In Catch-22, the anthem of my generation, Yossarian, desperate to find a way out of the insanity of war, decides to emulate the Soldier Who Saw Everything Twice, who called out “Two!” no matter how many fingers were displayed and was thus crazy and certain to be sent home. So Yossarian, certain he had stumbled on a good thing, also calls out “Two!” no matter how many fingers are held up in front of him. But “that night, the Soldier Who Saw Everything Twice died, and Yossarian decided that he had followed him far enough.” The next morning, he announced that he saw everything once, and answered “One!” no matter how many fingers were held up in front of him. He was considered cured and returned to duty.
Donald Trump may turn out to be the Soldier Who Saw Everything Twice for the far-right, especially in Europe but also here at home. But whether these other Trump imitators decide that they have followed him far enough remains to be seen.
Domestically, Trump has thus far cowed just about any Republican who dared to oppose him and exiled those few who refused to fall into line. The occasional murmur of dissent by the likes of Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and post-epiphany Mitch McConnell, are drowned out by a braying chorus who are willing to overlook the most egregious violations of both the letter of the law and the spirit of the Constitution in order to keep their cushy jobs.
But the cowards and quislings in Washington and state legislatures are not acting in a vacuum. They are merely reflecting their electoral prospects if they choose to stand up for what is right, as did Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. Trump’s promises of Sugarcandy Mountain gulled sufficient numbers of what has become a depressingly ignorant—to say nothing of greedy and callous—American populace. As I’ve written a number of times, Trump voters, both those in the financial world and the working class, did not seem to care one whit if Trump inflicted terrible, arbitrary, and, yes, un-American, cruelty on the helpless and marginalized.
But his supporters vastly underestimated the degree to which Trump has bought into his braggadocio, “Only I can fix it.” Since taking office, he has initiated a series of “reforms” that he has convinced himself, and has been convinced by the likes of Elon Musk, will, despite some short-term “pain,” lead the United States into a new Golden Age and result in him being lauded—this time by others—as “the greatest president in American history.”
Largely because of his snake-oil salesmanship, however, short term pain is not something Americans, especially his voters, are willing to endure. That is why they turned the Democrats out of office. Forgotten was that in the wake of the pandemic, with unemployment well into double digits, the first and most important job was to put Americans back to work. Which Joe Biden did. And yes, when all that pent-up demand is turned loose on an economy, inflation will result, although deft management will bring it down. Which Joe Biden did.
Allowing the process to play out was not something Americans were prepared to stomach, and so they elected a blowhard who assured them that prices would come down on “day one.”
That did not happen, of course, but the pain did. The cruel and heartless treatment inflicted on “woke” groups or those who were transgender did not bother Trump voters at all. Most likely, they reveled in it.
But wait a minute! Farmers? Veterans? School lunches in rural America? Medical care for the lower middle class? Government workers in red states where they were a boost to the economy? Even Social Security recipients? Weren’t they supposed to be immune? Wasn’t the pain supposed to be only for “other” people?”
And now, Trump has followed through on his revenge tariffs, which promise to make economic conditions far worse, once again not sparing his own voters. Convinced of his own invulnerability, Trump firmly believes that his voters will follow him anywhere, even into recession, foreclosures, default on credit card debt, inability to get basic medical care, and the withdrawal of government services upon which they rely and have come to take for granted.
Maybe they will. More likely, they will not. And if they do not, despite all his efforts to rig voting, which promise to be intense, Republicans in all but the most conservative electoral districts may find themselves in deep trouble and perhaps even out of work.
And that, in turn, might be the needle that, against all odds after November, bursts the Trump balloon.
Which brings us to Europe.
We have been in France and the UK, for almost two weeks, mostly in Paris and London, but also in Orléans, a provincial city on the Loire. Overcoming my natural shyness, I’ve engaged as many as I can, mostly working people, in political discussions. Predictably, I failed to hear a good word about Emmanuel Macron or Keir Starmer. The reasons varied but the sentiments were clear. (They were a bit fuzzy on who would do a better job.)
But everyone, every single one, loathed Donald Trump and thought it would be a total disaster if he were running their country.
Including Marine Le Pen? That was where things got interesting.
A few days ago, Le Pen was convicted of embezzlement by a French judicial system known for fierce independence and a willingness to ignore political pressure from all sides. Nonetheless, she took a page from Trump’s playbook and derided the decision as politically motivated and the trial fixed.
Going into the trial, she was considered the favorite to replace Macron in 2127. Her populist message has resonated with the French working class who loath the recent influx of immigrants from third world nations, and have probably felt the same way for decades. Le Pen also promised a new burst of prosperity and a restoration of traditional values, the same as far-right politicians in Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, among others.
Le Pen is no longer eligible to run in 2027, but her successor Jordan Bardella is far more appealing and equally dangerous. But both he, Le Pen, and the other far-right aspirants, like domestic Republicans, have chosen to perch themselves firmly on what they assumed were Trump’s golden coattails and have come to be identified with him in their respective countries. The tariffs promise to hit their supporters hard as well.
Just months ago, Europe was on the verge of tipping to what is, the frills and rhetoric removed, a more modern, easier to digest fascism. After November, America was in an even more precarious position.
But maybe, just maybe, some Republicans in conservative districts whose voters don’t like the way their lives have been made worse, as well as voters in France and elsewhere, will leap up at the mention of Trump and yell, “I see everything once!”
If this disastrous event does not change the hearts and minds of the congress to act then we are lost. I have no memory of a similar event. Congress must act and do their fiduciary duty.