Michael Cohen (IowaPolitics.com)

I’m never ceased to be amazed by people who have tried to ally themselves with President Donald Trump. It never goes well, they usually leave the encounter worse off, because Trump is toxic. He destroys everything he touches. The GOP lost a record number of seats in the 2018 midterm elections and by the time he eventually leaves the White House, the party’s reputation will likely be six-feet under.

Just look at the political operatives who tried to embrace Trump? Gens. James Mattis, John Kelly and H.R. Master all left the White House with their tails between their legs and their reputations in tatters. Other Trump partners have also been burned by their association him. Former campaign manager Paul Manafort will likely die in jail and former National Security Adviser, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn is a pariah, who had to mortgage his house to fund his defense. Michael Cohen, who’s also going to jail, will always be remembered as Trump’s no. 1 hatchetman.

“I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who doesn’t deserve it,” said Cohen after it was revealed he had rigged online polls in Trump’s favor.

Additionally, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders Huckabee said she intended to step down in 2018. But she’s still employed there, because she can’t find any place to go. Can you imagine what Homeland Secretary Kristjen Nielsen is going to face after she leaves the White House? She’s going to be known as the woman who created child prisons for the rest of her life. The title of Republican political operative Rick Wilson’s book some this up. It’s called “Everything Trump Touches Dies.”

The Washington Post recently published an article about the travails of Chrisette Michelle, an R&B singer who agreed to perform at Trump’s inauguration. She failed to appreciate the backlash she would get from the black community. She was mocked for working with a candidate who had emboldened white supremacists, her sales tanked and she eventually lost her record deal. Now she performs to largely empty venues.

“People didn’t feel hopeful from that moment,” said Michele. “They didn’t feel represented in that moment. They felt misrepresented. They felt further misunderstood, and they felt the person they were depending on to speak on their behalf just betrayed them.”

Trump was always corrupt and so is his administration. Working alongside him makes you an accomplice. If you work for Trump, people also think you support racism, sexism, corruption and non-stop lies. Because that’s what Trump stands for.

If I called Trump a traitor, drug addict, and a bigot, I’d be telling the truth. Why would anyone decide to ally themselves with that?

Americans would do well to learn from the lessons of French women who slept with German soldiers during World War II. After France was liberated from the Nazis, these women were stripped to their underwear and had their heads publicly shaved. They were seen as collaborators who literally slept with the enemy. When Trump’s gone, the people who worked with him will also face the consequences of their actions.