One of the few things upon which there is near agreement in this country is that President Donald Trump lies. A lot. Make that almost always.
There is a price tag for lies. Remember as a kid, your Mom said, "If you lie, then later when you tell the truth, people won't believe you." We saw that in Trump's remark about "Fire and Fury" against North Korea recently, with the exclusion of negotiations. In many newspapers, his rant was carried under the fold with the lead of the sad passing of singer Glen Campbell. Why? Because the media had heard Trump make similar threats before, which turned out to be posturing. Said another way, a lie.. Sure enough, both the Secretary of State and Defense Secretary confirmed they were working on negotiations and not attacking.
The United States might very well engage in a preemptive first strike to take out North Korea's ability to strike. But that threat and the effect it might have to deter the deranged mind of North Korea Dictator Kim Jong-un has been largely lost because our messenger never seems to tell the truth.
Some say Trump's New York free wheeling negotiating style for real estate is why he lies so much. Having lived in the big Apple for a year, and observing New Yorkers, I find there might be some truth to that. And even if new Chief of Staff Kelly told him to stop lying, it is doubtful that Trump would listen. Many say his bizarre mind is such that he may not think he is lying, at least what he considers to be lies. But the majority of thought seems to be the obvious--Trump lies to divert attention from the government investigation into his possible unlawful links to our foreign enemy, Russia.
Apparently there is now a count of over 1,000 lies told by the President in his short half a year in office. You remember they started with his Birther lie about President Obama; then his lie about Election Fraud; followed by his lie about Wiretapping of his office again by Obama; and who can forget his lies to the Veterans about a donation (similar to the one he is said to have now walked back about Hurricane Harvey). These are lies told to Americans. These are the same Americans to which he promised on his Inauguration, "To Tell the Truth, the Whole Truth, So Help You God." I am not sure all his money can buy him out of that problem on judgement day. I don't know when that 25% base of his will tire of his untruths, but I predict it will happen. And the real tragedy is we will never know what kind of President he could have been if he had minded probably his Mother, , and just told the truth.