It's the sort of morning that can only happen after a long summer, before a bank holiday weekend (in England and Wales) and when almost nothing is happening politically. It's also the sort of morning that happens before a weekend of family-linked events. So, for an alternative Friday of blogging, I am doing polls.
This one is on Trump. He was charged with yet more felonies overnight. Despite that, he remains the likely GOP presidential candidate, although even US polls suggest that this popularity may tumble if he is found guilty of crimes - with that looking to be increasingly possible as his trial dates appear, of anything, to be sooner rather than later now, despite his appeals for delay.
So, three questions:
Will Trump be found guilty of at last some felonies relating to events following the 2020 presidential election?
- Yes (75%, 367 Votes)
- I don't know, but show me the answers (18%, 89 Votes)
- No (7%, 35 Votes)
Total Voters: 491
Loading ...Then this:
Will Trump being found guilty harm his chances of becoming US President?
- Yes (46%, 226 Votes)
- No (35%, 170 Votes)
- I don't know, but show me the answers (19%, 92 Votes)
Total Voters: 488
Loading ...And:
If Trump becomes President despite being found guilty of offences relating to the 2020 election, is that the end for US democracy?
- Yes (72%, 368 Votes)
- No (16%, 81 Votes)
- I don't know, but show me the answers anyway (12%, 64 Votes)
Total Voters: 513
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As I pointed out in a previous post the Americans developed the derogatory term “Mickey Mouse”:-
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mickey%20mouse
It can therefore be argued that Trump is a “Mickey Mouse” cult politician where the members of his cult believe everybody else is corrupt for believing that fair elections are held for choosing their presidents! As I also pointed out in another post we need to consider that belonging to a cult helps people feel valued and particularly if they feel embittered by the way the system’s (establishment in British terms) treated them in terms of economic well-being.
The same cult way of thinking goes on in the UK in at least two ways that FPTP is a fair way to decide which party should run the country (my party must have complete power) and whatever government is elected it must automatically strive to balance its books. There are other cult ideas of course that of market fundamentalism and minimising the role of the state produces an optimum outcome for all. The latter of course is dependent upon the licenced banks being given free rein to create as much money as they like with no balancing of the consequences. This results in cult blindness of the following for example:-
“At its peak in June 2022, the cost of a typical UK home was £293,586, while the average annual earnings of a full-time worker were £40,196. According to Halifax, this put the house price to income ratio at 7.3, the highest – or least affordable – level ever recorded.”
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2023/aug/23/inverclyde-scotland-halifax-affordable-great-britain-buy-home-house-price-income-property
Obviously I could go on with many examples of what cult blindness does to countries like the United States and United Kingdom the main thing is obviously helping people how to spot “Mickey Mouse” cult politicians who deliberately obfuscate how things work or what they’re really upto.
Before the 2020 election it was obvious that Western Democracy’s future lay in the ability of Joe Biden to beat Trump and to most people the ability of Old Sleepy Joe to beat the Republican/Media machine looked like a long shot. Then he won.
Subsequently, he continues to surprise and despite a hostile Congress and a lukewarm Senate he has repeatedly defeated the extremists and engineered the passage of massive and important bills through both houses.
Depending on your point of view his foreign policy may or may not have been successful but he has certainly returned the USA to being a rational and reliable international player.
With regard to Trump, Biden has played it straight down the line both ignoring the demented partisanship of the Republicans and the supposedly clever, media-savvy schemes of Trump opponents to deal with Trump. Instead he has left it to the Federal and State forces of law to deal with Trump as they deal with other criminals.
As with his other actions we can only hope that in this, as with other areas of presidential governance, Old Sleepy Joe once again demonstrates that he is a lot smarter than people ever give him credit for.
What I find fascinating and also troubling about Trump, is that what we are seeing I think is him being taken down by lesser crimes? To the point where there maybe a cause for saying ‘So what, big deal?’.
Trump’s much reported relationship (money?) with Putin and Russia is I think of more interest to me than anything else. I think that this is maybe the real crime he has committed in full daylight.
In other words, he maybe a traitor and a betrayer who has been enabled by the same financial system that has enabled the rich to rob working people in America and continues to do so. He is Kompromat – simple as that.
So, there is a bit of a show trial going on in my view – but only to cover the American finance community’s and elites enabling of Trump and therefore the enabling of Russian influence on and in the American state – not to mention possible breaches of national security.
Thus Trump’s real crime – that he is owned by Putin – may never come to light because the consequences on America’s elite and it financial institutions would be simply unaffordable in terms of damage to their standing. I mean – who anywhere would trust them again?
So, the American state has essentially decided to use anything to bring him down, except (maybe) the truth!!
Before anyone suggests that I get my had examined, consider that:
(1) I have worked in local authority now for over 20 years, and I’ve seen this sort of face-saving, twisting, turning damage limitation on a yearly basis.
(2) We have our own Russian problem as far as I am concerned and it is to be found in BREXIT and how that was funded. We may never learn the truth here about that.
Too cynical? Maybe. But we live in such unprincipled times at that moment that anything seems possible – no matter how low.
And what enables a lot of this?
Money.
It’s people’s behaviour over money and how it renders some of us blind.
I voted no to Q3 partly because American democracy is already well on its way to crumbling: a 2-party system where both parties are to the right of centre desn’t offer much hope for the poor and needy. Sounds familiar? UK (and England in particular) needs to waken up and fast as we’re on the same track.
I had a look at some opinions from Americans on the BBC website. Polarised is the polite term, unless the BBC was being less than honest in its choice of quotes.
It seems there is no longer any chance of reasoned debate/argument anymore. I wonder if democracy is already dead.
There are already Trump mugshot mugs on sale to pay for his fees.
Can’t think of anyone who would want to buy one, but a lot in the US will, I’m sure.
Trump is not a problem, he is a symptom. That’s much more worrying than a rogue narcissist with a comb-over and orange make up.
The American electorate might vote to end the Great American Experiment. I think there are just enough of them who can read without moving their lips, to try to move things along in America’s evolution from just being a republic, to becoming an actual democracy.
Or to paraphrase:-
“The British electorate might vote to end the Great British Experiment. I think there are just enough of them who can read without moving their lips, to try to move things along in Britain’s evolution from just being a Stone Age cult system, to becoming actual democracies.”
Steady on with the ‘stone age’ slur: these were sophisticated people! I think ‘cult’ says it well enough!!
: – )
There’s a wonderfully intelligent, brave and assertive woman called Ruth Ben-Ghiat.
She regularly demystifies Mr Trump’s tactics and strategy, which every other dictator uses, and wannabe dictator tries to use.
Donald is just one in a very long line of men who can’t control their urges and who take their frustrations out on everyone else when they can’t get their own way.
One her most recent posts talks about the 14th Amendment. It’s not sexy but neither was taking down Capone for tax evasion.
https://lucid.substack.com/p/the-fourteenth-amendment-democracy
I think the 14th is what will do for him, which is why getting the court cases done soon is vital.