Well, this is a fascinating turn of events. It seems that the old orange geezer has moments where he realizes age is catching up with him, both physically and mentally. Suffice it to say, that makes him crankier, and he tries to hide it even more, which, well, doesn’t work. We can see him changing nearly every damn day. Look at his speech to the military! From AlterNet:
Daily Blast host Greg Sargent said President Donald Trump appears to be at war with his encroaching physical and mental deterioration. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) responded to the [military] presentation by scorching Trump. “Look, the president’s an idiot,” Gallego told a reporter. “He doesn’t actually understand how the military works. The first thing it’s going to be is that most U.S. citizens will stand against that in civil protests. And you’ll have many of us joining them in that if they try to do such a thing. … The oath that our members of the military take, they will not fire upon their own men and women, their own neighbors. Only, again, an idiot like Donald Trump would believe in such a thing.” “It’s worth noting that Senator Gallego has actual combat experience, unlike Trump,” said Sargent, adding that “there’s an argument for responding like Gallego does here with contempt and ridicule.”
That was a bit long, yes, but important to set up this discussion. Senator Gallego knows a whole lot more about the military than Donald Trump or even Secretary Hegseth does. Therefore, he is immediately more knowledgeable and believable than either of the Yahoos is. (Yes, that is my current nickname for that pair.) They think the military will do whatever they say. That’s not correct and has never been correct. This immediately proves strike one against Trump and his mental acuity.
“Trump is clearly and visibly right here in mental and physical decline,” Sargent said. “He’s failing on many political fronts. And here he’s clearly trying to make himself appear strong. You know, he’s going to unleash the military on us. But of course, at the same time, the authoritarian threat is deadly serious. It’s absolutely real. It seems like the key here is getting this balance right. But I do think mockery has to be a part of the equation.”
Indeed, it does. He is threatening, but still forgets what he says, so he often repeats himself. It sounds worse every time, but he’s a broken record stuck on “fear” and “power”. The snag is that he’s president, and the other two “branches” have ceded their power to him. He has a lot more power than he should, but it still doesn’t cover up the fact that he *is* fading. He’s losing control a little bit more all the time. At some point, his enablers will realize they have to do THEIR work again, and it won’t be a moment too soon!
His threats are empty now. His last-ditch attempt to garner military support has failed. They know he’s nuts. He has nothing left. He can certainly send the Guard into cities. He can’t force them to do anything because they (now) know they can say NO. Remember, their oath is to the Constitution. What Senator Gallego told us applies to them, too. To close:
Additionally, Sargent said Trump is also politically weak, so he “falls back on that rallying of the base.” But he may not realize that fascism is not a position of strength with the American public, according to polls against troop occupation of U.S. cities. “I think Stephen Miller is whispering in Trump’s ear that fascism is popular, but it isn’t. “
If you go look at Denis’s piece from earlier today, you can see how poorly Trump is doing in the polls, no matter who makes them, reputable agencies or Fox “News”. Those numbers can’t be hidden anymore. They are getting worse as time passes, not better. If you add that to the rest of his physical and mental troubles, it’s going to make him mad because that’s his automatic reaction to bad news.
He mixes things up. He’s failing across the spectrum. Denial does not make it wrong. The downhill slide is getting faster. Will he be able to somehow block midterms before he’s all the way gone? Who knows. Let’s hope not because when the Democrats take over Congress, he’s outta there, one way or another.
Friends, I know everyone asks you for money. I promise you, of all the outlets asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
