Both of these comments seem to be attempts to put the focus on the salaciousness of the accusations. But at its core, this is not really about the (alleged) sex. This is about a potentially illegal hush-money payment that Trump and the White House still won’t talk about.This White House has never been a beacon of transparency, but even for it, that silence is pretty deafening. And it suggests that regardless of how accurate Daniels’s portrayal of the underlying events is, it’s got problems.

Update: Minutes after this post went up, Trump tweeted what seemed to be something of a response to Daniels — though it doesn’t name her and doesn’t address any particular claims.

Donald J. Trump

@realDonaldTrump

So much Fake News. Never been more voluminous or more inaccurate. But through it all, our country is doing great!