WELL, YOU NEVER ASKED – Trump’s Shameful Failure of Expectation

One would be perfectly justified in blaming Donald Trump for the outrageous things he does—or the tremendous amount of good he could do but won’t. But these are, for Trump and his ilk, just the bright shiny objects they dangle to lure the attention of an undisciplined media and of gullible folks with lots of rage and short attention spans.

The least-appreciated failing of this near-total failure of a president is not his behavior, his policies—more like childish impulses—his corruption, his pathological lying, his lack of civility, nor even his outrageous immorality. Everyone knows these faults.

No, Donald Trump’s most under-condemned failure as a leader is how little he’s expected—of himself, of others, of us, the citizens of this great and good nation.

   

LIVING DOWN TO EXPECTATION
Healthy, functioning social entities, be they nations, communities, businesses or families, ask something of their constituents. Sometimes a lot.

They ask folks to balance their personal freedoms and wants with the welfare of the group. They needn’t see eye to eye on everything, but they do agree on a constructive, civil process for resolving those differences.

In a democracy it’s just assumed that citizens make small sacrifices for the common good. We pay taxes; we share our time, talents and resources; we abide by laws ensuring no one causes harm or takes more than their share of common resources; we look after our less-fortunate fellow citizens. 

          

And during periods of extreme challenge or crisis— like wars, natural disasters, economic collapse or a super-ambitious national initiative like our War on Poverty or the Space Race, great nations—the ones that come through the crisis stronger and wiser—are those which ask their citizens to rise to, and grow with, the challenge.

On the other hand, failed nations, from Angola to Russia to Venezuela, and their paranoid, iron-fisted dictators—for many of which Donald Trump can barely conceal his admiration— expect nothing approaching a higher order of thinking from their subjects. Just hard labor to feed the insatiable corruption. And, of course, often on pain of humiliation, ruin or death, their loyalty. Sound familiar?

    Go ahead and show your utter contempt for
    common decency by coughing and sneezing
    on anyone you damn well please.

INDULGING FOLKS’ WORST INSTINCTS
So here we are. It’s 2020 and the United States of America is facing an unprecedented “perfect storm” of catastrophe: a global pandemic; a firestorm of rage and grief over long-smoldering racial injustice; the looming cataclysm of global warming; and a chilling, brazen assault by oligarchs and disciples of chaos on the bedrock of our democracy.

And what of any virtue at all has Donald S. Trump asked of the American people? Absolutely nothing, especially from his base. Nothing more, that is, than what he sees as the status quo. Just keep doing your own thing. Don’t listen to—hell, just go ahead and beat the shit out of—those crying out for justice. 

    

Don’t give an inch on your, or your employer’s, “right” to continue fouling the air, water and soil. Don’t worry if people’s constitutional rights are the price we have to pay for "law and order." Don’t even pretend to stifle your meanest, basest instincts to demonize those you deem a threat to your perceived entitlement.

And, for God’s sake, don’t listen to the scientists or public health experts about this COVID-19 “hoax.” In fact, go right ahead and show your utter contempt for common decency by coughing and sneezing on anyone you damn well please. Those few (hundred thousand) frail old folks were dying soon anyway; small price to pay so Billy Bob can go party hearty in Sturgis.

Do whatever you want…oh, unless you disagree with me or refuse to kiss my ass, says Donald Trump. If you fail that, well then, you’re yesterday’s news. You’re fired.

    Instead of an expectation, Trump has given
    his base what Barak Obama wouldn’t give
    them: permission.

BORN TO BE BOORISH
It’s not simply failing to expect the best of Americans; it’s insisting on their worst. And, sure enough, hundreds of thousands of folks this charlatan has somehow managed to hypnotize dutifully line up, sporting their "Don't tread on me!" flags and MAGA caps, eager to comply. After all, this is what they love about the man.

Instead of an expectation, Trump’s given them something they’d been praying for during the entire unbearable eight-year “reign” of Barak Obama. Something that college-boy, holier-than-thou, liberal elite (oh, and uppity black man) with the impudence to expect Americans to act like adults wouldn’t give them: permission.

         

The reality-show president is playing to folks who are already so aggrieved, so afraid of evolving, that many literally see him as a gift from God. Trump's one rude, ignorant, corrupt, self-obsessed little man who’s finally given them his okay to be as shallow and hostile as they really are.

He’s legitimized their fantasy that it’s their God-given right not to grow intellectually, socially or spiritually. And to distrust anyone who does.

      I don’t know which came first, Trump’s
      inability to ask for anything resembling
      higher-order thinking from his followers,
      or their inability to give it.

LOYALTY TRUMPS ALL 
Say what you will about Donald Trump and his disastrous personal shortcomings. The man could have, despite those considerable handicaps, been a decent president—could, indeed, have helped make America at least not worse again.

He could have, as the nearly-as-dull-witted ex-pro wrestler Jesse Venture once did when he found himself governor of Minnesota, at least surrounded himself with smart, capable people. But for Trump, too threatened by anyone’s pretending to know anything he doesn’t, there’s simply no help.

Nope, he doesn’t dare expect intelligence, competence, aspiration, creativity, challenge, sacrifice. None of those positive, constructive qualities. Not from those who support him politically, and certainly not from anyone who works for him. He doesn’t even expect basic human decency.

All Donald expects is what every petty tyrant expects: blind allegiance— not even to the country, but to him. I don’t know which came first, his inability to ask for anything resembling higher-order thinking from his followers, or their inability to give it.

   

Their portrayal of their enemy as a bunch of pretentious, snot-nosed, holier-than-though little brats is ironic, for it’s exactly those traits that have been exposed in them during their little MAGA tantrum these past few years.

And, for folks who so vehemently reject expectation of any kind, it begs the question, “How’s that goin’ for ya?” With the economy? With our country’s standing in the world? With crime rates? With the condition of our air, water and land? With natural disasters? The list is long and the answers chillingly mass-delusional.

        

TO ASK OR TO ASK NOT
Throughout this whole moral, constitutional crisis—it feels like a street fight between the sordid underbelly of America and its noble soul—I keep hearing echoes of John F. Kennedy’s famous entreaty: Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.

And I’m wishing, praying, for a couple of great leaders who, come January, 2021, might articulate that kind of aspiration. Might rekindle the spark of kindness, generosity and hope I’m convinced still smolders deep inside every true American.

   

FEET TO THE FIRE – A Trump-Tells-All Fantasy

The great thing about fantasy is that it doesn’t have to be realistic. If it were, one wouldn’t have to dream about it; one could act on it.

Here’s a fantasy about the most incompetent, most divisive, most deceitful, hateful president the USA has ever had to endure. Someone’s got to hold this pathological liar’s plump little feet to the fire. But that’s not going to happen… at least not in the real world. But it can and it does in my fantasy.

LAY OF THE LAND
Donald Trump was born and raised to “win” at all costs. He has succeeded—as long as you define success as the illusion of wealth, and never, ever, having to be responsible for your words or actions. The man has achieved nothing without cheating, lying or suing. He’s an absolute master of every tool in the irresponsibility toolbox: obfuscation, scapegoating, denial…even temper tantrums.

So picture this: a trial of Trump; the charges: multiple amoral, unethical and criminal acts—from adultery to bribery, swindle to treason. The judges, both a trusted panel and (admittedly something that might only happen in a fantasy) the entire population of planet earth—anyone, that is, with access to the Internet or cell phone service.

First off, all those people who normally shield Trump from responsibility—spokespersons, lawyers, Secret Service, and all those political apologists—are given a much needed vacation. Then he’s arrested and brought by force into a huge bomb-proof vault, where seats are neatly arranged to accommodate a large audience. (There’s no COVID 19 in this fantasy.)

     It becomes the most widely-viewed event
     in history, surpassing World Cup soccer, 
     coronations and even 9/11.

The defendant’s strapped into a hard, straight-back chair at the front of the room, his shoes and socks removed, and electrodes taped to of the soles of his feet.

Then the reporters come in. There are hundreds, from every corner of the world. From legitimate, even-handed news organizations like Reuters and NPR, as well as a few from Trump’s virtually state-run media outlets like Fox News, the National Inquirer and Breitbart.

The person grilling the pretend president is not Lester Holt, Judy Woodruff, nor even a reincarnated Walter Cronkite. It’s the brilliant, acerbic comedian and former talk-show host, Jon Stewart.

On the table just in front of Stewart sits a small black console topped with a big red button.

The event is broadcast live, worldwide, on radio, TV and every imaginable streaming outlet. It is extremely well publicized; it becomes the most widely-viewed event in history, surpassing World Cup soccer, coronations and even 9/11. Everyone, anywhere with access to any media is watching or at least listening. Viewers are asked to call, text or enter their verdicts online—free of charge. Guilty or not guilty.

There are no talking heads commenting on or interpreting the proceedings; Stewart’s questions and Trump’s answers are left to speak for themselves.

       Flecks of spittle fly from his kissy-lips
       mouth and settle on the polished table
       in bubbly little spots.

A panel of nine journalists, again representing the gamut of political persuasions, is there to consider and rule on the veracity of Trump’s answers. All have taken a sworn oath to prepare, not by parroting rumors or unsubstantiated claims to feed ratings, but by delving deeply into both the witness’s tweeted and recorded comments and publicly available records. They’ve also interviewed hundreds of people who have actually known and interacted with the defendant at various stages of his life.

(This background work has been carried out in secret, denying Trump and his people—and the reporters' own employers—any opportunity to influence, intimidate or buy them off.)

Working with the journalists panel is a team of three psychologists, specialists, respectively, in paranoia, pseudologia fantastica (pathological lying) and narcissistic personality disorder, to help steer panelists in their prodding.

Finally, there’s the panel of 17 judges. Not jurists from the government’s politically-tainted judiciary, but women and men from throughout world history who've proven themselves to be, above all, genuine, thinking, feeling, fair-minded human beings. Folks celebrated for their integrity, representing a range of fields including both liberal- and conservative-leaning politicians, many from eras before politics became the toxically divisive, win-at-all-costs culture that spawned a creature like Trump.

They are: Marcus Aurelius, Cincinnatus, Mahatma Ghandi, Marie Curie, Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Václav Havel, Rosalyn Carter, Pope Francis, Michelle Obama, David Attenborough, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, the Dalai Lama, Malala Yousafzai,Yo-Yo Ma and Greta Thunberg.

The judges panel’s vote will account for one-half of the verdict, the other half to be decided by the worldwide popular vote.

THE TRUTH WILL OUT
Before Stewart can even begin his questioning, Trump launches the expected tirade of threats. His airbrushed-orange face turns a color quite close to purple. The veins in his neck swell, and flecks of spittle fly from his kissy-lips mouth and settle on the polished table in bubbly little spots.

Calmly, Stewart reaches out and taps the big red button for the first time, sending a jolt of excruciating pain into the witness’s feet. The president grimaces, but continues his hissy fit. “That’s fine,” cautions Stewart, “we have all day,” as he now presses and holds the button down.

Once the witness quiets down, Stewart tries again. Now, he knows not to ask the questions in ways Trump can evade or answer vaguely. So they’re well crafted, very specific:

• Mr. Trump, how many women have you sexually abused?
• What did you or your father have to do to “facilitate” your admission to the New York Military Academy, Fordham and Penn/Wharton?
• What were your approximate grade point averages at each of those schools?
• What percentage is your real net worth of the $10 billion you claim?
• What are you hiding in your tax returns? (Follow-up: No, not just how financially unsuccessful you’ve been, but the bribes and hush money you’ve paid, and the payments you’ve received from foreign governments. And the actual amounts you’ve donated to legitimate charitable organizations.)
• What novels have you read in the past few months? Ever?
• Who are your heroes?
• Which do you hate more: Immigrants, Blacks or Jews?
• Name any three countries in Africa.
• What would you consider just punishment for someone who, by his willful ignorance, poor judgement, reckless behavior and utter incompetence has cost—or will end up costing—millions and millions of human beings their lives?
• What is the root cause of your sexual inadequacy?

Just for fun, there are also a few trick questions, designed to utterly baffle the buffoon, like “Have you cancelled the contract stipulating that Melania remain with you and keep silent?”

   The judges agree on a merciful punishment...
   just denial of the tools and weapons the 
   defendant employed in his commission of 
   the crimes.

EXCRUCIATING MERCY
During the interrogation, it’s assumed Trump will lie. So, after each of his initial replies, Steward just automatically zaps his feet for a second. The questions are repeated. This time, after each reply, the answer is quickly reviewed by the reporters panel, which then rules on its truthfulness.

Each answer deemed false, even partially, is met with a three-second shock to the butterball’s tender feet. The question’s repeated, and if not truthfully answered, triggers another shock, this time for five seconds. Then ten, fifteen, and so on until the truth—the real truth as determined by the panel—comes out.

The grilling continues for nearly two hours. When it’s over Trump is confined to a small room with no windows, and no electronic devices, denying him the opportunity to see or react in any way to the worldwide airing of his answers and the deluge of votes coming in from around the world.

The verdict by both the in-house panel and the people of the world is decisive: guilty on all charges. The news travels in seconds, and celebrations break out in cities, towns and villages around the globe. Even the print media makes the outcome their lead stories, topped with banner headlines: Trump Guilty!, Trump Shamed, Trump’s Lies Catch Up to Him.

Finally, there’s the sentencing. As with any criminal, it’s not enough to simply extract the truth and convict. There’s also the matter of an appropriate penalty.

In the case of Donald S. Trump versus humanity, the panel of judges agrees on a merciful punishment. No jail time. No fine. No public shaming—beyond the global celebrations of his exposure. Just denial of the tools and weapons the defendant employed in his commission of the crimes. No iPhone, no laptop, no microphone, not even pen and paper. For the rest of his miserable little life.

Oh, and the permanent attachment of an ankle device, with camera, to monitor his every activity 24/7 and ensure his adherence to the communications ban.

Ah-h-h fantasy. How sweet it is!

#LeverageYourVote  #VoteFwd

NO UNCERTAIN TERMS – A Word-pairs Quiz for the Trump Era

I’ve been a student of words my whole life. I’ve made the choice of words, the arrangement of words, my career—as a marketing communications man, author and blogger.

I also think constantly about how to make sense of this overwhelmingly complex world and where we sit in history by categorizing, contrasting, analogizing.

So, here I am, four years into my struggle to understand the Trump debacle. And the more I try, the more deftly it eludes me how a sizable minority of my countrymen somehow trust—much less condone—this reality-show imbecile leading our country off a cliff.

CAN’T HELP MYSELF
I know I should be more charitable and eschew the divisiveness that marks this petty dictator’s reign, but as I let my wordsmith’s soul have its way, the divisions and the reasons behind them come into such sharp focus that they’re impossible to deny.

It all comes down to words—their meaning, their power and which of them feel comfortable in whose vocabularies.

And it helps explain why American politics under Trump have become so visceral. For these words represent much more than conservative or liberal bents, one candidate or another’s style, or simply favoring this policy or that. They represent deep-seated differences in who we are as individuals and as members of communities, from local to global.

In each of these word pairs, one word is, I believe, likely to hold great value and reveal the best instincts of one who might think, speak or live by that word. The other word is one that might hold great value and reveal the best instincts of someone living by that word.

TELLING WORDS
So here’s the quiz: Consider each word pair. Don’t worry if some pairs aren’t exact opposites. At first impression, without a moment’s thought, circle the word that most appeals to you.

Vision / Reverence
Utility / Invention
Insight / Investigation
Faith / Truth
Hope / Action
Continuity / Aspiration
Personal Growth / Income
Planning / Dreaming
Wonder / Resolution
Preparation / Foresight
Inclusion / Safety
Candor / Inspiration
Idealistic / Practical
Control / Empowerment
Liberty for all / Authority
Personal Liberty / Greater Good
Innocence / Discipline
Small-town / Multicultural
Opportunity / Security
Sharing / Asking
Responsibility / Freedom
Independence / Unity
Creativity / Building
Common Sense / Science
Cooperation / Individualism
Self-reliance / Charity
Conservation / Utilization
Reward / Risk
Reflection / Certainty
Practicality / Culture
Idealistic / Realistic
Respectful / Questioning
Generosity / Merit

   I’d wager that one’s choice of terms
   would prove a fairly accurate determinant
   of her or his political leanings in the
   current landscape.

Now, no changing your answers, okay? Notice how one term of each pair tends to be more concrete, honoring of the past, a sense of control, individual over societal liberty, and holding your “stuff” pretty close to your chest? And the other is perhaps a bit more abstract, oriented toward the future, the positive, the idealistic, the generous?

THE POINT
I’m sure some will say this little challenge simply inflames the polarity. Perhaps. But if the flames don’t cure the disease, at least they might shed some light on it. In fact, I’d wager that one’s choice of terms would prove a fairly accurate determinant of her or his political leanings in the current landscape.

ILLUSTRATION: Erzebet S

And, speaking of second terms, I would hope this exercise might serve to articulate the urgency of denying Donald J. Trump one of them.

Vote!

If you fear a future under the hand of this destructive, criminally incompetent, pretend president, turn that fear to resolve! Leverage your vote by contributing your money and/or time to organizations championing free and fair elections, especially voting by mail in this time of unprecedented challenges to in-person voting.

GET-OUT-THE-VOTE ORGANIZATIONS
   Vote Forward
     Let America Vote
       League of Women Voters
         American Civil Liberties Union

And think positive; conjure up the image of a Re-United States of America…under any functioning adult!

#LeverageYourVote  #VoteFwd

THE FOURTH HORSEMAN – Aim For the Plump One With the Tiny Hands

Here we are, mired in a compound national crisis of historic proportions. It’s occurring on four fronts.

First, there’s the COVID 19 pandemic, which promises to challenge the devastating 1918 Spanish flu pandemic for its worldwide death toll. The U.S. is, through our shameful inaction, soaring past the rest of the world in both cases and deaths.

Then there’s the generation-defining paroxysm of outrage and self-examination over systemic racism, rekindled by the indefensible Memorial Day killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police—a reaction fed in part by the fears and frustrations of the pandemic.

Third, if we can even pretend to one day gain the upper hand on the both of these afflictions, our worries will be far from over. We’ll still have to face the dire threat of global climate change. The impact on lives, health, economies, cannot be overstated—and it’s already occurring.

Finally, as if that weren’t enough, while all three of these calamities threaten the security and the very lives of every single American, we find ourselves struggling to face any of them, gasping in a suffocating vacuum of national leadership. Oh, and did I mention the Trumpublicans’ continuing, full-on assault on democratic institutions?

      Others have had to step up and show us
      the way, kicking aside the shattered pieces
      of American exceptionalism.

THE ENVY OF NO ONE
So here we sit, those we wish would lead so consumed in their hubris that they no longer see beyond the reach of their own thieving grasp. So jealously hunched over what they insist is theirs to possess, that they see not, care not, that the states and the rest of the world—even places these ugly Americans love to diminish—have had to step up and show us the way, kicking aside the shattered pieces of American exceptionalism.

Leading the heroic effort to get ahead of COVID 19, cooperating to at least try saving the planet, delegitimizing hatred, reclaiming truth, defending freedom, fostering a vision of peace, love and happiness…all are opportunities our gutless, amoral president and his republican enablers have pointedly refused to seize.

These now represent ideals our country can no longer pretend to espouse. Values that, for nearly two-and-a-half centuries, have distinguished the United States of America, and stood as the envy of the rest of the world.

       It’s a mistaken idea of liberty as the right
       to do what ever they want…period.

THE FOOLS-GOLD EMPIRE
Here we sit, abandoned by our own president, who, having sold his soul to the devil by the time he was ten, still prizes wealth above wisdom, loyalty above respect, rumor above reality, the approval of dictators above the honor of his nation.

And his equally soulless disciples keep begging to be in on the deal, cheering on the hate and intolerance they’d inflict themselves if they thought they could get away with it. Howling for a piece of his vapid, fools-gold empire.

All so they can enjoy their mistaken idea of liberty as the right exclude anyone not like them and simply do whatever they want…period.

A FUNCTIONING ADULT
Of these four desperate crises, three will require years, perhaps even decades, of smart, vision-driven work. There will be more heart-rending sacrifices. And staggering investments.

The fourth disaster, the hijacked presidency of the United States, begs for a much easier resolution (and thank God this remedy has not yet fallen victim to the republican party’s wrecking ball approach to our Constitution): The presidential election just four months hence.

       It will not be enough for us democrats to
       simply get to the polls on election day.

Though I appreciate the lawn signs I’ve been seeing which read: “Any Functioning Adult - 2020,” we do have a better alternative than that to oust the man who’s brought America to its knees. Former Senator and Vice President Joe Biden, while he has his flaws, is still a capable, accomplished public servant, and, perhaps even more important right now, a genuine, thinking, caring…yes…functioning adult.

With the all-but-certain interference of Russia and other adversaries in the November election, and the republicans’ dogged efforts at voter suppression, it will not be enough for us democrats to simply get to the polls on election day.

Each one of us who cares about this country’s true, time-honored values must find a way to leverage our own power of the vote and convince at least one or two others who might not yet know which side they’re on, or who are considering not voting at all, TO VOTE!

• Talk to people.
• Write letters through VoteForward, the organization mobilizing a massive, ten-million-letter, get-out-the-vote mail blitz right before election day.
• Join up with the League of Women Voters, Let America Vote, Fair Fight or another fair-voting advocacy group.
• Inform older or more vulnerable family members and acquaintances about easy alternatives to in-person, at-the-polls voting.
• Do something!

 Please! We may not yet have a whole lot of power over COVID 19, and it could well take a generation to quash congenital racism or mitigate climate change, but for the small-hand, small-mind, big-ego traitor now infecting the presidency, there is a timely, sure-fire cure.

VOTE…and help others to vote.

GUNS & POSES – The Destructive Pretense of Fear

Apologists for the worst president in U.S. history may act tough, posturing with their monster trucks, survival stashes and MAGA caps. But anger and hate are proxy emotions; what really motivates these poor SOBs is fear. How do I know this?

Guns.

IN GOD WE...TRUMP?
The tsunami of proof keeps building. Record numbers of FBI background checks, and soaring gun sales since the Trump-denied COVID 19 pandemic took hold—over 2,000,000 purchased in the U.S. in March alone.

Make no mistake; these paranoid gun people are by and large Trump people. Motivated by the same fear and intolerance that dumped this blob of toxic waste in the White House.

This feeble mindset is pure Trump. It’s what he won on, the lie ladled out by him and lapped up so obediently by his gullible base. Seems the God they so ardently trust to judge the quick and the dead, to justify their claiming public resources as their own and then loving them to death, to decide the fate of the planet in some sick vision of Armageddon, is the same God they won’t trust to save themselves from the rest of us. For that they need guns…lots of guns.

                  Great societies, great nations
                  are not built on fear.

It’s as if they had no power of their own. Oh, yeah, that’s right, they’re caught under the oppressive boot of those bleeding-heart liberal elites. You know, those holier-than-thou snobs with the gall to be educated and willing to work for a smarter, kinder, more generous future. Suddenly Trumpies are rendered helpless by ideological bullies like ideas and creativity, like the radical idea that the USA is destined to lead, not isolate, and...well, those pesky facts.

Selling their country’s true promise short, they’re deathly afraid someone will take something from them—freedoms they figure some folks shouldn’t share, rights to do whatever they please—even if it represents a theft from their own kids and grandkids—and, perhaps the most zealously guarded possession of all, their hard-won homogeneity.

The saddest part—and the most troubling—is that their fear, and the hapless, kissy-mouth little prick they’ve hired as their hit man, are all they have. Oh, and all those firearms.
Make America great again? Great societies, great nations are not built on fear. History teems with examples of states which have failed due to corruption, democratic collapse and, ultimately, cultures of fear: Egypt, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Nigeria, Venezuela…the list goes on.

EYES ON THE PRIZE
Corona virus or not, there's an election coming up. It would be no exaggeration to call it the most important election in the nation's history. And one thing's for sure; this president and those who have prostituted themselves to his whim will lie, cheat and throw this great democracy's values and institutions under the bus to consolidate their power.

We must not let this happen. We've got to be smarter, more committed and harder working than they. So, if you're not already doing something—donating to Democrat campaign coffers, signing up to go door-knocking, hosting fund-raisers, promoting registration and voting...whatever—PLEASE, PLEASE research the possibilities, pick one or more and jump in.

And keep your eyes on the prize. Have a vision of a United States of America that's no longer defined not by walls, guns, oligarchy and the fear that drives them, but by our cherished and widely admired founding values: truth, honor, generosity, equality, optimism and, yes, courage.

The gun-toting right would have you believe that fear disguised as outrage somehow justifies putting those ideals on hold. It does not. And it's up to us to prove it.

PREDATORY CREDIT – How He Will Claim He Saved Us

It’s March 29, exactly a month since the Donald J. Trump, the reality-show “president” of the United States, declared the coronavirus “a hoax” and then minimized it by comparing it with the common seasonal flu.

Now, with the nation’s having surpassed China in the number of COVID 19 cases, he’s saying everything’s okay, insisting his only regret is not getting good press, and suggesting we’ll all be back to normal by Easter (two weeks from now).

Meanwhile, governors, mayors, doctors, epidemiologists and other functioning, fact-informed heroes across the nation have stepped in to fill the leadership vacuum. They’re the ones actually in touch with the knowledge—and the courage—to face the awful reality, employing the best possible data and infection modeling tech to keep citizens informed.
 
They’re the ones telling us the hard truths we need to know and prescribing the steps necessary to buy time for the necessary infrastructure and supplies—the need for which Trump has insisted for months be ignored—to even begin meeting the expected demand.

DAMNING PROOF
Donald Trump is a man of extremely limited intellect, poor judgement and low regard for anyone but himself and those willing to sell out their own integrity to ingratiate themselves to him.

But one thing the man-baby president does know how to do is delude folks—including himself—into believing he never fails. Let’s be clear, the man has rarely, if ever, accomplished anything without lying, cheating, intimidation and lawsuits. This is why he’s so afraid of any confrontation with the truth, why he’s so zealously concealing his tax returns, banking records, school transcripts—anything that might prove what a loser and crook he truly is.

         It’s a delicate balancing feat: to act
         responsibly for the sake of our country…
         while making their boss believe it’s all his idea.

If such damning proof were ever revealed, the average narcissistic psychopath might start to crumble. Not this psychopath. His ruthless father taught him from an early age that money and power is absolutely all he’d ever need to be “a winner.” He learned those lessons well, and has kept learning, from crooked politicians, corporate robber barons, attack lawyers, and a few of history’s most brutal dictators, all of whom he’s clearly idolized.

It is entirely predictable how this man will act. No matter the situation, he knows only one M.O.: Don’t think. Boast, lie, steal the limelight, deny your failures and claim credit for others’ successes.

So this brings us to the current crisis facing our country—and the human race for that matter. We may not know what our clueless, reckless president will do from day to day. But we do know exactly how this scene will ultimately play out for him.

       They, just as their hero would, will be first
       in line to demand their government save them.

THE CHILDREN OF ADDICTS
Trump has botched the national response to COVID 19, a failing that’s already likely to cost hundreds of thousands of lives. Like the children of addicts, the real infectious disease experts he deigns to share the podium with face a delicate balancing act: to perform responsibly for the sake of our country…while making their boss believe it’s all his idea.

As with anyone appearing to be smarter than he, DJT's patience with Dr. Fauci is wearing thin.

There are other heroes, too, working around Trump’s little ego tornado—like New York’s governor Cuomo, Washington’s Inslee and Minnesota’s Walz; like some visionary philanthropists like Bill and Melinda Gates. They are the ones who just may be able navigate these turbulent seas for us with a lower casualty rate than many other countries have suffered. Hopefully, most Americans will choose to listen to the real heroes, not the fool's-gold one, and make the sacrifices necessary to accomplish that.

Gov. Tim Walz (D. Minnesota)

Bill Gates

Many among Trump’s base will not. Then they, just as their hero would if he needed anything but admiration, will be first in line to demand their government save them. We know this.

And we know, with 100 percent certainty, that once America’s crest of the pandemic begins to ebb, a certain doughy, tiny-hands reality show star will once again show up to photo-bomb the real heroes, elbow his way to the mic and proclaim that it was his genius that turned the tide.

He's clawing his way up behind them. Wait for it...

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE – Something Positive to Say About Trump

I don't want you to think this blog is just one man's unhinged rants about the 45th president of the United States. I believe in giving credit where credit is due. So I've come up with something positive to say about Donald J. Trump: he is not responsible for the start of COVID 19.



That is the only thing.