President Trump has maintained his reputation of keeping the domestic and global media engaged through trivia. His latest wobbles on Pakistan come at a time when Pakistan is helping the US on finding an honourable exit out of Afghan quagmire. No wonder Trump’s Twitter blast was followed up immediately by Pentagon’s soft talk and praise for Pakistani efforts in maintaining stability and peace in the region.
While Uncle Sam has run short of any carrots that he can offer to Pakistan, and Pakistani leadership knows it, why is Donald Trump trying to scuttle Pentagon’s efforts in Afghanistan?
The political satirists in America have already labelled President Trump with a laundry list of nicknames, Hustler, Psychopath, liar, grabber in chief, narcissist, pervert, and Orange man with no brains, schizophrenic, and suffering from dementia and so on. His use of rhetoric and bombast is a household phenomenon. More recently, his panacea to fire his aids and secretaries has established the fact that it is almost impossible to remain sane in Trumpy White House.
Before attending WW1 Commemoration in Paris, Trump began his sojourn to France with a damaging attack on President Macron and France, where he reminded the French like a high school bully as he tweeted
Emmanuel Macron suggests building its army to protect Europe against the U.S., China and Russia. But it was Germany in World Wars One & Two - How did that work out for France? They were starting to learn German in Paris before the U.S. came along. Pay for NATO or not!
Loss of House of Representatives has turned White House into the house of the absurd. Why Republicans have clung to their support for Trump requires a PhD thesis. Trump has had a thorny relationship with US Military Establishment; he has yet not visited his troops on Afghanistan even though he has spent more than 150 days in sprawling Golf courses, including Mara Lago during two years of his current presidential tenure.
Is it increasing pressure from domestic audience and media, that he calls fake news and enemy of people, his conduct unbecoming of a President, memory loss, narcissist attitude or all of the above?
Half of the time, his aids and White House staff is busy cleaning the mess created on an almost daily basis.
While drafting the American constitution, The Forefathers had thought of such a character becoming POTUS. Andrew Sullivan in his article, “can Donald Trump be impeached?” in the New York Times, highlighted why the clause of impeachment was kept in the constitution. He elaborated on the clause of impeachment
The founders included the provision, from the very start, as the weakest, “break the glass in case of emergency” mechanism for reining in an out-of-control executive. He was already subject to a four-year term, so he would remain answerable to the people, and to two other branches of government, which could box him in constitutionally. But the founders’ fear of creeping monarchism — the very reason for their revolution — and their deep realism about human nature led them to a provision, rooted in English constitutional precedent, whereby a rogue president could be removed from office by the legislature during his term as well. At the same time, it’s clear they also wanted a strong executive, not serving at the whim of Congress, or subject, as a prime minister, to a parliamentary vote of “no confidence.” He was an equal branch of government, with his prerogatives, empowered, in Hamilton’s words, to conduct his office with “decision, activity, secrecy and dispatch.” He stood very much on his own feet.
But President Trump has already contemplated the issue of impeachment and is building a legal firewall for the last ditch battle. As per the CNN report of 4th June 2018, President Trump asserted that he has right to pardon himself, but suggested that he won’t use that power, adding that the special counsel investigation is unconstitutional. His famous tweet states
As has been stated by numerous legal scholars, I have the absolute right to PARDON myself, but why would I do that when I have done nothing wrong? In the meantime, the never-ending Witch Hunt, led by 13 very Angry and Conflicted Democrats (& others) continues into the mid-terms!
The basis for this is that while President can pardon any subject of the US, nowhere it is written that it excludes the President himself.
It is interesting to note that almost half of the White House Aides and secretaries fired by Trump as well as some journalists having close association with the White House have written books, more important ones include, “Fear” by Bob Woodward, “Fire and Fury” by Michael Wolff, “The Briefing” by Sean Spicer, “Unhinged” by Omarosa M Newman. These books have one major conclusion, Trump has been the most difficult President in the history of United States, and it was challenging for a sane and honest person to work in Trump administration full of scandals and marred by an environment of hate and bigotry.
For Pakistani audience and stakeholders, my advice would be, ‘Trumpy Wobbles’ is a new phenomenon in the history of USA, something that was not expected but foreseen by their Forefathers. When George Bush Junior became the President, he was labelled as the Village Idiot for his buffoonery; however, he took good counsel from his aids and conducted diplomacy with honour and ambience. Trump, on the other hand, is an obstinate, bull-headed, narcissist, village idiot who thinks the sun shines from his head, and it’s better to ignore Trump than taking him too seriously.
The author is a freelance journalist.
adeelanaureen@gmail.com