Social Question

filmfann's avatar

A few questions about the Donald Trump/John Miller tape.

Asked by filmfann (52515points) May 13th, 2016

Hear the interview here

Do you think that it is Trump?

Several times during the conversation “John Miller” refers to comments as off the record. Is it journalisticaly responsible to release a tape of off the record remarks?

Is it legal to record telephone calls in New York?

I am not a fan of Trump, but this seems pretty skeezy to me.

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14 Answers

Pied_Pfeffer's avatar

I didn’t listen to the whole conversation.

1. The voice may or may not be Trump’s. I’m no expert.
2. These are not statements made by a professional PR person.
3. Trump is just plain shady. He once lied to a reporter who asked about a meeting he aledegly had with Richard Nixon years ago. Trump denied it. When the reporter checked with Nixon’s office, the rep said that they did meet, and it was to discuss recommendations about a residential location. Story

johnpowell's avatar

The wording is similar to how Trump still speaks today. I’m not talking about voice. Just how he assembles words.

Devi (PnL) caught me using a alt account here just by my typing and my gratuitous use of commas.

kritiper's avatar

Sounds like Trump to me. The voice, the things he says, how he says the things he says. The speaker is far more knowledgeable about Trump to be someone else.

jnkpauley's avatar

It’s him. I hope this derails him. This and all the other things yet uncovered about his shady past.

JLeslie's avatar

@Pied_Pfeffer You think lying about meeting with a President regarding residential real estate is something to distrust someone over? I don’t agree. I think Trump is a narcissist, and so you would think he would brag about meeting with Presidents and leaders.

Was this after Nixon left office? Maybe, just maybe he didn’t want to be associated with Nixon. But, if he was going to sell Nixon property or do a deal with him, then he certainly would wind up associated with him.

I don’t think it’s odd to protect the whereabouts of political and popular figures. Trump might have agreed (in writing) to keep the meeting secret.

Do I think Trump will lie for financial and political gain? I do. But, I don’t think he lies more than a lot of them up there on stage.

A little off topic: I saw the media discussing Trump is going to now pivot on some issues. They showed clips if him from the past saying he is pro-choice, and now he says he is pro-life, and the right is afraid he really is pro-choice, and my liberal friends who hate Trump are sure he will be pro-life and changing laws to put women in jail for having abortions. It would make me laugh, except that this is serious business. Not just abortion laws, but serious in general. Mitt Romney was pro-choice before he ran for national office. The right didn’t seem worried with him.

GSLeader's avatar

A phone conversation that occurred 25 years ago is irrelevant. Is that Trump? Is that actually someone named John Miller? This voter couldn’t care less. Where is moveon.org when you really need them,?

SecondHandStoke's avatar

Regarding Trump’s shift from left to right politically:

I did the very same thing when I finished college and found myself living in the real world.

JLeslie's avatar

Switching parties in NYS doesn’t necessarily mean much. It’s a closed primary state. People switch to be able to vote in the primary they want at the time. I think Trump has switched parties something like 5 times. Probably for specific self interests would be my guess. As far as NYC, Cruz was right, Trump is a New Yorker. NYC voted in Guiliani, a republican, while NYC is mostly registered democrats. Bloomberg switched parties to run for Mayor. Many republicans politicians in NY are liberal on a lot of social issues. The Bible Belt have religion rapped up in their political stuff, NYC not so much. I always say I have more in common with a northern republican than a southern democrat. It’s just a saying, and over generalizes, but I definitely feel politically I am not very far apart from many of my northern republican friends, even though I’m a democrat and always have been.

I don’t mind knowing someone switched parties, it tells me they can change and they don’t follow a party lock stock and barrel. Hillary changed parties also. So did Rick Perry, and a bunch of others who have run for president.

Pachy's avatar

I lean heavily to YES. It sounds like a younger Trump with a Trumpian speaking style. Do I think it will hurt him with his followers? No. But if it was Trump posing under an assume name to champion himself, lying about it now (especially after having admitted to it years ago) is just one more example—as if we needed it!—of his lack of character.

Trump’s diehard spokespeople say, “What does it matter—it happened 25 years ago?” I think it matters a lot, because 25 years ago, Trump was a fully grown adult displaying poor judgment, egomania, self-delusion, disdain for women, prevarication, and hubris. He hasn’t changed exept perhaps to hone these and other disgusting personality traits now that he’s on the world stage.

I shudder to think this man has a real shot at becoming the next leader of the free world.

Pied_Pfeffer's avatar

@JLeslie I understand what you are saying. The point is that Trump lies when he could have just said, “No comment” or ignore it completely or let his PR team handle it.

JLeslie's avatar

*^No comment is a yes. I agree, he could have handled it differently or better. At the same time, his clumsiness in handling things makes me want to know what he has to say. It does not make me want him for president.

He has spoken out in the past about actions and policies of politicians in both parties and I like that. I think sometimes he speaks the bold truth! And, at other times he’s a liar. It feels to me he lies about bullshit that doesn’t matter much, but I’ll say that I do think other politicians, like Bernie Sanders, seems very honest, with more scruples, and of higher integrity.

Take Bill Clinton. So many people hate him for lying. I don’t feel he lied to the American people about Monica. His wife is a different story. If he was telling her the same thing then I call him liar, because he cheated on her. But, the direct question “did you have sex with Monica,” supposedly he just got a blow job. If I say I had sex with someone I don’t mean a blow job. That technical difference I don’t mind regarding his answer to the public, because I feel it never should have been in the public arena to begin with.

Why is Nixon meeting with Trump about buying some real estate really the public’s business? It was a private deal with private money I would think.

To your point though, I heard Trump is full of it regarding his excuses not to turn over his taxes and he plans not to show his tax returns at all if that is the case he has been telling bold face lies about it. What I don’t understand is why doesn’t the IRS or whatever entity, finish the audit, so he doesn’t have that excuse anymore?

Buttonstc's avatar

When I first read your question, THIS is the John Miller I immediately thought of :
.
https://youtu.be/RjXGOluWSR0
.
.
I couldn’t figure out why on earth he would bother interviewing Trump EVER. He has much better things to do with his time :)

Upon listening to the tape, it certainly sounds like Trump with a bad cold. But that is a favorite trick of people trying to disguise their voice: just drop it down a few notches to a lower register.

It definitely wouldn’t surprise me if Trump resorted to stuff like this.

disquisitive's avatar

It is sleezy.

No, it’s not Trump on the phone.

johnpowell's avatar

Trump admitted it was him.

“In 1990, Trump testified in a court case that “I believe on occasion I used that name.”

He could have just been honest and nobody would have cared. But it now adds another lie.

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