, and care about our welfare. But there is nothing automatic about it.

Should chief executives, governors and presidents, be above the law? I shudder to think about the consequences.

Are liars trustworthy?

The Eisenhower Administration initially lied about what Capt. Francis Gary Powers was doing when he was shot down over the Soviet Union. In that case, I understood the diplomatic necessity of Eisenhower’s denial. A “white” lie.

I loved what Johnson did for civil rights but his Administration deceived America about Vietnam.[2] He was also stupid about it – Ho Chi Minh was an admirer of George Washington but it was long after the end of that very bloody war before we realized we could, and now do, trade with Vietnam.

We can disagree about Reagan’s politics, but misleading America about why the hostages weren’t home, while his people were telling Iran not to release them before he took office, was a despicable political ploy that kept people I know and respect incarcerated in Iran – one of them in solitary confinement. Sorry Mr. Reagan, but that was disgusting, even treasonous.

It matters what George Bush told us about whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. The subsequent war made everything worse in the Middle East, strengthening violent forces in the region, and shifting regional politics against our interests.

Lies and deception screw everything up. They are responsible for the deaths of millions. They poison the air with false explanations and blame the innocent for political reasons. No – Blacks, Jews, Catholics and anti-fascists did not falsify the 2020 election. Just the opposite – Trump begged, threatened and inspired the intimidation of honest election workers and public officials to change the results in plain site, but the pot calls the kettle black and tries to blame everyone else.

Should Trump be tried? For bilking people who’ve worked for him? For fraud? Sexual abuse? Treason? How about adultery? He’s dangerous. Every word out of his mouth makes this country worse, less safe, less able to deal with its problems. Yes, lock him up and remove him from center stage.

— If you think I’m on target, please pass it on. For the podcast, please click here. This commentary was scheduled for broadcast on WAMC Northeast Report, on April 11, 2023.

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[1] Stephenson v. State, 205 Ind. 141, 179 N.E. 633 (1932) and see Karen Abbott, “Murder Wasn’t Very Pretty”: The Rise and Fall of D.C. Stephenson, Smithsonian Magazine, August 30, 2012.

[2] Lieutenant Commander Pat Paterson, U.S. Navy, in The Truth About Tonkin in The Naval History Magazine, concluded “The administration’s zeal for aggressive action, motivated by President Johnson’s election worries, created an atmosphere of recklessness and overenthusiasm in which it became easy to draw conclusions based on scanty evidence and to overlook normally prudent precautionary measures. Without the full picture, Congress could not offer the checks and balances it was designed to provide. Subsequently, the White House carried the nation into the longest and one of the most costly conflicts in our nation’s history.” See also the report in the New York Times.