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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe greatest mystery in Washington: Why is anyone still loyal to Trump?
http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2018/01/05/the-greatest-mystery-washington-why-anyone-still-loyal-trump/mio4tjmKVifqkfs2xlKpcI/story.html?event=event25The greatest mystery in Washington: Why is anyone still loyal to Trump?
By Michael A. Cohen Globe Columnist January 05, 2018
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But how does one explain an administration full of individuals who believe that the president they serve is an idiot and unfit for the job, and yet still wake up every morning, go to work, and not only defend him but strive to further his political agenda? Its not as if multimillionaires like Tillerson or Mnuchin need the work. Theres always a place on cable news for a talking head like Kellyanne Conway.
Surely some rationalize what they do by telling themselves theyre protecting the country from Trump. But of course thats a lie. Theyre enabling Trump and allowing him to stay in a job for which he is manifestly unsuited.
This is a president who takes to Twitter to threaten North Korea with a nuclear attack; who has barely lifted a finger as half of Puerto Rico lacks power; who has regularly and flagrantly undermined the rule of law, and almost certainly obstructed justice. From what, exactly, is America being protected?
Theres no doubt that working in White House is a cool gig and the pinnacle of a political career, but to what end? Surely, no job, no matter the perks, can be worth enabling and normalizing a president with all of the awesome responsibilities that come with the office who you think is a danger not just to the country, but also to the world.
They could quit. They could speak out. They could implore the vice president and other Cabinet secretaries to invoke the 25th Amendment. They could stop lying on Trumps behalf and stop assisting his effort to shred political norms and undermine the nations democratic institutions. They could do something, anything, to warn the country. Instead, most of them will get up Monday morning and do what theyve been doing for the past year: enable a president who they believe is an idiot. Why they choose to do it is perhaps the greatest mystery in Washington today.
dhol82
(9,353 posts)Fred Sanders
(23,946 posts)Hitler and Trump are using identical tactics.
demosincebirth
(12,554 posts)thbobby
(1,474 posts)When will an organized crime syndicate quit their idiot boss? Not if he is willing to bring the syndicate down because he is going to jail. Mob snitches can hold a great deal of persuasion over those as criminal as he is.
dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)Kingofalldems
(38,514 posts)dewsgirl
(14,961 posts)ToxMarz
(2,169 posts)Or live boy?
dchill
(38,626 posts)if it's Graham.
BigmanPigman
(51,672 posts)is more like it. Gtassely and Graham supported the Mueller Investigation and the ongoing investigations in the House and Senate and now they flipped and are trying to derail and discredit all of the investigations.
This is a big change and we all know now that there is going to be an uphill battle to get any justice from the investigations from this point forward.
This is why the Dems have introduced bills in an effort to get an Independent Investigation like that of 9/11. The GOP has blocked it for partisan reasons. The Americans believed that the investigations would be supported in a non partisan way back in July. People believed the Mueller would never be able to be derailed even if the investigations in both chambers did become partisan. Well, guess what? The GOP who supported the investigations have FLIPPED since then (Grassely, Graham, etc). Now what? They are derailing the investigations in Congress and Mueller's too. Gee, what a surprise!
Now what do we do? What can we do? Do NOT put all of your eggs in one basket! Be prepared for the GOP to rig/steal the midterms and they go to 2020 unfettered. I won't say "I TOLD YOU SO" like I did when I said the Moron would win the moment I saw him descend down the golden escalator. Fux Ruse will take care of all of it!
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)They don't need him anymore. He is obviously a danger to the world and to the party. Why do they hang on? He can only make things worse for them.
Cha
(298,074 posts)little chickenshits like they've always been.
Irish_Dem
(48,095 posts)It is a classic syndrome.
demosincebirth
(12,554 posts)Irish_Dem
(48,095 posts)Trump has something that glues people to him.
Toxic glue.
demosincebirth
(12,554 posts)Irish_Dem
(48,095 posts)pnwmom
(109,025 posts)Roland99
(53,342 posts)fescuerescue
(4,448 posts)In every power dynamic, whether private industry, government or even social clubs, there is commonly a leader.
That leader, regardless of whether he is there by merit, inheritance, tradition or blind luck is surrounded by supplicants. The REASON they surround that leader is because they are looking benefit themselves, to catch the table scraps that fall from the table of the leader.
Take the most heinous, murderous, evil leader from history you want....why did he live so long? and allowed to cause so much misery? These men (and almost always men) are human and just as fragile as anyone else. A quick cut to the throat, or shot to the head could have saved thousands or millions and these men were always surrounded by people who were very well armed constantly. Any one of Hitlers guards could have ended his reign in a flash.
It almost never happened though. Why? Because those who surround, support and defend a leader, find it in their personal best interest to be a supplicant.
Jarqui
(10,131 posts)mainer
(12,037 posts)And release it to the public.
MFM008
(19,837 posts)...........................
C_U_L8R
(45,040 posts)doc03
(35,454 posts)Mr.Bill
(24,373 posts)zentrum
(9,866 posts)Policy changes. The great oligarchical rip-off. This is their chance. They're mad for the tax cut and they got it. They'll throw the destruction of DACA as a bone to his base while, while back stage they deregulate banks, finance, oil, the FDA and replace every aspect of our Democracy with privatization and ways for making profit.
That's why they don't leave. They are changing us and want to make sure it's permanent and un-doable.
dchill
(38,626 posts)Kablooie
(18,648 posts)They are desperate to keep out of prison so are trying to quash the investigation.
That's the only thing that makes sense to me
Awsi Dooger
(14,565 posts)Incumbents tend to be re-elected
moondust
(20,027 posts)Republican lock-step conformity.
Don't ever cross the Führer!
No committee assignments/end of political career.
Republican "base" chose Drumpf over ~16 other GOP candidates. Where do you go when you dump Drumpf? Are previous "quitters and fired losers" doing well or struggling?
Take your pick.
The Jonestown cult drank the Kool-Aid on Jim Jones' command.
bdamomma
(63,974 posts)bullying all involved. POS all of them.
dalton99a
(81,708 posts)From "Fire and Fury"
The president had been spending a notable amount of private time with Haley on Air Force One and was seen to be grooming her for a national political future. Haley, who was much more of a traditional Republican, one with a pronounced moderate streaka type increasingly known as a Jarvanka Republicanwas, evident to many, being mentored in Trumpian ways. The danger here, offered one senior Trumper, is that she is so much smarter than him.
Juliusseizure
(562 posts)Look at their base and funders.
The current GOP are corrupt sociopathic corporate oligarchists, with a white racist idiotic base of supporters filled with fear and hate.
Trump is still very popular with his base - he's delivering on hatred of minority groups and opposition groups (democrats). He doesn't care about democratic norms. Neither does his base.
In fact, they likely want him to do more. Be more aggressively fascist. Jail political opponents. Kill minorities outright. If they're still happy with him, I don't know where their bottom is - but its a very dark place. I don't recognize "loyalists" as Americans.
The ONLY time his base got upset was his meeting with Schuman/Pelosi and "agreement" on DACA and the wall. Meanwhile, they'll vehemently attack any GOP who betrays Trump.
What other conclusion can be drawn after a year of this shit?