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By Kenneth Tiven
US President Donald Trump acted as Master of Ceremonies at a widely televised variety-style performance before a joint session of Congress delighting his political fans and friends. Others were left convinced he remains an angry and dangerous leader.
With mid-term elections just eight months away, Trump’s ratings and political support are at a low point. He keeps calling Democrats crazy and unpatriotic. Trump appeared clearly offended that dozens of members of Congress boycotted, and miffed that Democrats who remained in the chamber neither stood nor clapped.
Giving or receiving awards are as big deal for the president who awarded medals to multiple military heroes. He invited the winning US Ice Hockey team from the Winter Olympics to show their gold medals and smile during an eight minute ovation where all in attendance appeared to clap.
While spotlighting people or issues as examples of what is right or wrong in America, Trump preened and scanned the balcony for where they were sitting. Often the cameras could not find them in a failure of basic stagecraft planning. As is his style, he praised himself with questionable statistics about the economy, the cost of healthcare, and energy, especially gasoline for cars. Prices he cited ignored the fact that the 50 states independently decide how much to tax gasoline. To keep pump prices low, some collect it based on mileage driven when annual licence plate fees are charged. It is just one of the variable deceptions involved in political economics.
Trump’s unhappiness with having the Supreme Court invalidate his tariff plan meant an ultra short mention of Chief Justice John Roberts. Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, and Elena Kagan sitting in the front row got no name recognition even though Kavanaugh had written a brief in defence of Trump’s tariffs.
Trump went on an immigration monologue against an ICE shutdown. Because ICE tactics killed American citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Goodin Minneapolis, Democrats refused to agree to a funding bill for ICE unless there were procedural improvements. As Trump talked, Democrats in attendance began to object. “You have killed Americans,” shouted Rep Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat. Trump didn’t acknowledge her, saying only: “You should be ashamed of yourselves.”
Trump announced a new “War on Fraud” directed at the people in the Minneapolis Somali community for misappropriating state and federal funds. Trump’s animosity for African immigrants ignited the issue, which was already being investigated by state authorities.
Returning to his Master of Ceremonies role, Trump restated a number of dubious achievements, including a bogus claim to have ended eight wars, including a dispute between India and Pakistan. He suggested he may have saved the Pakistan prime minister’s career and life.
Economist and writer Paul Krugman went through a transcript and reports two big disconnects. “First is the gap between what Trump promised—he was going to bring grocery prices down, cut energy prices in half—not what he has actually delivered.” Those who pay attention are astonished at Trump’s continuing boast about the great economy and new respect abroad for America. “Absolutely a figment of Trump’s imagination,” said Krugman because “the truth is that we are despised like never before”.
No clear mention of the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a war that Vladimir Putin started, believing Russia would win in less than a week. Trump’s affection for Russia remains unexplained, amplified by his withdrawal of direct aid to Ukraine which leaves a forever stain on his reputation.
Trump spent only three minutes talking about Iran where he has a naval armada parked off its shores. His vague talking points from recent days did not explain the largest amount of US military firepower in the Middle East since the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
The Epstein Files are a reputational minefield and Trump didn’t go there. Researchers “connecting the dots” with what has been released find evidence of files still locked away by the Justice Department, containing Trump-linked evidence. The irony of course is that disclosures involving British royalty and politicians have been met with resignations, arrests as well as loss of royal titles.
Fox News gushed over the president’s performance, with its chief opinion writer saying: “virtuoso performance, but it is unclear whether he fundamentally changed the political dynamic in America.”
TPM, a more balanced US website, wrote: “The night was a slow plod punctuated by moments that Trump clearly enjoyed introducing various guests, game show style, to laud their accomplishments or detail the horrors that were visited upon them.
Trump said: “As time goes by, I believe the tariffs, paid for by foreign countries, will, like in the past, substantially replace the modern-day system of income tax, taking a great financial burden off the people that I love.”
One internet pundit wrote that “the convicted felon wants to take the country back over 100 years to the pre-New Deal days of the robber barons and attacks against union works striking for better pay. The people he loves are not people like you.”
Tom Nichols on The Atlantic magazine website: “Trump said little of substance, but substance wasn’t the point. This year, he intended to put on a show, with an array of guest stars and special appearances. He was happy because he was playing the roles he clearly loves: game-show host, ringmaster, emcee, beneficent granter of wishes—and, where the Democrats were concerned, a self-righteous inquisitor…. pity the fact-checkers.”
Asawin Suebsaeng and Andrew Perez (The Ink): “It was a fascist rally peppered with flop-sweat one-liners, ring-led by a man who often sounded bored by his own teleprompted script…. For so much of Tuesday’s speech, Trump hectored the nation to just be grateful for a ruined economy that basically nobody believes is working for them anymore.”
Joyce Vance (Civil Discourse): “Trump continues to live in a magic fantasyland where stuff becomes true just because he says it is.”
National Review: “The problem is that talking people out of how they’re feeling about the economy tends to be very difficult for an elected official.”
Democratic members of Congress refused to stand or clap or, except for a few moments, even speak out in protest. The silence annoyed Trump. He repeatedly chastised the group for not applauding things like his campaign to terrorize blue cities as part of his mass deportation operation.
Republican media managers took advantage of the empty seats, sitting enthusiastic staffers near several Democrats, especially to annoy them with the constant standing up and applauding. That signal comes from the House Speaker and Vice-President, both seated behind Trump, who jump up like clowns in the jack-in-the-box musical toy. Clearly intentional, a woman in a bright red dress vigorously occupied an empty seat closest to the cameras and was enthusiastic all night long.
In her Democratic rebuttal Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger debunked Trump’s belief the nation is in a “golden age”, arguing that costs remain high for too many Americans more than a year into his second term.
Struggling families are a theme Democrats plan to carry nationwide ahead of the mid-term elections. Party leaders point to Spanberger’s double-digit victory in Virginia last November as validation of a disciplined, cost of living focused campaign. She said: “In the most innovative and exceptional nation in the history of the world, Americans deserve to know that their leaders are focused on addressing the problems that keep them up at night.”
Flanked by American flags her speech came from Colonial Williamsburg, a living history museum with restored 18th-century buildings, invoking Virginia’s early opposition to British rule and the Commonwealth’s home to presidents—George Washington (1), Thomas Jefferson (3) and James Madison (4)—all with critical roles in shaping the new nation through the language in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
—The writer has worked in senior positions at The Washington Post,
NBC, ABC and CNN and also consults for several Indian channels
