This is a bit hysterical, isn't it? "The moral arc of the universe is long, and, if Trump is elected, it will bend in the direction of despotism and darkness." It's very purple prose — the kind of hyperbole that's got this election so deep into crazyland.
Sensationalist and hyperbolic, to be sure. I didn't write the headline, so I won't apologize for it. Mainly I posted it as a companion piece to another about Paul Manafort, Trump's campaign manager, who spent time as a fixer for several Russian oligarchs who are in Putin's inner circle. I see that as a problem, and I'm frankly surprised more people don't, and instead are annoyed by poorly written headlines.
It wasn't just the headline that was hyperbolic, though — the whole article compromises its journalistic integrity by using very emotional language. Whenever someone is trying that hard to manipulate people, it means they're selling something (whether they are Michael Moore or Fox News). You make a fair point about Trump's campaign manager, though. That is a legitimate problem and I'd like to see more level-headed coverage of that. The second article you linked to is a lot more informative.
Here us a more in depth sorry slate wrote on the topic. Also a hyperbolic headline.