While Donald Trump has said some crazy stuff since taking office, his latest accusation against a major news network provides proof positive he intends to use the “insanity defense” in any criminal prosecution against him.
Trump is now making the absurd, and baseless, claim that NBC News somehow doctored an interview with Lester Holt in which he cites the Russia investigation as a factor behind firing FBI director James Comey.
“What’s going on at @CNN is happening, to different degrees, at other networks – with @NBCNews being the worst,” Trump tweeted. “The good news is that Andy Lack(y) is about to be fired(?) for incompetence, and much worse. When Lester Holt got caught fudging my tape on Russia, they were hurt badly!”
The “insanity defense,” also known as the mental disorder defense, is a defense by excuse in a criminal case, arguing that the defendant is not responsible for his or her actions due to an episodic or persistent psychiatric disease at the time of the criminal act.
It is possible Trump just might pull this off if he keeps going on this way.
What’s next … the Earth is flat? The moon landing was fake? Big Foot is an alien? Dinosaurs helped build the pyramids? Elvis is still alive? The National Enquireris real news? Don Jr. and Ivanka are not really my kids?
As Rachel might say, “Watch this space.”
Photo | nytimes/leaonhardt
