Former President Obama’s speech at opening of his library reminded me–and many others–of a time in the not-so-distant past when we had an impressive, articulate and serious President. I was especially moved by his explanation of what he hoped the exhibits would communicate–not just policies of his administration, but the “shared values that make democracy possible.”
A belief in the intrinsic dignity and worth of all people, and that no one is above the law or beneath its protection. A belief in checks and balances in our government and an accountability that comes with an independent judiciary and a robust, free press. A belief that our military and law enforcement owe allegiance not to any president or political party but to the people and our Constitution. A belief in the peaceful transfer of power after the people have spoken in fair and free elections, recognizing that in a large, complicated society like ours, no group or faction gets its way 100% of the time. And a belief that qualities of character, honesty, integrity, kindness, compassion, a sense of duty and honor, those things matter in our public dealings, just as they do in our private lives.
These are the values and traditions I believe in, and they are not Republican or Democratic values. They’re American values.
Today, in stark contrast to a President who reminded us of what We the People have in common, who exhorted us to live up to the ideals and values of our constituent documents, we have elevated a pathetic, incompetent narcissist who–among multiple other deficiencies–has no idea what those values are and who communicates in the language of a third-grade bully.
It’s hard not to agree with (former Republican) Bret Stephens, who recently characterized Trump as “cringeworthy” in the New York Times.
Stephens began his essay by describing Trump’s recent, embarrassing assertion that Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s Prime Minister, had “begged” for a picture with him. Meloni responded that the story was a total fabrication, and publicly wondered what was wrong with him. (I have a long list, if Ms. Meloni wants one…)
As Stephens writes, this episode is hardly on a par with Trump’s daily, multiple transgressions against American values, norms and the rule of law. But the lesson in this “relatively trivial but telling episode” is that “If you love America, now is the time to cringe for it.”
To exist as a sentient American in the age of Trump is to live in a perpetual cringe — morally, aesthetically, intellectually, politically. If the administration were a play or film script, it would be neither farce nor tragedy but instead a kind of absurdist travesty, “Waiting for Godot” meets “Pulp Fiction” meets “Dumb and Dumber.”
However much we may disdain him, the president has the rest of us on the hook, as the face and voice of a country that ought to know better. Trump’s angry visage draped between the exterior columns of the Department of Justice? That’s us. His gilded, meretricious redecoration of the White House? That’s us. His repeatedly avowed admiration for Vladimir Putin? That’s us. His laughable claim about having achieved regime change in Tehran? That’s us. His Mafia-like threats against NATO allies? That’s us. His indescribably vain (and pathetically fruitless) effort to affix his name to the Kennedy Center? That’s us. His venal family profiting off his presidency in ways both transparent and tacky? That’s us.
The same goes for his insult of Meloni, which may be far from the worst of his sins but is also the most emblematic for being at once so utterly unnecessary as well as dementedly self-defeating. That’s us. The same country that freed its slaves, welcomed immigrants, invented airplanes, liberated concentration camps, landed men on the moon and challenged the Soviet Union to tear down this wall now bids to be the global equivalent of the expensively dressed man soiling his pants at a cocktail party.
No other President–of either party–has ever behaved so childishly, or embarrassed America with such regularity.
The contrast between Obama and Trump is especially enormous, and the respect Obama earned from people whose approval Trump has long desired but never achieved goes a long way toward explaining Trump’s pathological jealousy. The fact that Obama–a Black man!–is widely seen as his superior in intellect and class continually haunts him.
Meanwhile, as Stephens accurately notes, We the People cringe.
It may be time to stop dwelling on t*ump and pay more attention to the people who have the levers of power, the authors of Project 2025. The orange one is losing his mind and his power but those are the men who will remain in power after he has crumbled into a heap of ooze. T*ump is a distraction and a disaster but we need to defend ourselves against the rest of movement that has been unleashed against all that is true and good in the world.
And we need the Dems to be ready for whatever comes. First is to win in the mid-terms, which means coming together and supporting whoever our candidates end up being, and holding them accountable for positive actions to build our country from the rubble that MAGA will leave behind.
It’s also “us” who didn’t vote in 2024. It is also “us” who now reap the consequences of our social sloth and ignorance. We have a democratic republic … if we choose to keep it.
“I’ll have one of whatever Obama was drinking…’ Yes, those are the values of the “American Dream”, unfortunately they are not the values practiced in everyday life in America. For data, see the recent research on how much citizens trust each other in various countries. The US was way down….
All true, but a little unfair. Comparing the class and character of Obama to the classless and vile Trump is like comparing the basketball skills of Michael Jordan to me. But then I can’t think of anyone as low in all categories as Trump for a comparison.
Lester,
I thought I was the only one who thinks Obama is full of shit. 😉
These idealists rarely back up their own rhetoric in reality. They present us with lofty goals and shine up this obvious turd floating on the world’s stage.
It’s not just Trump that has embarrassed us. The entire structure of our oligarchy is on display in every community in the USA. The Founders created an oligarchy to rule over the new USA. It was similar to British rule except they dropped the King and the Church of England.
Empires do not like to have their power checked, so they eliminate any possible sources. The oligarchy owns ALL the media. What we have now are beat reporters or stenographers. Our local SoftBank-owned newspaper basically takes government “press releases” and cuts and pastes the info for its readers, making it look like a real interview. #PublicRelations
This does NOT look anything like the “free press” our Founders envisioned. They now write clickbait to get your attention. The industry is dying because it’s no longer useful. It’s not the only one.
They can handle meaningless exercises like chasing down the vandals who used “boxcutters to cut a 350-foot slit into the liner.” Poor Trump had a serious meltdown with his peeps for preparing such a lame 250th anniversary party. LOL
We won’t have good public policy until we deal with all of the poisonous crowd currently in the White House. Vance, Miller, Vought, and Wiles might not be as crass as Orange Jesus (OJ), but they are decidedly more dangerous. They understand what they’re doing and so far things have gone pretty much according to plan.
The plan to strip our democratic republic from our hands is beginning to show some cracks, due mostly to OJ’s recent missteps (Iran). If it gets much worse, look for a sudden enthusiasm for the twenty fifth Amendment.
Let me remind everyone that this plan has been in the making since the mid 1950s, one or two electoral defeats won’t stop them. They will fallback, rebrand, and wait until the coast is clear. Koch Industries is the heart and soul of the Heritage Foundation. As long as the Koch family has money, it will continue to work against our democratic impulses.
THINK,
VOTE!!!!
Here are some ideas to push back against all of the negativity MAGA and Project 2025 dump on us daily.
Take back patriotism. We, the People, are America. ALL of us.
Own a flag? Put it up. It is ours.
Read the Bill of Rights. Short and sweet.
Watch “Suffs” PBS “Great Performances”
Better yet, compare the transgressions of King George to our wannabe king and his henchmen.
From the Declaration of Independence:
● He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people. . . .
● He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
● He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
● He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies, without the consent of our legislatures.
● He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
● For protecting them by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
● For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
● For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
● For depriving us in many cases of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
● For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences . . .
● For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
● He has abdicated Government here by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
● He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
● He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
This is how close we are to autocracy.
RESIST.
VOTE.
he has made sure the working class will be under his thumb, (see labor dept banner of his pissy face)while presenting false truths, via his paid influencers
The problem with the 25th amendment, as i understand it, is that nit requires his cabinet to operationalize it. Yeah right! If i’m mistaken, please tell me.
But, yes, the real enemy is the group that put together Project 2050.
Todd, Obama may not have practiced all he preached, but that may have been because of the environment he was stuck in. “…full of shit?’ Not at all.
Another not so little nuance of the 25th amendment is that if Trump is removed before Jan. 20, 2027 then Vance will serve more than half a term and be prohibited from being elected to more than one term (see Harry Truman). But if Vance assumes the office after Jan. 20, 2027 he will be elegible to be elected to two more full terms.
And frankly, Vance is potentially a worse actor than Trump! He is part of the Vought – Miller – Wiles – Koch cabal that is trying so hard to destroy the United States Constitution.
Be very careful what you ask for!!
Oh, and everybody should read Heather Cox Richardson about the middle of last week when she quoted the Republican Party Platform for the 1956 Presidential election. There was a time, within my memory, when the Republicans were an honorable party and I was proud to aspire to be part of it. As Shiela has said many times “I didn’t leave the Republican Party, it left me!”
Mitch,
Don’t make excuses for Obama…he was ordained like all the others. He took the Heritage Foundation’s healthcare system, used by Mitt Romney, and pushed it through an all Democrat legislature. Seriously, you controlled both houses, and you pushed through a Koch package? LOL
What’s even funnier is how all the Republicans have attacked the plan put forth by one of their largest donors. It’s all twisted.
MAGA took over the Republican Party from the Koch’s. Trump’s family runs it now.
My question is, “How will the oligarchy move past Trump after his term ends?”
Why is nobody asking those questions?
That’s what worries me…
“A belief in the intrinsic dignity and worth of all people, and that no one is above the law or beneath its protection.”
Words of wisdom from a former loyal American leader with class who must cringe when the even the name “Trump” is spoken or written. Todd; your trashy, low life comment to Lester may be the ugliest comment you or anyone has made on this blog; it puts you on the same level as Trump, Vance, Miller, Patel, Putin and Kim Jong Un and their ilk. That is low…even for you.
Seeking some glimmer of hope for this nation, days before what should be a happy, proud celebration of the birth of this nation’s foundation as written by the founding fathers who relied on the intelligence and humanity of future generations to reach this 250th Anniversary of democracy, Rule of Law and maintaining the foundation of the Constitution. Sad but true…even you and your Trump level childish comment are protected by the 1st Amendment; you have no class and have made many of us cringe at the same level Trump effects us.
“No other President–of either party–has ever behaved so childishly, or embarrassed America with such regularity.” And his continued claims that the Peace Talks and the Cease Fire are still in place as he and Iran rage on with their physical war as if no one has an understanding of peace talks or claims that the military attacks are not part of their unending war crimes are not falling on deaf ears.
Obama wanted to pass universal healthcare but with strong insurance lobbies they were only able to pass on the federal level time tested universal health care insurance like in Massachusetts. That policy worked well in a highly educated and abundant healthcare environment. Good ideas and policy aren’t necessarily restricted to one side. That’s why rich donors hedge their bets and support both sides.
I don’t think that all trump does is US, and I think he’s seen as an abomination by
majority around the world and in US. He’s a lecherous, cruel wanna be dictator who has lost touch with real values and people. His gilded bubble is unsustainable and recourse and a move toward justice is on the way.