Donald Trump has been one of the most divisive figures in American politics for as long as anyone can remember. Creating feverishly impassioned opposition in the Democratic Party and stunned onlookers in the Republican Party, his aggressive and often petulant approach is ripe for parody. However, many would argue that Trump’s presidency is no laughing matter.
Adding fuel to the fire is a recent attack on Donald Trump by one of his senior officials. An Op-Ed essay written anonymously by a former White House official has been published by the New York Times. An unusual move for the paper, it has welcomed questions and explained: “We believe publishing this essay anonymously is the only way to deliver an important perspective to our readers.”
From changing his mind on keys issues to the continuous assault on his critics, the essay gives insight into the seemingly impossible task of working with Donald Trump. However, the author assures us that there are people on the inside working to protect the country from his most flippant and dangerous decisions.
“Many of the senior officials in his own administration are working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations,” the author states. “Although he was elected as a Republican, the president shows little affinity for ideals long espoused by conservatives: free minds, free markets and free people. At best, he has invoked these ideals in scripted settings. At worst, he has attacked them outright.”
The attacks ranged from Trump’s foreign policy to the way he deals with diplomats. He is painted as a boardroom tyrant whose whims and demands are met with dumbfounded protestations masquerading as carefully-worded suggestions.
The piece goes on to explain: “The erratic behavior would be more concerning if it weren’t for unsung heroes in and around the White House,” the piece states. “Some of his aides have been cast as villains by the media. But in private, they have gone to great lengths to keep bad decisions contained to the West Wing, though they are clearly not always successful.”
“It may be cold comfort in this chaotic era, but Americans should know that there are adults in the room. We fully recognize what is happening. And we are trying to do what’s right even when Donald Trump won’t.”
August was something of a rough month for the president, though one hour in particular was worse than the rest. On 21 August, Paul Manafort, the president’s former campaign chairman, was convicted on eight charges of bank and tax fraud. Minutes later, Trump’s ex-attorney Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to eight charges including campaign finance violations.
On the same day, ex aide Omarosa Manigault Newman - who Trump famously called a “dog” - released a clip on MSNBC Hardball with Chris Matthews of Michael Cohen on the campaign plane in 2016, adding further weight to the argument that he was heavily involved in helping Trump secure the presidency. All in all, it would be fair to say that Trump was probably hoping September would run smoother. However, less than a week into the new month, the new bombshell exploded.
“Meetings with him veer off topic and off the rails,” the author continues. “He engages in repetitive rants, and his impulsiveness results in half-baked, ill-informed and occasionally reckless decisions that have to be walked back.”
In what one might assume is the riskiest line of the article, another White House official is quoted as saying: “There is literally no telling whether he might change his mind from one minute to the next.”
Trump responded by calling the paper “fake” and the author a “coward” both to a bank of reporters and on Twitter. “If the GUTLESS anonymous person does indeed exist,” Trump tweeted, “the Times must, for National Security purposes, turn him/her over to government at once.”
“He is not putting country first, but putting himself and his ego ahead of the will of the American people,” stated White House press secretary Sarah Sanders. “The coward should do the right thing and resign.”
The New York Times column concludes: "Given the instability many witnessed, there were early whispers within the cabinet of invoking the 25th Amendment, which would start a complex process for removing the president. But no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis. So we will do what we can to steer the administration in the right direction until — one way or another — it’s over."
"The bigger concern is not what Mr. Trump has done to the presidency but rather what we as a nation have allowed him to do to us. We have sunk low with him and allowed our discourse to be stripped of civility."
There is now a rafter of well-researched books detailing the chaos inside Trump's White House including Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff, Unhinged by Omarosa Manigault Newman and Trump: Fear in the White House by Bob Woodward. Sadly, this piece merely acts as a reminder that it is all still very much happening.
