Donald Trump is not being targeted for the misdemeanors and serious felonies he appears to have committed but for discrediting and undermining the entrenched power of the ruling duopoly.
The only trouble is, Trump's obsession with himself at whatever cost it may be to anyone or anything else, puts complete unpredictability in the White House. Yes, the elite is out to get him, but for the rest of us he is also a very dangerous character with no guidelines in his personal behavior that show regard to any accountability. He will do and say anything to at least preserve if not gain power, the perfect example being the incident where he held up a bible for the symbolism, but at another point could not give a single example of anything in the bible that meant anything to him. Nothing is off limits.
My point is that he is nobody's friend, not any individual or any group if his ego is offended. What a parade we had of dismissed office holders, none of whom had anything good to say about Trump when they were free to do so. Michael Cohen's book, Disloyal, is a must read.
Given the truth of your essay, what is the voter to do? When the American pubic is given a choice or there is a possibility of that, it goes nowhere. Jill Stein, no insider, got 1% of the vote. Bernie got shuffled off the stage by the Hillary machine.
The elite protect themselves in our democracy of lobbies. Biden is certainly an obedient member. We pretty much know exactly what to expect (bank bailouts, de-regulation, etc.) that are no service to we the people, but with Trump all we can expect is a carnival strongly hedged in by established power and the chance of real chaos through his unpredictability. His recent statement that any indictment would likely bring "death and destruction" shows he cares nothing for the stability of American society. He learned nothing from Jan. 6.
I don't want to vote for Biden, but I don't want to vote for a hand grenade with the pin pulled either.
I am baffled by this column, especially this claim:
"Once Nixon, like Trump, attacked the centers of power"
That claim suffers major problems:
1) it is contradicted by all the acts that Hedges lists under "Why wasn't Trump prosecuted for..." each of which is evidence that Trump served and posed absolutely no risk to the "centers of power";
2) False equivalence and revisionism: Nixon never "attacked the centers of power". Nixon may have attacked elites, but not the centers of power. Chomsky's point is that the elite are self serving and the US system of justice is two tiered: one for the powerful and one for the rest of us. But that is not an argument that Nixon attacked the centers of power; and
3) Hedges has written a superb book about White Christian Nationalists Fascists, yet somehow he continues to ignore Trump's rhetorical support for fascist culture and fascist politics and the threat of consolidation of those politics into governing power.
I certainly understand the central idea, which is that there is a glaring double-standard in Washington, but when it comes to Trump and his ilk, and their tactics, my desire for his indictment, by any prosecutor, doesn't mean I absolve the duopoly for its many crimes. In my view, Trump is of a different order because he honestly has no shame, unlike Nixon, who at least had the dignity to leave the stage for a time after being publicly humiliated. Trump is more dangerous because he has neither humility or the capacity for shame.
All too true. It’s a cliche at this point, but the analogy to the Al Capone case is clear: We don’t care what he goes down for, so long as he goes down. Like Cornel West said to the clueless Bill Maher years ago, all US presidents are war criminals. The issue this column underscores is why the American people don’t mind. Just as it did when I was young and protested the Vietnam war, manufacturing consent continues to mean manufacturing murder. And the root question will haunt us: Would Ukraine have been invaded with Trump in power? Would he possibly, as Christian Parenti obliquely implied to Trump’s own boast, have been some version of a “Peace President“? We’ll never know the answer, but it’s enough to contemplate the odd notion that his boast was appealing to his base.
"Donald Trump is not being targeted for the misdemeanors and serious felonies he appears to have committed but for discrediting and undermining the entrenched power of the ruling duopoly."
Exactly. And it is why I supported him and will continue to support him unless a better version of anti establishment leadership rises.
Our system is supposed to be government by the people, of the people and for the people... not government by the coastal elite ruling class, of the coastal elite ruling class and for the coastal elite ruling class. Elites should have a seat at the table... that is all.
We need changes to the system. The first should be term limits.
Well yes, but I would have liked a little less Trump bashing ( we all know he is vulgar, corrupt and inept). To be even handed Mr Hedges should at least mention Hunter Biden and his massive payments from a Ukrainian oil company for "consulting". Now the United State is at war to support Ukraine. Is there a money connection? Who knows? How revolting that such a question can be asked. But it can be.
This seems like an order of magnitude worse than anything Trump or his tacky children ever did.
Brilliant article, thank you. A pox on the uniparty! The criminal state needs to be charged and convicted and banished to a small uninhabited island somewhere. We the people must take control!
Trump is a flawed Toto - self-interested and narcissistic for sure, but he did put his teeth into the curtain and pulled it open, and now honest people can’t unsee what they saw, and still see.
so well said. Thank you for your analysis. I am always a little richer after reading your articles. My sense or despair remains heavy, but understanding it helps
Wow, what a stunner this is. Including that it hadn't occurred to me to deal with Presidents about the horrors of our imperialism and the insanity of war. But it makes sense that it's not on agendas of either party because they all do it, so none of them blows whistles as we scream helplessly at the horror show. I'm gettign my whistle out now!
Some say the real reason Nixon went down is because he took the US out of the gold standard. Powerful forces attacked to get even. A fantastic book "The Power Worshippers" by Katherine Stewart is an expose of Religious Nationalism that has tied their horse to MAGA. The main architects are the Koch brothers and their fellow Oligarchs. With John Birch mentality learned from father Koch who started the group in the 1950's. It morphed into the Tea Party with Right Wing Evangelicals, who are pushing for a Christian Theocracy. All the Bills that target Abortion and anti "woke" thought is rampant amongst them. They have an army of Clergy who promote Republican's with targeted messaging gleaned from sophisticated data mining, Invisible power is their most powerful weapon. The "utility of the data consists in the ability to interact selectively and individually with voters". Individual's get a point system for their views, i.e. members of conservative churches, if they homeschool, oppose marriage equality or abortion rights. Also for interests like hunting, fishing or following NASCAR. A total score of 600 points proves your worth to them. 600 pointers are targeted for voter registration. They have an army of recruiters called "champions". With dogma like. When "Gods righteous rule, the people rejoice and when the wicked rule, the people groan". The political duopoly of the past as bad as it is will seem like the good old days once they cement their power. The duopoly is impotent, the people confused, white Christian political power on the march before us, is at the point of Nuremberg Laws in Pre Holocaust Germany. The MSM in collusion never speak of, or call out the American Oligarchs behind the scene. America is sleep walking into a fascist state that will resemble Orwell's warning of a "Boot on a Human Face Forever" and remember he said "Forever" twice!
The saddest part of all this is that amerikans are gonna be confined to the same old choices in 2024, yeah maybe trump Vs an aged & incompetent neolib or a middle aged & incompetent neolib, but that is no choice, cos even if drumpf did win we already know that he lacks the support & the skill to effect a meaningful change to the 'perennially at war empire' and in fact his Sinophobic rhetoric could have him boasting his way to ww3 with China.
amerikan voters find themselves in a classic lose:lose game. If they want to create a new party free of the toxic associations of the two extant parties, the only way it can be done is via being established in most state legislatures, that is gonna take at least 3 terms including winning power in some states.
So maybe if they were very lucky the 'new' party will be 16 years old before it could be a viable challenge to the prezdency; not a new party at all but by then an old established party which after having held power in state legislatures will have developed most of the toxic aspects & connections of the existing parties.
There is simply no way for a new broom to sweep through the hill and I cannot help but think the founding fathers saw that as a feature rather than a bug.
I agree that "entrenched power of the ruling duopoly" is a big problem, but "undermining the peaceable transfer of power" is a bigger problem, even if it's "from one branch of the duopoly to the other." How are we going to get rid of the duopoly without even that vestige of democratic process?
This essay is on the mark.
The only trouble is, Trump's obsession with himself at whatever cost it may be to anyone or anything else, puts complete unpredictability in the White House. Yes, the elite is out to get him, but for the rest of us he is also a very dangerous character with no guidelines in his personal behavior that show regard to any accountability. He will do and say anything to at least preserve if not gain power, the perfect example being the incident where he held up a bible for the symbolism, but at another point could not give a single example of anything in the bible that meant anything to him. Nothing is off limits.
My point is that he is nobody's friend, not any individual or any group if his ego is offended. What a parade we had of dismissed office holders, none of whom had anything good to say about Trump when they were free to do so. Michael Cohen's book, Disloyal, is a must read.
Given the truth of your essay, what is the voter to do? When the American pubic is given a choice or there is a possibility of that, it goes nowhere. Jill Stein, no insider, got 1% of the vote. Bernie got shuffled off the stage by the Hillary machine.
The elite protect themselves in our democracy of lobbies. Biden is certainly an obedient member. We pretty much know exactly what to expect (bank bailouts, de-regulation, etc.) that are no service to we the people, but with Trump all we can expect is a carnival strongly hedged in by established power and the chance of real chaos through his unpredictability. His recent statement that any indictment would likely bring "death and destruction" shows he cares nothing for the stability of American society. He learned nothing from Jan. 6.
I don't want to vote for Biden, but I don't want to vote for a hand grenade with the pin pulled either.
I am baffled by this column, especially this claim:
"Once Nixon, like Trump, attacked the centers of power"
That claim suffers major problems:
1) it is contradicted by all the acts that Hedges lists under "Why wasn't Trump prosecuted for..." each of which is evidence that Trump served and posed absolutely no risk to the "centers of power";
2) False equivalence and revisionism: Nixon never "attacked the centers of power". Nixon may have attacked elites, but not the centers of power. Chomsky's point is that the elite are self serving and the US system of justice is two tiered: one for the powerful and one for the rest of us. But that is not an argument that Nixon attacked the centers of power; and
3) Hedges has written a superb book about White Christian Nationalists Fascists, yet somehow he continues to ignore Trump's rhetorical support for fascist culture and fascist politics and the threat of consolidation of those politics into governing power.
I certainly understand the central idea, which is that there is a glaring double-standard in Washington, but when it comes to Trump and his ilk, and their tactics, my desire for his indictment, by any prosecutor, doesn't mean I absolve the duopoly for its many crimes. In my view, Trump is of a different order because he honestly has no shame, unlike Nixon, who at least had the dignity to leave the stage for a time after being publicly humiliated. Trump is more dangerous because he has neither humility or the capacity for shame.
Of course.
I detest Trump, but it is obvious that his enemies are seeking any pretext on which to charge him.
All too true. It’s a cliche at this point, but the analogy to the Al Capone case is clear: We don’t care what he goes down for, so long as he goes down. Like Cornel West said to the clueless Bill Maher years ago, all US presidents are war criminals. The issue this column underscores is why the American people don’t mind. Just as it did when I was young and protested the Vietnam war, manufacturing consent continues to mean manufacturing murder. And the root question will haunt us: Would Ukraine have been invaded with Trump in power? Would he possibly, as Christian Parenti obliquely implied to Trump’s own boast, have been some version of a “Peace President“? We’ll never know the answer, but it’s enough to contemplate the odd notion that his boast was appealing to his base.
"Donald Trump is not being targeted for the misdemeanors and serious felonies he appears to have committed but for discrediting and undermining the entrenched power of the ruling duopoly."
Exactly. And it is why I supported him and will continue to support him unless a better version of anti establishment leadership rises.
Our system is supposed to be government by the people, of the people and for the people... not government by the coastal elite ruling class, of the coastal elite ruling class and for the coastal elite ruling class. Elites should have a seat at the table... that is all.
We need changes to the system. The first should be term limits.
Well yes, but I would have liked a little less Trump bashing ( we all know he is vulgar, corrupt and inept). To be even handed Mr Hedges should at least mention Hunter Biden and his massive payments from a Ukrainian oil company for "consulting". Now the United State is at war to support Ukraine. Is there a money connection? Who knows? How revolting that such a question can be asked. But it can be.
This seems like an order of magnitude worse than anything Trump or his tacky children ever did.
Brilliant article, thank you. A pox on the uniparty! The criminal state needs to be charged and convicted and banished to a small uninhabited island somewhere. We the people must take control!
Trump is a flawed Toto - self-interested and narcissistic for sure, but he did put his teeth into the curtain and pulled it open, and now honest people can’t unsee what they saw, and still see.
so well said. Thank you for your analysis. I am always a little richer after reading your articles. My sense or despair remains heavy, but understanding it helps
Uh Oh Chris, Blue Maga is gonna go crazy on you now!
Mr Hedges, have you catalogued Biden’s crimes, yet? They are as myriad as Trump’s.
Wow, what a stunner this is. Including that it hadn't occurred to me to deal with Presidents about the horrors of our imperialism and the insanity of war. But it makes sense that it's not on agendas of either party because they all do it, so none of them blows whistles as we scream helplessly at the horror show. I'm gettign my whistle out now!
Some say the real reason Nixon went down is because he took the US out of the gold standard. Powerful forces attacked to get even. A fantastic book "The Power Worshippers" by Katherine Stewart is an expose of Religious Nationalism that has tied their horse to MAGA. The main architects are the Koch brothers and their fellow Oligarchs. With John Birch mentality learned from father Koch who started the group in the 1950's. It morphed into the Tea Party with Right Wing Evangelicals, who are pushing for a Christian Theocracy. All the Bills that target Abortion and anti "woke" thought is rampant amongst them. They have an army of Clergy who promote Republican's with targeted messaging gleaned from sophisticated data mining, Invisible power is their most powerful weapon. The "utility of the data consists in the ability to interact selectively and individually with voters". Individual's get a point system for their views, i.e. members of conservative churches, if they homeschool, oppose marriage equality or abortion rights. Also for interests like hunting, fishing or following NASCAR. A total score of 600 points proves your worth to them. 600 pointers are targeted for voter registration. They have an army of recruiters called "champions". With dogma like. When "Gods righteous rule, the people rejoice and when the wicked rule, the people groan". The political duopoly of the past as bad as it is will seem like the good old days once they cement their power. The duopoly is impotent, the people confused, white Christian political power on the march before us, is at the point of Nuremberg Laws in Pre Holocaust Germany. The MSM in collusion never speak of, or call out the American Oligarchs behind the scene. America is sleep walking into a fascist state that will resemble Orwell's warning of a "Boot on a Human Face Forever" and remember he said "Forever" twice!
The saddest part of all this is that amerikans are gonna be confined to the same old choices in 2024, yeah maybe trump Vs an aged & incompetent neolib or a middle aged & incompetent neolib, but that is no choice, cos even if drumpf did win we already know that he lacks the support & the skill to effect a meaningful change to the 'perennially at war empire' and in fact his Sinophobic rhetoric could have him boasting his way to ww3 with China.
amerikan voters find themselves in a classic lose:lose game. If they want to create a new party free of the toxic associations of the two extant parties, the only way it can be done is via being established in most state legislatures, that is gonna take at least 3 terms including winning power in some states.
So maybe if they were very lucky the 'new' party will be 16 years old before it could be a viable challenge to the prezdency; not a new party at all but by then an old established party which after having held power in state legislatures will have developed most of the toxic aspects & connections of the existing parties.
There is simply no way for a new broom to sweep through the hill and I cannot help but think the founding fathers saw that as a feature rather than a bug.
I agree that "entrenched power of the ruling duopoly" is a big problem, but "undermining the peaceable transfer of power" is a bigger problem, even if it's "from one branch of the duopoly to the other." How are we going to get rid of the duopoly without even that vestige of democratic process?