David Remnick, New Yorker - Nearly three decades ago, Howard Kaminsky, of Random House, called on the real-estate developer and self-marketing master Donald Trump at his office on Fifth Avenue. Kaminsky brought along a cover design for “Trump: The Art of the Deal,” its author’s literary début. Trump seemed reasonably happy. Just one thing, he said. “Please make my name much bigger.”
It was all so funny once. For a long time, Trump, with his twenty-four-karat skyscrapers, his interesting hair, and his extra-classy airline, was a leading feature of the New York egoscape. The editors of the satirical monthly Spy covered him with the same obsessive attention that Field & Stream pays to the rainbow trout. Trump never failed to provide; he was everywhere, commandeering a corner at a professional wrestling match, buying the Miss Universe franchise and vowing smaller bathing suits and higher heels. You could watch him humiliate supplicants on “The Apprentice” and hear him on “The Howard Stern Show” gallantly describing the mystery of Melania’s bowel movements (“I’ve never seen anything—it’s amazing”) and announcing that, “without even hesitation,” he would have had sex with Princess Diana. As early as 1988, Trump hinted at a run for the White House, though this was understood to be part of his carny shtick, another form of self-branding in the celebrity-mad culture.
And now here we are. Trump is no longer hustling golf courses, fake “universities,” or reality TV. He means to command the United States armed forces and control its nuclear codes. He intends to propose legislation, conduct America’s global affairs, preside over its national-intelligence apparatus, and make the innumerable moral and political decisions required of a President. ... [Trump] is getting ever closer to becoming the nominee of what Republicans like to call “the party of Abraham Lincoln.” No American demagogue––not Huey Long, not Joseph McCarthy, not George Wallace––has ever achieved such proximity to national power.
More
1 comment:
I must admit to being a fairly non-political person.
From my limited knowledge of Politics, at one time being ambivalent, then in the 60s kinda hostile, to now being disenchanted and frustrated; I am ready to figuratively (and maybe literally, but I can't seem to get that excited) throw my hands up in the air.
As a youth, Politics seemed boring. Seemed like you almost had to be a lawyer or something. Then, Kennedy appeared on the scene, with something previously unknown - Charisma! He seemed to breath new life into something that seemed ready to dry-up and blow away.
This, being not all that long after World War II which seemed to somehow draw people together a little, but who then seemed to be itching to express their feelings of individuality, and desired to be free from all the conservative pressures demanding that they 'toe-the-line'. Big changes in music, art, clothes, religion, and attitudes in general.
Over the years, I decided that Presidential candidates only needed a nice smile and a good haircut to win an election. OK, this not quite as important for Democrats, but still a fairly good gauge. (My 'type' always likes to generalize).
I heard Republicans begin to demand that Politicians should be 'businessmen'. Then later, maybe from pressure, also 'business-women'. This has introduced something into Congressional members especially that makes them think they should be paid like Corporate executives – and bringing other 'business' traits along also, like lack of transparency, and greed. Seemed like just more 'gang-warfare' to someone not directly involved.
One trait from the 1950s that re-emerged was Christianity. Probably in response to 9/11. But it was lurking in the background already anyway, pushing Creationism v Evolution in public school science classes, and seemed to be co-opting the Republican Party way back in the 1980s.
Not sure why, but with The Donald, the desire for blind religiosity seems to have disappeared from the Republican 'play-book'. I haven't heard the Tea Party showing up at events and protesting – in order to get their man (Cruz?) elected.
And The Donald doesn't even seem to have that nice of a smile.
Lets see... OK, maybe he hesitated to disavow the KKK. OK, maybe he shows disrespect for almost everyone. OK, so he doesn't have any detectable 'political' skills, and sounds willing to merely Dominate the word in both Business and the Military. And not even a decent smile.
Republicans (people voting) have whittled down their demand, to the lowest-common-denominator they could find.
Greed.
Post a Comment