Come on America, get yourself – and the rest of us – out of this mess
“A nation divided against itself cannot stand” is a phrase attributed to Abraham Lincoln. He certainly believed it and went to war to end the divisions. More than one hundred and fifty years later, that remains an aspiration, not an achievement. “E Pluribus Unum” used to be America’s national motto, until it was replaced by “In God We Trust.” The Unum is further away than ever, and God has His work cut out. Increasing numbers of Americans appear to have less and less in common. They seem to be seeking, not for unity, but for grounds to distrust their institutions and despise each other. Presidents regularly intone, “My fellow Americans.” Where is the fellowship?
Not at Mar-A-Lago, or any of Donald Trump’s other hang-outs. When he left the White House, the rumour was that half the attorneys in New York were ready to work for him while the other half were gearing up to put him in jail. But nothing seems to have happened. “The Law’s delay”: Hamlet did not know half of it. The US is awash with conspiracy theories, most of which sound like the scuttle-butt in a madhouse. Yet one is remotely plausible: that Democrats are in no hurry to indict Mr Trump because they want him charging around loose in 2024, to sabotage the Republicans’ Presidential campaign. If he does not win the nomination, he might well emulate Theodore Roosevelt, whose “Bull Moose” candidacy delivered the White House to the Democrats.
To compare Donald Trump to the first President Roosevelt would seem like comparing a flea to a…bull moose. The Trump creature is more like the stuff that comes out of the moose’s rear end.
Yet there is a horrible possibility. There is no guarantee that Mr Trump will be defeated in the primaries. In 2024, when America will need a strong and unifying President who can command affection and respect at home, who will always be taken seriously abroad, an appropriate representative of the greatest nation on earth, someone who can re-light the light upon a hill, it could end up with a contest between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
That sounds like a fantasy. It might well turn out to be a nightmare, and more than a nightmare. “But look, the morn in russet mantle clad, strides o’er the dew of yon high eastward hill.”
Ghosts, ghouls and nightmares dissipate with the relief of wakefulness. That presidential-race nightmare: you could wake up and find out that there was no relief. It was true. That said, even though Donald Trump is an appalling human being, he might well have been less bad a President than Joe Biden. But what a choice.
Come on America: get yourselves, and the rest of us, out of this mess.
On the subject of mess and disunity, we are approaching the first anniversary of the assault on the capitol. The Democrats will do everything they can to exploit this, in the hope of keeping memories alive until the mid-term elections. In response, we need facts, facts, facts: what actually happened, who did what, who is to blame and what was Donald Trump’s role?
The First Amendment to the US Constitution guarantees freedom of speech. It is a pretty absolute right, although, as that great Common Law jurist, Oliver Wendell Holmes, said: “No-one is allowed to shout “fire” in a crowded theatre.” Equally, another Holmes-ism, “A man is permitted to swing his fist as much as he likes, as long as it does not come into contact with another man’s nose.”
In the prelude to the Capitol riot, President Trump was clearly irresponsible. He ought to have known that a large number of hot-heads were about to descend on Washington. He might have suggested that they should assemble at the Washington Monument, a traditional gathering-place on solemn occasions, and process in an orderly fashion along the Mall, to the Capitol. But the protestors were no more interested in solemnity – or in respecting other men’s noses – than he was in order.
Goodness knows what is going on in that manic wasps’ nest which serves him as a brain. Yet it may be that Mr Trump thought that the protests would somehow succeed in annulling the election result.
Even if that were a true account of his mental chaos, would it make him guilty of a criminal offence? Surely not. Such a delusion could be an entrance-ticket to an asylum: not to a Penitentiary. Penitentiary: think of the root meaning and then associate that with Donald Trump. The juxtaposition is delightful, yet Trump would only be at risk of hearing a cell door slam behind him if he could be convicted of incitement to violence. Although the ipsissima verba have and will be scrutinised, there seems to be no evidence that he stepped over the line. Not all madmen lack alll cunning.
What do they make of this in Moscow and Beijing? Is the US as weak as it seems? Is this the moment to invade Ukraine or Taiwan? Or would President Biden decide that it was time to prove that he could not be pushed around? Although his mental processes may not be clouded with insanity, his grasp on events seems fitful. He is clearly over the hill, and it was never a high hill. It was said of President Trump that it was impossible to know what we would do. How could it be otherwise? He did not know himself. Something similar may be true of President Biden.
Talk about clouds: these are gloomy thoughts to welcome the New Year. We can only fall back on Adam Smith’s reassurance: “Depend upon it, Sir, there is a lot of ruin in a nation.”
Moreover, we are only twenty-two months away from a Presidential Election. A nation can surely resist ruin during that short time-scale. Yes, indeed it can. But what will happen then? May you have a happy and cheerful New Year.