If you sling words around like frisbees all day to make a buck or two like I do, and if you’ve spent the last 5 years flinging those frisbees at one Donald John Trump, it can be incredibly frustrating. And if it frustrates me, what about the real reporters who deal with him face-to-face. He’s like one of those “bop dolls” your parents used to get you at Toys-R-Us. Smack him and he pops right back up again. They try to pin him down on something, and he just smiles that stupid Man, this is some good shit! Thanks doc! grin and keep blabbering about some totally unrelated topic.
But that has degenerated recently, and it’s only getting worse. Trump used to relish his jousting with unfriendly media, calling them snide names, waving his hand dismissively at them and calling them fake news, before ignoring them in favor of someone else. His more recent interactions have been more bitter and personally insulting. I think the media is getting in his head in a way it never has before, because he can graphically see what their assaults are doing to his polling numbers.
Another prime example is Trump’s ill fated church visit the other day. Trump could care less if the basement of the church was set on fire, he probably wants to build a condo there anyway. It was reported among other things that the driving reason Trump wanted that photo op involved a particular piece of graffiti spray painted on the wall, something reported to be Trump’s name, along with an expletive. I’m guessing it was something along the lines of Fuck Trump! But in what parallel universe is a US President even aware of an individual piece of graffiti, much less so compelled to respond to it that he has mounted cops blaze a path through to the site for him? Why did this get under his skin so badly?
Watching the continuing wall-to-wall coverage of the national protests last night finally clicked something over in my mind. I have written before about Trump’s severe anguish and frustration by his isolation caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Kick starting the economy was nothing more than a convenient cover story for Trump to use to force states to reopen as quickly as possible. His real reason was to create an atmosphere in which he could resume his mass rallies to soothe his ravaged ego. But we’re not there yet, and Trump remains isolated.
A few weeks ago I wrote of the absurd hilarity that while Trump could easily fill an arena with 15,000 screaming oafs, when he orders them out into the streets in front of state houses to protest for those Governors to reopen their states quicker, he can’t gin up more than 500 to actually come out and protest for him. I guess it turns out that Trump supporters would rather come out and see the show than come out and be the show. And don’t think for a minute that Trump didn’t see the pathetic number of people he could call into the streets, and that it didn’t burn his ass.
This is critical to keep in mind, because what happened last week? An unarmed black man was murdered in Minneapolis by a quartet of heavy handed, indifferent cops. And within hours, there weren’t a lousy 500 people in the streets of Minneapolis, there were 5000 or more. And not only in Minneapolis. On a daily basis in cities like Chicago, New York, Atlanta and Los Angeles, there are more people out in the streets than Trump could ever even hope to pack into one place, and they’re out there for somebody nobody but his family had ever heard of a week ago. They’re sucking all of the oxygen out of every media cycle, and every time Trump tries to respond, he comes off looking like exactly what he is, a cold, indifferent,m racist.
You want to know why Trump has had such an insane reaction to these protests? Because they’re literally driving him insane. With frustration. Trump still can’t hold his mass rallies, and an average Friday night high school football game has a better attendance number than he can get to show up in the streets for him at his command, and yet on a daily basis, there are literally hundreds of thousands of people out in the streets, rallying in support of somebody who’s not him! Well, fuck that! He’s the President! And if he can’t have mass rallies, then nobody else can either, and if it means sending army troops into the streets to clear them out, then so be it!
The isolation caused by the coronavirus has been steadily eating away at Trump’s self confidence and ego for three months now. But the George Floyd protests may have been the blow that shattered that invincible bubble of self protection. What’s that Rolling Stones song that Trump loves to use at his rallies? Oh, yeah. You can’t always get what you want. These days, I think that’s pretty much the soundtrack running through his mind 24/7.
To know the future, look to the past.before the insanity of the 2020 election, relive the insanity of the 2016 GOP primary campaign, and the general election, to see how we got to where we are. Copies of President Evil, and the sequel, President Evil II, A Clodwork Orange are available as e-books on Amazon, at the links above. Catch up before the upcoming release of the third book in the trilogy, President Evil III: All The Presidents Fen
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Yes, he’s coming apart. I think some pics of Biden and Obama out, getting crowds, will take him completely over the falls.
Wait for it…we know it’s coming…
Biden is more popular than Himself. And public approval of BLM has gone up a lot in the last week.
Think of the footage Trump just provided the Lincoln Project. No wonder they can afford to put out so many in such quick succession. All they need to do is add a soundtrack.
Well, that didn’t take long. https://lincolnproject.us/news/war-zone/
Biden’s got an ad out, too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG1SuSScW-s&feature=youtu.be
Dana, I hadn’t seen Biden’s new ad. It’s awesome! Thanks for posting it!
Paul Henreid in Casablanca: “…hundreds of thousands would take our place. Even Nazis can’t kill that fast.” Seems a good summary of where we are right now.
As wiser folks than me said in the beginning, this is a marathon, not a sprint. And I do believe we’re hitting that point in the race where endurance is key to staying ahead. That ain’t Donnie Boy.
Hey, is Trumpler still playing Stones’ stuff at his hillbilly rallies? I do believe they said NO FUCKING WAY MATE to that, long ago. C’mon Keith, sue the bastard!
Do remember that Keith lives here these days. And contrary to his image, he believes in doing it as peaceably as possible. Regardless, I’m sure the Stones’ lawyers are lining up at the legal rally of federal charges, state charges and lawsuits in waiting. It probably resembles the Indy 500 by this point.
I hope somebody is stepping up to represent all those people who were assaulted at Lafayette Park.
I believe that particular song is out of the Stones’ legal control due to some contract sale way back when.
I think the reason he wants to restart the economy, is that he is hoping everyone will go back to work immediately and all the financial hardships will go away-like the virus. It will be a miracle! *snark*
This idea sounds remarkably like the same line that seems to have guided his businesses, marriages and loans.
That “miracle disappearance” bit has been traced to a book of “prophecies” by Sylvia Browne. Only a total idiot, influenced by evangelical idiots, would base public policy on such a book.
In an effort to distract people, the WH has released the results of the physical they claim he had. The only accurate information is his age.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EZnAKVuWsAIUeiw?format=jpg&name=900×900
And his full name.
He’s not obese. He’s fluffy.
And he’s gained five pounds.
I’m not overweight, I’m undertall!
I’m a retired registered nurse and those results seem suspect. I worry that as soon as he loses the election his doctor, family, republicans etc. will claim he’s suffering from some form of dementia or mental illness and is unable to be tried for his many crimes.
If this occurs we need to insist that trump be evaluated by top doctors. Who are qualified to diagnose these matters. We should also have a discussion about the fact that people knew he had a diminished mental capacity and refused to act upon it. Even in the midst of a pandemic, the economy tanking and massive protests against police brutality.
They apparently thought it prudent to allow him to continue to write executive orders, command the military, take meetings with the leaders of other countries and have access to and command of nuclear weapons.
I hope I’m just being pessimistic or paranoid but I wouldn’t put anything past these people.
ReaderRay, I’ve wondered myself if non-family members on the WH staff could be sued or prosecuted for dereliction of duty. Obviously not by Billy Barr but by a new Attorney General. It will be interesting to see what happens!
Great piece! Although I kinda hear him humming “Gimme Shelter” these days!
For me, the tune I hear is “Midnight Rambler”, which arguably delivers on the promise of the threat hinted at in “Gimme Shelter”.