Every day brings another Trump surprise. Testimony on Capital Hill, the firing of F.B.I. Director James Comey, or to White House happenings, just adds more and more questions about the presidency of Donald J. Trump. Now we have the report from the New York Times of President Trump asking former FBI Director James Comey to end the investigation into former national security advisor Michael Flynn’s association with the Russian Government.
To make things worse, in the era of “fake news” and “alternative facts” and so many contradictions, no one knows who and what to believe: The President of the United States, interlocutors, political pundits, journalist, or the media.
It goes on and on because in all of that there has been always enough “wiggle room” for the Trump administration to circumvent whatever the truth may be.
However, “ . . . the path of the past 10 days has been toward less and less wiggle room and a more and more direct contrast between Trump and some other trustworthy outside individual. That’s the moment of tension that has been building since Trump announced his candidacy, always pitting him against imperfect foils like Ted Cruz or Hillary Clinton or the mainstream media. Eventually — seemingly inevitably — that wave will crash into a wall.”
Dan Rather:
I end each of my days with a silent prayer for my country. It has been a ritual for some time, but as of late I feel an anxiety gripping my heart and a sadness permeating my soul that seems unlike anything I have felt before.
I hope against hope as I slip off to sleep that our rapid descent into governmental chaos has hit a nadir - only to awaken to a new set of incoherent tweets or explosive headlines from top-notch reporters. And with that, we are falling once again. As I fall, we fall, even further, I pray again that our Constitutional government, the great gift of our Founding Fathers, will provide a safety net to catch us before everything we hold dear is no more. I believe that is the case, but the slowly rising level of uncertainty is not to be ignored.
I see recklessness where we need leadership... and I am deeply saddened.
I see politicians putting power and politics over principle... and I am incredulous.
I see lies treated as truths... and I am disgusted.
I see justice denied and likely obstructed.... and I am fearful.
I see norms flaunted... and I am angry.
I see global challenges going unaddressed... and I am worried.
I see the press under attack... and I am furious.
I see this, and more, so much more... and I am exhausted.
I find myself returning in my mind to dark days from the past, trying to remember how we as a nation felt, when Pearl Harbor was attacked, when Kennedy was shot, when Watergate took down a President, when terrorists rained terror from the skies. We somehow overcame. And I do believe that we shall overcome, someday. Perhaps, hopefully, someday soon.
But in the end, prayer will not be enough. Action, sustained action, will be required.
By Philip Bump
