Is Donald Trump, Jr. Really Fredo Corleone?
By
Leonard Zwelling
The rise of Michael Corleone, the Ivanka Trump of his family, was hastened by the demise of Sonny Corleone on the Causeway. The latter is an event that would never have transpired had there been EasyPass in the late 1940’s.
The mantle of power was never going to pass to the next eldest middle son Fredo after Sonny’s death. As David Letterman might say, Fredo was the “idiot son” of Vito Corleone. As you remember it was Fredo who fumbled with a gun trying to defend his father from the attack of the assassins in front of the fruit stand and it was Fredo who eventually turned on Michael when he inadvertently helped Hyman Roth try to kill Michael in his own home in Nevada. Fredo did great damage to the family. Eventually the family did equal damage to Fredo when Michael had him killed after their mother’s death. If this was a spoiler for you about Godfather Part I, I am sorry. Where have you been for the past 45 years?
I am wondering if Ivanka is about ready to send Don Jr. to sleep with the fishes.
Don Jr. was always the Fredo of his family. Ivanka was the favorite daughter and Eric seems to be somewhere in between (Connie?). Now Don Jr. has sufficiently embarrassed his father and the rest of the Trumps by clearly colluding to rig the 2016 Presidential election in his father’s favor with help from the Russians. There is no longer any doubt that Don Jr. took the meeting with the Russian lawyer in hopes she would deliver on a promise to give him damaging dirt on Mrs. Clinton. It appears it didn’t work out that way, but in his haste to attract Daddy’s favor, Don Jr. also sucked in Jared Kushner (is he Carlo?) and Paul Manafort (Tessio) to the meeting and compromised them all. Whether this constitutes just bad judgment or actual treason will be for Special Prosecutor Mueller to determine, but whatever the conclusion of the Justice Department, the Congress or Mr. Mueller, Don Jr. really stepped in it. Oh yes, and don’t forget what happened to Carlo and Tessio at the end of the film.
Just like Fredo, Don Jr. has committed the unforgiveable. He tried to cover up his misdeeds. He lied. He colluded. He roped in others in his web of bad ideas. He really is Fredo.
I give him just one more piece of advice. If Daddy offers you a boat ride with one of his friends, perhaps Steve Bannon, turn it down.
