A quisling and his enablers
This is not a column about whethend of the conference were restrained er Donald Trump is a quisling — a and conventional, simply asserting politician who serves the interests of — as any normal leader would — foreign masters at his own country’s that he would defend his nation’s expense. Any reasonable doubts interests. The Trump rage-tweet that about that reality were put to rest by followed was responding to an insult the events of the past few days, when that, like those “massive tariffs,” exhe defended Russia while attacking ists only in his imagination. our closest allies. But that’s Trump, a man whose
We don’t know Trump’s motivapresidency has been marked by tion. Is it blackmail? Bribery? Or just around seven false statements per a generalized sympathy for autocrats day in office. What about his ofand hatred for democracy? And we ficials? may never find out: If he shuts down Well, they have been acting like the Mueller investigation and Repubthe courtiers in the old story about licans retain control of Congress, the the emperor’s new clothes. (The cover-up may hold indefinitely. But emperor’s new hairpiece?) If the his actions tell the story. boss says something whose falsity is
As I said, however, this isn’t a obvious to anyone with eyes to see, column about Trump. It is, instead, they’ll claim to believe his version. about the people who are enabling So Larry Kudlow, the administration’s his betrayal of America: the inner chief economist (actucircle of officials and media personally “economist,” but that’s another alities who are willing to back him story) went on TV to declare that up whatever he says or does, and the Trudeau “stabbed us in the back.” wider set of politicians — basically Peter Navarro, the administration’s the entire Republican delegation in chief trade expert (“expert”) went Congress — who have the power even further, repeating the stabin-the-back and constitutional obligation to stop line and declaring that what he’s doing, but won’t lift a finTrudeau faces a “special place in ger in America’s defense. hell.”
It’s important to understand that Remember when people used the fight Trump is picking with our to imagine that Trump would be allies isn’t about any real conflict restrained by officials who would of interest — because they are not, put some check on his worst imin fact, doing the things he accuses pulses? Maybe that happened for them of doing. No, Canada and a few months, but at this point he’s Europe aren’t imposing “massive entirely surrounded by sycophants tariffs” on US goods: A vast majority who will tell him whatever he of US exports enter Canada tarifffree, wants to hear. and the average European tariff Still, America isn’t a monarchy is only 3 percent. These are simple — not yet, anyway. Congress has facts, not disputable issues. the power to check a president who
So Trump is justifying his attempt seems to be betraying his oath of to destroy the Western alliance by office. It can even remove him; but accusing our allies of misdeeds that short of impeachment, there are exist only in his imagination. many ways members of Congress
The same thing may be said could act to constrain Trump and about his claim that Canada’s Justin limit the damage he’s doing. Trudeau somehow betrayed him and But Congress is controlled by Reundermined the Group of 7 summit. publicans. And their response to a In reality, Trudeau’s remarks at the
president whose actions are manifestly not just un-American but anti-American has been ... a few sad tweets from a handful of senators who are unhappy about Trump’s behavior but not willing to do anything real. Most Republicans haven’t even gone that far: They’re just silent.
Why are Republican politicians unwilling to discharge their constitutional responsibilities? Relatively few of them, one suspects, actually want a trade war, let alone a breakup of the Western alliance. And many of them, one also suspects, are well aware that a de facto foreign agent sits in the Oval Office. But they are immobilized by a combination of venality and cowardice.
On one side, tax cuts for the rich have become the overriding priority for the modern GOP, and Trump is giving them that, so they’re willing to let everything else slide.
On the other side, the party’s base really does love Trump, not for his policies, but for the performative cruelty he exhibits toward racial minorities and the way he sticks his thumb in the eyes of “elites.” So any Republican politician who takes a stand on behalf of what we used to think were fundamental American values is at high risk of losing his or her next primary. And as far as we can tell, there is not a single elected Republican willing to take that risk, no matter what Trump does.
What all this tells us is that the problem facing America runs much deeper than Trump’s personal awfulness. One of our two major parties appears to be hopelessly, irredeemably corrupt. And unless that party not only loses this year’s election but begins losing on a regular basis, America as we know it is finished.