PRESIDENT TRUMP: WHAT IT MEANS FOR EUROPE
There was good reason to worry after hearing the new
President's aggressive inaugural speech which was sadly devoid of greatness or any
inspirational message. Here was a blustering bully who on this grand occasion
could do no better than give another campaign speech full of promises and
threats, offending in the process the three past presidents who honored him
with their attendance (Obama, Bush Jr. and Carter) with accusations of bringing
the country to ruin and doing nothing about its problems. This was the mendacious
and pugnacious campaigner who was not going to change now that he had won. The hateful
speech was an embarrassment, killing the last spark of hope in those who had
not voted for him. Even before the marching bands had stopped playing that
afternoon, he had already set in motion the demolition derby against President Obama's
greatest achievements by signing an executive order to begin dismantling Obamacare. No
time to lose.
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| Inauguration crowds for Trump (left) and Obama (right) |
There was worse to come: the next morning he visited the CIA
headquarters in Langley, Virginia, to first praise the institution he had slandered
during his campaign, and then to segue into a lengthy and petulant outburst
against those he claimed had falsely reported that Obama had drawn
bigger crowds to his inauguration than Trump had. "When I looked out over
the Mall I saw at least a million, perhaps a million-and-a-half people, all the
way up to the Washington Monument!", he said, giving the lie to newspaper
photos that clearly showed the contrary (and since have been flashed around the
world). For good measure he added that people of the press were "among the
most dishonest people in the world", a message echoed by White House Communications
Director Sean Spicer who stated that "This was the largest crowd ever to
witness a presidential inauguration, period!" and warned journalists that
they would be held accountable. And then we learned about alternative facts... Oh, my!
It is hard to think of a worse start, but here we are: the
man was elected democratically and we're stuck, unless...
... we hold him to his word that he is "giving the power
back to the people". The people responded massively on the day after the
inauguration when more than three million of them, many wearing
symbolic pink knitted "pussy hats", walked in the Women's March on Washington (more than 500,000) and in cities across the United States, as well as in "sister
marches" in most European capitals and in Asia. In all, 670 rallies were held
all over the world, including one in a distant outpost in Antarctica and
several in hottest Africa, to protest against President Trump. Never before has
the world been so united in such numbers against a president who is seen as
divisive, vindictive, irresponsible, and not qualified to hold our fate in his
hands. This massive, well-documented, global uprising has boosted the
protesters' spirits and given rise to a renewed civic interest in politics,
with thousands of Americans giving notice to their Representatives not to cross
a red line, and reminding them that their re-election is in the hands of the
people. The mid-term elections in 2018 are sure to reflect today's widespread
disapproval.
No one has forgotten the alleged Russian interference in the
election process, the role played by the Director of the FBI, the fact that
Hillary Clinton got three million more popular votes than the winner, the fact
that Trump has refused to produce his tax returns, that he has not put his
businesses in a blind trust, that his cabinet appointees are all billionaires or
generals without government experience.
In his first few days at the helm Trump has declared the
Trans-Pacific Partnership dead, the NAFTA agreement to be renegotiated,
approved the building of the Keystone oil pipeline that Obama had blocked and
the Dakota Access Pipeline through Sioux territory, giving the finger to
environmentalists and casting doubt on the COP21 agreement on climate change signed in
Paris in December 2015. With lightning speed he is trying to undo or damage as much of his
predecessor's legacy as he can before congressional hearings begin.
No, Mr. Trump, Making America Great Again does not begin
with giving (tax breaks) to the rich and taking (Obamacare) from the poor; with
denying science (man-made climate change exists); with facilitating oil
production and pipeline building (benefiting your investment portfolio) when
alternative energy should be developed and dependency on oil reduced; with
building walls and closing borders; with unfunding the National Endowment for
the Arts and the National Endowment for Humanities; with threatening a trade
war with Mexico; with turning an independent press against you. All this −
the sum of your first week in office − has us worried.
But some bright spots are already appearing on the horizon,
not the least of which is that a weakened European Union may be strengthened by
its united stance in response to your provocations. In Washington, the first ethics
lawsuit has been filed against you while in office and we expect more to come. Your
sabre rattling and offensive statements will surely provoke diplomatic
incidents before long, and your uncontrollable tweeting will sooner or later
set your own camp against you. Hello hope!
Next time, women (and men) will not only march on
Washington, they will march to the ballot box − if you have not been impeached
before then.
PS: Another wee
bright spot: the tsunami of Trump
cartoons; they are really funny!
