What goes around comes around.

Trump made his name by stiffing banks, contractors, and yes – attorneys, all while presuming that he could use his name and willingness to be an asshole to lift him out of the consequences. But now he’s facing some of the biggest consequences of all and people will not work for him out of fear that Trump will stiff them, too. This time, though, Trump’s name is devastating his chances.

People don’t want to be associated with toxic Trump.

Thus it is that Trump has had to look to Lindsey Graham for help in securing any legal counsel for his upcoming impeachment trial. Lindsey has hooked Trump up with a South Carolina attorney who has represented governors and other South Carolina politicians. We want to point out that Graham likely knows far more attorneys in Washington DC than he does in South Carolina, but the DC attorneys won’t represent Trump, whereas a few attorneys from South Carolina might. They come from a MAGA state.

But there is still the problem with paying the bill and it appears to us like Trump doesn’t have the $1 million – $2 million retainer that any sane attorney would demand prior to accepting his case. Payment is at least as big an issue as working for a seditious ex-president:

‘So that is what is happening here and Lindsey Graham connected him to the former president, but he’s also looking for other lawyers. We’re hearing there are some other people who are on cusp of signing on but there are questions over payment: the former president has a long history and record of not paying his bills and anything from lawyers to contractors to others. So there are some people from big firms who are saying, ‘no thank you,’ we are not going to sign on this because there are some worries about all the controversy that comes with it and paying the bill.”

“So by the end of the week there will be more of a defense team in place, but there is still a help-wanted sign being hung out by the former president,”

Lawyers are unique in their willingness to represent even some reprehensible people as a commitment to the system. If a certain type of criminal defendant cannot get representation, the entire system falls apart. But that doesn’t mean an attorney is obligated to take any one case. Trump remains toxic and we’re convinced that’s a bigger part of it than the bill.

But attorneys are also unique in their demand for all the money upfront, at least to be kept in trust and drawn from. One would think that a man facing a proceeding that would slam the door on the ability to keep his chances open would be willing to pay almost anything. It makes us wonder if Trump has “almost anything” with which to pay the bill, at least right now.

We also cannot help but notice that this happens to be his problem, not ours – and we’re thankful for that.

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Peace, y’all
Jason
[email protected] and on Twitter @JasonMiciak