Does lying work for Trump the way it works for Pinocchio, making one of his body parts grow longer? Is that why he’s such a compulsive liar? NPR’s Steve Inskeep was ready for Trump’s groundless claims.
My own short-lived career in radio journalism was much more modest, to say the least, but it had its moments. Considering my meager income of $135/week gross (equivalent to $575 today), I lived in a rented basement room of a house where several lawyers had their offices. One of them had been the city solicitor.
The way the gas and electric company in the city paid its property taxes seemed suspicious to me, so I asked the lawyer what the deal was. He said he’d explain but, knowing I was a reporter, only if it was off the record.
The Gas and Electric company in the city was chronically late in paying its property taxes. After some period of time had elapsed, responsibility for collection fell to the city solicitor, who was paid for his services with a portion of those taxes. That much I already knew, but the delays in payments seemed to almost be on a schedule… and they were.
The general manager would intentionally delay payment of the taxes until enough time had passed to trigger the city solicitor’s involvement. After the taxes had been paid, the city solicitor gave a cut of his share to the general manager. A classic kickback scheme.
The lawyer even told me the current city solicitor, an attorney who I also knew, was in on the action. They sort of took turns with the lucrative gig. Being an off-the-record conversation, I could use the information only for my own “deep background” on how things worked in the city and, I assumed, the world at large.