The Unsinkable Donald Trump

Where’s a good iceberg when you need one?

I’ve said it once, I’ll say it a thousand times: Donald Trump can’t be stopped.

With each passing day, Trump makes headlines by engaging in activities that would each be impeachable offenses if it were any other candidate. First, he abruptly fired FBI director James Comey, all while Comey was leading an investigation into possible collusion between Trump and Russia on election hacking (possible obstruction of justice). A day later, he went on national television with Lester Holt and admitted that Comey’s investigation played a part in his firing. The day after that,  Trump tweeted that Comey should hope there were no tapes of their White House conversations (an act viewed by many as witness intimidation). Just when you thought the week had enough of Trump’s scandals, the Washington Post reported that Trump leaked classified, codename-level intelligence to the Russians. As icing on the proverbial cake goes, it now looks like Comey actually recorded Trump telling him to lay off the Flynn investigation.

By all measures, Trump should be doing a perp walk right now.

But even as Donald Trump moves from one scandal to another, I have conceded to the mind-blowing reality that as long as Republican lawmakers support him, he is – and will continue to be – impervious to political blowback from even the most reckless of behavior.

Like it or not, Trump has the leverage of both chambers of Congress and the Supreme Court, the branches of government to whom he is constitutionally required to answer. Democrats can make noise, kick up the occasional dirt, and propose a bill or two to reign in Trump’s behavior (of particular interest is Rep. Ted Lieu’s appropriately-named SWAMP act, which would force Trump to reimburse the government for his costly business trips). Maybe at some point, their methods will be executed effectively enough to drum up necessary support in time for the mid-term elections. But the foreseeable future belongs to Trump and the Republicans afraid to oppose him.

What makes Trump unbeatable is the unconditional, fanatical, and quite illogical support he continues to receive from his base. That base, not strong enough to win an popular vote outright, but potent enough to win individual districts, is who Republican lawmakers fear they would lose if they broke ranks with Trump. And, of course, they also hold on to the hope that staying loyal to Trump will translate into direct benefits for them (earmarks, for example). Far too many of them are putting their own ambitions ahead of the country and those they represent. They appear willing to sacrifice the nation’s integrity and standing in the world in order to save Trump.

In short, rather than jumping from a sinking ship, too many members of the GOP are purposely and cowardly serving as a flotation device for Trump.

It’s for that very reason why I think the comparisons to Trump and Nixon are off-base. Yes, they both committed impeachable offenses. But the significant difference between the two rests in the congressional support Nixon didn’t have, which Trump currently enjoys. By the last year of his presidential term, Nixon was squaring off against a Congress controlled by the opposing party. Trump, on the other hand has Congress on his side and, therefore, none of the meaningful checks and balances a president should have. If there is anything he can take away from the past week of scandal, it’s that he can do whatever he wants, without consequence. This isn’t the first time he’s made that observation:

As citizens, our anger over all the outrageous antics of this president is moot unless and until the folks on Capitol Hill stand up to him. But as long as his side is in charge and only operate (or fail to operate) out of concern over their political careers, we shouldn’t expect him to change his behavior anytime soon.

Narcissists seldom do.

-ACL

Trump Vs. Islam: The Lose-Lose Situation

Donald Trump is nothing, if not consistent.

In just a few short days since being sworn in as President, Trump has already cashed in one of his campaign promises by issuing a ban on refugees and citizens from a number of Muslim countries. This move is sending shockwaves all across the world right now, and could possibly have far-reaching diplomatic implications all throughout the Muslim world and the world at large. Even though Trump softened his language a bit since being on the campaign trail, his provocative actions have nonetheless sent a clear message: America sees Islam as a threat that needs to be dealt with.

This is a frightening, and potentially deadly message. But it’s hardly the only ripple in the pond. In France for instance, law enforcement officials forcefully made a Muslim woman on a beach remove her clothing as part of a ban on burka-like swimsuits. Hate speech against Muslims increased heavily in Britain after the country voted to leave the EU this summer. Even here in the states, there have been numerous reports of harassment since Trump’s election. But this ban creates a state-sponsored act of discrimination that far more alarming than any isolated acts.

On the one, I understand it. These moves aren’t based on some imaginary or irrational paranoia. There truly is an object to the fear people are experiencing. Unfortunately for our Muslim brothers and sisters, a handful of extreme fanatics have created a widening association with of all Muslims (ironically though, the same people supporting Trump’s ban out of fear conveniently forget about all the non-Muslim terrorists we’ve fallen victim to lately. The Sandy Hook shooter wasn’t some brotha named Mohammed. But I digress). In a discriminatory world, all it takes is a lone fanatic to create an environment of fear and paranoia. The minute a handful of Samsung’s devices started blowing up on folk, millions of them were recalled. Even Trump Jr’s now-infamous Skittles analogy made sense, in a manner of speaking. Many people in that same scenario would reject and entire batch of something, even if are only a handful of those items were defective. So in that respect, I don’t fault the president’s decisions. In it’s truest sense, his actions are an embodiment of the ‘bad apple’ mentality.

On the opposite end, Trump’s executive decision could create much larger and unintended consequences. First, it’s VERY possible that this ban will compromise and ultimately destroy relationships we’ve had with other nations – many of whom are Muslim are partners in fighting terrorism. For years, we’ve been an exemplar of morality; creating a model for peace and inclusion for countries around the world to follow. But this ban jeopardizes our standing in the world in that respect. But even more frightening, this kind of action is exactly what the enemy wants. Generally speaking, the purpose of terrorism is to promote terror. But by-products of this pervertedly-religious terrorism are (1) justification of extremists’ contempt for the West and (2) “recruitaments” for others to join their cause (no, President Bush, I haven’t forgotten that you once used made up that word).

Kidding about Dubya aside, there are only two outcomes that can come of out Trump’s ban:

(1) There is an actual and quantifiable reduction of terrorist activities on US soil (as if that’s really an issue). For a man as narcissistic as Trump, this would be the only evidence he would need to prove that he was right, it’s proven that his actions were not directly correlated. Not only that, it will likely cause him to go a step further and be even more aggressive with his policymaking. Worse yet, as I mentioned earlier, even if terrorism is decreased, it could possibly come at the expense of destroying long-stading ties we’ve had with our friends.

(2) There is an increase of terrorist activity in our country as a direct result of this blatant and broad attack on Islam. Sure, we could collectively watch Trump’s policy fall on its head – doing nothing to truly keep us safe – but it would most likely be putting American lives at stake. The enemy is resilient, deadly, and determined. No ban on Earth can stop an enemy devoted enough to his cause for destruction.

Either way, this is a lose-lose situation for America.

-ACL

Why Trump Can’t Be Stopped. At Least For Now.

Face it, America. You had your opportunity and you blew it. There’s no stopping Donald Trump now.

Yes, Donald Trump is a petulant child who uses his platform to attack people who disagree with him. Yes, he lacks any hint of tact and social grace. Yes, he is – at worst – woefully unqualified to lead this nation and – at best – not even remotely interested. Yes, his is more likely to go rogue and set his own agenda as President. But like it or, this man is here to stay and won’t change to align himself with the demeanor of the other 44 presidents in our nation’s history. The reason can be surmised by two simple words:

“He won.”

Pay attention to literally every interview with Kellyanne Conway. Listen to his own remarks during his first press conference. Read what many of his followers are saying about him on social media. At that point, it will all become crystal clear: the fact that he won the election has and will continue to provide a shield for just about anything this man could ever say or do. To Trump, winning this election represented the ultimate exemption. He was crowned with the “people’s” trust despite every – forgive the expression – “deplorable” thing he said and did leading up to election day. By his own (joking?) admission, he could probably shoot somebody in the middle of 5th Avenue without dealing with any political consequences. He’s moving on his promise to build a wall, potentially creating strain between us and Mexico, he’s violated unspoken good business practice by stiffing contractors and his own employees alike, settled out of court after defrauding thousands of students with a fake university, ripped off shareholders who put their trust in him, encouraged violence at his rallies, has engaged in horrendously inappropriate and demeaning activities with women, has boastfully avoided paying taxes, and has repeatedly used Twitter to disseminate false information in attacks on dozens of people ranging from President Obama to Ted Cruz. To top it off, last week he delivered arguably one of the most divisive inauguration speeches in U.S. history. What most of us would view as unhinged behavior – un-presidential antics we would normally frown upon – actually wind up helping him. Not only did his actions not lead to his demise, many would argue it’s the very thing that helped him ascend. I have my own theories about why Trump won (because liberals hand delivered the win), but I’d be foolish to discount the role his raw, unrefined, and shady character played in his win. How could we not factor that in? His self-centered, behavior is sort of, well, American.

In the eyes of many people, Donald J. Trump simply can do no wrong.

What makes matters even worse is that our last line of defense is sadly, the good folks in Congress. They’re the only people Trump has to answer to at this point. But I frankly don’t see many GOP lawmakers breaking ranks with him on too many issues at the risk of losing political capital with their own constituents. To them, the political risk of dueling against Trump far exceed any potential consequences of being dragged into mess created by the Trump administration; mess which may or may not be significant to turn off his supporters. Equally, the GOP seems to have collectively concluded that destroying any remnants of the Obama administration is far more important than preventing any wholesale corruption from taking place in the Trump administration. In their minds, the bigger bogey man is the guy leaving, not the guy taking his place.

There’s something about winning that creates a certain sense of invincibility for the winner, especially in the political realm. The winner parenthetically qualifies their win as an endorsement by “the people” to do whatever it is they see fit to make this country run (which is why Donald Trump is so obsessed with the popular vote. Losing the popular vote represents the fact that he’s more hated than loved, more opposed than supported). So as long as he can ride the victory wave, count on Trump doing whatever he wants like an unchecked king. Oh, and having a well of executive orders at your disposal doesn’t hurt.

The only way to stop Trump at this point is with the mid-term elections. If there is a serious swing in Congressional power, a Democratic-controlled House and Senate can provide the checks and balances needed to curb Trump’s petty and child-like governance. However, gerrymandering, aggressive strategies to make voting more difficult, and voter apathy will probably keep that from happening. In short people, buckle up. This is going to be a long, frustrating, and unstoppable ride. Trump is the driver. Nobody is left to stop him from running us all off the cliff.

Egh.

-ACL

An Unspoken Reason Why Trump Won?

I’m still trying to wrap my head around this. Donald Trump is President-Elect of the United (???) States of America.

Since the time Trump announced his intention to run in 2014 to the moment he was declared the 45th President of these United States, pundits and politicos have engaged in endless conversations attempting to explain this phenomenon. We’ve heard it all ad infinitum (Trump’s racism, homophobia, xenophobia, and misogyny, anti-establishment voting, the behavior of his supporters, Clinton’s flaws, etc). The Trump supporting contingency included a variety of people; all worth discussing. So definitely count on the results of this election being analyzed for years to come, possibly even on this blog.

But what I find interesting is that during the conversation, the left has (and ALWAYS has) discounted a significant reason why I believe the Trumps of the world exist in the first place….THEM.

The purpose of this particular post is not to kowtow to the right or let them off the hook for supporting a candidate who clearly and woefully demonstrated the aforementioned characteristics. As I mentioned, we’ve been through that already. The purpose of this post is to turn the spotlight on us. I hate to write this, but it needs to be said. I’m sorry – especially as a left leaner myself, but liberals can be real jerks. We’re smug, arrogant, and condescending. If you’ve driven your bumper sticker-littered Prius to a local coffee shop to engage in “critically deconstructive conversations about social structuralism and hierarchical oppression”, wearing your crocheted beanie caps and thrift store clothes (because of how anti-consumerist you are) all the while preaching to people about why eating meat is bad, supporting non-viable 3^rd party candidates is somehow healthy, and mocking people’s “imaginary god”, chances are pretty high folk will hate you. What’s worst is that you will never be able to get most people to see things your way, even if your general interests as people are aligned. I’m forever reminded of the roundtable discussion on Real Time With Bill Maher a few years ago, when Maher went on one of his typical rants (some of which really are funny, I should point out). In this particular segment, he was railing against religion (surprise, surprise). Then Newark mayor (and current US Senator) Cory Booker aggressively countered Bill by pointing out how his atheism is making him just as intolerant as the people on the right that he likes to attack. It was a prophetic (and very teachable) moment. But Maher shrugged him off. Even though that discussion is several years old now, that sentiment is still alive. All we have to do is apply it to virtually any issue facing this country.

Fast forward to September, 2016. In a speech at an LGBT function, Hillary Clinton placed Trump supporters in a “basket of deplorables.” The minute I found out about it, I got nervous. Deliberately or not, Hill had her 47% moment. At that moment, I knew she was screwed. You simply can NOT insult half of an entire electorate and expect things to go your way. Not now. Not ever.

Nobody…and I repeat…nobody likes to hear pontification (I say, as I’m pontificating), being talked down to, being told how awful they are for not subscribing to the same beliefs about wedge issues like abortion, same-sex marriage, transgendered bathrooms, etc. Likewise, many people in this country are fearful – and for good cause – that publicly opposing things they don’t agree with will lead to excoriation (i.e. not having a “safe space” for their opposition). They despise that scenario so much that they gladly (and perhaps secretly) pulled the lever for a man like Donald Trump. Obviously, these are all generalizations. But this phenomenon occurs often enough to establish patterns.

What can we do? Admittedly, it can be pretty tempting at times to take our advanced degrees and our moral compasses, and look down on certain people with disdain because of how uncultured and uneducated they appear. And I’m certainly not advocating that we step aside for hatred and intolerance. But I strongly believe that our APPROACH has to change. Something has to happen in our national dialogue that encourages discussions and accepts views different than ours. Not a conversation of judgment, finger-pointing, and belittlement. But one of compromise, negotiation, and listening. Failure to do so can contribute to the rise of a Donald Trump just as effectively as the promise to build a wall around Mexico.

All I can say for sure at this point is that the other side got the last laugh yesterday. And now we ALL have to deal with the consequences. What we do from this point on is up to us.

-ACL

Deplorable Me

Uh oh. It’s too early to call it, but I think Hillary may have just lost this election.

-ACL