Trump’s Perverse America

J Boima Rogers

The Cambridge dictionary defines perverse as “strange and not what most people would expect or enjoy”.  The Oxford Thesaurus Includes the following words associated with perversion, unreasonable, unimaginable, wrong-headed, querulous, irrational and misinterpretation.  This is the state of play that Trump’s entry into American politics has meant for the political landscape in America and worldwide. This perversion applies to Trump, his term in office and policies he is advocating if he returns to power, his (Republican) party, leading Republican politicians and other Republican presidential candidates, the judiciary, law enforcement, the media, White Christian evangelists, the military and veterans, Black and other non-White voters, the American project and the world.

Trump according to most polls is leading Biden and some of the leading candidates now that Biden has decided to pull out of the race in the race for the White house, with all his baggage.  A Trump victory will have very significant negative implications for America and the world. Trump entered the political landscape with none of the accomplishments of previous candidates for the most powerful political office in the world.  He had zero political experience.  His claim of business success was completely false; his wealth originated from a huge inheritance from his father who made maximum use of America’s opaque inheritance laws avoiding payment of  significant taxes.  American voters were presented with a mirage which Republicans and many independents happily bought into.

His entry into the campaign was the  initial perversions of his political brand.  He convinced  poor and middle-income (primarily) “ White” folks to believe the depiction of Trump as the American success story, able to fund his campaign and yet get them to pay for it despite attempts by mainstream media to debunk that myth and highlight the fact that gullible voters were paying for this rich man’s decision to enter politics, effectively supporters were being taken for a ride.

Trump’s entry into the presidential race was  initially largely  focussed on  the “birther” lie, namely, Trump’s assertion that president Obama was not born in America and therefore was not eligible for the position he held.  Trump’s strong antipathy towards immigrants launched the Trump bandwagon. Perverse.  While Obama’s father was from Kenya, Hawaiian state authorities have confirmed  that he was born in that state.  Obama’s mother’s family had lived in America for centuries.  Trump’s paternal grandfather was born in Germany, his mother was from the UK and his first and current wife were born outside the US.  It is therefore perverse that the man whose rise to power is largely based on his antipathy towards immigrants is  the least American among recent presidents in terms of his lineage and wives – Melania (his current wife), with her strong Eastern European accent sounds like she has just come off the boat/plane and it has been reported that she may have contravened American immigration laws when she moved to America, presumably working before getting all the relevant documentation allowing her to do so.  While railing against and implementing measure to restrict “chain migration”, Trump facilitated the migration of Melania’s parents and sister to America, a classic case of “chain migration.   But then Trump, as he has openly stated, is not averse to immigrants from “nice countries like Switzerland” or Scandinavia, just those from countries where people are of a darker hue, namely, “Africa, Asia and South America”; quotes are based on the actual words of Trump. 

In the last few weeks before the election of Trump in 2016, the “access Hollywood” tapes revealed Trump boasting that as a celebrity he could get away with sexual assaults against women. Trump has subsequently been convicted of sexual assault and most recently, found guilty  on 34 (felony) counts of   falsifying payments made to a porn star he had sex with and then took actions, aided by other people to hide this fact from the public to avoid a political damage. At the time of this action Trump was a married man with a new born baby.  The Republican party of “law and order” has a presidential candidate who is a convicted criminal, perverse.    

As president Trump was a disaster by many metrics.  The claim that he was a better manager of the economy than Obama and Biden are absolutely false.   The Committee for Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) has reported that Trump added $8.4 trillion to the US deficit in his four years in office, a quarter of America’s total debt in jus one term after inheriting a growing economy.   Obama’s addition to that deficit was $4.6 trillion (for eight years after inheriting the great recession from Bush, a Republican president). Biden has added to the deficit by  $4.3 trillion (with four months still to go). After inheriting a growing (the fastest among advanced economies) economy from Obama Trump increased America’s debt through tax cuts that primarily (80%) went to wealthy Americans exacerbating one of the country’s most daunting problems, its huge income inequality significantly.   Towards the end of his term the economy crashed largely because he mismanaged the Covid  pandemic which also resulted in the death of 1.2 million people.  The US suffered the most precipitous setback in its economy, employment and deaths among major advanced economies because of the way Trump managed the pandemic. 

The party of small government was under Trump responsible for a quarter of the nation’s dept.  The pandemic caused more deaths and economic and social disruptions in America even though the country spends the highest amount on health in the world and as a percentage of its total expenditure among rich countries. Perverse.

Trump’s assault on the democratic process  has been ground-breaking, including attacks on the media, judiciary, appointment of unqualified judges, an attempt to coerce the Ukrainian president to damage his opponent, Joe Biden, pressuring Georgia state officials to alter election results to his benefit, refusing to accept the election results despite statements by his own officials that the process was fair and losing (59) numerous court cases in challenges to the results of the 2020 election; pressuring state authorities and his vice president to alter established processes to favour him and exhorting a mob to storm congress in that body’s function in counting votes and certifying the winner of the presidential election.  He has labelled insurrectionists who stormed the capitol “patriots” and promised to pardon them as soon as he takes office, freeing criminals who violently opposed the democratic process.   Many of his actions, before, during and after his reign were on open display in documentation and/or audio or video feeds.  All these actions by wannabe dictator in a country that often lauds itself as the birthplace of modern democracy and the leading force for the democratic project in the world should have made Trump a pariah by American voters and yet he is the leading candidate, perverse. 

A significant (possibly majority) chunk of the  American electorate appears to completely ignore all his numerous flaws and obnoxious actions and/or completely refuse to accept what is plainly in sight.  This indeed is the saddest part of Trump’s entry into politics, namely, his effect on a wide swath of America’s body politique and beyond. Trump it would appear cannot be penalised for actions that are plainly “unreasonable”.

There is no Trump doctrine or body of thoughts along the lines of pre-Trump Republican policy framework, merely rants of a narcissist playing on the fears and prejudices of people who have been swindled by a very good salesman; Project 2025, a manifesto by the right-wing Heritage Foundation is trying to rectify this issue.  This lack of a coherent political framework in Trumpworld was recently on display.  A group of senators, including a very conservative Republican senator prepared legislation that was described as a conservative and most comprehensive immigration deal in over four decades, which would have clearly adhered to traditional pre-Trump Republican policy.  Trump opposed it because he does not want a successful deal under Biden’s watch.  He is opposed the bill providing aid to Ukraine, Israel, Palestine and Taiwan for a similar reason, a complete shift in Republican thinking. He has supported his buddy, Putin in the latter’s aggression against Ukraine, unimaginable in pre-Trump hawkish (particularly against Rusia) Republican party.  He has indicated that he would like America to have economic recession and would undoubtedly do anything to make that happen because it would help him win the election, forget about the poor and middle-class electorate that will bear the brunt of such an economic recession. He is railing against reports that the Federal Reserve, whose head he appointed, is contemplating reducing interest rates because economic data warrants such a move – again because this would boost the economy which he believes would aid the Biden campaign, forget about the benefits to the American public. All these actions and views clearly show that Trump’s positions are clearly not what rational “patriotic” Americans would “expect or enjoy” and are contrary to (pre-Trump) established Republican party norms.  

Trump’s Republican party is a far cry from the original “big tent” Republican party.  Unlike Lincoln’s party that enacted emancipation, ending slavery,  the current Republican party has been built on an anti-black and non-White crusade. While this posture precedes Trump, he is the perfect fit, relishes and has made a huge thing of this racist Republican political posture. Trump, whose family has had racist issues going back to his Ku Klux Klan father, initiated his presidential project on his rabid hatred of Obama, America’s first Black president.  His words and actions have made him second to only Woodrow Wilson, a Democrat,  in his antipathy to Black and non-white people. 

The Republican claim of being the party of law and order was totally abandoned in the assault of the capitol by Trump cultists; Trump encouraged those supporters, according to a crucial Trump official, opposed measures to search and remove weapons from attendees at the rally who stormed the capitol and, for over three hours Trump refused to order those supporters to stop the assault.  Trump has also encouraged and emboldened attacks on judges and prosecutors through his rants and postings in his social media platform, perversely named “Truth Social”. Republican members of congress, goaded by Trump and/or seeking the attention of their master (who enjoys theatrics)  have been very vociferous in attacks on the judiciary involved in the civil and criminal cases that their dear leader has been charged with, although they have been very silent when Biden’s son was convicted.

The Trump perversion is particularly acute and damaging with regards to of presidential candidates who have stood against him but after being vanquished by their dear leader grovel at his feet,  totally ignoring Trump’s insults.  Two of his most vocal supporters in the senate are Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio who he was very abusive towards on personal terms in the 2016 campaign  – Trump’s most acerbic attacks are personal rather than policy focussed.  Rubio was referred to as little Marco and he made very derogatory and false statements about Cruz’s wife and family.  He has also been abusive towards the Republican senate leader, Mitch McConnell and made racist statements about the senator’s wife, who is of Chinese ethnicity and was his commerce secretary until she resigned in the last few days of Trump’s presidency because of Trump’s actions. He was equally abusive towards other Republican candidates in this year’s election.  Most of these leading Republicans, including J D Vance, the man chosen as his vice-presidential pick, were highly critical of him, and noted how unfit Trump is to be president of the US.  After being vanquished most of them  subsequently went back on their criticism of Trump’s threat to the democratic process and other faults and are now supporting him; Trump is still by far the president with the largest number/proportion of  former officials who are extremely critical of their former boss. 

This perverse nature of the Trump show relates to non-White candidates and leading Republicans in the Trump show. Senator Scott, the most “Uncle Tom” Black Republican politician grovels at the foot of the most racist president since Hoover. Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley, children of Indian immigrants have become rabid anti-immigration advocates and have gladly endorsed a leader who has publicly opposed immigration form Asia; India is among the top countries in terms of the number of (legal and illegal) immigrants to the US (as well as the UK, EU, and other rich countries). Having just got off the boat they want to destroy other boats for other Indians keen to move on to greener pastures – Modi’s nirvana is not quite the true picture according to the actions of these immigrants.  Vivek was recently seated next to and having a cosy conversation with former congressman Steven King an advocate of White nationalism and White supremacy. Vivek’s key talking point is his strong opposition to affirmative action and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies even though he was a recipient of Republican bogeyman George Soro’s scholarship promoting diversity. Haley, who has come under Trump’s veiled racist attack, refused to identify slavery as part of the reason for the American civil war, the primary cause of that war; Indian immigrants in the Americas were largely indentured workers, slaves for periods contracted.  Indian immigrants and Indian Americans have borne a high level of White racist attacks goaded by Trump in his rants.

At another level Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, Kash Patel his bogeyman in his administration Steve Miller his senior adviser, are all very strong supporters of the Trump “project” even though Trump and possibly overwhelming majority of his fervent MAGA (predominantly White) supporters have an antipathy to their race/ethnicity, namely, Chinese, Indian and Jewish.   These participants in the Trump show appear to be willing and happy sheep marching to slaughter by the MAGA mob  who are primarily motivated by fear of the “other” in the Trump show. Many Jews felt the same way when Hitler came to power, thinking that they would be spared from the Holocaust only to be brutally caught up in that dreadful tragedy.

America, which has prided itself as the country with an independent and fair judicial heritage is no more thanks to Trump. Thanks to Republican senate majority leader Trump appointed three supreme court justices who got rid of abortion rights women had had for fifty years and now have made rulings that will make all of Trump’s legal troubles go away. Trump appointed many unqualified judges (including Judge Cannon) and he never believed in having an independent attorney general, hence he sacked his first Attorney General (AG) and FBI director because they did not fit into the mould of personal retainers and in-house detective respectively.

After firing his first AG, his new “legal retainer”, AG Barr, gave the public a doctored and very biased summary of the Mueller report that so exonerated Trump; Mueller a life-long Republican spoke out saying the AG’s characterisation of the report, that Trump had been totally absolved of any wrongdoing was incorrect.  In the last few days of his presidency, Bill Barr, his protector as AG resigned because of Trump’s antics. Subsequently, all the top officials of the Justice  department threatened to resign when Trump indicated that he was considering appointing an unqualified junior official (who is currently facing charges of election interference) to assist him in his fraudulent actions relating to the 2020 election. 

The supreme court in the ruling on the Washington DC election interference case (January 6 insurrection), demonstrated its penultimate adherence to the Trump show, after it’s despicable delaying tactic.  The court ruled that Trump or any president could effectively be viewed as a king and cannot be held to account for a host of actions in the performance of “official duties”.  The ruling and process leading to it would appear to be a major effort by the court, dominated by Republican appointed judges to give a huge helping hand to the Trump re-election campaign. 

The much-vaunted independent US criminal  justice system appears to have been totally compromised under the Trump show.  The compromising process started before Trump when Obama was denied the opportunity to appoint a supreme court judge almost a year before he left office.  Trump on the other hand, was allowed (by the Republican senate speaker who decides on nominees that can be considered for selection as supreme court justices) to appoint three supreme court judges, one a few weeks before the end of Trump’s  presidency.  The Republican controlled senate in its refusal to appoint an Obama nominee had cited the fact that it was too close to the presidential election. 

America the country that claims to be the land of an independent judiciary and co-equal branches of government (president, congress and supreme court)  is having a supreme court that has been impartially set up. It has compromised judges (the wives of two of them have demonstrated active support for Trump) making policy that is clearly designed to protect a very flawed ex-president seeking re-election.  And the supreme court decision granting the unusual power to the president has reinstated the monarchy that Americans fought so hard against in its revolution two hundred and fifty years ago. Perverse. 

And taking a cue from justice Clarence Thomas, the compromised Uncle Tom on the supreme court who had noted that Jack Smith the special counsel prosecuting the classified document case had not been lawfully appointed, Judge Aileen Cannon, the unqualified Trump appointed judge has dismissed the case.  This is despite mountains of evidence that Trump had unlawfully taken classified documents after leaving office, stored them in unprotected ways, and refused and obstructed government’s efforts to retrieve them.  Special counsels have been used in numerous cases by both Republican and Democratic administrations, including one that Biden inherited from the Trump administration that has investigated and found Biden’s son guilty of criminal conduct

Trump, who is leading in the polls demonstrated in his first term his utter disregards for due process, democratic norms and his  admiration for authoritarian leaders, stating  numerous times that if he returns to power, he would be “a dictator for a day only” and seek “retribution” against perceived enemies such as political rivals, no doubt referring to judges who have ruled against him, the media and media personalities hostile to him and his cult followers.  Given Trump’s actions in his first term and his statements, the American democratic project is severely at risk. The supreme court’s assist to the wannabe dictator is eerily aligned with The Heritage Foundation’s “project 2025 plan”, the right-wing organisation’s blueprint for a second Trump term.  Two key features of that plan align with Trump’s talking points and the recent decision of the supreme court, namely, a centralized presidential power and; unlimited presidential power. This indeed is the huge challenge for America.  Trump, who like many dictators lacks the intellectual force is having his rants and prejudices wielded into legal speak by highly educated “legal and policy experts”,  in the supreme court and “policy wonks” at The Heritage Foundation who have produced a nine-hundred-page road map on how Trump can unravel its democratic project. What is frightening is that these developments are taking place in the face of the election of the most flawed man to hold and aspire to that office

A major pro-Trump justice in the supreme court is a Black man, Justice Clarence Thomas, who is strongly supporting  the most racist president in modern American history.  A Black man is carrying water for a leader whose rants and  policies have and continue to be anti-Black and other non-whites, most perverse.

American police officers guarding congress were brutally attacked and a couple of them died as a result of the insurrection that Trump instigated.  Trump has  been very critical of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and has made statements that put FBI officers at risk from his deranged supporters, notably  in his case on illegally retaining government documents in Florida.  Trump’s unhealthy relationship with the FBI started early in his term in office when after he held discussions with the FBI director Comey who failed to give Trump the assurance that the FBI would be his personal service, including taking actions against Trump’s enemies; Comey was sacked by Trump for no plausible reason.  Despite this track record, senior police officers and organisations representing law enforcement have in many cases backed Trump.  For the 2024 election, Trump has been endorsed by the board of the International Union of Police Associations and a number of state organisations. In the 2020 election he was endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), the largest organisation representing police in the US.  This year after civil and criminal convictions and pending  criminal court cases in DC, Florida and Geogia, it remains to be seen if FOP will endorse Trump for his 2024 campaign  although there are indications that Trump is still popular among white law enforcement officers.   It is inconceivable how law enforcement bodies can endorse a candidate who has been the least law- abiding presidential candidate. Perverse  

In a report by The Atlantic, it was revealed that support for Trump in military households in the 2020 election  was at 52%, significantly higher than support for Biden at 42%, bizarre given that Trump, who avoided military (draft) service, citing a spurious medical excuse, – the draft compelled all men in his age bracket to serve in the Vietnam war – he has labelled fallen soldiers as “losers” and “suckers”, was condescending towards Republican Senator John McCain because he had been captured in Vietnam.  As president, Trump refused to attend a function in Europe honouring soldiers in world wars, presumably because it was raining and it would have messed up his hair.  An in-depth analysis of the data reveals that it mirrors the broader political landscape.  Trump’s support among White solders at 58%  is much higher than Biden’s 42% support among that group.  Biden had 64% support among non-White military households. 

Trump has strong support among White Christian Evangelists, which is a follow-up from the Republican hold on this group.  What is odd about the support for Trump is that he has never been a church going person but even more bizarre is his lifestyle and actions before, during and after his presidency.   The Access Hollywood tapes revealed that Trump, in his own words, felt he could do anything to women because he is famous. He has been  (civil) convicted for rape and (criminally) convicted for trying to hide the fact that he had sex with a porn star for political gain, something he did while married with a newly born baby.  

As president in addition to frequent rants about immigrants,  he ordered immigrant families locked up in cages. He was annoyed that law enforcement did not shoot protesters in peaceful “Black Lives Matter” demonstrations and, to demonstrate power rounded up senior officials, including the chairman of the (military) joint chief of staff to walk to a church holding a bible upside down.  His whole political campaign has been focussed on hate against a myriad of people and organisations. With all this very unchristian behaviour and background White Christians have given Trump their solid support, largely because he supports anti-abortion policies and appointed judges in the supreme court, similarly inclined who implemented such policies. When you throw in the fact that Trump appears to have picked up increased votes among Black men and Latinos, possibly related to the ”macho” persona that the draft dodger tries to cultivate,  this demonstrates the perverse Trump effect.

The attempt on Trump’s life is abominable and has been condemned by most politicians however it is yet another aspect of American life with a Trump effect.  The shooter, a registered Republican used an AR 15, a notorious gun popular among mass shooters.  That Trump, an advocate of gun culture at the receiving end of such a weapon is ironic.  It should be noted that Trump on numerous occasions has advocated violence, including incidents noted above regarding peaceful demonstrations as well as an occasion when a black protestor was at his rally, on January 6 when he exhorted the mob (and according to a close adviser criticized checks on rioters for guns because he noted they were not aimed at him) expressed no opposition to calls by the mob for the lynching of his vice president (VP) because his VP refused to unlawfully award Trump votes he had not won. A very sad irony.

The Trump perversity has been evident in other areas, most recently Elon Musk’s support for him which appears to be largely based on his adherence to Trump’s angst about immigration.  Musk has been mentioned as a possible Czar of immigration in a Trump administration, a speculation given credibility when Republican congressmen took Musk for a tour of the southern border “under siege of a horde” of non-White immigrants.  Elon Musk had also, in a  visit to Italy bemoaned boatloads of immigrants coming from Africa and the middle east. Musk’s  family originated from Europe, immigrated  to South Africa where white immigrants had for centuries monopolized government, commerce, industry, mines and farmlands, excluding indigenous Blacks who were removed and resettled in reservations.  When most of the family moved to north America, first to Canada and then the US, there was a stint when they lived as illegal aliens according to Elon Musk’s brother. With that history Musk’s support of Trump and possible role, if only in an advisory capacity, devising and/or implementing draconian expulsion and curtailing of immigration is rather perverse. Musk’s strong support for Trump and his party is also very odd given that he is the dominant producer of electric vehicles (EV), a product and concept that is at variance with  Trump and his party, strong advocate of the fossil fuel sector and opponents of environmental concerns. Perverse

Trump’s relentless attacks on DEI can be harrowing when utilized by powerful individuals in the Trump world.  Two women presidents of top universities in the world who had demonstrated equanimity in their testimony to the US congress relating to the current Israel/Gaza war irritated Bill Ackman, the (Jewish) pro-Israeli billionaire, in the Trump mould so much that he mounted a campaign that resulted in them losing their jobs; a third president, Jewish, , barely held on to her position.  One of the(Havard) president had succumbed to an allegation that she had plagiarised her PhD thesis.  It appears that the wife of Mr Ackman, had perpetuated a similar action regarding her PhD thesis; there are no reports of any adverse effect on the position of the Ackman’s wife since the expose about her thesis.  A rather perverse development, whose cause is based on the “perceived adversities of DEI hire”.  According to the Trump highway code, both women and particularly the Black one were holding positions because they ticked the right DEI boxes. A microscopic review of all leading personalities will uncover significant proportion of them would have some “dirt” in their CVs, like the wife of Mr Ackmans and, such dirt may be irrelevant to the criteria for selection and the actual role.  The Havard president, Claudine Gay,  had demonstrated her qualification for the role when as a dean she of the Faculty of Arts and Science she launched a new billion-dollar science and engineering complex and the department reported a surplus of $51 million, a significant increase from the projected deficit of $112 million, just the relevant credential for her position.   

As the countdown to the US presidential election approaches the likelihood of a rogue president and a previously reputable party that has evolved into a cultist group appears very likely. America which claims the first modern state with a constitution that enshrines explicit powers to three co-equal branches of government is about to elect an unqualified man who has demonstrated that not only does he lack the experience, training and intellect to manage the super-power but that he is actually inclined to unravel the American project, a work in progress. Two overriding aspects of the perverse Trump train are race and authoritarianism. Trump does not want a multi-racial America and he wants absolute power.

Indeed, the most perverse aspect of the Trump bandwagon is the rabid opposition to DEI by whites who perpetuated horrendous political, economic and psychological damage to the two other original pillars of the American project, namely,  African Americans and first nation tribes (formerly referred to as American Indians).  Some members of more recent immigrant groups who have not suffered that damage and ironically are benefiting from civil rights victories of the 1960s have been quite antagonistic towards DEI. Trump gave the game away when he bemoaned the fact that the US was not getting immigrants from Scandinavia; the US had passed laws early in the 20^th century that made it harder for (darker) southern European immigrants to move to the US and only in 1964 as part of the civil rights momentum led by African American activists was the rule revoked.

The assault on DEI ignores the fact that the Republican candidate is the classic case of nepo (nepotism) that gave rise to DEI.  Trump would fail in all the usual criteria for the job he wants.  He lacks the intellect, relevant employment history, character and references for the role. With regards to intellect, according to his niece somebody else took the test for his SAT exam and since we have no information about his university graduation results, we can assume that it was not good because the boastful Trump would have let everybody know if he had good/very good results. His employment history highlights the ultimate nepo credential, inheriting a huge fortune through the most tax efficient way, he added minimally to it, albeit making use of America’s bankruptcy laws, tax avoidance, books by ghost writers (Trump gets a writer to pen books under his name for a fee) and a grossly overpaid TV show for his fantasy pronouncements.  His track record as president has been correctly summarised in a survey of154 leading American presidential historians in 2024 who placed him at the bottom of all presidents, no surprise when you consider his record on deaths and economic disruptions from Covid (worst among developed countries).  And then there was the assault on democracy, constant lies and misinformation, ballooning national debt as he gave huge amounts to rich Americans through his tax cuts. On character, access Hollywood and the civil and felony convictions paint a pathetic character. Candidate Trump does very poorly on references as a record number of his officials, including his vice president paint a damaging picture of their colleague  Given this CV (resume) why are his employers, voters, seemingly likely to rehire him as he leads in most polls, very perverse.

And then there is the outer universe, the Trump effect will unfold as the largest economy with political, economic and military tentacles around the globe as it grapples with a host of challenges.  The US, formerly the purveyor of democratic ideals will under Trump cozy up to Putin, Orban, Kim Jung ill.  The internecine tensions and violence around the globe are of no interest except there is a transitionary factor for him, his family, buddies and white America. Having decimated the democratic process and rule of law in America, there will obviously be no interest in such a process worldwide.  And obviously climate change is a hoax in Trump world, an attitude that will guide the US policy framework.  Oh, yes “policy framework” as defined by The Heritage Foundation, that institution that Trump will use to cloak his rabid diatribe of hate and prejudices, the core Trump modus operandi. Obviously, the Heritage Foundation will  be discarded as soon as the facade of a “political platform” has served its purpose and Trump the dictator asserts total control.

As Americans go to the polls it is inconceivable that they would favour a man whose actions should, ceteris paribus, be seared into their consciousness rendering him totally unfit for the most important job.  These include

• his statement, defending rampaging white supremacists in Charlottesville as “some very fine people”;
• at a news conference he sided with Putin against America’s FBI;
• he suggested at a news conference that people should inject themselves with bleach to treat Covid, the pandemic killed 1.2 million Americans;
• he was heard on tape saying “all I want is 11700 votes” pressuring Georgian state officials to illegally sway the election his way;
• calling insurrectionists who were seen on TV rampaging congress “patriots” (and those convicted of their actions “hostages”).

 

It is perverse that Americans would want to elect Trump as president with all audio and video feeds demonstrating those plainly unpresidential actions.  Which is why he and his allies in congress and the judiciary are doing their best  to prevent disclosure in trials.  Instead, Republicans are bombarding Americans with “alternative facts” and it appears there are enough gullible Americans who will elect this nightmare of a president.      

 

J Boima Rogers is Principal Consultant at Media and Event Management Oxford (MEMO) www.oxfordmemo.co.uk