In my last post "A perfect World" I suggested that the world needs Trump to win the election in 2020. Here is my desperate attempt to support that nauseating claim.
In season 11 of The Simpsons, Mr. Burns received some enthralling news about his health. The medical term is a little known condition called; Three Stooges Syndrome, which is a rare and complicated ailment. Put in layman´s terms, the patient has every single thinkable disease but because every germ is trying to get in at the same time they all get stuck in the "doorway." Since they can not get in, the host miraculously remains healthy. Mr. Burns was convinced that this meant he was indestructible and ignored the doctor who tried to explain that only a slight breeze would disturb the balance and make the house of cards come crashing down.
Trump´s presidency is the political mutation of the Three Stooges Syndrome. Steve Bannon who was Trump´s former Chief Strategist said in an interview that the best way to make Trump immune against the opposition was to: "flood the zone with shit." At the time Bannon was arguably the second most powerful man in Washington and according to Trump "the best talent in politics." But it didn´t take long before the shit caught up with the "Oxenstierna of the 21 century"; he got fired and became "Sloppy Steve" instead.
The President has devoted himself to Bannon´s Shit-Doctrine, and it has been remarkably successful. The eternal spin machine of nonsense and alternative facts have indeed flooded absolutely everything. Many minions have drowned in the surge, but nothing gets to Trump. The problem is that Trump has now reached the point of no return. It was the Presidency which opened up the endless investigations, but paradoxically it is the Presidency and its "doorway" that protects him.
In these conditions Trump thrives; the stakes are high, and there is shit everywhere, but no bugs get through; however hard the Never-Trumpers are trying to infect him. As long as a crook like Trump is able to climb upwards in the hierarchy, he can hide his sins or even make them disappear. Being President of the United States is the ultimate stay out of jail card. If you are too big to fail, you are above the law.
The Mueller investigation will be political and will very likely not effect Trump; the public might not even be allowed to see what the conclusions are. After reading my blog post from February Nancy Pelosi drew the correct conclusions and publicly stated that the Democrats do not see impeachment as a realistic option unless it is Republican-led with bipartisan support. Soon after the former FBI director James Comey agreed, impeachment would only lead to a more extreme polarisation and perhaps even violence.
So, Trump will not get impeached. It is not an option for him to walk away if defeated in the election; the mere suggestion of him to pull out voluntarily is even more ridiculous. Trump is a grabber, not a puller. His only logical alternative is to keep on going. Experts have been trying to calm the fearmongers by explaining that in the end, the secret service would physically remove him from the white house. This would be an intriguing scenario as the secret service will also protect Trump for the rest of his life as they do all former presidents. But he has already hinted openly that if push comes to shove the tough people are on his side; the military, the police, and of course the infamous Bikers for Trump.
The more severe danger for Trump is congressional investigations and the prosecutors from the US attorney’s office for the southern district of New York. They will now look into EVERYTHING concerning Trump and his fraudulent empire. Call me crazy, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the Wolf of Manhattan might have occasionally slipped into the illegal side of things during his adult life.
Noam Chomsky made the argument that the Republican party is the most dangerous organization in the world. What he was referring to was the Republicans neglect concerning scientific data in general and the science around climate change in particular. They have now gone all in with the ultimate orange distraction. They are stuck and can not waive which means that the political game is in a stalemate.
Trump and the Republicans are trapped, and the Democrats are weakened by internal differences between the moderates and the new kids on the Hill. Having a female Muslim criticize Israel in Congress was an excellent idea from the producer of the best reality show ever. The millionaire Meghan McCain, Senator McCain´s daughter, did her part by crying on national TV. With tears in her eyes, she described the fear she felt for the upcoming pogroms, she allegedly has a Jewish friend.
It will be interesting to see how the Democrats will deal with the situation. But something has got to give, for the United States to rid itself of the unscientific nonsense, reinvent itself, and once again lead the world by example and start moving towards that utopia of a perfect world.
A smooth transition seems impossible; the world needs to get ready to crush some vegan eggs. So far Trump has proven many experts wrong. The economy did not collapse, no mushroom clouds in the horizon, the ice has not completely melted, there still appears to be snow occasionally in Washington DC which proves global warming to be a Chinese hoax, the sky did not fall down.
Don't get me wrong; Trump has done great harm to the Democratic institutions in the United States, but its effects are yet barely visible. That darn economy is just doing too good, at least on paper. We need Trump to win in 2020 to give him more time to fail.
Many hoped that Trump would mess up so badly that it would be evident to everyone that decency and normal politics with all its flaws is nevertheless the better way to go. The problem is that Trump has not been bad enough as a President. Sure he is lying, flirting with dictators, giving up on the climate, and hinting a military coup. But for the MAGA people and Christians, Trump has done pretty much what they hoped for; speaking his mind and standing his ground, and nominating conservative judges.
During one of the Republican gatherings, a woman proudly manifested that she does not want the US to have a dictator, but if she had to pick one it would be Trump. The audience erupted in wild applause. Trump is like a ten-year-old driving a Formula 1 car. So far he has only injured a few bystanders and damaged a mailbox. We need him to crash the vehicle entirely so that grown-ups can start building a new one in Phoenix.
For the optimists, there are still two possibilities for a peaceful and smooth transition. The investigation(s) into Trump and his empire shows something so horrible that even Sean Hannity, Kellyanne Conway, and Rudy Guiliani admit that it is too much. Or, the Americans come together and crush Trump in the ballot boxes with such an enormous margin that it is clear that the US is ready to change direction. Unfortunately, I see both as unlikely. The third option is to idly sit by and give Trump one more term and wait for the crash to come.
We need to give Trump another four years for the bad economy to catch up with him. All presidents take credit for a good economy even though the economy is primarily based on the butterfly effect where small things have non-linear impacts on a complex system. Sure, the political decisions will affect the economy, but the wheels of history are more significant and more potent than Individual 1 or any other President.
Trump needs to fail; markets need to burn, new lows have to be reached for the old white males from the cold war era to give room for more progressive and sound decision making. It is not a matter of if, but a matter of when. It will most certainly hurt, but humanity is at a crossroads, for us to begin to understand this fact, we need Trump and his MAGA soldiers to lead us towards a disaster. When that day comes, Trump needs to be in office and pay the political price of his brilliance. Hopefully, his enablers will take some of the responsibility.
The exceptionally advantageable geography of the United States will not change anytime soon. When the dust has settled, the US will rise and be able to take the lead. Maybe not as the city upon a hill but perhaps a strong village in a protected mountain valley. Bismarck allegedly said: “God has a special providence for fools, drunkards, and the United States of America.” That relieving breeze will eventually come and trigger a shit storm like never before. So hold on to your hats; it will be a bumpy ride.
Comments