More on the Fields brouhaha
I’m tired of this topic, but I guess I have to deal with it again.
I really couldn’t have said it better myself, so I’ll let Allahpundit say it:
Somehow, faced with an opponent who’s widely disliked, who’s known for being a weak campaigner, and whose personal baggage is apt to sink her in a general election, we’re on the cusp of nominating a guy who’s disliked to an historic degree, who may not field a traditional campaign apparatus beyond what the RNC can cobble together for him, and who’s got 40 years of tabloid dirty laundry for Democrats to sift through. They’re going to nominate the would-be first woman president and we’re going to nominate a guy who defends a friend who’s just been charged with battery against a young woman by hinting that maybe she put those bruises on herself.
What’s more:
(1) Trump could have avoided all of this by simply saying something like “My campaign manager did nothing wrong, but if evidence emerges that he did then I will apologize. Let’s wait and see.” Or any number of other things that avoided some sort of groveling apology but also avoided the global attacks he and his minions mounted on Fields’ veracity, and the obviously-disproven lie told by Corey Lewandowski that he never “touched” her.
(2) One of Trump’s new assertions seems to be that Fields touched him or grabbed him first. Here’s some typical back-and-forth about whether the photo evidence shows any such thing. But I have a different point to make—if it did happen (and the evidence doesn’t seem to show anything except a casual brushing of a sleeve, although I can’t say I’ve done a definitive analysis of this), why did the Trump camp wait this long to mention it? My goodness, it’s not as though they hadn’t responded earlier at great length, and their response then was to say no contact occurred with Lewandowski (untrue). They never for a moment prior to this have alleged any contact first from Fields. So all of a sudden, first contact by Fields is the new narrative, and everyone’s supposed to run with it? Absurd.
(3) Misdemeanor battery is a very specific and often rather minor charge, and injury is unnecessary for it to have occurred. You may think it’s a silly, minor crime, but it has a long history and is part of the protection the law offers to allow people to be secure in their persons.
Here’s the Florida definition:
—Any actual and intentional touching or striking of another person against that person’s will (non-consensual), or
—The intentional causing of bodily harm to another person.Where there are no aggravating factors or enhancements at play (such as use of a weapon, serious bodily injury, or domestic violence) the offense is known as “simple battery” or “misdemeanor battery.”…
To constitute a crime, there must be “either a specific voluntary act or something that is substantially certain to result from the act.” C.B. v. State, 810 So.2d 1072 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002). A defendant must intend to strike the person, or engage in conduct where he or she knows that a touch or strike “is substantially certain to result from his acts.”
Thus, an accidental touching or a touching that is incidental to other conduct not aimed at making contact with another person, is insufficient to establish a battery…
In all Florida prosecutions, it is a required element of battery that the touching at issue occur without the consent of the alleged victim, or “against the person’s will.”…
To commit the crime of misdemeanor battery, an accused does not have to injure the alleged victim.
We are all our own worst enemy but Trump simply excels at it. He sees every criticism, as an attack, as a personal affront. Its reminiscent of Nixon. Such men are inclined toward paranoia.
Trump, Lewandowski et al resort to a coloring book of law: crayons being their favorite medium.
This charge does not stand a chance. It is nothing more than mere jostling in a crowd. Fields claimed she was grabbed, pulled, and lamost lost her balance. She lied and she continues to lie. BTW, the prosecutor in Jupiter is on the Hillary 150 in Florida. This is just more Democratic lawfare, just like with Rick Perry.
Rick Caird:
It’s funny how the goalposts keep changing. First it was “there’s no video. Then it was “the videos show nothing.” Over time, the videos that have emerged support Field’s story more (although not clearly and not entirely, although it does seem to support the grab/pull part). What’s more—as this post explains quite clearly—to support a misdemeanor battery charge it’s completely unnecessary that she have almost lost her balance.
It was also, “If Fields was really assaulted, she should file charges. Since she doesn’t, then she wasn’t.” Now it is, “It’s not enough of a battery or assault” and “the prosecutor is biased.”
I notice that Trump supporters never seem to address the total lie that Corey Lewandowski told about never having touched her.
And it’s not at all surprising that a Florida prosecutor might be a Hillary supporter. That doesn’t mean that the charge is bogus. Why not let it play out and see what happens? Maybe he’ll be found not guilty if the evidence fails to emerge for a guilty verdict. Or maybe new videos will emerge that vindicate Lewandowski or that vindicate Fields. I doubt there will be any that show Lewandowski never touched or never met her, as he had asserted.
1. I have some first-hand experience with this, since some years ago, I was punched in the face by a guy who had road rage. The police told me it was my decision if I wanted to file charges. I did, and several months later at the trial, the judge found that guy guilty of assault. His punishment was a $100 fine (less than for many traffic tickets!).
2. Michelle Fields is 28, and it appears she had full-time success as a journalist right after college. Corey Lewandowski is 42, got involved in politics right after college, and was also a state trooper in New Hampshire. I can see how their backgrounds would shape their actions and reactions.
3. Just the other day, Howie Carr on his talk radio show was making fun of Michelle Fields, and her reaction to what he thought was a trivial event. Howie is 64 years old, and has a long career in print journalism, besides talk radio. He recounted numerous times of being pushed, grabbed, and shoved around in his time as a reporter. To him, it seemed that Fields was over-reacting, and should have been able to handle something like that.
4. Not only was Howie repeatedly audited by the state and federal government for what he reported, but he was also put on a hit list and received death threats from gangster Whitey Bulger.
5. What to conclude? The best idea is to just go see Black Mass (2015, with Johnny Depp). It’s supposed to be a really good movie.
Could we have a moratorium on this issue until the legal process resolves the issue? The DA may be a hrc crony, but a jury and a judge are also involved should it come to trial.
It seems to me that Trump is displaying typical establishment politician behavior; lying to the public, stonewalling, and attempting to change the subject.
Trump hasn’t been to successful. Trump hasn’t hasn’t thrown Corey “under the bus” but he hasn’t shown any admission of error or admission of bad judgment.
Sir Donald, too big to fail?
According to Mark Levin, the supposed Hillary-supporting prosecutor didn’t initiate this and had no involvement. The decision to arrest was up to the police.
This is how paranoids operate: take a grain of truth, then start seeing connections where none exist. Apophenia.