the notion that the certificate was fraudulent.

Because government can't be trusted. Government is bad. Government must be drowned in a bathtub. Government must be shrunk.

Just as climate-deniers claim a hoax when scientists issue their warnings.

Because scientists can't be trusted.

The Republicans -- candidates and voters alike -- practice a reflexive dismissal of earned authority.

So he's trying to be a mirror image of what he thinks the public is concerned about. His wingnut public, that is.

This is the age when the neo-liberals say and do whatever it takes to achieve power, even if they need to hire a bad actor, overthrow a democracy or create a separate reality. They just need to squeak past the Nov. 8 goalpost, then the lies are mute. The assault on truth is part and parcel to attacking progressives.