The Bully-in-Chief Remains as Predictable as Ever

At the beginning of the year I wrote a post predicting what Donald Trump will do next. Sadly, recent events are proving me right. I have no special psychic ability, but I’ve studied bullies for a long time and I know what a bully does when cornered. Like all bullies, the more Trump has his back pushed against the wall, the more he lashes out. His latest Tweet storm is ample proof of that.

Today his son-in-law Jared Kushner, was interviewed by the Senate Intelligence Committee.  Trump’s son Donald Jr., and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort have also struck an agreement to be privately interviewed by the Committee. Clearly things are getting uncomfortable for the current resident of the White House.

This leads me to two new predictions:

1.     Someone close to Trump will throw him under the bus. Trump is bully who leads a collection of bullying toadies. When bullies get threatened, they lash out.

2.     Trump will soon replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions with someone who can influence the course of the Russia investigation. Trump’s inquiry about pardoning himself makes it clear that he’s getting desperate.

To find out what will happen we only have to stay tuned, but one thing is for sure—the behavior of bullies, and the Bully-in-Chief, will always be predictable.

Andrew Faas is the author of From Bully to Bull’s-Eye: Move Your Organization Out of the Line of Fire

Photo credit: BIGSTOCK

How Charming Bullies React to Being Challenged

It’s amazing what gets revealed when a bully is under fire. We’ve seen bluster, braggadocio and bilious rage when Donald Trump feels threatened because bullies can’t accept any sort of challenge. But U.S. Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, who was grilled today by the Senate Intelligence Committee, is no ordinary bully. He’s a folksy charmer, a sub-classification of bully who can be insidiously harmful. Charming bullies show a genial face in public, but don’t hesitate to harm anyone who disagrees or doesn’t conform to their world view. Things get really interesting when their veneer gets stripped away.

U.S. senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Kamala Harris (D-CA), held Sessions’ feet to the fire during the committee hearing, and, as the temperature rose, so did his temper.

“You are obstructing…and I think your silence speaks volumes,” Heinrich told Sessions after the attorney general continuously refused to answer questions.  

“I would have to say that I have consulted with senior career attorneys in the department,” he countered.

“I suspect you have,” Heinrich shot back.   

Sessions’ bully personality was in even higher reveal when Wyden pointed out that the American people “have had it with stonewalling.” USA Today reports this exchange then occurred:

"Sen. Wyden, I am not stonewalling," Sessions said. "I am following the historic policies of the Department of Justice."

As their exchange continued, Wyden asked about Comey's testimony, in which he said that there were problematic issues with Sessions' recusal from the Russia investigation.

"What are they?" Wyden asked.

At this, Sessions grew visibly agitated.

"Why don't you tell me?" Sessions answered. "There are none, Sen. Wyden. There are none. I can tell you that for absolute certainty. This is a secret innuendo being leaked out there about me, and I don't appreciate it."

But the senator that got Sessions red in the face was Harris, the former California attorney general and prosecutor. It was clear from the start that he didn’t like the fact that she refused to allow him to deflect or prevaricate. As the Los Angeles Times reported:

When Sessions said he didn't recall any conversations with Russian businessmen at the 2016 Republican convention, Harris interrupted again.

“Will you let me qualify it?” he responded in a tone of annoyance. “If I don't qualify it, you'll accuse me of lying. So I need to be correct as best I can. I'm not able to be rushed this fast. It makes me nervous.”

Harris continued to pressure him to answer her question about what policy Sessions was citing when he refused to discuss his conversations with Trump. That’s when McCain interrupted Harris for the second time in two weeks.

“Mr. Chairman, the witness should be allowed to answer the question,” he said. Committee Chair Richard Burr (R-SC) told McCain that he’d handle things, but upheld McCain’s demand.

The relief on Sessions’ face was obvious. 

 Photo credit: ABC News

Understanding Why Targets of Abuse Stay Silent

There was a moment during Thursday’s hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee when U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) tweeted what was in the mind of every American woman watching: “So Comey told Jeff Sessions he didn't want to be alone with Trump. Women across the country can relate.”

As Bill Cosby stands trial for one of his many sexual assaults, and Bill O’Reilly struggles to remain relevant after being fired by Fox News following sexual harassment revelations, Donald Trump’s predatory behavior seems clearer than ever. In an op-ed in the today’s New York Times, Nicole Serratore lays out exactly how Trump’s behavior played out with former FBI director James Comey.

She wrote: “As I listened to James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director, tell the Senate Intelligence Committee about his personal meetings and phone calls with President Trump, I was reminded of something: the experience of a woman being harassed by her powerful, predatory boss. There was precisely that sinister air of coercion, of an employee helpless to avoid unsavory contact with an employer who is trying to grab what he wants.”

The parallels are numerous. From whispering in Comey’s ear about how excited he was for them to work together, to the dinner where Comey was surprised to find himself alone with Trump, to pushing everyone out of the Oval Office so they would be undisturbed, all of these behaviors are quite familiar.

Members of the Intelligence Committee even questioned Comey like he was a woman who had been victim of a male predator. As Elle magazine pointed out:

Throughout the hearing, Comey was peppered with questions about why he didn't somehow stop Trump from being a creep. "You're big, you're strong," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). "Why didn't you stop and say, 'Mr. President, this is wrong–I cannot discuss that with you'?" Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) argued that "You said [to Attorney General Jeff Sessions], 'I don't want to be in the room with him alone again,' but you continued to talk to him on the phone… Why didn't you say, 'I'm not taking that call?'" Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) acknowledged that "[The] president never should have cleared the room and he never should have asked you, as you reported, to let it go, to let the investigation go. But I remain puzzled by your response… You could have said, 'Mr. President, this meeting is inappropriate.'"

Perhaps the aspect of behavior that resonates the most with women I’ve spoke with was Comey’s description of trying to keep his face entirely neutral so as to neither anger nor encourage Trump.

This is not to say that men haven’t been prey to manipulative and practiced sexual predators. After all, predatory behavior is really about abusing the balance of power and no one abuses power more than a bully. Given his stature as a white man with prestige and authority, and the lack of distracting salacious elements, perhaps Comey’s experience will help raise awareness of how harassment is always about an abuse of power and an attempt to defame and villainize the victim. And maybe, just maybe, it might help prevent the kind of situations that happened at Fox News.

Andrew Faas is the author of From Bully to Bull’s-Eye: Move Your Organization Out of the Line of Fire.

Photo credit: New York Times/Andrew Harrer

The James Comey Guide for Bullied Employees and Whistleblowers

As an expert in workplace dynamics, I was struck by how today’s Senate Intelligence Committee hearing with former FBI Director James Comey was really an issue aboutworkplace wrongdoing and a bully boss. While a few of the senators asked pointed questions about the Russian investigation and, perhaps in the effort of obfuscation, Hillary Clinton, the questions centered on why Comey was fired.  Comey’s answers really made me sit up and take notice—they were a master class in what to do when dealing with a bully or the need to become a whistleblower.

1. Trust Your Instincts

When Donald Trump sent the attorney general and the vice president out of the Oval Office in order to talk privately to Comey, red flags popped up in Comey’s head. Additional concerns were raised when Trump changed the reason he had fired the FBI director. This is where the skills of emotional intelligence are vital—understanding the mood and tenor of a situation will let you know when to be on your guard.

2. Keep a Paper Trail

Given the red flags and his solo meeting with Trump, Comey felt compelled to keep a detailed account of every interaction they had. This was unnecessary under presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, who only spoke to Comey on rare occasions and never improperly. Because he kept a paper trail, investigators can now use the documents to get to the truth.

3. Try Not to Be Alone with the Bully Boss

It‘s important to have witnesses when malfeasance happens. Comey knew that Trump’s request to have a meeting alone was highly improper and went to great lengths to keep it from happening again. This is also why he celebrated the idea that there might be tapes.

4. Go to Independent Investigators Outside Your Company

Comey gave the detailed memos he wrote to Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller III for his investigation for a good reason. According to the New York Times: “I woke up in the middle of the night on Monday night, ‘cause it didn’t dawn on me originally that there might be corroboration for our conversation; there might be a tape,” Mr. Comey said, referring to May 15. “And my judgment was I needed to get that out in the public square so I asked a friend of mine to share the content of the memo with a reporter. Didn’t do it myself for a variety of reasons but I asked him to because I thought that might prompt the appointment of a special counsel. So I asked a close friend of mine to do it.”

For more information about dealing with bully bosses and protecting yourself if you need to become a whistleblower, please read my book, From Bully to Bull’s-Eye: Move Your Organization Out of the Line of Fire.

Photo credit: CNN