When President Trump made his appearance at the annual CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) outside Washington last weekend, he certainly got what he craves: a sense of being adored by the crowd. My, what a tax cut will do for a conservative crowd!
New York Times reporter Jeremy Peters wrote that most audience members were ready with their answers to what he has accomplished: "$1,5 trillion tax cut. Sweeping deregulation. Increased military spending. Conservative judges."
Ben Damenech, publisher of "The Federalist" and speaker at the conference, rattled it off and then said, "Everybody knows that list."
But then the reporter added: "Sure, there was another -- and far longer -- list that left many shaking their heads. The tweeting. The West Wing's high turnover and constant turmoil. The hush money paid to a pornographic film actress. The indictments.
"But all that seemed quite incidental because, as Mr. Damenech added, conservatives have been pleasantly surprised by the president's policies, if not by him. They feel very confident that he's going to be a bully for them on judicial nominations, tax cuts, military spending, and all these other things."
When it came time for Trump's address to the conference, he dramatically cast aside his prepared (teleprompter) speech, saying it was "boring." And then he just riffed and worked the crowd, like it was one of his rallies. It wasn't long before they were chanting "Lock her up."
Trump ran through his litanies of things he claims extraordinary success on -- the greatest number of regulations overturned; the most accomplishments in a first year term, ever; and more and more vapid braggadocio. None of it true.
He claimed that the just-released Democratic response to the Nunes memo proved that the Nunes memo was correct. [That is crazy nonsense.] He went even further, saying that it showed that it was the Democrats who had colluded with Russia, not the Republicans. And he called again for the FBI to investigate Clinton and the Dems.
He even called the Democrats "crazed" and said that his opponents had "committed a lot of atrocities." At this point, reportedly, (New York Times) "His remarks were met with rapturous applause."
It was at a different time during the conference, without Trump present, that the above-mentioned panel took place. where Mona Charen dared to call her colleagues hypocrits for ignoring allegations of sexual harassment against him -- and she was met with jeers from her own party members and required police escort when she left the building.
It has begun to feel to me that we're in a furious race between (1) the Mueller and journalistic investigations uncovering the damning truth about Trump and his associates; and (2) the teflon bombast that's building Trump into some larger than life, unassailable -- but at the same time completely empty and vapid -- icon. The metaphor that leaped to my mind was the huge balloons of various politicos or media icons that float above the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, including Mickey Mouse.
The frightening part is the growing number for whom Trump seemingly can do no wrong. Will that crowd be so large that, no matter what crimes Mueller may uncover that implicate Trump himself, nothing will be done?
The best way to combat this is to vote. Put the Democrats back in charge of congress in 2018 -- and the White House too in 2020.
Ralph
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment