Though Donald Trump is a weak and incompetent president, it is becoming ever harder to attribute his behavior to anything other than maliciousness.
This week he has floated the idea of delaying November's election. Let's take a look at what's behind this.
First, the president has no authority to do such a thing; only Congress can do this. Through wars and depressions (and a pandemic) America's elections have been held as scheduled, without delay. Since Trump did not use his usual "I am supreme and can do anything" style then we can assume that he already knew he cannot touch the election date. So why talk about it? More on that later.
Second, do you suppose it occurred to him that he might end up vacating the White House and handing the key over to Nancy Pelosi? A long enough delay might bump up against the immovable object of noon, January 20, 2021. With no election at that point, the Constitution mandates that Trump would be out of a job -- the presidential and vice presidential terms in office are exactly four years -- and the fact of constitutional succession would make the Speaker of the House -- currently, Representative Nancy Pelosi -- president of the United States.
Third, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden warned months ago that Trump might try something like this. Naturally, he was verbally accosted by spokespersons for the Trump Administration and the Republican party who were aghast and mortified at the idea. They maintained that no responsible and qualified candidate for elected office would even mention such a thing. (Their reaction to Trump actually doing such a thing? Silence.)
None of this matters to Trump, of course, because he is simply trying to undermine public confidence in the election. That is a shameful historic first for an American president.
It is also an indication of Trump's fear. He fears the electorate. He even fears public protest to the point where he had to seek the feeling of bunker-safety at one point, soon followed by having armed Federal forces disperse the protest with tear gas so that he could use a Bible and a church as campaign props.
And what about his use of Federal border patrol forces in Portland (and maybe elsewhere) to establish his "law and order" bona fides? What has happened during those forces multi-weeks long presence in Portland?
Initially numbering around a hundred or so people, the protests have grown to include thousands. No roving bands of "violent anarchists" (words used by Trump and his very personal Attorney General Barr) have been apprehended. They don't exist.
The Federal courthouse is the center of the action, and the Federal government has the authority to protect Federal property. However, the Constitution reserves police powers to the states and their municipalities, and Federal forces that venture beyond the boundaries of Federal property are therefore engaged in police work and so are in violation of the Constitution. They have done so in Portland.
Also, keep in mind that these Federal personnel are trained as military units to intercept organized crime forces engaged in drug trafficking at the borders. They are not trained in community-oriented policing. That fact alone makes their presence unreasonably dangerous and provocative.
Trump owns any incitement that has caused "law and order" issues. He has been president for almost four years. The protests might not be perfectly harmonious -- unfortunately so, because then the worthwhile messages will be obscured -- but the reasons for the demonstrations are valid.
Those reasons have very deep historical roots. But Trump has publicly worshiped icons of the Confederacy, and that has understandably stimulated what grows from those roots. Ask yourself this: Why would an American president celebrate traitors and those who would endorse human slavery? The answer should be very disturbing.
The top elected leader has the responsibility to reach out to others for understanding, and then to manage the development of solutions that will create progress. But Trump fears doing so. Reaching out to those who disagree with him would require him to change, and he prides himself on not changing.
Trump has advertised that he enjoys creating chaos. In doing so, the Trump presidency has created disorder. He will not change.
What about the pandemic? Simply put, it is yet another event that has revealed Trump's incompetence at managing a complex environment. That is apparently odd for a person who claims to be successful at business, but we don't really know how successful he has been, do we? On the other hand, game show hosts do not have to be skilled at complex management since everything in that environment is controlled. Which provides an insight to Trump's character.
America has a glorified game show host as president. His incompetence is revealed by current events. He fears the consequences. His fearful reaction is to spread his fear by mocking the validity of the nation's elections. Simply put, this is maliciousness that works only for Trump's benefit and will harm the country because it damages the public's trust and confidence in the government.
The rest of the world -- with the likely exceptions of Russia's and China's leaderships -- watches this show in horror.
The government is broken.
Because Donald Trump is a failed leader for a democracy, and a failed leader for the concept of democracy.
It's time that a new president be put to work fixing the government.
