Presidential Fog
Almost two years ago I wrote the second essay for “Trump World,” called “Liar Liar Liar.” We were entering the Trump Era, and I tried to define the new reality of “facts” used by the Administration to justify whatever they wanted. The final portion of that essay gave survival instructions:
1. Hold fast to the “facts” that are actual facts. Don’t fall into the trap of allowing “alternate facts” to take hold as reality. Remember, the formula for Trumpian success is to establish the “rules” for his reality – pressing REAL reality onto that forces the administration to defend their “alternative.”
2. Chaos creates “the fog of war.” It is within the false reality of that “fog” that the Trump Administration operates. Don’t get distracted by the “alternate fact” of the day. Cut to the important decisions and news that is underneath
3. Recognize the “Trump Plan” – and begin to counter-plan!!!
Tonight, in the midst of his manufactured crisis on the border, the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, will address the nation on network television. If he repeats what his Administration has been saying, he’s going to lie to America. Let’s look at his “facts.”
Vice President Pence, Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen and Press Secretary Sanders have all said “…four thousand on the terror watch list have crossed the border this year” to justify their Southern Border Crisis. The reality: all but six of those came through airports or Canada, not the Southern Border. They also said the 17,000 criminals crossed the Southern border. The reality: the Trump Department of Homeland Security defines anyone who crosses the border illegally as a criminal. Crossing the border illegally is a misdemeanor offense, not a felony like “rapists and murderers.” It can even be handled as a “civil” offense, like a traffic ticket.
When mainstream media fact-checked the 4000 “terrorists,” the Administration’s story changed. Vice President Pence this morning said 3000 “special interest aliens” came across the Southern border. “Special interest” aliens aren’t criminals, or even likely terrorists, but simply trigger a “red flag” because of their travel patterns. The “crisis” of terrorists and criminals coming in caravans to “attack” the United States is manufactured and it’s imaginary.
And now, for the first time, we are in a “humanitarian crisis” according to the Trump Administration. All of those folks coming are “stacked up” in the border towns, victims of crime and fraud. Those conditions are forcing them to try to cross illegally, risking their lives and their children. This is an “emergency” that the President believes “WALL” will fix.
The reality: the migrants are in a bad situation, but their emergency was created by the Administration through their own policies. Emergency powers aren’t required; what is needed is more judges, medical care, and fewer incarcerations. Nothing extraordinary needs to occur; it’s how both Presidents Bush and Obama handled increased border pressure. And, to answer the Trumpian excuse that “…Obama separated children at the border too;” that’s true. But there is a huge difference: the Obama policy separated children from parents who were criminals, but not everyone who crossed the border illegally were classified as criminal. The number of separations was much smaller, and dealt with felons, not misdemeanor offenders.
And the most easily checked Presidential “fact:” four former Presidents told Mr. Trump “they’d wished they’d built a wall.” The facts: all of the living former Presidents, Obama, Bush, Clinton, and Carter have clearly denied speaking to Trump about this, or wanting a border wall.
So if the “crisis” is a manufactured emergency, why have we closed part of the government?
Going back to “LIAR LIAR LIAR,”Mr. Trump has created chaos. Government workers aren’t getting paid, government services are getting cut back: food stamps are in jeopardy, Parks are full of trash, TSA agents at the airport are taking sick days and plane inspectors are having trouble keeping up. This “shutdown crisis” was created so that the President can “fulfill” his campaign promise of “WALL.” It helps solidify his base, and in the chaos, we aren’t talking about the Mueller investigation, or about the new Democratic House of Representatives, or even the dramatic declines in the stock market. It’s exactly the way the President operates; in the fog he moves the focus to the issue HE wants to talk about.
Tonight we will hear the President speak. It will have all the trappings of a “Presidential Address,” with flags and pictures in the Oval Office. The setting will remind us of real crisis times, of Bush after 9-11 and Johnson stopping the bombing in Vietnam. Don’t let the setting fool you, it’s just more Presidential Fog.
