A search of this blog reveals that I have not mentioned "Drain the Swamp" at all before today. "Lock her up," the slogan that came out of 2016's "October Surprise," at least had a post to itself. That changes today, as I'm sharing Drain the Swamp: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO).
Donald Trump promised to “drain the swamp.” But considering the culture of corruption inside of his administration, Washington is looking awfully...swampy.I've written about Scott Pruitt and his ethics scandals before, but I have only mentioned Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke for his policy decisions, not his potential for corruption. Since I used to be a National Park Ranger and so was an employee in the Department of the Interior, I'm surprised that I haven't. Thank you, John Oliver, for doing my work for me. Now that I have the opening, I'll be sure to follow up.
As for the phrase "drain the swamp," I'm not sure that it means the same thing to Trump and his supporters that it means to everyone else. It looks more like his administration is draining the swamp of the bureaucrats and experts who actually try to regulate the swamp than the actual corrupt swamp creatures they are trying to police. That reminds me of the famous line from "The Princess Bride," "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."*
*That reminds me that William Goldman, who wrote "The Princess Bride," died this week. He also wrote the script for "All the President's Men." Between the two, he deserves a mention here.
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