The POTUS switched to his unique campaign mode as a major showdown between him and the Republican Senate Majority McConnell surfaced in the New York Times. The Republican Senate Leader was quoted as having doubts as to whether The Donald could save his Presidency. The President also allegedly was angry at McConnell for not protecting him from the Russian investigations which were hotting up behind the scenes. In addition there were weakening poll numbers even in the key rust belt states that had put the President over the top in the election. So with all that and the criticism of the fired Stephen Bannon ringing in his ears Trump fired on all his cylinders. (Bannon had chided that his Presidential like behavior on Afghanistan was a “sell out”). So off Trump angrily rushed to his comfort blanket base displaying his customary lack of discipline and recklessness to the rhythm of his factual inaccuracies.
RUSSIAN INVESTIGATION
To add insult to injury, the Russian investigations were grinding on in the Congress and the Department of Justice frustrating the POTUS even further. The latest shocking news was that the Senate Judiciary Committee had been interviewing the Fusion group that was responsible for the investigation that had resulted in a dossier that detailed Trump’s alleged collusion with the Russians. The investigating agency’s representative gave ten hours of testimony to the Senate Committee where he provided detail as to why Fusion stands behind its devastating exposure of Trump and his campaign. Fusion has provided the Committee with tens of thousands of pages of supportive documents.
MORE OF THE SAME
This was the eighth occasion in his seven month old Presidency that he has gone to the well to hear or scream those familiar chants - “Lock her up”, “Mexico will pay for it”, “drain the swamp”, “no longer will other countries steal our wealth”, “the system is corrupt”, “fake news” and other deeply populistic sound bites. He could remind the faithful, as he always did, how good it had been to hear the election results come when he achieved, “The greatest victory ever”. It was understandable that he regarded that as the highlight of his Presidency as it has been downhill ever since. So to plagiarize the John Denver ballad he was humming, “By the time I get to Phoenix they’ll be waiting. They’ll bellow homage like they've done so many times before”. In Phoenix there would be the sympathetic ear to learn that, even though he is President, the system is rigged against him because he is an outsider, like them. At these shindigs he is able to indulge himself by wallowing in self pity and victimhood. He can also regale the faithful with all the executive orders he has signed, claiming that no President has done as much in so little time.
THE GOP PHOENIX AND ARIZONA ESTABLISHMENT TOLD HIM TO STAY HOME
To say the least he was hardly being welcomed by the local establishment. The Governor of Arizona would great him on his arrival and then he would be off to see to law and order as the Trump devotees would be in a face off against thousands of counter protestors. The Mayor of Phoenix repeatedly told him that he wasn’t welcome in his town as his presence was a divisive force in relationships between his citizens. Both Arizonan Republican Senators, who have criticized the POTUS in no uncertain terms, pointedly would not be attending the Republican Leader’s rally.
WHAT THE GOP FEARED MIGHT ARISE FROM PHOENIX
The Republican Party establishment and intelligentsia took a collective deep breath as they awaited the fall out from the Trump blow out. They could hardly hope for a mature uniting speech from the POTUS, (been there done that the night before on Afghanistan). Even the Donald would know that his red meat ardent adherents, some who would have travelled miles and others who had lined up the night before to worship and scream, wanted to hear how he was going to make America Great Again. The Republican Party were worried that Trump would officially back the rival of the Republican Senator incumbent Jeff Flake in the midterm elections. Trump has already tweeted support of her while abusing Flake.The chances were pretty high as Flake has just published a book highly critical of his fearless leader. Trump’s favourite was a real flake - Kelli Ward, who talks more palpable rubbish than does The Donald. The Senate Republican leadership had sponsored an attack ad on Ms Ward, blasting her off the wall conspiracy theory that had noxious “chemtrails” being scattered in the sky.
The other major fear that the GOP nurtured, together with any sane citizen was that he would pardon America’s toughest Sherif, Joe Arpaio. The latter had been instructed by Federal Court not to conduct any further racist indiscriminate round ups of immigrants. Whereupon Arpaio promptly defied them and was found guilty of contempt of court. Arpaio’s history was littered with abuses of power and discrimination. He was a regular feature on the Trump campaign. Finally, the Sherif was voted out of office in 2016 but has remained a poster child for Trump’s base.
Then there were a pile of other worries including as to what he may say to divide the country even further with a rehash of Charlottesville being uppermost.
TRUMP WAS EVEN WORSE THAN FEARED
Trump delivered most of what had been feared and then some. First and foremost he delivered to a disinterested Bannon, a populistic agenda. Trump rambled on for over an hour where he doubled down, in a thirty minute barrage, against the unpatriotic media whom he claimed were responsible for the division in the country and were the enemy of him and those he represented.
He relitigated his disastrous Charlottesville response with a vengeance. This he effected by selectively quoting from his initial explosive statement. Again it was the media who were to blame for the distortion and the chaos that ensued. He proudly broached subjects that he bragged that his advisors had warned him not to bring up - Charlottesville being the prime example.Then he trashed the off the record reassurances that Sherif Arpaio would not be pardoned by broadly hinting that that was on the cards. He asked rhetorically whether Sherif Joe had been convicted for doing his job?
He threatened to shut the Government down if they didn’t include $1.6 billion for his wall, (that Mexico was supposed to pay for), in the budget. He railed against the “do nothing” Republicans particularly in the Senate. He upped the ante by going against the holy grail attacking sitting Senators and even worse one up for reelection. Added to all this was gratuitous advice that has already been rejected by McConnell on how Senate business should be conducted.
Trump became even more infantile than reasonably could be envisaged when airing his grievances against elites. He claimed that he was better than them. He went on to brag the he went to better schools than them. He was a better student than them and had a better apartment.
He then moved into his latest plank of his populist armamentarium by declaring that he and his Trumpets were in a culture war and that “the swamp,” aided and abetted by the media, wanted to deny them their history.
THE UPSHOT
The ramifications of this latest barrage are far reaching:
* It is hard to imagine meaningful legislation being enacted in this unprecedented environment where a President is openly at odds with his Party. He is after all their leader. When legislators return on September 5th they have twelve working days to fund the government. The Republicans cannot do this alone as they have irreconcilable differences within their conference. They need the Democrats. The latter will not vote $1.6 billion dollars for the wall. In addition the Trump administration want to raise the debt ceiling. That is non negotiable to the Tea Party/Freedom Caucus and there is no way they will vote for it without slashing every social program which Trump ostensibly is for, not to mention the Democrats. The only solution is a bipartisan veto proof consensus with both Ryan and McConnell working with Pelosi and Schumer or a temporary continuing of the current budgetary arrangement.
* Trump will get angrier and less disciplined as he becomes more and more cornered. Every poll directly and indirectly shows him losing support. It was reliably reported that the crowd thinned appreciably as he ranted on in Phoenix.The scary question is whether the twenty odd percent that he will be left with are prepared to go to the brink with him. A recent survey however indicated that fifty - four percent of his supporters maintain that he should resign if Russian collusion is proved.
* James Clapper former Director of National Intelligence, who has served several Presidents, questioned Trump’s fitness to be President following the Phoenix address. He prayed for the nightmare to end in which the President had access to the nuclear codes. He joined a chorus of politicians, military and business executives who are being increasingly antsy about the unstable rash President.
* As a sickly aside, Ryan and company would hold their noses and sell their souls if somehow or other they could pass their tax reduction legislation.
* The entry of Bannon into the fray, who is apparently going to attack Trump, will split the Republicans even further. Trump is hovering around thirty five percent at the moment - twelve percent off his election figures. Bannon might have a big pull on the twenty percent that have maintained come hell or high water they are for Trump.
* Following Phoenix, Trump switched gears once again punting unity and the equality of all Americans in a speech to Veterans in Reno Nevada. The problem for him is that he no longer has any credibility. He has crossed the rubicon. There is nothing he can do or say that can right the ship with the majority of Americans.
* What is the end game for Trump? Jay H. Ell believes it will come via Russiagate. He then can pardon himself and his family and ride into the sunset back into Trump Tower. Jay H. Ell imagines that the POTUS fantasizes his hard core base rising up in support. Nothing else explains his eight campaign meetings in seven months. It is unlikely that Trump has the discipline to sit out an impeachment.
* It is crunch time for the GOP leadership. Trump is toxic and the longer they don’t challenge him the more damage he does to their brand. Obviously they are going to take a hit if they axe him but their alternative is to continue to loose credibility along with him and then spend the next few years arguing that they never really supported him.
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