The transcript of the May 9 proceedings in Donald Trump’s trial involving possibly fraudulent business records runs to 300 pages and nearly 7,500 lines of text.
There’s the usual lawyerly blather. And the not-so-shocking-anymore topics that excite pundits.
And then something truly shocking: amid assertions about hotel sex and hush money payments, a reference to Oxford commas, also called serial commas. They appear before the “and” that precedes the last item in a series of three or more.
It’s a tiny reference. Just four lines.
The reference came in a prosecutor’s questions to Trump’s former personal assistant. She said he sometimes dictated social posts, which she then typed and printed for his review.
“It’s my understanding that he liked to use the Oxford comma,” she said.
Golly. Trump, a serial exaggerator, favors serial commas.
National publications reported the exchange days later, referring to the transcript. Grammar nerds, who joust about Oxford commas with the angry fervor of opposing politicians, also weighed in.
Oh, pity the Oxford comma. It shared its 15 minutes of fame with grifters, liars, showboats, and suck-ups.
