Sunday Issues-May 25, 2025
Trump sees himself as Superman. Is he?
I do not see President Trump as Superman or as anything positive. He is a shameful chapter in American history and will be remembered for making America more racist. And, if some economists are right, he will be the first President to crash the economy purposely.
So why ask whether he might be Superman? The answer is his incredible popularity among Republicans. Trump claims to enjoy a 94 percent approval rate within his party. That may be a slight exaggeration. The real number is around 90 percent.
Wow. What is it about Trump that generates such loyalty? I wish I knew.
One guess—Trump managed to brainwash the GOP into believing that border security under Biden threatened not only the prosperity of the United States, but its cultural identity. Dare I say it, many (not all) Republicans are uncomfortable with all the people of color. When Trump labelled them criminals and rapists, he not only made it easier to be a racist, but positioned himself as the hero that would address the problem of America having too many non-white people.
A second guess—Republicans are stupid fools that are suckers for promises of a “Golden Age,” beam with pride that their President asked for and received a free luxury 747 from Qatar, and believe the president when he tells them that tariffs won’t raise prices. Republicans also like to see “their guy” bully Vlodymyr Zelenskyy and South Africa’s president in a gold-bedecked Oval Office and chuckle as they read that Trump is “putting Harvard in its place” because Harvard, to them, doesn’t represent excellence, but represents all people think they are smarter than Republicans are.
The issue with Trump’s incredible popularity within his party is a sad truth that writers like me and Democrats generally had better come to terms with: Nothing you are writing, saying, or doing is reaching the Republicans. If anything, the work product of the not-so-loyal opposition helps Trump maintain his popularity. Simply put, because Trump remains under attack from “liberals,” Republicans who may have a grain of skepticism about Trump should set those doubts aside and get in line.
That is why when friends raise the antics of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, the thuggish Tom Homan, and the sinister-looking Kash Patel, I usually don’t say much as a reply. I concluded that this trio and dozens of other Trump appointees are threats to democracy, but I realize that Republicans don’t care.
I am having a bad morning as I write this. Republicans are trying to kick Democracy out of the house—our house—and don’t seem to give a damn about what America might become without Democracy.
Trump at West Point
It was an act of masochism, but earlier today, I read President Trump’s comments at West Point. There are good summaries of his comments everywhere. I won’t summarize the speech. But one quote (part of a larger sentence) stood out to me:
As president, I am laser-focused on our core national interests.
This struck me as ridiculous. I suspect laughter would have broken out if the graduating cadets had not been cadets. I laughed. I had read about Trump’s “meme coin dinner” the night before.
A second comment of Trump struck me as weird, not so much as what he said, but how he said it. Trump was talking about how “the world” now respects America “again” because he is again in the White House, but expressed this thought by saying:
The United States of America is hotter now than we've ever seen it and, a year ago, it was as cold as it gets. And it's true. It's true. We have the hottest country in the world, and the whole world is talking about it. And that's an honor for all of us. I cannot wait to see the glory that is still ahead.
As I read this, I thought about Trump’s efforts to end President Biden’s initiatives to address climate change. Trump, of course, means “respected” or “popular” when he talks about “hotter.” Sad.
Read the entire Trump speech here.
Trump’s trade war is not over.
It appeared that Trump was slinking out of his trade war for a while. Only one “deal” had been announced with the U.K., but it isn’t a deal. It is an outline for a possible deal. Other than that, there were no new signs of “progress.”
That changed over the weekend. Trump has revived his attacks on the EU and on Apple in particular. While experts suggest it is not realistic for Apple to move production of iPhones to the United States, especially anytime soon, Trump remains fixated on the issue. He has threatened new tariffs that would be focused on Apple (although he mentioned the possibility of including other cell phone sellers as well).
Will Americans rise in protest when tariff-caused price increases start impacting American wallets?
The war on Harvard is not over.
How will Trump’s war on Harvard end? Not the way Trump expects. Trump may have swatted the wrong hornet’s nest. One of those Harvard-educated elitists likely has some kryptonite.
Thank you.
Much more is happening worldwide, but that’s it for today’s Sunday Issues. Enjoy the remainder of your weekend.
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