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Donald Trump has an unparalleled ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

He proved that again last week as he took positions that worked against him both personally and politically

The Donald began the week predicting that he would be arrested on Tuesday on charges that he paid off a porn star to keep quiet concerning an assignation that happened way back in 2006.

Thats not the sort of thing that most politicians like to advertise. Most would shut up and trust their lawyers to find technical reasons to get the charges thrown out.

The prosecution was based on a convoluted legal theory that might not have held up in court, said Andrew Napolitano, a former Bergen County Superior Court judge and media commentator.

But that didnt stop Trump from giving Prosecutor Alvin Bragg what he needs to make a strong case against him on a different charge, Napolitano said.

Trump can expect another count to be added, Napolitano said. Thats threatening a prosecutor.

That threat came when Trump posted on his website a photo of him holding a baseball bat aimed at photo of Bragg.

That post was taken down in a few hours. But Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina was left with the task of defending it on Meet the Press Sunday.

Tacopina called the post ill-advised and added, Im not his social media consultant.

No, Trumps social media consultant is Trump. And with that post he handed the prosecution evidence that is likely to pop up at Trumps bail hearing if he is arrested, said Napolitano.

A posting like this strikes terror in the belly of a trial lawyer because he knows hes going to be standing next to his client in court, said Napolitano. He can be held without bail as long as the defendant has the present apparent ability to carry out that threat.

Trump could do so through social media, and a judge might be tempted to order him not to go online, Napolitano said.

In Trumps case, ordering him off the internet would be a plus. That Manhattan case wasnt the only possible prosecution Trump screwed up last week. At his Saturday rally in Waco, Texas, Trump posted photos of his supporters who were jailed because of their role in attacking the capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Trumps defense has been that he didnt incite the rioters. But by taking their side he seemed to be goading the prosecutors who will be deciding whether to indict him on federal charges.

But the strangest event of the week came when the Trump team released a February 2018 letter to the Federal Election Commission from his then-lawyer, Stephen Ryan, concerning the actions of his prior lawyer, Michael Cohen.

In that letter, Ryan wrote that Trump did not reimburse Cohen for the $130,000 in hush money Cohen gave to porn star Stormy Daniels aka Stephanie Clifford in 2016.

Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed Mr. Cohen for the payment directly or indirectly, said the attorney, who represented Cohen at the time.

The Donald posted this as proof that he didnt reimburse Cohen for the $130,000 he gave to Daniels. Or in other words, Trump was saying that he stiffed Cohen.

If he stiffed him that would be nothing new, according to one Atlantic City lawyer who is among the many contractors The Donald stiffed back in his casino days.

It wouldnt be the first time he stiffed someone, said Seth Grossman.

In Cohens case, he took out a home-equity loan to get the $130,000 he gave to Daniels. If Trump is telling the truth in this latest post, then he hung Cohen out to dry not just with that debt but with the time he spent in prison.

That wasnt the only dumb thing Trump did last week. In Waco, he devoted a good chunk of his speech to attacking a fellow Republican, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

That didnt go over well, according to reports covering the event. The headline on Yahoo News was Trump tried to mock Ron DeSantis at his Texas rally. He was met with mostly silence from the audience.

Perhaps thats because the audience members didnt care for attacks on a guy whos in the best position to win the Republican nomination in 2024 if Trump keeps this up.

Many Democrats would prefer that Trump get the GOP nomination. They argue that hed be easier to beat.

I saw one liberal blogger writing that no one in the Republican Party can defeat Trump.

Well, I know of one Republican who can defeat Trump. Thats Trump.

Last week he did his level best.

More: Recent Paul Mulshine columns.

Paul Mulshine may be reached at pmulshine@starledger.com.

Follow him on Twitter @Mulshine. Find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook and on Twitter

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For Donald Trump, that was the week that wasnt | Mulshine - NJ.com