Donald Trump goes off the deep end trying to distract from his Niger scandal

| 1:30 pm EDT October 20, 2017
Dear Palmer Report readers, we all understand the difficult era we're heading into. Major media outlets are caving to Trump already. Even the internet itself and publishing platforms may be at risk. But Palmer Report is nonetheless going to lead the fight. We're funding our 2025 operating expenses now, so we can keep publishing no matter what happens. I'm asking you to contribute if you can, because the stakes are just so high. You can donate here.

With each passing hour, it becomes that much more clear that Donald Trump and his administration did something scandalous when it comes to the deadly U.S. military operation in Niger, and then clumsily tried to cover up the entire operation. Trump in particular seems to be figuring out just how much trouble he’s in, as he’s gone off the deep end trying to distract from a scandal that could end up taking him and his people down.

This morning Trump tweeted “Just out report: ‘United Kingdom crime rises 13% annually amid spread of Radical Islamic terror.’ Not good, we must keep America safe!” Of course this is merely more racist garbage from Fox News and the other propaganda outlets he adores. But it’s the first time in months that Trump has invoked the racist phrase “Radical Islamic terror.” It’s one of his most effective phrases for firing up his racist base – but he only dusts it off when he thinks he truly needs to rally his goons.

This comes after Trump tweeted last night that “The Fake News is going crazy with wacky Congresswoman Wilson(D), who was SECRETLY on a very personal call, and gave a total lie on content!” Every single word of that tweet was a lie. But remarkably, after Trump was raked over the coals by the media and mainstream America for having insulted the pregnant widow of one of the U.S. soldiers who died in Niger, he was desperate enough to circle back to it last night. At this point he’s willing to keep reminding the public about that scandal, in the faint hope that he can keep the public’s focus off what those troops were doing in Niger to begin with – and why he tried to cover the whole thing up.

At least one House Republican is now trying to blame Donald Trump’s Niger scandal on the intelligence community. But that excuse is unlikely to get the GOP much traction, even as it desperately tries to find a way to prop up Trump just long enough to pass tax cuts for the wealthy — before it gives up on him entirely.