I get all sorts of e-newletters and the like I never signed up for. One such is the Stone Zone , by Roger Stone . Here’s his latest unsolicited musing (which doesn’t seem to be up at his site yet):

SEND TRUMP By ROGER J. STONE JR. The New York Times reports that President George W. Bush wants to send former Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom to the Middle East as a special envoy. This has to be about the worst idea I have ever heard. Since all the Arab Nations view Blair as a lap-dog for President Bush who, at the table will see him as an honest broker? If the President really wants a break-through in the Middle East, he should send America’s foremost dealmaker, Donald J. Trump. Crazy idea? Not really. Recognize that Trump’s negotiating skills are second to none. Additionally, the Donald has been a prescient voice on world affairs even though he doesn’t communicate in “diplomat-speak.”….

He adds:

I think making it in the world of New York City real estate maybe tougher and probably far more difficult than brokering peace between all the factions in the Middle East – and Trump is the King. If you can come to terms with German Bankers, if you can negotiate with the Chinese and make millions on the West-Side, if you can negotiate the sale of multi-million dollar condos to Saudi potentates, then surely you can handle the representatives of Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, China, Palestine and Iran.

Me: Now I thought this was so stupid, I couldn’t believe he was serious (suicide bombers are not normally a part of condo-board negotiations). But there’s not a hint of irony or sarcasm in the whole thing. So, then, I figured Stone must have been on Trump’s payroll at some point. And — tah dah! — he was. In 2000, a Nexis-Lexis search shows, he was Trump’s “political consultant” during Trump’s book-promoting presidential water-testing stunt. Now, Stone may think this is so well-known that he needn’t disclose it. And maybe everybody does know this and I’m just in the dark. And, really, who cares? But, sometimes, it’s nice to know that there’s an explanation behind things like this.