"Not shockingly," the New York TImes essay written by an anonymous member of the Trump administration, "landed on the White House like a bomb." (Photo: Ted Eytan/flickr/cc)
There Are No Adults in the Room
The anonymous "adult" in the White House has the jellyfish spine common among Republicans these days
For a man who places such a premium on loyalty, Donald Trump inspires remarkably little.
He or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity.
Bad enough his administration is a sieve, embarrassing accounts of bungled phone calls with foreign leaders and cheeseburger-fueled rants with cronies regularly showing up in the news. Bad enough top aides keep fleeing his White House like it was on fire. Bad enough his ex-lawyer has named him an unindicted conspirator in a campaign finance felony.
Bad enough, all that. Now there's this.
Meaning, of course, last week's publication by The New York Times of an anonymous op-ed by a person the paper describes as "a senior official in the Trump administration whose identity is known to us and whose job would be jeopardized by its disclosure." The writer tells us that he or she is part of a large cabal of officials working to subvert some of Trump's plans and to frustrate his crazier inclinations.
This is not, we are told, because of disagreement with Trump's agenda--"We want the administration to succeed and think that many of its policies have already made America safer and more prosperous"--but rather, because these officials recognize that he is a man of great "amorality"--"reckless," "impetuous," "adversarial," "petty," and "ineffective."
But there are, the writer assures us, "adults in the room."
We're told that these adults take it upon themselves, when Trump makes one of his "half-baked, ill-informed, and occasionally reckless decisions," to ignore it, do something else or cajole him into a less stupid course of action. The writer says these officials try "to do what's right even when Donald Trump won't. The result is a two-track presidency."
Not shockingly, the essay landed on the White House like a bomb. In an angry tweet, Trump described the writer as "GUTLESS" and demanded that the Times, "for National Security purposes, turn him/her over to government at once!"
As if the First Amendment were repealed while we weren't looking. As if the Times has the writer stashed in a newsroom closet.
But at least Trump was unconflicted. Frankly, it was hard to know what to feel after reading this essay. Another way of describing a "two-track presidency," after all, is to say that America has undergone a de facto coup.
It's possible to be deeply concerned about that--Just who's running this country?--and yet, grateful somebody is standing between us and Trump's meatheaded ideas. And it's possible to be both those things and yet appalled at this person's failure to be as large as the crisis demands.
To the contrary, he or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity. Namely, that this tantrum-throwing child is unfit to govern.
Instead, we get this anonymous rationalization. It impressed MSNBC host and former Republican Rep. Joe Scarborough, who wrote that we should be grateful to these people for stopping Trump from "creating an existential crisis for the country." Which is laughable. Trump is the existential crisis, but they're OK with trying to manage it from behind the scenes because, tax cuts.
With apologies to James Comey, these people need to discover a higher loyalty. Until they do, the assurance they offer is empty.
There are no adults in that room.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
For a man who places such a premium on loyalty, Donald Trump inspires remarkably little.
He or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity.
Bad enough his administration is a sieve, embarrassing accounts of bungled phone calls with foreign leaders and cheeseburger-fueled rants with cronies regularly showing up in the news. Bad enough top aides keep fleeing his White House like it was on fire. Bad enough his ex-lawyer has named him an unindicted conspirator in a campaign finance felony.
Bad enough, all that. Now there's this.
Meaning, of course, last week's publication by The New York Times of an anonymous op-ed by a person the paper describes as "a senior official in the Trump administration whose identity is known to us and whose job would be jeopardized by its disclosure." The writer tells us that he or she is part of a large cabal of officials working to subvert some of Trump's plans and to frustrate his crazier inclinations.
This is not, we are told, because of disagreement with Trump's agenda--"We want the administration to succeed and think that many of its policies have already made America safer and more prosperous"--but rather, because these officials recognize that he is a man of great "amorality"--"reckless," "impetuous," "adversarial," "petty," and "ineffective."
But there are, the writer assures us, "adults in the room."
We're told that these adults take it upon themselves, when Trump makes one of his "half-baked, ill-informed, and occasionally reckless decisions," to ignore it, do something else or cajole him into a less stupid course of action. The writer says these officials try "to do what's right even when Donald Trump won't. The result is a two-track presidency."
Not shockingly, the essay landed on the White House like a bomb. In an angry tweet, Trump described the writer as "GUTLESS" and demanded that the Times, "for National Security purposes, turn him/her over to government at once!"
As if the First Amendment were repealed while we weren't looking. As if the Times has the writer stashed in a newsroom closet.
But at least Trump was unconflicted. Frankly, it was hard to know what to feel after reading this essay. Another way of describing a "two-track presidency," after all, is to say that America has undergone a de facto coup.
It's possible to be deeply concerned about that--Just who's running this country?--and yet, grateful somebody is standing between us and Trump's meatheaded ideas. And it's possible to be both those things and yet appalled at this person's failure to be as large as the crisis demands.
To the contrary, he or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity. Namely, that this tantrum-throwing child is unfit to govern.
Instead, we get this anonymous rationalization. It impressed MSNBC host and former Republican Rep. Joe Scarborough, who wrote that we should be grateful to these people for stopping Trump from "creating an existential crisis for the country." Which is laughable. Trump is the existential crisis, but they're OK with trying to manage it from behind the scenes because, tax cuts.
With apologies to James Comey, these people need to discover a higher loyalty. Until they do, the assurance they offer is empty.
There are no adults in that room.
For a man who places such a premium on loyalty, Donald Trump inspires remarkably little.
He or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity.
Bad enough his administration is a sieve, embarrassing accounts of bungled phone calls with foreign leaders and cheeseburger-fueled rants with cronies regularly showing up in the news. Bad enough top aides keep fleeing his White House like it was on fire. Bad enough his ex-lawyer has named him an unindicted conspirator in a campaign finance felony.
Bad enough, all that. Now there's this.
Meaning, of course, last week's publication by The New York Times of an anonymous op-ed by a person the paper describes as "a senior official in the Trump administration whose identity is known to us and whose job would be jeopardized by its disclosure." The writer tells us that he or she is part of a large cabal of officials working to subvert some of Trump's plans and to frustrate his crazier inclinations.
This is not, we are told, because of disagreement with Trump's agenda--"We want the administration to succeed and think that many of its policies have already made America safer and more prosperous"--but rather, because these officials recognize that he is a man of great "amorality"--"reckless," "impetuous," "adversarial," "petty," and "ineffective."
But there are, the writer assures us, "adults in the room."
We're told that these adults take it upon themselves, when Trump makes one of his "half-baked, ill-informed, and occasionally reckless decisions," to ignore it, do something else or cajole him into a less stupid course of action. The writer says these officials try "to do what's right even when Donald Trump won't. The result is a two-track presidency."
Not shockingly, the essay landed on the White House like a bomb. In an angry tweet, Trump described the writer as "GUTLESS" and demanded that the Times, "for National Security purposes, turn him/her over to government at once!"
As if the First Amendment were repealed while we weren't looking. As if the Times has the writer stashed in a newsroom closet.
But at least Trump was unconflicted. Frankly, it was hard to know what to feel after reading this essay. Another way of describing a "two-track presidency," after all, is to say that America has undergone a de facto coup.
It's possible to be deeply concerned about that--Just who's running this country?--and yet, grateful somebody is standing between us and Trump's meatheaded ideas. And it's possible to be both those things and yet appalled at this person's failure to be as large as the crisis demands.
To the contrary, he or she shows the jellyfish spine and bunny rabbit bravery common among Republicans these days. Real courage would've required the writer and the "many Trump appointees" he or she says are part of this to quit their jobs en masse, find a public forum, and speak the obvious truth without hiding behind the cloak of anonymity. Namely, that this tantrum-throwing child is unfit to govern.
Instead, we get this anonymous rationalization. It impressed MSNBC host and former Republican Rep. Joe Scarborough, who wrote that we should be grateful to these people for stopping Trump from "creating an existential crisis for the country." Which is laughable. Trump is the existential crisis, but they're OK with trying to manage it from behind the scenes because, tax cuts.
With apologies to James Comey, these people need to discover a higher loyalty. Until they do, the assurance they offer is empty.
There are no adults in that room.