The Stormy Daniels 60 Minutes Interview Showed That This News Story is Starting to Dissipate

There are very few moments in televised journalism where nationwide anticipation builds over a “bombshell” only to result in something of a dud. Geraldo Rivera led us to Al Capone’s empty vault. Rachel Maddow revealed that Donald Trump is a very rich man according to obtained tax returns. This time, it’s Anderson Cooper‘s turn.

This saga began in January when it was reported that Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen paid $130,000 to Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election to keep her silent about an alleged affair with the billionaire reality star. And under her non-disclosure agreement, Daniels refrained from sharing details about her relationship with Trump even though most of them could be found published in an In Touch article.

Daniels’ legal team argued that the NDA agreement she signed was invalid because Trump himself never signed it. So in an effort to defy the NDA, she sat down with Anderson Cooper. And in an effort to hype the interview, her lawyer Michael Avenatti appeared all over television speaking on her behalf. He made headlines when he said his client was physically threatened and shared a cryptic picture of a disc that suggested that Daniels either had texts or pictures from the 2006 encounter. He even promised that the 60 Minutes interview was just “the beginning” of this Stormy storm.

But after watching it, could it actually be the end?

For those who have been invested in this news story like it’s a soap opera, they have waited months for Stormy Daniels to break away from her NDA and with a professional like Anderson Cooper, they were hoping this 60 Minutes interview would blow the lid off the whole thing. But what exactly was the earth-shattering takeaway? That Trump didn’t use a condom? That he liked being spanked? Even the most newsworthy portion of the interview — when she described how a man threatened her in front of her infant daughter — doesn’t have much in the way of legs, given it’s unlikely that Daniels and her legal team will ever track down the alleged perpetrator. And there was no mention of the contents of that disc Avenatti teased everyone with on Twitter.

Even Whoopi Goldberg couldn’t identify the “smoking gun” of the interview.

What’s so fascinating about this story isn’t actually the story; it’s the country’s reaction to it — or lack there of. Usually a bombshell report about having an affair with a porn star is politically damning, but Trump has mostly gone unscathed. Perhaps it’s because we all knew he was a horn dog for decades. This type of stuff was regular tabloid news for New Yorkers. And the people who supported him before Stormy Daniels will continue to support him after.

And while you may roll your eyes whenever Sean Hannity invokes former President Bill Clinton in defense of Trump, he does have point. How the country treated Clinton back in the 90s over his extramarital affairs and accusations of misconduct set a precedent for today. The media in particular was very forgiving. Even after a rape allegation, which has since been deemed credible, Clinton was only threatened with impeachment after he lied to Congress about his consensual relationship with Monica Lewinsky. The treatment Clinton received at the time became the standard. Had the #MeToo movement taken place 20 years earlier, we may not have Trump in the White House today.

It is quite reasonable to think that Trump’s alleged affairs actually happened whether it’s with Stormy Daniels or former Playmate Karen McDougal. Trump supporters will say they knew they weren’t electing a “choir boy.” The big question now is whether there be any fallout. Sure, these are embarrassing headlines for the Trump administration as well as First Lady Melania Trump, who is probably having the hardest time during this news cycle than anyone. And if an affair were to happen during his presidency instead of over a decade ago, the consequences would be far more catastrophic.

But frankly, the Stormy Daniels saga may be coming to a close because we seem to know everything there is to know about her encounter with Trump, especially after that not-so-newsworthy interview. The goon who threatened her will likely remain anonymous.

There remain only two ways this story stays alive: if Avenatti reveals there is anything of interest on the mysterious CD that could explicitly incriminate Trump, and if the FEC determines the $130,000 payoff violated campaign finance laws. If those two stories bear significant updates, that could have a damning effect on this presidency. But until then, this storm will likely dissipate.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.