Impeachment

Oh my, it’s been a good long while since I last posted anything. What happens when someone as corrupt as Trump remains ever-present on the horizon of consciousness.  He really does seem to simply suck the air out of our world.  And the Mueller report on our End Times finally came to a close, revealing the awfulness that is within the White House. He chose not to indict on obstruction, and left that chore to Congress. But is Congress a functional body?  Could our Congress act even if Trump took out a gun and shot someone on Fifth Avenue?  Actually, it seems unlikely.

So, what is all the talk about Impeachment?  First, let us look at the reality facing the nation.  How does this impeachment thing actually work? Well, impeachment is an investigatory process carried out by the House of Representatives. If a President (other officials, including judges can be impeached) is impeached, the matter then proceeds to the Senate which carries out a trial, which either acquits or convicts the person being impeached.  Several presidents have been impeached—Andrew Johnson for serious issues involving the post-Civil War Reconstruction efforts, Richard Nixon for, among other things, obstruction of justice, and, of course, William Clinton, for obtaining a blow job while talking on the phone (surely multitasking’s first ever impeachment).

Impeachment is not reserved to presidents—a cabinet official, William Belknap was impeached in 1876 for bribery, and several judges have been impeached.

Representatives have been bringing various articles of impeachment against Trump from very early in his term of office.   But it is the content of the Mueller report that now prompts great attention.  The report documents instances in which Trump campaign staff, private lawyers, or even White House officials report behavior that seems to cross the line of acceptable behavior by a sitting President.  Even if the investigation could not conclusively prove active collaboration by the President with a hostile foreign power, his campaign benefited from that foreign power’s efforts to elect him.  And one might then ask, why did that hostile foreign power act so as to help elect Donald Trump?

But even beyond the Russian connection, so many of his underlings are now headed for prison because of illegalities committed in support of Trump that the president seems implicated almost by definition.  At the least his actions are now worthy of further investigation, which seems to be what Mueller’s report suggests should happen.

In addition, there seems at least a plausible case for violation of the foreign emoluments clause. Trump has never placed all his holdings in a blind trust, so he continues to reap large sums from foreign governments for their representatives staying at his various hotels. His children continue to pursue business deals that will involve him in some way.

And then there is the issue of Trump actively appointing and involving his family in official government business, which, at the least, is frowned upon, especially when his family has no plausible experience in the fields to which they have been appointed.  His appointments in general seem shady at best, since he continues to appoint people to positions of power and influence over agencies in which those people have competitive private interests, people who seem actively opposed to the basic missions of the agencies they would be heading.

All of this suggests strongly that Trump is a powerful threat to the very integrity of our government. The longer he is in office, the greater threat to our government he poses.  And then, speaking of threats, there is the seeming unhinged outbursts from the president, in the form of his daily twitter tirades, his constant threats to foreign powers, up to even the potential threat of war that seems to characterize his daily public utterances to the point that many observers believe he demonstrates almost daily a psychological incapacity to govern. Is he sane? Is he capable mentally of carrying out the daily duties required of a president?  Does he in fact have the mental capacity to understand what he is doing and what are the potential effects on our country and the world of his daily actions and his daily utterances? He is like a walking psychobabble.

So a reasonable case is already staring at us in the form of his daily performance for an impeachment inquiry. At the least, a failure to begin such an inquiry and to carry it out in a public manner, is to suggest that Trump is somehow above scrutiny, and even, above the law.  A new standard is being set on a daily basis for presidential behavior that everyone involved may well regret in the future.  Mitch McConnell may in fact be setting new standards for how a political party performs its responsibilities as an oversight agent. We have three distinct and independent agents in our system of government: an executive branch which is responsible for executing the laws of the nation, a legislative branch, with its own twin chapters, namely the Senate and the House of Representatives, which devises our laws, and the judicial branch which is responsible for overseeing the constitutional adherence and faithfulness of the other two branches.  Each of these branches provides a check on the performance of the other two branches.  If our legislative branch defers to the executive to the point that no oversight and no check on performance is occurring, then that branch is failing in its fundamental responsibilities. McConnell seems to have crossed that point in the Senate, perhaps even to the point that one might reasonably ask whether impeachment proceedings should be launched to investigate whether McConnell is breaching his fundamental responsibilities.  But that is for another day perhaps.

I realize that, however strong is the case for impeachment, many people oppose such a move, fearful perhaps of the divisive nature of such a proceeding. This country seems now poised at the edge of a literal Civil War, which impeachment could open. It is by no means clear what Trump would do were he to be impeached. In fact, his behavior is so bizarre that it is unclear, at least to me, what Trump would do were he to be defeated at the polls in 2020.  Most presidents simply set aside their anger in defeat and allow the new force to take charge. Even someone as obviously angry as Richard Nixon, stepped aside and allowed the nation to move beyond him.  I can imagine a scenario in which a defeated Trump would declare the election fraudulent, and refuse to hand over power. He routinely advises his followers to engage in violence, and I have no doubt he would do so again. Hence the potential for a Civil War. Donald Trump is an existential threat to our nation.  He needs to be disarmed. Congress, it is your turn at the helm here. Do your job.  And America, lay down your arms. Let our established processes occur. We do not need armed intervention, which could lead to the end of our republic, a bloody end at that.  Let us see what kind of nation we actually are.

Might is Right

From Wikipedia:

Might Is Right, or The Survival of the Fittest, is a book by pseudonymous author Ragnar Redbeard. First published in 1890, it heavily advocates egoist anarchism, amorality, consequentialism and psychological hedonism. In Might Is Right, Redbeard rejects conventional ideas of human and natural rights and argues that only strength or physical might can establish moral right (à la Callicles or Thrasymachus). The book also attacks Christianity and Democracy. Friedrich Nietzsche's theories of master–slave morality and herd mentality serve as a clear inspiration for Redbeard's book written contemporaneously.

Individualist Anarchist historian James J. Martin called it "surely one of the most incendiary works ever to be published anywhere." This refers to the controversial content such as the viewpoint that weakness should be regarded with hatred and the strong and forceful presence of Social Darwinism in the text. There are also controversial parts of the book that deal with race and male–female relations, claiming that the woman and the family as a whole is the property of the man and proclaiming the innate superiority of the Anglo-Saxon race. 

I looked up this title, because, increasingly, I have become aware that our President, and his supporting cast (the old, now dead GOP) seem to be advocates for this concept.  Nothing seems to matter either to Trump, or to idiots like McConnell beyond gathering and using power. The more power, the better.  Apparently, they have now exposed the Evangelical Christians to this mindset, and those folks agree. Power is all.  All, repeat ALL, moral or ethical principles have now been shunted aside in favor of power.

Lately, I have begun to wonder whether Donald Trump has broken into some time machine, and he is busily carrying us all back to the 15th or 16^th centuries, or even earlier.  We have a Constitution, and a Bill of Rights, and we have laws and rules that govern the operation of our government and the relationships among the three nominal branches, but all those rules and laws seem to have been swept away, and we now operate with one rule: whatever Donald Trump says or does is correct, and no other views are acceptable.

We had rules on presidential appointments and the right of Congress to approve, but they seem no longer to exist.  He simply makes temporary appointments and all is well.

We had rules about emoluments, but our president simply ignores those rules and goes about continuing to enrich himself at our expense and at the expense of logic and honesty and the wishes of the people.

We had rules about the ability of presidents to hire family members into government, but Donald Trump ignores those rules, so apparently they no longer exist.

We had rules about who can enter our country and how they are to be treated, but our president wants all agencies to ignore those rules and adopt savage behavior to all incoming people of color, or religions other than Christianity.

And on and on. He lies with impunity, even when it is patently obvious to all and sundry that he is lying. He cares not, because he never thinks before speaking. He says whatever is on his mind at that moment. If it is found to be a lie, by comparing it with something he said ten minutes ago, that is fine with him.  We are to say nothing.  There apparently are no rules that attach to him. None.

And so, I see us all being dragged back into the dark recesses of history to periods when absolute monarchs were the rule everywhere.  This is how he sees himself, and, worse yet, his supporting cast, sees him in the same way. They support his every move, however awful be that move.  Oh, the opposition, Democrats, and the actual news networks, yell loudly, but he simply ignores them, and nothing happens.  Curiously, he just suggested that we (the nation formerly known as the USA) need a government news agency, because all the private news agencies are so biased and fake.  He ignores apparently the fact that he already has a government news agency, called Fox News, or The Faux News Network.

And it is a curious fact about his behavior that he always ascribes to his opposition the very faults of which he is guilty. If he is lying about something, he accuses his opposition of lying. He has always routinely described the real news networks as “fake news”, ignoring Fox, the real fake news.  I still await him describing a shooting out on Fifth Avenue . . . we will then know he has carried out the wishes of his faithful followers.

And, as we are all dragged back into that 15^th century, I find myself wondering how this will all turn out. Will he begin executing his opposition? Will he begin an actual war somewhere (Iran, Mexico, North Korea), just because he desperately wants to be a war-time president? Will he simply join forces with Vlad the Impaler and forge a new Alliance of Evil?

And while he goes about his merry way, doing whatever the hell he wishes, I observe other dark forces at work, often of a Christian origin. Think Texas and their law punishing women with Death should they dare to abort a pregnancy.  Think Florida and its “stand Your Ground’ law that has already resulted in the death of a person of color.  The KKK, the Neo-Nazi’s, the Christian Taliban are all hard at work to legitimize their dark principles of horror. They wish America to be a different place, perhaps a 12^th century Christian place ruled by an absolute monarch who obeys their dark principles. And America just goes rolling merrily along.  If only I were, say 30, instead of 85, I would now be scrutinizing the principles evident in other nations, and readying myself to emigrate. Much as my ancestors decided to leave their countries of origin and migrate to this once proud nation, I might emulate their fierce determination. And in their honor, I end this rant with that original poem: The New Collossus, by Emma Lazarus, 1849 – 1887.

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she

With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Remember please, what we once were: a proud and welcoming nation. When you vote, never forget.  We need to rid our nation of the dark forces that now inhabit the pinnacles of power.

After the Mueller

And so, all is well and Trump is the greatest Mafia Boss in the history of the world.  And I am not holding my breath until Barr decides to release the full Mueller report. What I am awaiting, with bated breath, is what Mueller decides to do once he is subpoenaed by Nancy and asked to testify before the house.  By all accounts, Mueller is a decent and honorable man.  He has done his best to investigate all the possible crimes committed by or in the name of our president (see Mafia Boss). And, although he could not find clear proof that Trump personally “colluded” with Putin to throw the election to him, we know that Putin did exactly that. That much is beyond question.

It seems also fairly clear, given the number of indictments of Trump campaign associates—Stone, Manafort, Flynn, Cohen, Papadopoulos—all soon to head off to prison—that The Trump team was/is as crooked as it is possible to be.  But because Trump is unlike any president before him, he has no conscience, no ethical dimension, so he will never concede and will likely remain free, and, more importantly, in office. Even Nixon finally conceded and quit the job. But not Trump. He has declared victory and is likely off to Mara Lago to play golf and celebrate.

And I listened to one Trump supporter who declared that, reading the Barr summary, his support for Trump will continue and he will vote for him again in 2020. And I thought . . . “really . . . you actually continue to support him, regardless of everything you have seen and read??? Really?” 

Because, apparently it is true that Trump supporters would actually have applauded had Trump taken a gun and shot someone out on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.  They would conclude, “well, the guy obviously had it coming. Trump did nothing wrong”.  Trump has written himself a kind of universal “Stand Your Ground” rule for anything and everything he does.  It’s always for a reason –his reason. And that makes it all ok.

And the fact that most of his associates are headed off to prison, but not Trump is simply the classic Mafia boss scenario. Until and unless they all begin ratting him out, he will likely be drenched in the stench, but otherwise unharmed.  It will be fun to see Jared and a couple more of his family indicted and maybe convicted in a New York court, while daddy looks on and heads off to a golf date, but still the main mafia dude needs to be brought before the National Court of Opinion and tried for being himself.  And that National Court is beginning to assemble. We will know in 2020 whether the American people have decided that ethics is “so last century”, or whether our nation remains intact and viable.

Personally, I am placing no money on that election. Mainly, I am so astonished that more than 3-5% of the American public still supports him, that I no longer have any expectations about our country. And it really is a shame. I have memories of Presidents dating all the way back to FDR.  And most of them at least had some concept of what being president means. They had some respect for the Nation and its highest elective office.  Yes, Nixon was a dirty rotten scoundrel, but at least he resigned.  And yes, Reagan was an idiot and made it ok again to be a racist, but still he appeared to show some respect for his office.  And of course Bush II (aka Shrub) was a fool who allowed himself to be led into war by his scoundrally aides when it was clearly unnecessary, but he was merely stupid and too anxious to convince his daddy that he could “do president” too.

Mainly though, I come away from all that historical navel gazing with one large conclusion—that the republican party has diminished itself over the 7 or 8 decades to a tool for monied interests to do with the country whatever they wanted. The party has given up any pretense of being a public party of the people. Apparently, they have ceded that job to its main opponents, the democrats.  Whether the people will opt for a party that seems in perpetual disarray remains a very large question, hovering over the next (last??) election. We will know in 2020 whether the American people still want a democracy, or perhaps that they have lost faith in such approaches to governance, and now wish for a more monarchical system. For, like it or not, that is where Trump and his republican party are headed, including the now republican Supreme Court (another subject).  We know certain things about Trump and his party:

1. They despise public education, preferring a largely ignorant population, while continuing to make believe on education generally (let’s pretend we care about private education);

       

.       2. They despise public health and do not believe in the notion that health care is a right, rather than a gift given to the hard working white people of our land

             

         3. They despise universal voting rights, believing instead that only good (white) republicans deserve to vote;

          

         4. They believe that private corporations are the only source of wisdom in the land, and that government should never interfere;

h       5. They believe that Might is Right and we must remain heavily armed,

·         

          6. They believe that women do not have any “right to choose” on any subject, and women must remain firmly behind their males on all subjects;, and finally

           7. They believe that we are a Christian nation and that all other religions suck, and that religion can and should provide guidance for all matters throughout our land.

In 2020, we will discover whether this new governing philosophy will become the once and forever rule of law in this once proud nation.

We can and should vote, unless we no longer care what kind of country we inhabit.

May the best humans prevail.

Danger Ahead

I am now growing alarmed on a daily basis. And the alarm bells are perhaps more because of American commentary, as by Donald Trump. Something awful has happened in America. It may not be solely an American phenomenon, but it is surely here in America.

We have a classic authoritarian President.  He seems to admire only autocrats, e.g., Vlad the Impaler, Duterte, Kim Jung Un. I don’t know how he feels about Hitler or Mussolini, but . . .

As I best understand it, true authoritarian governments have:

·         Limited Legislatures, because the leadership does not consult with its legislature, and because the leaders have no use for a consultation model.

·         Limited Press Freedoms, because a “free press” might question the decisions made by the leadership, and questions of that sort are not permitted.

·         Political parties are either limited to the Leader’s party, or are so limited that one is left with essentially one party.

·         Elections typically are not open and free, as the Leaders essentially brook no competition.

So, we are not yet at the classic authoritarian government model.  But we are close to a true authoritarian leader. That is, Trump routinely decries the opposing party and seems to want it outlawed. He labels the press “Fake News”, except for the press he controls, i.e., Fox News.  And he clearly wants voting to be limited to the folks who support him. I now believe that if the election of 2020 is held and Trump loses, he will not yield his office, and he will inflame his followers to a point of potential violence. I can well imagine Trump labeling the election as fraudulent, and insisting that he remain in office.

What is dismaying here is the utter lack of control being exercised by his party. It is mind shattering to see people like Mitch McConnell simply agreeing with everything Trump wishes to do.  And it is practically Headline News when any republican disagrees with him publically.  And, if he continues getting his way with judicial appointments, he will soon control the theoretically independent third branch of government.  Ruth Bader Ginsberg cannot live forever, and President Stupidhead clearly intends to control the Supremes.

Now, we can lay much blame at the feet of the man who is our president. But, he could not act independently, as he has been doing, and he clearly could not ignore all rules regarding the separation between his official position and his private interests, were it not for the full complicity of the Republican Party.  Further, he would have difficulty exercising his chosen governing style were it not for the continued support of a very large number of the voters in America.  And therein lies the danger for our nation.  Because, his supporters seem not like ordinary voters who happen to really like their president.  No, they seem more like members of a cult—ISIS springs to mind. I find it way beyond dismaying that his followers seem not to understand the fundamental character of this man they seem to adore.  Many continue to assert that he is “the best president we have ever had”. And I practically want to throw up at this assertion. How could they seriously state those words? The best?? Really, you’re sure you don’t mean “the worst” and you are just confusing those words?

Because his flaws, his constant lies, his continued imbecilic tweeting and speechifying are so obviously signs of subhuman intellect that it seems impossible to misunderstand. So, something else is going on, something I do not understand at all about the Americans who support him.  I mean, how could women, any women, support him? He is so obviously a misogynist, who is willing routinely to denigrate and abuse women that I do not understand why women do not uniformly despise him.  Similarly with people of color or other cultures. He speaks of “shithole” countries, meaning all of Africa. He refers to Mexicans and other Latins, as “murderers, rapists, and gang figures”.  He seems so clearly a white supremacist/racist that I fail to understand how anyone not similarly white like him could possibly support him.

And then there is his basic lack of intelligence.  He seems to possess the intelligence of an inadequate 4^th grader.  He or, more likely his father, obviously did something to fake a college education, and he seems so inadequate that I now believe that somehow they faked his elementary and secondary school experience. Did they pay someone to sit in for him??  Oddly, rather than simply remaining quiet about his education, he invented and broadcast large lies—like being at the head of his class, something easily checked. And that is characteristic of Trump. He invents and broadcasts lies that can be easily checked. Why would he do that, unless he is both so stupid and so arrogant that he believes nobody will ever question him?  He is clearly a pathological liar, but his limited intellect inhibits his ability to understand how terminally foolish he looks to anyone even remotely paying attention.

And yet, and yet, his supporters continue to support him and even seem to idolize him. And therein lies the danger to our nation. He has energized people and told them that violence in support of him is entirely ok. “Lock her up” was just one small step away from “and then kill her”. He laughed at the thought that he could take a gun, go out on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, shoot someone, and his poll numbers would increase.  And the awful thought here is that he is likely correct. His followers love his violent rhetoric, and, my guess is that most of them are heavily armed.  He clearly has the full support of the NRA, our domestic terrorist organization, and the NRA sees to it that most crazy people in America are heavily armed.

So, the question in my mind about all this is, on whose side is the 101^st Airborne? Will the Marines support him, or us? How about the Air Force and all their hardware? Whose side are they on?  And all you generals out there, whose side are you on . . . this crazy man currently our president, or the American people?

So, if we hold an election, will it trigger an actual Civil War? The last one almost destroyed our nation. This one could be the last thing we all remember before being destroyed.  Are there, finally, any thinking, humane adults left in positions of authority who will protect us from this manic creature now intent on destroying our country?  Anyone out there? Hello . . .???

Emergency Declaration

The National Emergency

So President Doofus has issued a National Emergency to cover the barriers that constitute our border with Mexico.  What is it he claims is the actual “emergency”? Apparently, he sees a porous border, along which anyone who wishes entry has an entirely open door. But arguably we doubtless have such an arrangement with Canada and no emergency appears imminent along that line. So, the “emergency” apparently is Mexicans (remember those rapists, murderers, drug smugglers and folks who traffic in women who they bring in while chained, with their mouths taped shut. He acknowledges a few are also probably nice people.

Oh, and then there are the caravans of thousands of druggies, rapists, murderers, et al, who also use that border to get into our fair land from places like Salvador, Venezuela, and southern Hades. Yeah, he said so, therefore truth is cancelled.

But what then is a “National Emergency”? It is interesting to note that, although there is cited a national Emergency Act of 1976, authorizing presidents to so designate an emergency situation, presidents have issued “national emergencies” since at least 1917, with President Wilson declaring a National Emergency in Water Transportation” in 1917. Indeed, in 1941, President Roosevelt declared a National Emergency to counter the coming threat from Nazi Germany, and Truman issued one in 1950 to counter communism, specifically in connection with the Korean War (remember that quaint War?).

President Carter issued such an emergency order in 1979 in connection with the Iran overthrow of its government by the Ayatollah. President Obama issued one in 2009 to counter an influenza pandemic.  And so the list goes on and on.

But, even a cursory inspection of the declarations suggest that some immediate action was actually required to counter a real threat from outside the country. Most of the threats seemed immediately real and obvious to even casual observers, and they contained actual facts about the situation calling for such a declaration.

In contrast, our current president has issued a declaration simply because he is annoyed that Nancy Pelosi and the entire Congress refused to authorize funds to pay for his Wall, you know, the one that Mexico is going to pay for.  So, the kids in Congress, said NO, and the 4-year old president went on an immediate temper tantrum, and issued his emergency declaration. And then, almost immediately thereafter, he told the press that "he really didn’t need to issue an emergency declaration" (because there is no emergency), but he wanted to speed things up a bit, so he is willing to abuse his powers, steal money from other potential uses, like military construction, and demonstrate to those nasty people in Congress that they are powerless to stop him.

According to one article I read recently, 59 emergencies have been declared; 27 have expired while 32 are currently in effect, each having been renewed annually by the president. Most of the national emergencies concern the blocking of property belonging to nations or individuals, or the blocking of transactions, for example transactions that might aid drug smugglers attempting to money launder. None, from what I can see were specifically intended to simply go around a Congressional budget authorization that failed to authorize funds the President wanted.  Also, in most cases, the “emergency” under consideration seemed fairly obvious and potentially threatening to US interests, e.g., a potential war, or, in the case of many Middle Eastern emergencies, a region filled with violence in which our interests are involved.  There seems no actual precedent for the kind of declaration Trump has issued. 

The fundamental legal issue in his declaration is whether he has actually demonstrated the existence of an “emergency”, i.e., a threat to the people, its systems of governance, or some other factually verifiable issue.  His problem, here as in most instances of Presidential “Fact-stating” is that his facts rarely stand up to scrutiny. He is claiming here a major “invasion” by drug smugglers, human traffickers, and other nefarious individuals (in the hundreds . . . thousands??). To be clear, to do what he is trying to do (subvert the Congressional budgetary authorization process) he would need a body of facts to substantiate that the Mexican border is indeed uncontrolled, and that specific numbers in the hundreds or thousands of people from Central and South America are pouring over the border. He also really needs to assert facts about the harm being done to America, and Americans—economic harm, injuries or deaths associated with this invasion, or some other actual damage to our National interests. He has done nothing like that. Instead, he did what he always does. He simply asserts that there is harm, and that there are harmful people crossing our borders in very large numbers, without providing the factual basis for his assertions.

Now, perhaps with another president, we might for a time be willing to accept his word about the harm, real or potential against which he is defending. But for this President, lying is his standard rhetorical device. So, it is the case that one can really not believe almost anything he tells us, where actual facts are involved.  So, we need some second “truth-verifier” to weigh in on his stated assertions before we can believe him.  Now, were his assertion something like the 911 attacks, those sources would be readily available in the form of actual video footage by actual journalists.  Unhappily, for him, no such sources are available. To make his case, say in court (where this declaration will be adjudicated) he will need to assemble a body of externally verifiable data on each of his many assertions—how many illegals are entering, how much actual damage has been/is being done to American property or lives, and what is the economic case for his declaration, i.e., is the Wall cheaper or more expensive than his claimed damages?

I noted in an earlier piece that, because of his constant lying, it is difficult, if not impossible to hold any kind of a strategic planning discussion with Trump.  For example, in any “meeting” intended to discuss a problem, or some issue, one makes progress by having someone lay out the basic principles of the issue. If it is a problem, then someone must first define the problem.  Then someone must define what is known of the root causes of the problem. For example:

1. America experiences X thousand incidents annually of border-related problems

2.  America’s Borders are not secure

a.       X thousand miles of land borders have no barriers

b.      Y thousand miles of sea borders have no functional barriers

c.       Border staffing cannot cover the entire border

d.      Non-personnel technology is inadequate to cover open border area

3.       X thousand migrants are estimated to cross illegally into the US annually through the open areas

4.       Y thousand incidents of damage to property or persons resident in the US are caused each year

In other words, to discuss something as complex as border security, one needs to break down the problem. You first state some factually verifiable statement of the overall problem. And the problem statement should define the harm done to the US by that problem. Then you divide that main problem into its main causes, with accompanying data on each main cause. Then for each sub-problem, you define likely solutions (and typically there might be several possible solutions for each type of problem).  And it is highly useful to attach to each problem, and to each solution a cost factor. What is the cost to America of the problem (and the cost might be monetary, or it might be in some other category)?  Then you examine the potential solutions to each of the problems, and define both their likely effects on the problem, and the likely costs of implementing the solutions. And the costs might be one-time capital costs, and/or annual maintenance costs. If one cannot even agree on the problem statement, then it is impossible to proceed to the solution stage. 

And since Trump doesn’t actually know anything about the actual problem, it is not possible to hold strategic discussions about any large topic.  And it isn’t only this border security issue. One cannot reasonably hold a strategic discussion with Trump on virtually any topic, because he doesn’t understand almost any nationally or globally important subject, and he will simply resort to his only approach—spitting out “pseudo-facts” intended for applause. But the other people in the room often know his pseudo-facts are not a reasonable definition of the issue, and so he himself causes the discussion to come to a close.

Therein lies the core of our national problem with Trump and with his recent declaration of Emergency about Border Security. We should not really care about how he yells at his crowd of adoring MAGAHeads, as in his El Paso speech, because none of that matters. But what does matter is his inability to actually hold substantive discussions with knowledgeable officials aimed at defining problems and agreeing on plausible solutions.  On that, he is as useless as the proverbial “teats on a boar”. And there America is our problem.

Mainly, from some statements made regarding “the Wall”, it would seem that “the Wall” was invented as a rhetorical device to keep Trump on target in speaking of the broad subject of border security (which is likely more complex than Trump can grasp). By constantly speaking of “the Wall” he is given a rhetorical device that draws applause from a committed group. But the device was not ever intended to be a serious issue for technical discussions of potential solutions to whatever the perceived problem might be. It was simply a way to keep Trump from drifting off topic.

So, I see The Wall as simply one more, very large rhetorical device, aka A Big Lie, to help Trump get re-elected in 2020. It has virtually nothing to do with actual border security. And on that topic of The Big Lie, it is worthwhile to quote the past master, Adolph Hitler.  He asserted:

 “All this was inspired by the principle—which is quite true within itself—that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods. It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation. For the grossly impudent lie always leaves traces behind it, even after it has been nailed down, a fact which is known to all expert liars in this world and to all who conspire together in the art of lying.”  Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, vol. I, ch. X

And on that thought, I leave you to draw your own conclusions about Mr. Trump's Wall, and his absurd Emergency Declaration.  Will he get away with it? It will be up to that third branch, the famous judicial branch, to have the last say. And that is also why Mr. Trump’s appointments have been and continue to be so vital to the future health of our Nation. He may win yet. If he does, it will be because we allowed him to win.

Defeating the Destroyer

Sometimes, I wish the second shoe would just get it over with and drop, dammit.  I feel constantly like I’m living in some horrible nightmare but I can’t awaken.  And with each new revelation, the feeling deepens. And, the worst part is that, it isn’t only crap about Trump. Every day, some other idiot, generally, but not always a republican, does or says something so outrageously stupid that one has to wonder on which planet they reside.

It seems as though our entire country is falling apart and we are all just standing around watching it collapse, only we can’t do anything to stop it. And meanwhile, I’m supposed to go about my life as though none of this crap is occurring. Oh, I can/do scream about each occurrence on Facebook, but that is a bit like crawling into a little dark cupboard and screaming into the night at the top of my lungs with nobody listening. Oh, people read my screams, and some check “like”. Some even write something to the effect that they “agree” with me.  And then we all go about our business, as though we just did something meaningful. When all we really did is to crawl into that cupboard and scream into the night.

See, Facebook is our new method of making believe we are doing something, when, instead, all we are really doing is entertaining/distracting ourselves. We have a president who is arguably the most corrupt con man on the planet, and we are allowing him to destroy right in front of us, many of the things our nation has spent years/decades building, and we are unable to do anything meaningful to stop him.  He has been appointing people to run our government agencies who are, to a person, fundamentally opposed to the very purposes of those agencies.  Mostly, they are both ignorant and opposed—see Betsy DeVos--, but sometimes they are worse—they are informed and opposed and those are the really dangerous ones.  Jennifer Rubin[1] writes about the catastrophic Trump Cabinet:

“A number of historians and political scientists agree that Trump’s Cabinet really is the worst they can recall. American University history professor (and accurate prognosticator of Trump’s win in 2016) Allan Lichtman tells me, “There is no question that this is the most unqualified and inexperienced cabinet in the modern history of the presidency. Several of the cabinet officials not only lack the most basic qualifications for their jobs, but are intent upon undermining the fundamental mission of their departments: DeVos at Education, Carson at HUD, and Zinke at Interior. You can also add in Pruitt at EPA.” He adds in, “More than any other group of cabinet officials the Trump appointees also are using the federal treasury as their personal expense accounts.” With the firing of Tillerson on Tuesday, Lichtman observes that the churn of Cabinet officials “is without precedent in recent presidential history.”

And, so we read about their inane, dangerous behavior daily, and, again, we are unable to do anything. And his republican supporters continue to act as his cheerleaders.

Meanwhile, the Robert Mueller investigation continues to churn on . . . and on . . . and on. People get indicted, never the main character. He is the like The Don, the head man in his own Mafia organization.  I am becoming inured to the daily commentary by or about Trump.  How Trump is going to get indicted, or impeached, or maybe Don Jr. is going to get indicted. But, meanwhile, he goes on and on, and I have begun to wonder . . . is this Mueller investigation simply a charade begun by Trump to keep us entertained while he systematically destroys the country, after which Trump pulls up, gathers his family together into one of his private jets and flies off to some country designated by his patron Vlad the Impaler.  And, then, we awaken and observe the shards of our former country, and then we begin killing one another, because there is so much hate and no one to blame but ourselves.

What amazes me, perhaps more than anything else, is the fact that people exist in America, thousands, even millions of them, who continue to say that he is the best president we have ever had, and he is doling an amazing job as their president.  And I wonder, did the folks conned by Ponzi, or by that old rascal Bernie Madoff, continue to say nice things about them, even after the truth was revealed?

Is this how the last Civil War began? Millions of folks believed that slavery was the last, best hope for mankind and they would go to war and kill or be killed defending slavery? And now, they will do the same thing for Trump and his ragtag band of thugs and crooks, and con men? Are we poised for a second Civil War? What might bring it on—Impeachment proceedings??  If he were impeached and a trial took place, would those heavily armed folks with lots of guns but few active brain cells, begin to gather in the streets and begin shooting randomly?

What could prevent such a thing, I wonder? Will his supporters even obey an actual vote of the American people? We know that, if the 2020 election occurs and Trump is voted out of office, he will begin yelling FRAUD at every opportunity and, using his FOX PR outlets, he will energize his crazed supporters.  We think that he did not expect to win the first time, and was using the election process merely to enrich his coffers. That his win was a complete shock, to him and almost everyone paying attention.  But now, despite the daily drubbing in the “Fake News”, he likely gets off on being President, so he is unlikely to go quiet into the night.

We have been saying, just go out and vote in 2020. Vote him out of office legitimately. And then all will be well again. And I wish that were true. But it all sounds like “thoughts and prayers” to me now.  I am beginning to think that we need to do something to ensure that, when/if an election is actually held in 2020, and if he actually loses and is thus booted out of office, that we will do something to maintain order.  But I think that we cannot limit ourselves to awaiting the arrival of the National Guard. Somehow, we need to begin soothing the savage beast that is the American people. And what could that be, I wonder? What can we do, short of arming everyone? I think we need some kind of systematic airing of grievances to disarm the awful rhetoric of each side in this battle for the soul of America.  Maybe we need national focus groups meeting all over the country, in which people on each side are allowed to speak their piece, but without yelling or calling names. Labeling folks who are opposed would perhaps not be permitted. Everyone gets to talk, but speaking in public is only allowed if people tell us about what they want the country to do, or what they fear the country will do. We need to know what kind of country we now inhabit. And we need to understand whether we still have a nation of laws and honor, and humanity. And whether love for our fellow man is still present.

We need to do something folks, or everything we hold dear might be destroyed. That is how serious this mess is that we and the Donald have created.  Understand, please, The Donald is not and never has been an actual builder. He has destroyed almost everything he created. He intends on destroying America. We cannot allow him to do that, but it is up to us to decide how best to prevent the ending of America.  We need ideas. We need a willing spirit. We need this . . . now.

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[1] Rubin, Jennifer, Here’s the case: Trump has the worst Cabinet ever” The Washington Post

The Russia Connection

So, now we have pulled out of our nuclear arms limitation treaty with Russia.  We are accusing the Russians of cheating, i.e., developing weapons that would violate the treaty. So we have announced that we are done.  So, I find myself wondering. Is this the big payoff to Russia that Trump promised, if Putin would help to make him President??  Now, you might say, “well, this isn’t much of a payoff, is it? I mean, we are trashing the Russkies, and are pulling away from a treaty with them because they are cheating. How is that a payoff?” Well, first, Putin doesn’t give a tinker’s damn that we are trashing them publically. What he wants is a go-ahead to produce new nuclear missiles that give him some tactical/strategic advantage, or at least make him par with the US. If he gets that, we can trash him all we want. He doesn’t care.  This may be the quid pro quo from Trump to Putin. And again, it may not matter to Putin even if we go ahead, as a result, and begin to produce a new fleet of formerly banned missiles, as long as Putin can do the same.  So, Trump may in fact be selling the safety of our nation through this action, because he really doesn’t care either.  So long as he gets what he wants (to be a big-time war leader) he does not care about consequences.

As noted in earlier postings, this is really what you get with Trump: a) he is profoundly ignorant; and, b) he is narcissistic to the point that may wreck everything around him to get what he wants. He is like no one before him.  Whatever you thought of Reagan, or Nixon, or Johnson (Vietnam), it seems clear that they were at least trying to advance the interests of our nation, even if you questioned their chosen tactics. With Trump, he is always trying to advance his own interests, regardless of the effects on others, or on the country as a whole.

His supporters imagine that he wants the Wall, because he is trying to protect America. But he is really trying to justify himself to his weary supporters. It is irrelevant whether the Nation needs a Wall. He really won’t even discuss the concept of a Wall. He just wants to see people agree with him and give him some money.  And, if they won’t do that, then he will send down troops to the border, and maybe even have the troops build the Wall.  He has a pretty large Defense budget. I imagine, with a National Emergency, he could easily divert funds from one place (Afghanistan??) to his Wall, and have troops there as an added preventive measure.  That he has no idea what he is doing, or what effects his actions will create is irrelevant. He cares not for consequences.

The Venezuela mess is also scary, because we really don’t know what he will do there, including sending down troops with no serious strategic mission.  He doubtless figures that we send troops all over the globe without any serious strategic mission, so why not here.  I mean, George W. Bush set fire to the entire Middle East without any serious strategic purpose (aside from demonstrating that he could do stuff better than his poppy).  With Trump, though, he has no serious strategic advisers. Bolton is simply a war hawk, who never saw a war he didn’t love. Apparently, Bolton must just love seeing folks being killed. Maybe that’s how he gets his rocks off.

A big question I have about our Russia connection is when will it ever stop?  With this gift to Putin (oh go ahead with your missile program, cuz our missiles are better than your missiles, nyah nyah, nyah nyah), will this be the official end-game quid pro quo? Or does it just continue as long as our idiot-king remains in power?  And what does this say about our Democratic system of government that his party allows him to continue trashing the country and, of course, the party? Arguably, there are ways to stop Trump from doing most of the stuff he does, but his Congress chooses to undertake none of them.  We will, of course, have to see what Pelosi and the Dems choose to, beyond sending out e-mails asking for $5.  So far, they haven’t given him his Wall funding, but what will they do when he just goes around them, and sends troops, or declares an emergency and simply diverts Defense budget to his Wall, with troops (Army Corps of Engineers??) doing the design and building?

So, Nancy better start some serious thinking now about a real strategic plan for dealing with this idiot-king. You may be the last best hope for mankind.

Oh and Howard Schultz . . . we know there are no serious qualifications for anyone becoming President, but please get the hell off the stage and allow some, even modest, intelligence to move into the process.  Kindly go back to your coffee business, and your making money thing. We really don’t need another idiot in the White House.