SPARE A THOUGHT FOR HILLARY

It has become fashionable to ascribe a simple answer to the question as to why Donald Trump emerged triumphant. It is Hillary Clinton’s fault. She was tainted, toxic, too complacent, disconnected, the establishment, corrupt and compromised. This narrative in fact dominated the election cycle and allowed the media to create a moral equivalency between her and Trump. This served their needs as it turned the campaign into an exiting horse race which ensured a ratings bonanza. It also provided the rationale for swaths of the Obama coalition constituents to sit on the sidelines. The latter factors coupled with the racist tide that is sweeping the world, deftly articulated by a charismatic unscrupulous populist salesman Donald Trump, were most instrumental in her downfall, not her behavior. Then there was the comprehensive Russian intervention with the Wikileaks daily e mail dump and the aiding the “fake news” people. The final nail in her coffin was the well worn tactic against her the attempt to criminalize her, shamefully aided and abetted by the FBI.The vehicle this time was her computer usage and the Clinton Charitable Foundation.

Hillary was just Hillary, a seasoned politician who had been in the forefront of change in the compromising world of politics for decades. Never one to set the world on fire she has worked diligently at her vocation. The fact that she was enthusiastically backed by Obama and anyone who was anyone on both sides of the aisle, while enunciating the agenda that she did, showed that she was the best person to move forward the American progressive future. Those that believe that the only other possible contender, the Socialist Bernie Sanders, was a better bet are deluded. Hillary in case on forgets was smeared as being too liberal and the major ideological impetus for Trump’s victory was, the euphemistically named, ‘alt right’. 

It had to have been devastating; in fact indescribably and excruciatingly so, for the Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. For the second time in eight years, the electoral Gods worked against her. On the first occasion, when all the stars appeared to have been aligned, a phenom in the form of Barak Obama beat her, in a hard fought race, to the Democratic nomination. This time round, after having been given an unexpected run for her money by the curmudgeon Bernie Sanders in the Democratic Primary, she ran an impeccable campaign, was faultless in the debates, only to be surprisingly pipped at the post by the unlikely, unorthodox, economically shady, morally challenged, bigoted and obscene Donald J. Trump. 

So the long serving public servant, who garnered nearly two and a half million more votes than her opponent, was left to wonder why? It is scant comfort to know that had she got half the votes of  the Third party Liberterians and all of those of the Green Party she would have won reversing Florida, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Fate has indeed dealt her, America and the world a cruel blow. It has been uphill in her career from the word go as she has been relentlessly pursued and demonized by her political opponents for no apparent reason other than she has been a highly successful and capable woman. 

THE PERSECUTION OF HILLARY CLINTON

Clinton has spent fifty selfless years in public service but for whatever reason she has always been the center of controversy. She emerged, in the tempestuous sixties, from College straight onto the national stage as a result of her clearly articulating the anger of the youth. After stints of supporting children’s causes, work which she continued as wife of the Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton, she was mercilessly assailed because she kept her maiden name after marriage. Next problem emerged when society blamed her for her husband’s dalliances. - the news cycle was dominated with her comments about Tammie Wynette not about Bill and Gennifer Flowers.  In the White House she was caught in the middle of a right wing witch hunt where Kenneth Starr spent 80 million dollars investigating the Clintons who were accused of a variety of crimes from murder to embezzlement. The sum total of all that was Monica Lewinsky which circumstance heaped more criticism on her head for a variety of reasons. 

After eight highly successful years in the Senate, as Secretary of State she strutted the world stage proving a highly successful diplomat and at the conclusion of her term her approval ratings were sky high. Then once again, when it became known that she had Presidential ambitions, she became the focus of an intense war on her integrity and competence. Two incidents were blown out of proportion. The attack on a Benghazi Embassy where American citizens lost their lives was subject to over ten Congressional investigations and produced zilch. The assault was so partisan that it beggars description - no one blamed George Schultz for the sixty seven deaths in the Lebanese embassy terrorist attack or Colin Powell for 9/11. Yet she was assailed as a murdering liar because she relayed the initial incorrect intelligence as to the motive of the assassins in Benghazi.

AND THEN CAME THE E MAILS COURTESY OF FBI DIRECTOR COMEY

Then came her “e mail scandal” which was to become the center piece of the Trump campaign where she was branded as “crooked’ Hillary. The reason why Trump lead the cheerleading on “Lock her up” chants at every one of his Nuremberg style rallies, was on the Goebels principle: tell a lie often enough and it becomes believed. 

One needs to analyze the genesis of this whole issue that was central to the Trump Presidency. Trump rarely offered policies at his meetings. His agenda was bigotry, broad populism and “crooked Hillary”. In fact the latter was the main event.

Notwithstanding the fact that neither of her Republican State Secretary predecessors used the State Department e mail server she was investigated by the FBI for following their precedent. Jay H. Ell contends the very fact that her e mails were even investigated in the first place was political. The legal standard being tested, as enunciated by the FBI Director, Comey, was whether she had intentionally broke security and or sent potentially classified documents to non security cleared recipients. He had no information to believe that she had in fact committed any crime. Certainly no more than was available to investigate Colin Powell or Condie Rice but nevertheless he went ahead with an interminably long process that hung like a thundercloud over the Clinton campaign. He then finally, in July, announced that, “It was not even close” that she could be indicted.

The FBI Director then went where no public servant investigator ever goes, certainly not publicly and certainly not in the midst of a bitterly fought presidential election, where his inappropriate intervention had already been the basis of Trump’s argument. He offered gratuitous insults informing Clinton, inter alia, that she had been “careless”. This provided enough fodder to continue to keep Trump’s going even though Clinton had ostensibly been exonerated. The Republican leadership however were not satisfied with Comey’s criticisms and excoriated him for covering up for her. The pressure on Comey reached fever pitch when he addressed Republican Congressional leaders who demanded to know why he had “let her off the hook”.

Then inexplicably and without precedent he reported to the GOP congressional leaders that he had a bunch of e mails on her aide’s computer that had emerged from another investigation. This just a week and a half before election day when Clinton’s campaign was on the rise and Trump’s was in the doldrums. The campaign took a hundred and eighty degree turn with Trump regaining the ascendency. Trump claimed that the evidence had to be egregious for the Director to take such action. The outcry against this yet another injudicious intervention which had less hope of yielding criminal motive or action than Comey’s initial move lead him to announce two days before the election that he had no reason to change his July conclusions. (Which in case you aren’t listening contained his opinion about the Secretary’s alleged behavior). 

The Clinton post election analysis put her loss down to Comey’s late intervention. In fact Trump’s whole campaign was fueled by his actions.

ESTABLISHMENT FIGURE

One of the greatest ironies in this cycle was that Hillary had to take the fall for the anger directed towards establishment politics and politicians. She more than anyone else has been in the forefront of change within the context of politics. Anyone can agitate, talk a great game but at the end of the day one has to deliver. Delivering requires votes, usually compromise, caucusing as well as the rhetoric. That was her forte. Trump effectively pointed to her as being the archetype self serving insider. He admitted to all manner of the atrocities but rationalized that it was because he was, for example, “smart”and “paying politicians that delivered for his business”. Hillary was the one in Washington for fifty years and was responsible for this mess. He was from the outside and would “fix it all up”. Then it would return to his theme of “crooked” Hillary and her e mails which hid all manner of evil including her “pay for play” schemes. 

AT THE END OF THE DAY

* So now the same media that set her up for defeat are blaming her for the outcome of their venal agenda. The voters that had the most to loose and bought into the equivalency narrative and couldn’t hold their noses long enough to vote for Hillary will have to live with the consequences. So tragically does everyone else. 

* There is enough blame to go around and the losing candidate has, by convention, to share some of it. Where Hillary can be faulted is her lapse into the cozy world of easy bucks for speeches and smoozing.  But to blame her for Trump’s unscrupulous charisma, the world wide swing to nationalism and xenophobia, the media’s irresponsibility, the FBI’s intervention into politics and the voters’ dereliction of duty, is a little too much. As for the latter 100 million voters who just couldn’t chose between the two "evils", Jay H. Ell has bad news for you, you got one of them anyway.

* One can only hope that the safety measures that the Founding Fathers installed to prevent the Republic being under control of a dictator/king can withstand the onslaught that it is about to endure. 

• As Jennifer Rubin, the Conservative Washington Post columnist maintained history will ask each one of us what we did on that fateful day in November 2016

* The reality everyone is still grappling with, both in most of America and in the rest of the world, is how on earth, with all that transpired in the campaign, 60 million Americans voted for a candidate of the worldview, (sic), and character of Donald J. Trump.

TRUMP: IT’S THE MONEY STUPID!

Jay H. Ell  has the distinct impression Donald Trump didn’t really have the vaguest idea of what being President entailed.  (One can hardly believe that it has only been two weeks from election night and one is already suffering from Transition Trump Stress Syndrome). That brings Jay H. Ell to The Donald’s second lapse in his pre election assessment - the idea that he would have to give up Trump Inc if he became President. Once he won he thought he was the boss of America and like being the head of Trump Inc everyone did what they were told. The election was really a takeover bid of America Inc by Trump Inc and get it to work for him. Most important all the Americans, particularly the press and the unfunny late night comedy shows, just would shut up or they would be fired. Much like in the campaign there is so much to talk about that one doesn't  know where to start. Lets take the lead from David Frum and just, “Follow the Money.”

One would have thought that The Donald understood the concept of bribery and conflict of interests as he kept on accusing his opponent of conducting a Pay For Play operation. This because she gave interviews to those who donated to the Clinton Foundation. His smears failed to provide any proof that she had done anyone any favors or they had received anything for aiding to eradicate Malaria and Aids. Trump claimed that her election would create a constitutional crisis. Ironically, that is what his is doing, as he might say, “big time”.

So forget about the last two weeks; all the campaign promises he has broken; his appointment to his cabinet of dignitaries that have been cheered on by neo Nazis; his war with the media; his ongoing bizarre addiction with Putin and his Russia; his $25 million settlement in the Trump University Cases ,(a bargain); his admission to the IRS that he misused his Charitable Foundation for personal purposes; the comments that the protestors to his election were unfair; his tweeting battles with the cast of the Broadway hit show Hamilton; his criticism of Alec Baldwin for his unfunny portrayal in the satire of Saturday Night Live of “The Boss of America”; his failure to have a press pool and press conferences - just focus on the mantra - “Follow the Money”. 

David Frum, was a former speech writer for George W. Bush and one of a legion of Republican commentators who disavowed Trump and warned against the disaster of a Trump Presidency. Frum makes a lot of sense in that part of the problem in opposing Trump is that before you can attack his latest outlandish policy statement or reversal he is already onto the next two disasters. So for the moment forget about the uncaring bigot or misogynistic liar or foreign policy megalomaniac, who could plunge the world into a nuclear war if you looked at him skew and remember it is all about his money - stupid!

All this is boiling down to the fact that Donald cannot quietly continue business as usual and be President. In a few short weeks serious accusations of bribery, conflict of interests and breaking of constitutional law have emerged.

TRUMP, TRUMP INC AND AMERICA INC.

Like so many other details that were overlooked in a possible Trump Presidency, because no one in their right or left, for that matter, minds thought he could be elected. Thus the question of who would run those gleaming Trump Towers, which punctuate the world landscape, the innumerable franchising operations and his byzantine empire with tentacles everywhere, was neglected. Where it was mentioned his children, who even at that stage were enmeshed in Trump America Inc, would form a “blind trust” and he would get on with saving America and or making it Great Again. 

GIVE A CHAP A CHANCE

While Jay H. Ell will be told by his well meaning friends to give him a chance, “He isn’t even in office yet”, what has happened together with the status quo does not portend well for the future. Flexible Trump, now that he has ensconced all his alt friends in key administrative positions, will pardon Hillary, who up to time of going into print has 2 million more votes than him, rethink whether climate change is another liberal plot and even keep the key features of Obama care but there is no way he is no way he is going to liquidate his assets and put them in what everyone understands what a blind trust to be. To date the status is the following with the President Elect: 

* He is still CEO of Trump Inc with his children in attendance not only in the businesses but in the transition process in the takeover of America Inc.

• Accepted an expensive present from the Japanese Head of State and had Ivanka and Jared sit in on the meeting.
• Cried to the Argentinian Premier, with Ivanka on the line, to look favorably on granting permission for a project there. (Subsequently denied by him but reporters have not withdrawn story).
• Met Indian Business Partners who gleefully maintained that Trump’s Presidency has given their joint venture more than a shot in the arm.
• Kept the Chinese Government as a tenant in Trump Towers
• Not liquidated his debt to the rogue Deutsche Bank that has been fined so often by American Regulatory authorities and has investigations pending.
• Given us a clue when he is going to show his tax returns which will detail his oversea operations. 
• Not reassured his body politic that his mass of products made in virtually every Asian country will be brought back home to create jobs.
• Not divested his interest in controversial oil pipe lines in the USA. 
• Not disclosed the details of his vast Middle East and Arab countries business
• Not disclosed his Russian interests or any of the interests of the at least 25 countries that he does business with. (The Wall Street Journal published a story of a meeting between Donald J Jnr. with pro Russian interests in Paris this month)

CONFLICT?

To all this and more Trump’s reply is, “The law is totally on my side. Meaning the President cannot have a conflict of interest.”  Trump argues on that he could continue to sign the checks but he would hand that over to his children. “In theory”, he maintained, “I could continue to run my business perfectly and the country perfectly”.There are very few if any legal experts or ethicists that agree with him. Richard Painter, the ethicist in George Bush’s Administration, believes he has to liquidate the whole bang shoot while the advice most favorable to him is to sell his company to his children and have nothing financially or managerially to do with it. There will of course some tax involved!

The New York Times ran an article of the lengths Barak Obama went to ensure that accepting the moneys associated with the Nobel Peace Prize did not contravene the American Constitution. Obama then promptly donated the money to charities lest even the suggestion of financial impropriety hung over his office. The Constitutional provision that Obama was concerned about was entitled The Emoluments Clause, which expressly forbids a President to obtain any moneys from companies that are controlled by foreign governments or foreign governments themselves. Trump is so heavily involved to the extent that he refuses to provide details. At the same time he is a great defender of the Constitution as it was written. He has a list of twenty potential Supreme Court Judges who will uphold it in its pristine 1789 form. He has to be so in conflict with the Constitution that it isn’t funny.

Now the Pay for Play danger is so evident that unless he has no business interests the circumstances will result in daily allegations that his actions were in response to “bribes”. Just take his hotel next to the WhiteHouse. To refresh memories the property was leased from the American Government having being initially been put out to bid. The major hotel companies like Hilton and Marriott informed the Government that for Trump to break even his basic room had to go at $800 a night. Trump has suites that let for $24,000 a night. (Presumably they chuck in breakfast).  Now which foreign dignitary in their right mind when visiting the President would stay anywhere else? They would also, Jay H. Ell assumes, become frequent visitors to all the Trump Hotels and Golf Courses for the benefits such memberships usually provide.  

THE RULES FOR EVERYONE AND THE RULES FOR TRUMP

On the face of it Trump has to make a choice between being President and continuing with Trump Inc. So far he has defied all the conventions and all the rules. He is emboldened to continue. What he doesn’t understand is that there is a massive business going on around him, involving the media, the courts and the division of Government. His only way round this is a Constitutional Amendment which will never pass. He and the Republican Party will not be able to ignore this forever because the factions that have hounded him for the past eighteen months are smelling blood. As the days pass more and more conflicts will arise and be uncovered. Society will not get a respite as the Trump show rolls on. This besides the discord the Trump agenda evokes. The money issue just won’t go away and Jay H. Ell, who hasn’t been right yet, cannot see The Donald having one big sale of his assets before January 7, 2017. What happens thereafter will be filled with Trump suspense.

And to think he hasn’t been inaugurated yet…… 

TRUMP ENDS AMERICAN VALUES

Donald J. Trump’s unexpected Presidential victory has turned the world inside out both within and without America. The impact on the international scene will change the post World War 11 landscape in a manner unimaginable six months ago. The pax American image will be smashed as will be its positive, albeit on occasion naive, influence on the world. Trump’s America is set to become just another self serving nation that sees only to its own needs and will no longer be able to claim to be righting wrongs or opposing tyrranical rule.

Also Trump’s has not thought through the problems that his newest best friend, Russia’s Putin, might land him in on the international scene. For starters Jay H. Ell will look at the impact that the alliance might have on Middle East politics. 

TRUMP COULD NEVER HAPPEN - HISTORY TAUGHT US THAT! 

No one ever thought this could happen. After all the American electorate had fought off challenges of charismatic totalitarian candidates with far more impressive credentials than the exhibitionist Trump. There was the national hero, Charles Lindbergh, who also captured the nation’s sympathy with the kidnapping and death of his child, who rallied the masses in favor of Germany but at the end of the day could not have defeated FDR. Barry Goldwater, who was the founder of Republican Conservatism was thrashed in 1964 as was the mesmerizing Governor George Wallace four years later. The latter drew crowds not unlike those of Trump or Lindbergh. Then of course there were the internal threats from the likes of Joe McCarthy who terrorized the nation with his guilt by association hearings supposedly to ferret out the Communists. All of those failed in their challenges of smashing the fragile fabric of American democracy and the values that dictated American foreign policy. However, to the amazement of all the least likely candidate, underestimated as a buffoon, has succeeded in toppling America’s centuries long ideals. 

TRUMP WILL NULLIFY AMERICA’S POST WAR ACHIEVEMENTS

America, after all, on the international scene, for the past century has been mostly on the side of the angels. They were the deciding factor in two world wars rescuing Europe and the world. Then for over a half a century they steadfastly fought and won the cold war against the imperialistic totalitarian forces of Russia. During this period and thereafter they lead initiatives for peace and even, as in Bosnia, they intervened with airpower to stop the racial carnage. They have been the lead in negotiating treaties, for peace, trade, or climate change, for example. (Of course the foreign policy was far from perfect and there have been the bizarre adventurism as in Vietnam and more recently Iraq). To add to all of this is they have carried the financial can for the operations of the United Nations and on and on. 

The most impressive international defense achievement was NATO which combined European and American initiative to counter the influence of the former USSR when it was rampant and ready, literally, to conquer the world. NATO has stood the test of time and the organization grew exponentially with the break up of the Soviet Union. NATO stands like a colossus over Europe and has been a thorn and a brake on Putin’s desire to put the humpty dumpty USSR together again. The Russian leader’s imperialistic land grabs by force have resulted in Obama's USA led sanctions which have hobbled Russia. Now even NATO is threatened by Trump’s populist rantings.

The sum total of all of this is that America’s bona fides is at stake with the result that they might never be trusted again.

PUTIN AND TRUMP

It is undisputed that Putin intervened in the recent US elections by hacking Democratic Party operatives’ e mails. It is also undisputed, other than by Trump, that Putin’s operation helped the Republican nominee. Added to this mix is that Trump throughout the campaign touted Putin as a great leader and made it quite clear that he was going to make overtures towards him. He has carried through on that promise and has publicly announced that discussions have already taken place. Also it was acknowledged by son Eric that Trump Inc. has a “disproportionate” business involvement in Russia. The Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort had to resign under a cloud when his associations with Russian backed Ukrainians was uncovered. Trump's new National Security Advisor, General Flynn, is an outlier in the military and security establishments with Russian connections. Trump never for once wavered in his commitment to Putin and when challenged, sneered, “Wouldn’t it be nice if we got on with the Russians”. The Russian Federal Assembly agreed spontaneously cheering the announcement of Trump's victory.

 Businessman Trump who was prepared to sell NATO, which is Western Civilization's safety belt, down the river because they weren’t paying enough, has left everyone wondering what the financial advantage was to dealing with Russia. What was in it for America from any point of view?. The truth is that Russia is a second rate power with an economy the size of California. Its significance is only bolstered by a ton of nukes and a canny ruthless authoritarian leader who has the advantage of probably being in power forever. It now has every opportunity to move back into the big league courtesy of Trump who will be President of the most powerful nation in the world.

IMPACT ON ISRAEL AND MIDDLE EAST POLICY

Putin, who like Trump is an authoritarian narcissist, has no pretensions of being anything other an imperialistic opportunist, has ventured with a vengeance, into the arena of the Middle East. Here his cynical objectives are at odds with the present American administration. The Trump American agenda and Russian agenda are about to coincide and the prospect has sent shudders down the spine of those countries that are about to become the erstwhile allies of the US. However, if we analyze the situation it is obvious that Trump hasn’t thought it through:

• Both Putin and Trump are idem that Assad should be backed. Putin has gone one step further. He has a large military presence in and around Syria and he is reportedly bombing Syrian rebel positions. At the moment Obama’s America is supporting the rebel factions. What is Trump going to do? Is he going to pull support from the rebels and watch by as the Syrians and Russians continue their slaughter?.
• Both Putin and Trump are against ISIS. In fact ISIS is Trump’s number one issue but Putin has been AWOL in the battle against ISIS. America is currently heavily involved in ISIS’s ouster with a large force advising the Iraquis and Kurds. 
• Israel is supposedly Trump’s number one Middle East priority and Syria is Putin’s. This has major implications for the present Middle East shake up. For starters Israel and Syria are dire enemies.
• Shia Syria and Shia Iran are firmly in the same camp. Putin has said nothing about Iran. However it stands to reason that Putin has to go with his ally Syria on their relationship with Iran or at least not against them. This is not academic as the Shia/Sunni clash for domination of the Muslim world is already going full tilt. Trump, fascinatingly, has said very little about Iran per se. Rather he has focussed on claiming that he will dismantle the nuclear deal, which realistically he can do nothing about. His ally, the Russians, are partners to the deal, incidentally.
• Israel’s biggest threat in the Middle East is Iran who daily threaten to wipe it of the face of the earth. Will Trump back them as is his stated position and thereby oppose his Putin alliance?.
• As far as Israel is concerned Trump cannot be neutral in the Shia/Sunni war. The new Middle East alignment involves Israel’s allying with the Sunni Arab States against the Iranian lead Shia. In addition the Sunni are the traditional American allies. Already there is tension between the intrepid Donald and the Saudis who have flat out warned him against stopping imports of their oil into America. 
• To meet Israel’s needs he has to be unequivocally opposed to Shia Iran which of course everyone assumes he is. If he then maintains his oil stance that means he is against the Shia as well as the Sunni. Which fits into his domestic policies cause none of them could visit America anyway. 

This tautologous analysis can go on and on. However, for those who voted for Trump on the premise that he was better for Israel, all this can be naught for their comfort. Even if they accept that his Chief Strategist, Stephen Bannon, is pro Israel and can be separated from the rightist movements such as the KKK that back him, and that Trump, like George W. Bush, promises to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, how do they see him resolving the dilemma that his allying with Putin puts him into?

REPUBLICAN OPPOSITION TO TRUMP’S FOREIGN POLICY

Mitt Romney the previous Republican Presidential nominee has labelled Putin’s Russia the greatest threat to world peace. More significant is the Republican Head of the Senate Armed Services Committee, John McCain’s warning that a Trump reset of the administration thaw with Russia is unacceptable. McCain claimed that America cannot place any faith in a former KGB agent that has plunged his country into tyranny, murdered his political opponents, invaded his neighbors, threatened American allies and interfered in American elections.  

McCain, who has been belittled as a war hero by Trump as he was taken as a POW, summed up the plight Trump’s election has thrown America into;

“The Obama’s administration’s last attempt at resetting relations with Russia culminated in Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and military intervention in the Middle East. At the very least the price of another reset would be complicity in Putin’s and Assad’s butchery of the Syrian people”

“That is an unacceptable price for a great nation. When America has been at its greatest, is when we have stood on the side of those fighting tyranny, This is where we must stand again”.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has called for a Senate Congressional investigation into the Russian hacking in the Presidential election. He believes if it confirms what the 17 Security and Intelligence Agencies have maintained then Putin should be punished. 

AT THE END OF THE DAY

While Trump struggles to appoint the 4,100 Federal political posts he needs for his administration, the storm clouds are gathering. He is about to learn that riling up a crowd and shooting out tweets is one thing, governing is another. 

Obama speaking in Germany urged Trump to stand against Russia where it deviated from traditional American values and international norms - fat hope. 

Will it ever emerge why Trump has allied himself to Putin?

WHO AND WHAT IS PRESIDENT TRUMP?

There are many takes, myriads of thoughts, rationalizations and explanations that are blanketing the country following the Presidential election of Donald J. Trump. Central to his triumphant victory was the race factor and electoral discontent. Trump turned this election into a last ditch stand of whites, mainly white males, against all the “other” including women and even the disabled. Added to this mix was the distrust in politicians and their favoring the one percent haves against the have nots. Unhappily, in the process Trump attacked the very pillars of democracy that allowed his election to the highest office in the world. 

One fact is for certain, objectively Trump’s achievement is remarkable. Virtually single handed he  knocked over the Republican Party elite like nine pins. He then moved onto demolish the highly efficient and professional Democratic Party operation to be elected President. 

TRUMP’S TWO THEMES

Trump, the master of what the market wants read ,against all the trends, that there were still enough white Americans to fight the browning of the country’s population. This approach was really blasphemous following the 2012 Republican autopsy that ruled that the GOP could never again win another national election with only white voters.

There were two major themes to his disjointed but ever changing manifesto: 

1. An attack on the corrupt political establishment, (as epitomized by “crooked” Hillary), who lived of the fat of the land. This criticism was extended to the one per centers that hogged the fruits of the economy and were above the law, (excluding his good self of course).  Ironically parts of his articulated economic policy was in sync with the Democrats and at odds with the Republicans,
2. The second was Make America Great Again. As Jay H. Ell blogged from the word go this really was code for Make America White Again. To this effect he attacked the Muslims, the Latinos, belittled the African Americans and was even accused by the Jewish Anti Defamation League of anti - semitism.

RESPONSE TO ELECTION

The Trump Spin Team

Front and foremost the Donald J, Trump spin team is executing what they did throughout the campaign; namely spinning what he really meant which is of course was not what he had really said. In the campaign this gave him the advantage of appearing “respectable” to those who were looking for an excuse not to vote for Hillary Clinton. More significantly his base still believed his original message thereby giving him the best of both worlds. So Trump, for example, could have the support of the alt- right and David Duke’s Klu Klux Klan while at the same time his team were roundly condemning them. His Mexican wall is now a “metaphorical wall”, his ban on Muslims is now directed to citizens of certain unnamed countries, there is reassurance that he only wants to deport 2 million individuals. etc etc.

The beauty of all this is that Trump, when push comes to shove, can refute his minions explanations and when it doesn’t suit him, he can quote what he really said.

The Republicans

For those Republicans, who are pretending that they are in the party of Teddy Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Reagan and the Bushes and talk of this great victory, from the toady GOP National Chairman, Reince Priebus, the motley crew of political deadbeats, Giuliani, Gingrich and Christie, the embarrassed Paul Ryan Leader of the House and other  Republican congressmen, you are in for a big shock. You are in the Republican Party of Donald Trump. He doesn’t care a hoot what the GOP philosophy is as he didn’t during the campaign. This is really about him.

The Republican intellectuals and those that supported the Grand Old Party are writing obituaries or embellishing those that they had crafted during the campaign. 

What happens at the end of the day to the real Republican Party or whether they will split and a third party emerges is a matter of conjecture at this stage. Currently it is on the path of least resistance. It is in denial having seamlessly morphed into the party of Trump.

Clinton, Obama and Trump

As one might expect “Lock her up”, Hillary and “Birther” Obama have responded in a dignified manner in the tradition of peaceful democratic change of power. Both offered to work with him. Trump in his conciliatory speech wants to be everyone’s President and unite the country. Following his meeting with the current President, Trump revealed that President Obama was a “Good Man “ period  So all that looks like kumbaya - one can dream can’t one?

WHAT IS THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE NEW TRUMP GOP AND WHAT IS HIS AGENDA?

There is no coherent philosophy. The basis of the “Movement” was that the narcissistic Trump wanted to be President. He exploited and utilized his celebrity status and his highly honed salesmanship skills to effect this. He gave the market whatever he thought they wanted. He abandoned whatever passed for his past Democratic Party convictions, reading the electorate like a book. The media, more interested in ratings than the “truth” punted him till kingdom come, ignoring and not following up on lie after lie. He made adjustments as he went along when he picked up that that was what one or other of his many constituencies wanted. 

This is some of what the new Trump GOP will look like.

There will be the labeling of China as a currency manipulator and an increase of tariffs of 45% on Chinese goods. Sounds good but the cost of living will rise dramatically because this is coupled with a 35% tariff on imports from Mexico. And as Donald knows this would push up the price of nearly all merchandise because those are the countries where he makes his products. There will be a massive expenditure on infrastructure, producing well paying jobs. Here he is ad idem with Hillary but like with tariffs hardly in sync with Ryan’s Republican Party. The fact that he is reducing taxes as well will increase the deficit to humungous proportions. Again not in Reince Priebus’s handbook on Party Policy.

In his unique  smorgasbord of foreign policies there is pulling out of the International Climate Change agreement, reneging on the Iranian nuclear deal as well as on trade pacts that should go a long way in making America’s hard earned good name mud. He has no comprehensive Middle East or any other foreign policy and he will wing it because he knows better than anyone else, “believe me”. Wait, like so many world leaders he has promised to move the Israeli US embassy to Jerusalem. Somehow they all back off. 

The “Wouldn’t it be nice if we were friends again with Russia” President will make overtures to Putin to the shock and fear of America’s NATO allies and by so doing disturb the balance of power in the world. His South East Asian policy has precipitated urgent cabinet meetings in both South Korea and Japan. The European nations’ leaders have publicly voiced their fears. He has exhibited a laissez affaire attitude to USA using nuclear weapons. He has encouraged other nations to use the same nuclear option thereby adding a nice touch of flames to his GOP foreign policy.

Waterboarding is back, “even if it doesn’t work”. Bombing of women and children of alleged terrorists is on even if it abrogates International Law

Obamacare is finished together with care for twenty- four million Americans. Medical insurance companies will now be able to refuse patients with pre existing conditions. All this courtesy of the people’s candidate. 

Then of course there is the Deportation Force needed to round up the 11 million illegals. A sickening reminder to Jay H. Ell of apartheid South Africa where the police vans scowed the neighborhood for illegals and banged on doors and dragged them away.

DEMOCRACY AND FASCISM

Democracy’s inherent maxim is that it is based on written and unwritten rules that likeminded citizens follow. This is its strength and weakness. Once again in contemporary history these guide lines have been abused. This corruption of its basic tenets has allowed democracy to become the midwife of an authoritarian bigot. As in the past this has been the path of many totalitarians, like Trump, who have taken their nations by the scruff the neck and turned them upside down. His scant disregard for the democracy that afforded him power was out there for all to see; he repeatedly threatened the freedom of the press withholding press rights to those who disagreed with him, impugned a judge hearing litigation against him on the basis of his Mexican heritage and issued a veiled threat against him once he had become President and he declared that he would refuse to accept the election result if he lost. Then he encouraged beating protestors, firing generals that disagreed with him, warned that he would jail his political opponent, accused the justice department of covering up Hillary and Bill’s crimes, invited the “second amendment people” to respond to the situation if he lost, maintained that the system was rigged and on and on…

In case there are those who are unable to put a label to this behavior it is called fascism.

AT THE END OF THE DAY

* The 1000 pound gorilla in the room is how Trumpism is going to be translated into a legislative agenda when he has no meaningful Republican support in Congress. The one advantage of democracy is that it sets term limits and there is only so much damage you can effect in four years. Another is that it requires Congress support for legislative initiatives. He will have Democratic support for his economic thrusts but for the rest other than his removal of regulations and lowering of taxes, he has an uphill battle with both parties. So one fact is for certain there is a bumpy road ahead.  Trump cannot be accused of being a team player. It has been his way or the high way even on the campaign. He seeks confrontation rather than consensus.

* There is no way that an election based on race won by a candidate that did not have a plurality of votes is going to be accepted without massive protest that is already manifesting. Where that will all lead to time will tell. Of course Donald can behave like all the other politicians that he has castigated and bow to pressure and back off on some of his promises. There is no doubt he will. His clean up crew can then explain that is not what he really did.

* By the way none of Trump’s Supreme Court nominations need be appointed because as Mitch McConnell ruled the people get to choose. Well more people voted for Hillary Clinton then Trump. Also McCain and Cruz et al maintain the Court works very well with eight Judges. The trick is for the Democrats to filibuster for four years. The electorate will blame the Republicans for doing nothing and vote Democrat businessman Marc Cuban President or better still Beyonce in 2020.

* There is another variable; the serious litigation that Trump is involved in. There are, according to the Daily Beast 75 cases pending against him. There is no way out of it. The Supreme Court, in Bill Clinton’s Presidency, ruled that civil litigation can continue against a President and although Trump’s cases involve fraud they are civil. 

* Whichever way you look at it the thought of four years of Trump being the personification of the nation is nauseating. Jay H. Ell can only hope that he is wrong and Trump will surprise us all and really Make America Greater.