But is Trump alone responsible? Not by any means. His enablers have been many, and many continue to support him. The election results are almost all in, the President-elect has been proclaimed by all the media, and been congratulated by most of the world’s leaders, yet Trump has not conceded, refuses to do so, is hunkered down in his fantasy world playing golf, tweeting endlessly about fraud and the illegality of the electoral process and has proclaimed himself the winner against evidenceto the contrary. His lawyers, led by Rudy Guiliani, and supported by Senators McConnell and Graham, along with many other lawmakers, have started legal proceedings to contest the results in several key States. Without any credible evidence it is unlikely that many of the suits will prosper, but that has not deterred the man from pursuing his agenda. Trump’s similarity to despots and dictators is there for all to see but he remains admired and loved by millions of US citizens.
To undo the damage done by Trump will require more than just a change of President. The upper and lower houses of Congress remain bitterly divided, the so-called Red and Blue States at loggerheads, and almost all branches of the administration stacked with sycophants several layers down from the top. And while all US administrations do appoint their own people across all departments, none in recent years have done it as relentlessly as the current one. And the irreversible appointments to the Supreme Court are something the US will have to live with for decades to come.As the new administration comes to grips with all the problems, their primary difficulty will be prioritizing all that needs to get done. The dark cloud that Trump and his minions have cast over the nation will require necessary and urgent attention.
He is a large man with a very large ego, a narcissist with an infantile mindset and behavior to match. One can only hope for the sake of the USA that the shadow cast by him over that country goes away as soon as possible.
But before they get to that task they need to get to the White House, which the present occupant is loath to leave. Trump has never admitted defeat, and being officially declared a loser, which he soon will be, whether he likes it or not, will be resisted by him as long as possible. There’s a good reason the term Trumpistan is so apt. His behavior over his entire term has been more akin to what one expects from a despotic dictator. The self-praise, the endless lies, the personal attacks on his opponents, the name calling, the attempts at muzzling the media, and vilifying them if they dared to report anything that questioned his greatness or abilities. And the appointments, the nepotism, the sycophancy, the corruption, the total disregard for the rules, regulations, and many times the law. In short, his demeaning of the office and his attempts at turning it into his personal fiefdom, a country that he would like to have renamed after him and reshaped in his image. And aiding and abetting him in all this were his minions, among his staff, and scattered across all branches of the legislature and judiciary.
Anyone who dares to oppose him, or even say anything that he perceives to be against him would be sacked, cast aside, marginalized, and if none of that were possible, vilified in his endless tweets. His twitter feed alone would keep a host of psychologists busy for years if they were to go through and try to analyze his mind and his ravings. But they needn’t bother. His behavior is totally predictable and transparent. He is more than likely to do the wrong thing or say the worst about his opponents. Never expect any graciousness, or civility, or decency from the man. If you do, you will be sorely disappointed. He is a large man with a very large ego, a narcissist with an infantile mindset and behavior to match. One can only hope for the sake of the USA that the shadow cast by him over that country goes away as soon as possible.
The rest of the world has a very different relationship with that country, and each country will have to deal with whatever serves the self-interest of the USA. That has always been the case and will continue. It’s how all countries behave and no one should expect anything different. All the rest of the world can hope for is a more decent, a more measured, and a more responsible approach to geopolitical and international concerns. For that alone, supporting a change in the US administration is worthwhile.
The writter is Development and public policy expert