President Trump’s phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was probably the least surprising thing about 2021so far.
The most surprising thing about the phone call is that Raffensperger had the presence of mind to record it and the gumption to release it after Trump started tweeting lies about it.
Lest we forget, Trump tried to reach Raffensperger 18 times before he finally got through.
This guy had to dodge the President of the United States 18 times.
But here are my favorite things about the phone call:
- After being introduced by Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, Trump begins the phone call with a 12 minute soliloquy. Twelve fucking minutes of this guy droning on in his now familiar monotone.
- In fact, Trump speaks for about 80% of the time, and Raffensperger shows incredible restraint in just letting Trump drone on and on and on.
- Trump ends the phone call by calling himself a “schmuck” for having supported Governor Brian Kemp in his election bid, and claims that Kemp wouldn’t even have won the primary without his support.
It must really be something to be as deluded a human being as Donald Trump seems to be. This guy really can’t seem to comprehend that he might have lost Georgia to Joe Biden, of all people. He really can’t comprehend that Brian Kemp was elected because of voter suppression, not because of Trump’s endorsement.
The legalities will be a discussion for a later day. It seems pretty clear that Trump violated both federal and Georgian election law, but far less clear whether he will ever suffer any consequences. Trump could either pardon himself (of doubtful legality) or get Mike Pence to pardon him for the federal crimes, and it is far from clear that the Georgia Attorney General, who is a Republican, would ever prosecute him.
But, it’s another “perfect” phone call, just like his “perfect” phone call with Volodymyr Zelensky, and like phone calls with (who knows how) many others. It also comes at the most inopportune time — a day before Georgia’s two (count them, two!) Senatorial run-off elections — that will decide control of the upper chamber in the United States Congress.
Good luck with that, Mr. President.
