2017 Jan 29^th

I’ve posted the Jan 28^th non-political blog and now, the evening of the 28^th, I’m starting the blog for the 29^th. This could be hazardess because by tomorrow everything might have changed. The big deal, as everyone knows, is Trump’s ban on people coming to this country from seven mostly Muslim nations in North Africa and the Middle East.

Trump’s selection of the particular countries to ban is most curious primarily because of the Muslim countries whose citizens have not been banned. In spite of the fact that the great majority of the 9/11 attackers, 15 of the 19, were Saudis and that Saudi Arabia still spends millions on schools whose primary purpose is to demonize Christianity and the United States in particular, there is no ban on admitting Saudis. Nor is there a ban on Egypt, The United Arab Emirates or Lebanon, the other homelands of the 9/11 terrorists.

What do the seven countries whose citizens have been banned have in common and what distinguishes them from the homelands of the 9/11 terrorists?  President Trump has business interests in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and in The United Arab Emirates. He has no business interests in any of the banned countries. Great heavens, could it be that the President of the United States is allowing his business interests to dictate his foreign policy, in particular to dictate his decisions about issues affecting the safety of our citizens? In the words of one of his early supporters, “You betcha.” Well, we elected a businessman as president, and now he’s acting like a businessman.

Trump is particularly sensitive to crowds; both their presence and their relative absence. He has made an issue of the rather puny inaugural crowds that came to see his starring performance; and was not very happy about the crowds produced by the Women’s March the very next day, those crowds were larger than those which turned out for his inauguration. Today he has produced crowds yet again, but crowds protesting his decision to send refugees, already screened and arriving in our airports, back where they came from. Reince Priebus on “Meet the Press” this morning was grim faced and combative trying to defend his boss’s actions. Given that screened refugees have never killed anyone in this country, Trump’s activities and proclamation signings come off as bad theater.

Trump wants a war against ISIS and this requires the help of Iraqis. He expects them to risk their lives to help us fight ISIS, then to encourage their support he announces that none of them can come to this country for three months regardless of their vetting.  (Now there is an Iraqi move, helped along by Iran, to ban Americans from Iraq. What a surprise.)

Trump’s performance over the last ten days of his presidency is a disgrace. He cannot make up his mind and contradicts himself repeatedly. Kellyanne tells us that we haven’t seen anything yet. I hope she’s right. The quicker he gets worse the sooner he gets impeached…and he will be impeached. You don’t lance a boil until it comes to a head.