Yesterday was quite rainy here in Bozeman so I decided to have a little fun. I wrote the first scene of a one act play (my first) about Trump and the upcoming book to be released by John Bolton. I’m not sure if I will post it and it still needs some work so I’ll put that off for a bit.
I have already pre-ordered my copy of Bolton’s book and while I am angered that he refused to testify before the House Impeachment Committee, I still intend to read the book. Frankly, I don’t expect any major revelations. I have believed and stated ever since Trump took office, that the only thing he is interested in is staying in office – even at the expense of US strategic interests and citizens. I wrote a column for the Bozeman Chronicle stating why I believed Trump is incompetent and not at all a leader. I suspect Bolton’s book will just confirm what I already believe, and what is being demonstrated day after day. (And what a lot of others with much more knowledge and credentials than I have also voiced.)
What continues to amaze and depress me is that, in the face of mounting and overwhelming evidence pointing to the fact that Trump is incompetent, corrupt and cares only about Trump at the expense of everything else, people still support him. I guess it’s like the members of the Flat Earth Society, who, in spite of overwhelming evidence, continue to insist the Earth is flat. Or, in spite of overwhelming scientific evidence and the consensus of virtually every credible scientist in the world that global warming is a serious threat to our planet, people choose to not believe it.
I am reading a book now, Facism: A Warning, by Madeleine Albright, former US Secretary of State, which, in light of the current administration, is more like reading a Stephen King novel. But I’m sure that most Trump supporters would just respond by stating that she was the Secretary of State under Bill Clinton, so she’s a Democrat and you can’t believe anything she writes.
But it’s not just Democrats that are pointing to the danger of Trump. Most recently, Colin Powell, a host of other retired military commanders, some of whom have served under Trump, former associates, and now, John Bolton, who was Trump’s longest serving National Security Advisor, are continuing to ring the alarm bell. It can’t be a coincidence that all of these people are speaking up about the danger this man poses to the United States of America.
Trump stated during his campaign that support amongst his base was so strong that he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue in New York and ‘not lose any voters’. As disgusting and distasteful as that statement is, I have to believe it. Otherwise, what’s going on just doesn’t make any sense.
I personally believe that many people have made a Faustian bargain with Trump as they see him as a way to facilitate their own agendas, even at the expense of the greater strategic interests of the United States. Why, for example, is Trump so popular with white, evangelical Christians when he is the antithesis of Christian behavior? My theory – he has promised to overturn Roe v. Wade and severely limit LGBTQ rights. So, for support of that agenda, he gets the white, evangelical Christian vote. A Faustian bargain if there ever was one.
There are a lot of people in this country who are afraid of whites becoming a minority. I’ve got news for all of you people – it will happen regardless of what you do. Biology will win. But Trump’s crackdown on non-Christian and non-white immigrants appeals to a certain segment of the population. Trump fans these flames and people respond. Have you ever questioned why those attending Trump rallies are overwhelmingly white?
And, of course, a segment of the wealthy in this country support Trump and his policies because it means more money in their coffers. All you have to do is look at the widening disparity between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’ in this country to see where this is going.
Many people remember John Kennedy’s famous line, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” Unfortunately, in the current environment, I think Trump and many of his followers have changed this to read, “How can I use this administration to get what I want out of this country – and the hell with everyone else!”