“I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters.” (Donald Trump on January 23, 2016)

As outlandish as this pronouncement seemed at the time, President Trump showed remarkable prescience in regard to his constituency’s loyalty and refusal to believe (or care about) all his alleged miscreant misdeeds, as reported in the “Fake News Media.”

But we may be reaching a tipping point in this symbiosis. And the next few months will mightily test that relationship if clues dropped lately morph into a cacaphony of presidential sex scandals of which Stormy Daniels’ and Karen McDougal’s “confessions/accusations” will only be the opening salvo. After all, finances and “pay to play” are not sexy. The average news viewer’s eyes glaze over when confronted with numbers and your standard Wash D.C. accounting malfeasance. But sex? Well, sex IS sexy and a lot easier to understand. Everybody knows the rules about doinking.

I could be totally wrong here, of course, but my central thesis is based upon three facts: one patently obvious, another that has been asserted by Ms. Daniels and Ms. McDougal, and a third professed by Steve Bannon.

#1 — Donald Trump is attracted to beautiful women, including models and Playboy Bunnies. He has a history of bragging about his affairs or attempted affairs. (Examples: Marla Maples and the Access Hollywood tape: “You know, I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them.”)

#2 — Germaphobe claims aside, Donald Trump engages in unprotected sex. Not proven, exactly, but claimed by Ms. Daniels and Ms. McDougal. (And what would be their motive to lie about such a fact? It points to their own neglect as well.)

#3 — And Steve Bannon puts the cherry on top with the following quote from Michael Wolffe’s Fire and Fury (a statement which he has not denied). “Look, [Marc] Kasowitz (Mr. Trump’s New York attorney of many years) has known [Trump] for twenty-five years. [He] has gotten him out of all kinds of jams. Kasowitz on the campaign — what did we have, a hundred women? Kasowitz took care of all of them.” Sure, Bannon could be stretching the truth a bit, but let’s just count “a hundred” as “lots.” And what about Michael Cohen. Was he running a parallel setup?

Now we get into the possible quicksand of abortion that could pull President Trump much, much lower in his supporters’ estimation. Look closely at the the photos that opened this article… Ah, forget that. Here they are again.

The guy on the right says he had a long term affair with the woman on the left. The result was that she got pregnant, he got her an abortion, and then paid her $1.6 million to keep quiet. The money was “funneled” (a favorite Giuliani term) through Michael Cohen’s LLC, the same LLC that was used to pay off Stormy Daniels. This isn’t the New York Times or Washington Post peddling their lies. This is what the guy (Elliott Broidy) says happened.

Even after this scandalous and embarrassing love-match — I’ll let you choose which participant would be more embarrassed — Mr. Broidy’s wife does not seem to have left her husband, at least from what I’ve been able to find. What? This, by her husband’s own admission, was no quickie. It lasted many months. And if he could afford $1.6 million for someone he’s not even married to, there would be a hell of a lot more the wife could win in any divorce settlement. And why would he be so willing to accept blame? Where are all the typical denials.

But aside from that… I’m looking at these photos and… I just don’t believe it. This affair never happened. That’s what I say. Certainly Mr. Broidy could do better than that, no?

Just kidding, of course. But for days, I’m been hounding my girlfriend — I’m the type of person who pauses a broadcast for unasked-for analysis — that “There is no way these two were involved. This guy is taking the fall for Donald Trump!” Why, I wasn’t sure, but I was sure he’d gotten something in return. And the key point here is the abortion. If Donald Trump was the true culprit, wouldn’t his arrangement of an abortion swing the pendulum toward the other side in the eyes of evangelicals, many of whom consider abortion to be murder or something close. Let’s rephrase Mr. Trump’s early 2016 proclamation to read:

“I could get an abortion for a woman I knocked up during an extramartial affair and I wouldn’t lose voters. And Melania would understand. She wants to protect the family’s image as much as I do.”

How would that go over?

I have to admit I’m working from the “there’s never just one cockroach” theory here. Theory, hell, let’s just stipulate it as fact. And the longer the investigations go on, the more that will come out.

What are the limits on how much rope Mr. Trump’s supporters will allow him before he hangs himself?

Once again, I emphasize that this is pure speculation. But if there’s anything we’ve learned from history it’s that lots of people cheat on their partners and then lie about it. Only here the stakes are just a bit higher.

Thanks for listening. And let’s hope, despite everything, our President comes out of Singapore with a comprehensive and verifiable deal with Kim Jong Un. After all, Kennedy shared at least one of President Trump’s proclivities and he kept Soviet missiles out of Cuba.

Stay tuned.

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About the author: Daniel Berenson contributes to Medium now and then — in this case now — with original and unique views on such things as politics, squirrels, fairy tales, hurricanes, sports, and Spanish telenovelas. Please follow him or give him some claps — please be sure that’s in the plural — if you enjoyed this. Or better yet, follow him. And thanks again for reading this.