Letter from America 5: Sixty Minutes of the Moonatic
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Your Essential Briefing on the State of Trumpton Today!

7pm on a Sunday night and the nation stares at their televisions. On 60 Minutes, a major current affairs programme on CBS, Lesley Stahl is interviewing Donald Trump. Outside, the moon is a massive saucer of light, making its closest visit to earth for 70 years.

Imagine this happening in about 2,000 bce. The new tribal chief, having slaughtered the previous incumbent in a fierce and totally unfair fight, sits down with the shaman and is asked what he intends to do for the next four years, after which he will have to fight for his role. Without the TV cameras. The whole tribe sits around the pair, glued to their words. And then a massive saucer of glowing moonlight pops into the night – how would the shaman interpret this omen? Is this the Goddess showing her approval by glowing her brightest for 70 years?

So is it a good omen? Trump and his family were fascinating. In production shots, a second before the formal interview begins (see CBS news website) his face shows a brief flash of anxiety, self consciousness. Humanity. And as the interview progressed I couldn’t help the impression that here is a man who finds himself entirely out of his depth. As each one of the more rabid right wing promises he had made was brought up, his answers made me think that quite a few of his barking ideas were simply strategic gambits, designed to pull more votes from rabid rightists – especially those who wouldn’t normally vote. When challenged, he’d use “I’m thinking about it” or, amusingly in the case of same-sex marriage, “It’s been decided. It’s a done deal”, signifying his new determination to appear LGBT friendly. On the Wall, he said “well it could be a fence”! On his promise to deport 11 million Mexican “illegals” he said he will deport “millions of criminals” so I have no idea whether that would add up to 11 million. On abortion however we can be in no doubt he will do his best to restrict or eliminate the right to choose. His Supreme Court appointment will be very much orientated to reversing Roe v Wade. Many commentators don’t think he will succeed – we shall see. He said “if a woman wants an abortion she had better go to another state”.

Oh and Hilary can rest easy – his threat to arrest her is definitely on the back burner. With the fire turned off.

Yes and parts of Obamacare will remain. He has promised a new system which will be “beautiful”. One of his favourite words. Of course he has no idea what it will be.

On the environment- ? Forgive the pun. That’s all up in the air. And little or no mention of Muslims! All bets off. He wouldn’t say a word about his forthcoming approach to the problem of ISIS, trying to give the impression that all sorts of military actions are planned but must remain secret. As if he has the slightest idea as to what to do.

His priority he said is to reduce taxes and get the economy going. Amusing when the USA is the fastest growing developed economy in the world, when employment is rising as is investment. And part of the main focus of his campaign has been, everything is broken and only Trump can fix it. Which, of course worked so well with people who had lost their manufacturing jobs as a result of globalisation. The irony being that employment amongst this group of people is on the rise, although not, of course, in manufacturing.

He begs the electorate “don’t be afraid” and wants to “pull the nation together” .No doubt this comes straight from the acceptance speech Hillary threw away when she discovered all was lost. He stared straight into the camera saying that his message to those who are undertaking violence against Muslims, blacks, Jews, Mexicans is “Stop it!” A little like the inventor of the AK 47 calling on his customers to stop killing.

There is no doubt he is vengeful. He blames “the media” for every setback he received. Heads will roll.

So coming back to the point I made in my last blog. Do we have to be worried? Is this the most dangerous election since Germany 1932? Or will checks and balances save us from a shitstorm of rabid right nonsense from a divided and fully armed monster?

Well, his first two appointments may be a clue. Rein Priebus (Chief of Staff)  is a Republican of the old guard, a Conservative in every sense. Probably on the saner side of the party. Whereas Stephen Bannon who will have the title “Chief Strategist” comes straight from his job at Breitbart, a “news” website which promotes views Atilla the Hun would have loved, if he was a schizophrenic with paranoid delusions.

The future is another country. My overall impression really reinforces my belief that he has few if any beliefs. He will sway this way and that with his advisors and the latest events that rock his personal boat. He said that his greatest asset is his temperament. I think that’s the world’s greatest liability.

 

I sure hope I’m wrong.

 

For a good summary see http://time.com/4569534/donald-trump-60-minutes-interview/

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