You gotta love Trump

When New York City billionaire Donald J. Trump is sworn in Friday as the 45th president of the United States, starched-collar Republicans attending the inauguration in Washington will be forced to rub shoulders with individuals they would have otherwise ignored.

That’s because businessman Trump’s hostile takeover of the Grand Old Party brought in millions of non-traditional Republican voters. In so doing, he changed the face of the party.

Starched-collar Republicans – there’s a more appropriate description that has to do with the tightness of a certain body part – have been keeping a stiff upper lip and feigning unconditional support for Trump since he defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November general election.

But in five days, they will come to the realization that the GOP is no longer grand nor old.

The unquestioned head of the new Republican Party is an individual who does not possess deep-seated ideological beliefs, nor is a conservative in the traditional sense of the word.

Indeed, Trump has redefined what it means to be a Republican – and political purity isn’t a factor.

Thus, when thousands gather in the nation’s capital to witness the changing of the old guard, traditional Republicans will be forced to pay homage to a man who has boasted about his sexual exploits around the world, has displayed no shame for declaring bankruptcy on several occasions and makes no apologies for the company he keeps.

Interesting characters

So who’s going to show up for the inaugural balls and other events this week? There will be rank and file Republicans; white male, blue-collar voters from heavily Democratic regions like the Mahoning Valley; the usual political hangers-on; and some interesting characters.

Given his global business interests, Trump’s contact lists undoubtedly include princes and potentates, dictators, legitimate and illegitimate billionaires and some individuals who aren’t usually acknowledged in mixed company.

One such character who should give a large segment of the Valley’s population a warm and fuzzy feeling is Joseph Cinque – nicknamed “Joey No Socks.”

Yes, Cinque is in the business that made this region famous.

According to a compelling story published by the New York Daily News on Jan. 3, “Joey No Socks” is a convicted felon with ties to notorious Gambino crime-family boss John Gotti.

So what’s his connection to Trump?

The Daily News reported that Cinque rang in the New Year with the president-elect at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

The information about the convicted felon’s attendance at the bash was contained in a video obtained by the Palm Beach Daily News. There were hundreds of guests at the party.

According to the New York newspaper, Trump can be heard saying, “The taxes are coming down, regulations are coming off, and we’re going to get rid of Obamacare” with Cinque standing next to him, pumping his fists into the air.

The New York Daily News referred to a New York Magazine profile from 1995 that said Cinque was convicted in 1989 of a felony for possessing nearly $100,000 worth of stolen artwork.

The profile also noted that “Joey No Socks” used to be friends with Gotti.

“Cinque was also ‘shot three times and left for dead’ in a 1980 incident that authorities described as ‘a hit’,” according to the New York Magazine profile.

Although Trump has insisted that he does not know anything about Cinque or his criminal past, the Associated Press reported last spring that the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences, a company owned and operated by Cinque, has awarded more than a dozen of Trump’s golf courses, hotels, casinos and private clubs with so-called “Star Diamond” awards “of true excellence in hospitality.”

The wire service said that 30 people who are Trump friends or business associates are listed as “trustees” of Cinque’s company.

The Associated Press also said Trump was listed on the company’s website as its “ambassador extraordinaire” and appeared in a 2009 tribute video to Cinque in which he said, “There’s nobody like him. He’s a special guy.”

And soon, the billionaire real estate developer from New York City with business ties far and wide will be president of the United States.

You gotta love Trump – for the company he keeps.

Indeed, there’s a book out titled “The Making of Donald Trump” that claims the business tycoon was once threatened with castration because he was courting the daughter of reputed New Jersey mobster, Robert Libutti.

According to the New York Daily News, Trump was married to his first wife, Ivana, when he courted Edith Libutti in the late 1980s.

Robert Libutti, who is dead, was a high-rolling horse dealer with ties to Gambino boss John Gotti, the book alleges.

When the mobster heard of Trump’s designs on his daughter, he confronted the real estate mogul and issued this threat:

“Donald, I’ll [expletive] pull your [expletive] from your legs.”

Trump denied knowing the mobster, even though he was a high roller in the Trump Plaza casino in Atlantic City. He reportedly spent millions at the tables.

“During the years I very successfully ran the casino business, I knew many high rollers,” Trump said in a statement to Yahoo News. “I assume Mr. Libutti was one of them, but I don’t recognize the name.”

Trump’s contention that he did not know the mobster prompted this response from his daughter, whose last name is now Creamer:

“He’s a liar.”

And she told Yahoo, “I like Trump, but it p----- me off that he denies knowing my father. That hurts me.”

It should be clear by now that a Trump presidency will be like no other in recent history. With his business and personal relationships in this country and around the world, the visitors’ log to the White House and the First Family’s residence in Trump Towers in New York City will read like a Who’s Who of the famous and infamous.

Republicans who have turned a blind eye to Trump’s business and personal histories can no longer lay claim to the moral high ground.