Donald Trump's “State
of the Union” address has been the subject of mass speculation about what he
will say, maybe bragging about a "New America," or something. But does it really matter what he says? First of all, we all should
know by now that Trump is all over the map ideologically—although the range is
mostly from “compassionate conservatism” to fascist far-right. It is
interesting to note a comparison between Trump and Richard Nixon; Nixon was a
racist, but he kept his commentary on the matter “private,” in as far as they
could be given that he recorded everything he said in the White House (who
knows why, given all the trouble he was in). But on the other hand, even if he
was not empathetic with their problems and goals, Nixon nevertheless actively
courted the support of minorities and liberals, with what one could regard as “progressive”
policies on civil rights and the environment. Let’s not forget that it was the
Nixon administration Justice Department that sued Trump’s company for discrimination
and civil rights violations; according to a recent story in The Guardian,
It also
charged that the company had required prohibitively stringent rental terms and
conditions to black applicants and had lied about unit availability to keep
black residents out. A then 26-year-old Donald Trump was the president of the
company at the time.
Three Trump
doormen also told the DoJ they had been instructed to deflect African Americans
who came to Trump buildings to apply for apartments. The suit was later settled
“without an admission of guilt”, as Trump is keen on reminding.
Trump also called for the death sentence of the
Central Park Five, who were later exonerated after being wrongly convicted of
raping a jogger in the park. In another “accommodation” to Trump’s racism, according to the Guardian “Another former Trump employee
told The New Yorker that black staff
were hidden from Trump when he visited (the Trump Plaza) casino with his wife. ‘When
Donald and Ivana came to the casino, the bosses would order all the black
people off the floor,’ said Kip Brown.”
And we also know that Trump still has a hard time
separating “Dreamers” from the “murderers and rapists” that he imagines most “Mexicans”
are. It seems that time, self-reflection and conscience have not had any impact
on Trump, as if any of that even was a part of his make-up; we shouldn’t keeping our fingers crossed that
it will happen any time soon, if ever. Trump’s ego and thin-skin must
constantly be massaged, even when he now offers outrageous and impossible terms
for a DACA “deal.” This is no “deal”—this is the kind of hostage taking that even
Dr. Evil would know is absurd.
Another “liberal” issue is environmental policy,
and Trump has allowed his completely unqualified Interior Secretary (as are
most of his appointments for their cabinet posts), Ryan Zinke, run over
environmental laws like a road grader. But does that stop Trump from making
more bizarre and head-scratching pronouncements? Are you kidding? His belief in
the concept of global warming was muddled before he was elected, then “coalesced”
around the idea that it was a “myth,” or at least wasn’t caused by “human”
factors. Zinke ordered the EPA to remove all mention of “global warming” on its
websites, and the opinions of scientists working for the department that were contrary
to that of the administrations were to removed.
Yet there was Trump just the other day telling
the world that he “might” revisit the Paris climate accord after having abandoned
it as being against U.S. “interests.” What this means could be anything; Soon
afterwards, Trump was telling an interviewer that global sheet ice was at “record”
levels, seemingly denying once more that global warming was occurring. Climatologists
say that Arctic ice sheets continue to shrink, while any increase in the
Antarctic is due less to “growth,” but the addition of usually more northerly ice
sheets, in reaction to rising sea temperatures. Trump’s comments are “baffling”
scientists, but his defenders are careful to note that he didn’t “exactly” say
if the “records” being set are from increases or decreases; so much for the “on-the-job
training” of this president.
Of course, tonight Trump will take “credit” for
things he doesn’t deserve to take credit for, and deflect blame for the mass
failures of his regime to others. He won’t admit that the reason why there is
no DACA deal is because he has courted the fringe fascist-right to such an
extent that he has alienated most of the population, and being a glutton for undeserved
praise, he finds that his only true “friends” are those who respond favorably
to his most racist and anti-immigrant policy pronouncements; "naturally" he must "accommodate" them first. And House Speaker Paul Ryan always
pretends to be “uncomfortable” with racist rhetoric coming from the fringes, but
an immigration deal is unlikely to be forthcoming from the
Republican-controlled House because Ryan is either in secret agreement with
these lunatics, or he “imagines” that they are a much more powerful force than
they actually are, and he is just too lily-livered to stand-up to them. But he and Trump don't deserve all the blame; Mitch McConnell on the Senate side has also been called a "weak-chinned sellout" for Trump's latest outrages.
So really, it doesn’t matter what Trump says; the only thing that can be said for certain is that even if he does
say something “conciliatory,” we have heard this song and dance before, and
nothing positive has ever come from it.
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