I. The Trump Reality Show
Before I talk about It Was All A Lie again, a word about Trump’s executive orders. Here’s what his illegal executive orders really mean:
The object is to spin Trump as a hero. He wants to fool people, not help people.
Welcome to episode 1,503 of the Trump Reality Show: Sadopopulism in action. (The term “sadopopulism” and definition from Yale professor Timothy Snyder. More here.)
In general, sadopopulism works like this. The sadopopulist leader:
- identifies an “enemy”
- enacts policies that create pain in their own supporters
- blames the pain on the “enemies”
- presents themselves as the strongmen who can fight and defeat the enemies.
In this specific instance, what is happening is:
- First, the would-be oligarchs create a major crisis that causes pain and suffering to ordinary citizens by ignoring a pandemic and encouraging the spread.
- Next, they identify an enemy: The Democrats.
It doesn’t matter that the Democrats tried to contain the virus by urging precautions, and that the Democrats have been trying to help ordinary Americans while Republicans protect the rich. Because the truth doesn’t matter. It’s a show.
- Finally would-be oligarchs pretend to “defend” ordinary people from the “enemies” by offering a plan that actually hurts them even more by defunding social security (kill the payroll tax) and creating a bigger financial disaster later, while benefitting the ruling oligarchy.
They get the headlines they want, they rely on a well-oiled propaganda machine, and they count on people not bothering (or not able) to untangle the lies.
People will get frustrated and say “politics is broken” and tune out. When citizens say “politics is broken” and think it’s hopeless and nothing can be done, the oligarchs win. We can’t let them win.
Enough people right now (even people who have seen the lie machine from the inside) are explaining that it’s all a lie, which brings me back to Stuart Stevens’ book.
People on Twitter (and perhaps everyone) cling to the theory Sen. Lindsay Graham and others kiss Trump’s ring because Trump (or Russia) has Kompromat on them. I’ve argued that the “they’re blackmailed” theory gives the GOP leadership too much credit.
It assumes they’d do the right thing, but for the blackmail.
Of course, there is compromising material, but it’s right out there in the open. They lie, openly embrace Russia, take dirty money, engage in insider trading, break laws and norms, and shield trump when he does the same.
Blackmail doesn’t work on people with no principles, who don’t care if they appear to be hypocrites, who are backed by a propaganda machine, and whose supporters cheer lying and lawbreaking.
I suggest that the blackmail theory is reverse projection: People with integrity assume that only fear of blackmail could cause McConnell to be so depraved, or cause Lindsay Graham to do an about-face and eagerly kiss Trump’s ring.
GOP insider Stuart Stevens, who spent his career helping get Republicans elected—and who knows these people well—wrote an entire chapter on “What Are They Afraid Of?” (All screenshots are from the Kindle version.)
Notice the word “pretend”:
Never once does Stevens mention fear of blackmail. He says GOP officials are moral cowards who long ago traded their principles for power, and who are surrounded by other cowards so they feel right at home.
Stevens offers a different explanation for Lindsay Graham’s about face:
What changed for Graham—according to Stevens—was that Trump freed him from the need to pretend. In fact, Stevens uses the word “pretend” often. Here are a few examples:
The main reason elected Republican officials jump to do Trump’s bidding and eagerly kiss his ring?
They like what he stands for. From Stevens: They like being the voice of white America.”
They are moral cowards without principles—and Trump freed them from the need to pretend.
As I was writing this post, this comment appeared in my Twitter mentions:
You are good and decent people projecting your decency on those who are unworthy. In other words, you’re giving them way too much credit.
