• Stormy Daniels, real name Stephanie Clifford, needs no introduction, having become world famous. The stripper and porno film star claims she had a sexual tryst with Donald Trump in 2006, long before he went into politics. I can do no better than to quote Brent Bozell at Town Hall:
First, she was paid $5,000 by In Touch magazine in 2011 to claim that she did have sex with Donald Trump (the story wasn’t published). Then, she was paid $130,000 in October 2016 to shut up and claim she did not have sex with Donald Trump. History turned to farce when Daniels appeared on “60 Minutes” to break her nondisclosure agreement and shamelessly claimed: “I have no reason to lie. You know, I’m not getting paid to be here.”
The cash payment for her silence is news. Granted, it does not cast light on whether (1) Trump’s lawyers contacted her to keep her silent about something that happened, or (2) Daniels contacted Trump’s lawyers about money to keep her silent about something that did (or did not) happen. The first is called hush money. It can get you goodies. The second is called blackmail, a form of extortion. It can get you a year in prison.
Daniels’ 2012 biography “Stormy” is available on Google Books. When interviewed before the current imbroglio, she was asked whether she had an affair with Trump. She replied, “If indeed I did have a relationship with Donald Trump, trust me, you wouldn’t be reading about it in the news, you would be reading about it in my book.” At some point, contradictions reach such a level that a shoulder shrug, not a court trial, is the only appropriate reaction.
During the “60 Minutes” interview, Anderson Cooper asked embarrassing questions ‒ for example, whether Trump used a condom. But consider what Cooper did not ask. He did not ask whether Trump has a scar, or a tattoo, or a birthmark, or whether Trump is circumcised. That is, Cooper did not ask any question that might reveal Daniels’ story to be a fabrication. Gosh, I wonder why.
Ms. Daniels clearly is a businesswoman who can take care of herself. By her own admission, she was not harassed or otherwise pressured by Trump. So the question is, if her story is true, does the one-night stand reflect badly enough on Trump to impair his ability to govern effectively?
But beyond this obvious question is another. A professional porno star and stripper apparently has sex with a rich, prominent man who runs a TV show. Perhaps she hoped it would get her on “The Apprentice.” Perhaps she merely wanted to be near a famous man. But as she made clear, sex (if it occurred) was consensual. So why does she need protection? From whom? On the contrary, one could argue that Donald Trump needed protection from her. Assuming the sex took place as she describes, who was the aggressor?
Despite Stormy Daniels’ successful career, despite her ability to make a living and take care of herself, despite her abundant self-assurance, and despite her cheerful denial that she is a victim, nevertheless “progressives” view her as someone who is weak and vulnerable, someone who needs help in making decisions, and someone who needs them ‒ the “progressives” ‒ to save her from herself when she is dealing with a man. In short, she needs leftist Big Daddy to help and protect her.
It that is not sexism, what is?
