2
1
1
Why does a
President Trump lay himself open to mockery? Simply because his
behavior is not only unlike a dignified president but his policy tweets
are quite outrageous. From 'my nuclear button is bigger than yours'
addressed to Kim Jong-un to arming teachers to defend schools against
mass shooters -- he is quite off the wall.
Two
weeks after the Florida shooting (following which Mr. Trump wanted to
arm teachers), a teacher in Georgia has behaved like this column warned earlier.
Jesse Randall Davidson, a social science teacher, at Dalton High School
barricaded the class door locking out his students in the hallway. When
the headmaster tried to enter with a pass key, Davidson responded with
gunfire.
Dalton is a suburb 90 miles
northwest of Atlanta. Mr. Davidson who has been employed at the school
for almost 14 years is also the announcer for the school football team
making him in all likelihood a formerly popular figure. Fortunately, no
one was hurt and Mr. Davidson, who the Principal said was making
"nonsensical noises" during the exchange, is now in custody.
Any
leader relies on close confidantes -- aides he can trust and who can
tell him like it is without fear of being fired. For Donald Trump such a
person was Hope Hicks. She was part of his presidential odyssey right
from the beginning and will be missed, even by Chief of Staff John
Kelley who would use her to tell the president he was wrong without a
tweeted retribution She has now resigned, the day after a marathon
eight hours of questioning by the House Intelligence Committee. Was it
something she said or something she thinks could happen. We will have
to wait and see. With her departure, five people have done six stints
as Communications Director during Trump's 400-day tenure. She lasted
the longest, about seven months.
The number of staffers coming and going in this railroad junction of a White House is unprecedented and symptomatic of chaotic leadership. Run by a self proclaimed 'stable genius' who this week spelled 'dying' as 'dieing' before he was corrected in a tweet rant on the actor Alec Baldwin, the place is about as stable as the 'genius'. His latest proclamation slapping punitive import tariffs (25% on steel and 10% on aluminum) could start a trade war.
On top of all this, friend Vladimir has laid down the gauntlet. Addressing an audience of Russian lawmakers, regional governors and leading figures, Mr. Putin introduced new nuclear weapons, including a nuclear-tipped cruise missile powered by a small nuclear engine. Highly maneuverable, low-flying (thus difficult to detect) and with unlimited range -- it promises to make the U.S. missile defense shield obsolete, which he claimed was now an umbrella full of holes. Why Seoul and Tokyo 'would now buy such an umbrella' made little sense, added Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
Much to chew on in Washington and certainly gristle in the Trump nightly cheeseburger. Most probably the intelligence agencies have been aware of these weapons but Mr. Putin has now drawn a line in no uncertain terms. Perhaps it was the Russian deaths in Syria from U.S. bombing but U.S. impunity seems to be coming to an end.
.
Comments
Click Here to View Comments or Join the Conversation