I don’t think what I wrote on Friday really captured why I think Trump is such a danger to this country. Here goes again. It is no secret that Trump is a pathological liar. He has done that his entire life and that part of him won’t change. That’s a terrible quality to have in a president and as disgusting as it is, I don’t see that as the major problem.
Additionally, there is so much evidence that Trump is corrupt and many in his administration are corrupt. Just take a look at his associates and how many of them are in jail, have been in jail, are under investigation or who he has had to pardon – that should tell you all you need to know. That’s also not a great quality to have in the ‘leader of the free world.’ However, even that, I don’t think is the biggest problem. And it makes me very sad to say that.
I think the reason that Trump is so dangerous for this country is the simple fact that he is psychologically incapable of taking responsibility for anything where risks are involved and the consequences of making a ‘wrong’ decision could result in criticism or worse yet, failure. And Trump is psychologically unequipped to deal with criticism or failure. Mary Trump details how it was rare for Donald Trump’s father, Fred, to praise his five kids when they did something good, but he was more than willing to take them to task, sometimes harshly, for mistakes or signs of weakness. It’s no small wonder why Donald Trump, who grew up in this type of environment, is so averse to taking responsibility for anything that could lead to criticism or be perceived to be signs of weakness.
The irony is overwhelming, given that he has failed numerous times throughout his life, but he has never had to pay a price for those failures. His father bailed him out financially many times and when his father was no longer around, he always surrounded himself with people who enabled him, propped him up, and cleaned up after him.
He will certainly take all of the credit for almost anything when things go well, whether or not he had anything to do with it or not. However, when things are not going well, he is incapable of taking responsibility for the situation and he is incapable of making the difficult and sometimes unpopular decisions required. This whole COVID pandemic situation demonstrates this in spades. Most people who have some self-confidence will make a decision and if it turns out that decision turns out to be wrong in some way, they will simply admit it, make a course correction and move on. Trump is unable to admit that he could ever make a mistake and the best way to make sure you personally never make a mistake is to not take responsibility and make no decisions that can be tied back to you.
One would expect that when you become President of the United States in a ‘job’ where you are responsible for the health and wellbeing of 330 million people, maintaining a robust economy, defending the country against adversaries, forging international alliances that are beneficial to the US and developing some type of long term strategy that will hopefully leave the US in better shape than when you took over, that you would understand there is a certain level of responsibility that you need to assume. Trump is psychologically unable to understand that ‘the buck stops in the Oval Office.’ Consequently, he is unable to make the decisions that are required of someone who holds that office. Besides the constant lying, the continuing corruption and flagrant disregard for the ‘rule of law’ and the US Constitution, he is just mentally unfit for the job – period.
Right now, the USS America is in the midst of a major storm out in the middle of the ocean. However, our ‘captain’, Trump, is incapable of understanding that it is his responsibility to ensure the safety of the passengers, the crew and the ship. He doesn’t want his officers and crew to give him bad news about the state of the ship and its seaworthiness. So rather than deal with the storm and take all appropriate actions required to ensure its safety, he refuses to acknowledge the storm, and spends his time trying to convince everyone the ship is not really in a storm but rather just a brisk breeze.
I shudder to think what would happen to this country under this Commander in Chief if we were attacked. But think about it, the fact is, we are under attack right now, and the response has been pathetic. The invading force may not be visible and they may not be equipped with assault rifles, but we are at war and the Commander in Chief has shown that he is just not up to the job of leading this country in a time of crisis. That’s why he is dangerous – he is just not mentally unable to fulfill the requirements of the job.
There are those who would argue that a pandemic such as this is not the same as being invaded by foreign soldiers. How is it different? If there were an invasion, the federal government would, hopefully, mount a coordinated national defense, try to unite the country against a common enemy and develop a strategic plan to drive the foreign invaders from our shores. Today tens of thousands of Americans are dying and yet there is no national response, no national effort to try to unite the country against a common enemy, and no strategic plan to rid our shores of this enemy. Why? Because the man in the White House is incapable of taking responsibility and making the hard decisions that need to be made. We are at war and the Commander in Chief is no where to be found. It’s like an invading force hit the shores of the United States and Trump keeps trying to tell everyone, ‘Don’t worry, they’re just tourists and will go home soon!’
In Trump’s previous life, his failures were measured in dollars and bankruptcies – now his failures are measured in human lives – about 140,000 Americans so far and counting. He is unqualified and unfit for the job. I just don’t understand what additional proof is required.
Last Word: I have included two links to articles that are more food for thought in this frightening time. The first is I about the new postmaster general. The single most important qualification for this individual seems to be that he is a Trump supporter and a heavy donor to Republican politics. Does anyone other than me believe there could be a possible problem with a Trump crony in charge of the post office just prior to an election where mail-in ballots will be a critical component of the process?
The second is to Heather Cox Richardson’s blog in which she discusses the ongoing use of Federal troops in Portland. If that doesn’t scare the crap out of you, I don’t know what will. I have never wanted to be wrong so badly in my life, but I am still of the mind that Trump could very well use the pandemic and this ‘law and order’ campaign to declare a national emergency prior to the election and truly open Pandora’s box. I really hope I’m wrong.
Those two scenarios with the post office and declaring marshal law are a real possibility. Instead of Trump having character he is a character. He just hasn’t figured out the right definition of character of someone who leads our country.