Trump's Rejection of Observable Reality
The president’s acceptance of Roy Moore’s denials, and his own reported doubts about the <em>Access Hollywood </em>tape, again raise questions about his relationship with empiricism.
Speaking before he left Washington for Thanksgiving, President Trump laid out a coldly rational case for backing Roy Moore, the troubled Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Alabama. Despite the multiple women who have aired allegations running from sexual assault to merely deeply creepy behavior, Trump said, he preferred a solid vote for his agenda in the Senate.
But less noted was his analysis of the actual accusations against Moore. “Let me just tell you, Roy Moore denies it,” Trump said. “That's all I can say. He denies it. By the way, he totally denies it.” That isn’t much response to multiple allegations that even Trump’s own daughter has deemed credible, and over the holiday weekend.
