Is Fraud Part of the Trump Organization’s Business Model?

President Trump’s constant, relentless, remorseless lying is a central feature of his presidency, an unprecedented threat to our democracy and — in my view — an impeachable offense.

I realize it does not qualify as news that Trump lies all the time. I  also realize it is not always possible to draw a bright line between  untruths Trump knows are untrue and conspiratorial nonsense he might  foolishly believe. But never before have we had a leader who so pollutes the national discourse with garbage that he at least ought to know is  false — and I fear the consequences will be with us long after Trump is  gone.

At his inauguration, Trump swore to “faithfully execute the office of president.” He violates that oath when he speaks to the nation in bad faith. Other presidents have lied — Lyndon B. Johnson about Vietnam, Richard M. Nixon about Watergate, Bill  Clinton about Monica Lewinsky. But never have we had a president who lies about everything , who invents his own fake facts, who continues to trumpet patent falsehoods even when confronted with the actual facts.

And yes, undisputed facts do exist and can be ascertained. I am not talking about subtle matters of interpretation; I’m taking about knowing  falsehoods, commonly known as lies. (...)

Direct involvement of the president and his son in this year’s effort to silence Ms. Clifford hasn’t previously been reported. The accounts of that effort recently provided to The Wall Street Journal suggest that the president’s ties to his company continued into this year and contradict public statements made at the time by the Trump Organization, the White House and Mr. Cohen.