War is one of the most serious things a president (or any leader) can undertake. Ending a war is serious too.
The Toddler, however, has announced that he doesn’t care whether peace talks with Iran continue or not because they’re boring. Which is true, I’m sure they are. Negotiations and diplomacy aren’t flashy and dramatic They require thoughtful, detailed work and the Toddler is not into detail. I’m sure his vision of the war involved things going Boom Boom Boom and then big strong Iraqis coming to him with tears in their eyes, begging him for mercy as they completely surrender. Then everyone acclaiming him the bestest little baby president of all time. We’ve heard plenty of accounts of how his security and policy briefings have to be super-simple or he loses interest; I doubt his tiny brain can take in complex negotiations at all.
Much like W before him, this war was supposed to make him a great War President whom everyone loved and admired. Now that it’s turned into a millstone around his sinking popularity, he’s lost interest. It’s the same way he declared he wouldn’t upgrade the Kennedy Center once a judge took his name off it.
So he’s become obsessed with something he can control and which appeals to him: remaking Washington in his image. The ballroom. The UFC fighting arena (which he wants to make permanent). The reflecting pool. It reminds me of the insider stories of how the border wall became an issue: the Toddler couldn’t stay focused on immigration until they put it in terms of building a wall, something concrete he could talk about. He can focus on building monuments to compensate for his small … hands. Only poor Toddler, they’re still opposing him. As I’ve said before, it’s an interesting display of male privilege. If Clinton or Harris were this obsessed with a ballroom in time of war, the mockery for their girliness would define their presidency. Of course, with the Toddler, there are so many other things to mock.
The thing is, “Trump appears to have given up on governing — even governing aimed at consolidating his own power and legacy. He wants to punish everyone he imagines has wronged him but has lost all interest in making the government work, even for nefarious purposes.” Except finding new ways to impose his precious tariffs. I can’t say the removal of the Toddler as a political force is a bad thing. Then again, this country without a functioning president is not a good thing. “Everywhere one looks, the U.S. government is imploding under the weight of incompetence.” And possibly his dementia.
And he’ll still be using his power to persecute everyone who hurt his snowflake fee-fees, like E. Jean Carroll. The hardcore schemers among the right-wing are still at work advancing their agenda, which means nothing good. More roadblocks to anyone immigrating here who’s not a white South Afrikaaner. And more roadblocks. Pogroms against immigrants already here. New Homeland Security head Markwayne Mullin refusing to obey the law. SCOTUS’ racists embracing white supremacy. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins bragging that kicking people off SNAP is the American dream.
As Krugman says, “they are continuing to support him, and they are continuing to do so not just in concrete ways, but verbally, which matters. They continue to cover for him” The DOJ, for instance, says the Toddler could legally tear down the Statue of Liberty. With the Toddler no longer an invincible political force, some of the Republicans are starting to back away, for example, killing his $1.776 slush fund (though I’ve read that Actin AG Todd Blanche refuses to officially revoke the fund). But turning on him now, while good, doesn’t change that they empowered him for years and many still do. We have Hegseth and Kennedy wreaking havoc in their departments because so many senators supported them, then expressed qualms when it was too late.
I’m still unsure how this all ends but the fight definitely goes on. Let’s do all we can to win.
