by
Alex
Wong/Getty)
Ed.
note:
Please
welcome
Vivia
Chen
back
to
the
pages
of
Above
the
Law.
Subscribe
to
her
Substack,
“The
Ex-Careerist,” here.
Hooters
at
the
Kennedy
Center? If
Republicans
get
their
way,
the
Opera
House
of
the
Kennedy
Center
for
the
Performing
Arts
will
soon
be
renamed
after
Melania
Trump.
Because
who
better
embodies
the
artistic
spirit
of
America
today
than
a
one-time
model
known
for
her
sultry
poses?
(The
2000
British
GQ
issue
in
which
she
romped
in
the
buff
in
Trump’s
private
jet
is
now
a
collector’s
item,
going
for
$1,000
on
eBay.)
But
Melania’s
not
just
resting
on
her
glossy
laurels
—
she’s
on
a
mission
to
expand
our
definition
of
art,
championing
nude
modeling
as
high
culture.
Comparing
her
nude
photos
to
classical
art,
such
as
Michelangelo’s
David
and
John
Collier’s
Lady
Godiva,
Melania
asked
in
a video this
spring:
“Are
we
no
longer
able
to
appreciate
the
beauty
of
the
human
body?
Throughout
history,
master
artists
have
revered
the
human
shape,
evoking
profound
emotions
and
admiration.”
So
profound.
Donald
Trump,
l’artiste
extraordinaire. I
hope
I’m
wrong
but
I
don’t
believe
that
the
ongoing
saga
in
the
Jeffrey
Epstein
matter
will
result
in
any
real
damage
to
Trump.
Sure,
there
seems
to
be
a
coverup
in
the
works.
After
whipping
up
the
base
with
promises
of
a
big
exposé,
the
FBI
and
the
Department
of
Justice
are
stonewalling
the
release
of
the
Epstein
files.
And
it’s
fishy
that
Todd
Blanche,
the
number
two
lawyer
at
DOJ
(and
Trump’s
de
facto
personal
lawyer),
is
meeting
privately
with
Epstein
consort
and
co-conspirator
Ghislaine
Maxwell.
Adding
to
the
stink
is
Trump’s
refusal
to
rule
out
a
pardon
for
Maxwell,
who’s
serving
a
20-year
sentence
for
sex
trafficking.
(He
said
he hasn’t
thought
about it,
which
means
his
wheels
are
spinning
about
what
he
can
get
out
of
her.)
Will
this
lead
to
anything
significant?
Doubt
it.
Honestly,
even
if
there
were
a
video
of
Trump
and
Epstein
abusing
a
procession
of
underage
girls,
his
base
would
either
shrug
their
shoulders
or
spin
it
as
evidence
that
God
works
in
mysterious
ways.
What did catch
my
eye,
though,
was
the
Wall
Street
Journal’s
recent
revelation
of
Trump’s
artistic
flair,
which
he
reportedly
displayed
in
a
birthday
greeting
to
Epstein.
Trump
allegedly
drew
a
picture
of
a
naked
woman,
deploying
his
signature
as
pubic
hair.
Some
called
that
touch
vulgar
but
I
found
it
oddly
inspired.
Though
he
denies
that
it
was
his
creation
(he’s
now
suing
Rupert
Murdoch,
WSJ’s
owner,
for
that
article), Trump
was
an
avid
doodler who
drew
buildings,
the
New
York
skyline
and
the
George
Washington
Bridge.
Another
artiste
manqué
like
you-know-who?
Lauren
Boebert
has
an
amazing
idea. I
hope
you
didn’t
miss
this
one:
Representative
Boebert
demanded
that
a
special
counsel
be
appointed
to
investigate
the
DOJ’s
refusal
to
unveil
the
Epstein
files.
And
she
has
the perfect
candidate for
the
job:
Matt
Gaetz,
another
alleged
child
abuser.
I
don’t
know
if
Boebert
was
serious
or
just
yanking
our
chain.
In
any
case,
you
can’t
deny
that
Gaetz
would
bring
insight
to
the
job.
The
Vances
will
be
terrorizing
the
Cotswolds.
Why
on
earth
is
JD
Vance
dragging
his
family
to
the
Cotswolds
for
vacation
when
he’s
shown
nothing
but
contempt
for
the
UK
and
the
rest
of
Europe?
And
as
a
hardcore
nativist,
shouldn’t
he
be
spending
August
in
the
USA
bonding
with
real
Americans?
But
even
if
JD
refrains
from
disparaging
the
UK
on
this
trip,
you
have
to
feel
sorry
for
the
natives.
Considering
the low
opinion
Europeans
have
of
Trump,
Vance’s
mere
presence
is
bound
to
cast
a
pall.
(And
what
a
bummer
for
Ellen
DeGeneres
and
her
wife
Portia
De
Rossi
who moved
to
the
Cotswold
to
escape
Trump.)
As
Guardian
columnist
Zoe
Williams
puts
it:
“What
did
the
people
of
the
Cotswolds
do to
deserve
a
visit
from
JD
Vance?”
Fired
Davis
Polk
associate
claps
back. Remember my
post
on
Ryan
Powers,
the
associate
who
got
canned
by
Davis
Polk
for
publishing
articles
critical
of
MAGA? Well,
he
took
issue
with
some
of
my
points.
(Check
out
his
response
in the
comment
section.)
You
might
also
recall
I
concluded
my
post
by
asking
whether
Powers
was
“heroic,
naive
or
annoying.”
As
the
sharp
eyes
at
Above
the
Law noted,
he’s
now
embracing
those
labels.
His Instagram tag
now
reads
“heroic,
naive
and
annoying.”
Hey,
go
for
it.
The
Gen
Z
blank
stare.
Apparently,
it’s
a
thing.
Business
Insider reports:
“As
more
of
Gen
Z
enters
the
workforce,
some
millennials
are
saying
the
younger
workers
are
greeting
customers
and
colleagues
with
wide
eyes,
blank
expressions,
and
pregnant
pauses.”
All
this
has
raised
questions
whether
Gen
Z
lacks
basic
social
fluency
to
navigate
the
corporate
workplace
and
everyday
life.
I
had
no
idea
this
was
part
of
a
larger
social
trend.
I
just
thought
it
was
normal
for
my
kids
to
stare
at
me
with
bored
disdain
like
I’m
an
idiot.
Subscribe
to
read
more
at
The
Ex-Careerist….
Vivia
Chen writes “The
Ex-Careerist” column
on
Substack
where
she
unleashes
her
unvarnished
views
about
the
intersection
of
work,
life,
and
politics.
A
former
lawyer,
she
was
an
opinion
columnist
at
Bloomberg
Law
and
The
American
Lawyer.
Subscribe
to
her
Substack
by
clicking
here:
