Now we’ve got the mug shot. Apparently, Donald and Melania practice in front of the mirror with the eye squint, him trying to look like Churchill or Clint Eastwood, his heroes, not sure which. I’ve long suspected he has practiced the pursed lips way of talking, too.

Our country has indeed come to a strange place in history. Years ago, we would be aghast at a president who was indicted 91 times, convicted of sexual abuse, paying off porn stars, married three times, astoundingly ignorant of just about everything. He fawns over the murderous Russian president and compliments him often. Truth: This Russian president would destroy America if he could.

Remember the secret meeting in Helsinki? According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Russian president looked smug, and Steve Bannon said Trump “looked like a beaten dog.” Interpreter’s notes were destroyed. Why would anyone want a president who was at the mercy of Putin? Having grown up during the JFK-Cuban Missile Crisis and the Cold War, it gave me chills. Don Jr. famously said, “We get our money from Russia.”

Could we ever see a reporter brave enough to ask, “Have you no sense of decency, sir?”

Even if so, he continually says he’s done nothing wrong. He’s an interesting study in narcissism. Does he believe it? Or just the pathological lying thing? Why don’t some people get it? Here’s a man who stole from his cancer foundation, was fined $5 million and forced to give the rest to charity.

He manages to get in graduating from the Wharton School in order to convince people how smart he is … he has no MBA, has hidden his grades. One of his professors, Bill Kelley, said he was the “stupidest god****” student he’s ever had. Kelley said he walked in bragging how he knew everything, and that he was unteachable, probably never read a book in his life. There are no mentions of him on any deans lists, some students said he would show up unprepared, uninterested. This is all in the public record. It has been suggested by Mary Trump, his cousin, that he paid someone to take his SAT. In those days, you could get away with it.

Many people believe his illusion that the economy was better under Trump. It was doing very well under President Obama. What did Trump do? Gave the rich another tax cut. Increased the deficit by almost $8 trillion. COVID hit, and he suggested people drink bleach. Seriously. The doctors were beaten into silence during the idiotic press conferences. He just liked being on stage all the time. People were dying by the thousands … cargo ships were backed up from here to kingdom come. The economy was in difficulty. It was worldwide. He was obsessed with projecting all was in hand. Master of illusion, always.

It wasn’t until Joe Biden (“shut up, man”) took over that the country breathed a collective sigh of relief. Yet, here we are two and a half years later with the Don still lying about a stolen election. Fifty-five cases in court that were never proved. He fired the cyber security expert Chris Krebs who said it was a most secure election. No one contradicts the Don.

Fani Willis, Fulton County, Georgia district attorney is taking him to task. What he, Rudy and his minions did to Ruby Freeman and Shae Moss was downright sickening. These two women had worked elections for years. Then the lies started. Their lives were threatened. Trump lied about them stuffing ballots. Maureen Dowd, of The New York Times describes Trump as feral and cunning. Indeed. To see this man held accountable for crimes, for once in his life will be satisfying.

The documents case. Straightforward crime. Keeping documents that don’t belong to him, hiding them and lying about it, getting others to lie when the National Archives asked for them back is a federal crime. The FBI shows up to take them back. We get the “Poor me, I didn’t do anything wrong” song again. According to witnesses, he took some to his Bedminster Golf Club in New Jersey to show and brag to people. National secrets, nuclear warfare. What a nutter, as they say in Britain.

The coup. I’m looking forward to Jack Smith prosecuting this one. It was all on TV, on tape. A cop lost his life. Others beaten so badly, they had to retire. So much of it was done for all to see. His vice president’s life threatened. People pooping on the floor of Congress. He tried to steal it, and accused the Dems of stealing. It’s his m.o. As Chris Christie said, it was “conduct beneath the dignity of the office of president.” Attempting to steal an election and overthrow a duly elected administration is also unconstitutional. For those of us who are up to our ears in “no one is above the law.” We say “Finally!!”

Ms. Dowd compares Mr. Trump to “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” For those of us who remember that in the end, “He is driven mad by his ludicrously consequence free life, his soul is as guilty as the painting is repulsive.” It didn’t end well for Mr. Gray and it won’t end well for Mr. Trump.

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Jennifer Zahn is a resident of Saranac Lake.