"Trump’s penchant for bald deception and incoherence is not an aberration"

[hazlnut]

The Unwinding of Donald Trump


A brilliant piece, a must-read.

Terrific analysis of Trump's simple-minded approach to deception, lies, and red-meat throwing.

It’s unlikely that anyone remembers that moment in Blue Ash—a moment that would be an enduring stain on any other President—and the reason is obvious: Trump’s penchant for bald deception and incoherence is not an aberration. It is his daily practice. The vague sense of torpor and gloom that so many Americans have shouldered these past two years derives precisely from the constancy of Trump’s galling statements and actions.

And yet what happened in Helsinki on Monday will not be so easily forgotten. Just as the President’s comments following the torchlit white-supremacist march last year in Charlottesville made it clear that racism was at the core of his character and his political strategy, the contemptible remarks he delivered alongside Vladimir Putin seemed to mark a turning point, even for some of his most ardent defenders. In the course of a single European journey, Trump set out to humiliate the leaders of Western Europe and declare them “foes”; to fracture long-standing military, economic, and political alliances; and to absolve Russia of its attempts to undermine the 2016 election. He did so clearly, repeatedly, and with conviction. Republicans in Congress (but not enough of them) and a selection of commentators on Fox News declared that Trump’s performance in Helsinki had been disgraceful.

The President’s attempt to reverse the damage—clearly the result of a panicked White House staff—only worsened the matter. Speaking from the White House Cabinet Room on Tuesday, Trump tried to take his listeners for fools as he explained that he had merely been misunderstood by the press. This was one of the most shameless walk-back attempts in the history of the American Presidency. Reading from prepared notes, which always lends to his delivery a hostage-like cadence, Trump tried to half-apologize to the American intelligence community for equating its analysis with that of Putin and the F.S.B. And, with that, the lights suddenly went out. The President sat in darkness. Even before the worldwide commentariat had a chance to voice its incredulity, the White House electrical system had called bullshit on Trump. Or was it a higher power?

I don't think Helsinki is going to be the straw that breaks the elephant's back as they seem to set on protecting the brand and holding the Trumpist radical base come hell or high water.

Trump could urinate on the Tomb of the Unknown Solider and Sean Hannity would say "When you gotta go, you gotta go...Deep State! Deep State!"

We crossed over into upside down and backwards nihilist America, everything is losing meaning, and no one with the power to reverse course seems to care.

 

[Mac1958]

Well, we're supposed to take him "cynically but not logically".

Or maybe that was "partially but not clearly".

Or actually, it could have been "overtly but not tragically".

Or it may be something like "plaintively but not originally".

Aw, fuck it. Best to just not look or listen when he's talking. Less humiliating.
.

 

[miketx]

The Unwinding of Donald Trump


A brilliant piece, a must-read.

Terrific analysis of Trump's simple-minded approach to deception, lies, and red-meat throwing.

It’s unlikely that anyone remembers that moment in Blue Ash—a moment that would be an enduring stain on any other President—and the reason is obvious: Trump’s penchant for bald deception and incoherence is not an aberration. It is his daily practice. The vague sense of torpor and gloom that so many Americans have shouldered these past two years derives precisely from the constancy of Trump’s galling statements and actions.

And yet what happened in Helsinki on Monday will not be so easily forgotten. Just as the President’s comments following the torchlit white-supremacist march last year in Charlottesville made it clear that racism was at the core of his character and his political strategy, the contemptible remarks he delivered alongside Vladimir Putin seemed to mark a turning point, even for some of his most ardent defenders. In the course of a single European journey, Trump set out to humiliate the leaders of Western Europe and declare them “foes”; to fracture long-standing military, economic, and political alliances; and to absolve Russia of its attempts to undermine the 2016 election. He did so clearly, repeatedly, and with conviction. Republicans in Congress (but not enough of them) and a selection of commentators on Fox News declared that Trump’s performance in Helsinki had been disgraceful.

The President’s attempt to reverse the damage—clearly the result of a panicked White House staff—only worsened the matter. Speaking from the White House Cabinet Room on Tuesday, Trump tried to take his listeners for fools as he explained that he had merely been misunderstood by the press. This was one of the most shameless walk-back attempts in the history of the American Presidency. Reading from prepared notes, which always lends to his delivery a hostage-like cadence, Trump tried to half-apologize to the American intelligence community for equating its analysis with that of Putin and the F.S.B. And, with that, the lights suddenly went out. The President sat in darkness. Even before the worldwide commentariat had a chance to voice its incredulity, the White House electrical system had called bullshit on Trump. Or was it a higher power?

I don't think Helsinki is going to be the straw that breaks the elephant's back as they seem to set on protecting the brand and holding the Trumpist radical base come hell or high water.

Trump could urinate on the Tomb of the Unknown Solider and Sean Hannity would say "When you gotta go, you gotta go...Deep State! Deep State!"

We crossed over into upside down and backwards nihilist America, everything is losing meaning, and no one with the power to reverse course seems to care.

I read quite a bit of fantasy fiction, don't have time for more.

 

[tinydancer]

Trump never stopped believing that there was some form of Russian meddling going on. After all we know that Hillary and the DNC directly paid a foreign agent who paid Russians a lot of money to produce the fake dossier.

That's direct meddling with the Russians isn't it now?

 

[whitehall]

"A brilliant piece" in the New Yorker? I thought that rag died ten years ago.

 

[WillMunny]

A muslim OP accusing someone else of lying when their own doctrine tells them to lie to unbelievers??? Now I've seen everything.