The Lying Game

Way back when Bill and Hillary Clinton were first on the scene, I recall someone saying about them that they lie when the truth serves their interests. In other words, these are people who get pleasure from lying beyond the practical benefits. They were a different breed of cat from politicians of old who lied to win votes. The Clintons lied because they enjoyed lying even when it cost them votes.

At the time it seemed like they were outliers. Two grifters from the Ozarks exploiting an opportunity to get famous in politics. Long forgotten is how most people comforted themselves in the belief that they would eventually face justice. There was also the belief that even though they were oleaginous grifters, the system was strong enough to survive their time in Washington.

In retrospect, the Clintons were the tip of the spear, an invasion by a novel form of sociopath that has now become dominant in our politics. Across the political spectrum, politicians and their handlers spin outlandish whoppers that often have no practical value in terms of politics. The Biden people chanting "Putin price hikes" was offensively stupid as exactly no one believed it, not even them.