No Regrets: Trump the Oligarch

No Regrets Journal Essay

Trump The Oligarch

Clayton Medeiros August 2019 

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Trump The Oligarch Oligarchy is the politics of shared greed. Oligarchy is a despotic government controlled by a privileged few for corrupt purposes. Instead of government of the best qualified working in the public interest, oligarchy is government by the unqualified and the unjust in which government serves to increase the power and wealth of the president and those he appoints to office in the White House and federal agencies.

Trump has been completely successful in making the Republican Party and his appointees complicit in his lies and the exploitative self dealing that has increased the income of his businesses and brought additional wealth to his cronies. The Republican party no longer has a separate identity. It is tied to Trump’s unethical values and the policies that result from those values.

Although much of Trump’s populism shares characteristics with neofascism, he is most focused on the link between greed and undermining the rule of law. Supportive of this focus are the characteristics of neofascism which include: -extreme nationalism and populism -toxic anti immigrant language and policy -racism -white supremacy HIs common ground with Putin is through the shared support for oligarchs and neofascist policies. Oligarchs need to weaken the rule of law, weaken the use of scientific findings in making decisions and generally undermine governmental, legislative and judicial oversight in order to profit from the exploitation of public resources including opening national parks and wilderness areas to mining and gas and oil drilling.

The Russian propaganda machine is mirrored by Trump and has no relationship to truth. The truth can be manipulated continually through Putin’s governmentally controlled media. Trump is using the same tactics in the United States through Fox News and far right media, but the influence is somewhat limited by our free press and the opposition of the Democratic Party which controls the House of Representatives.

The oligarchs are all partisan loyalists. They will never confront Trump. The goal is self enrichment. The shared criminality of utilizing government and public resources for private gain increases the likelihood of loyalty. To support that goal, they must also support his lies, his culture war, his racism, his anti immigrant tirades and his disparagement of women. The Republican Party now stands for these positions and little else.

All of the Trump cabinet appointees have hollowed out the expertise that traditionally supports regulatory as well as diplomatic and related policy initiatives. In addition, they are deleting references, for example in climate science, from publicly accessibl and other web sites. When they staff up their agencies, they leave many positions unfilled and hire industry lobbyists and executives to manage what remains.

In the case of the Department of Agriculture, several hundred scientists are being required to move from Washington to the midwest with one month’s notice. Those who chose to retire or resign will not be replaced. The Environmental Protection Agency has been decimated and severed the link between science and regulations.

A similar approach has been taken to the State Department where there are hundreds of open positions. Many diplomatic posts remain empty. Dozens of leading senior experts have been forced out or resigned in frustration.

The only common sense of purpose among Trump and his sycophantic appointees and staff is greed and self dealing. A sycophant is someone who practices obedient flattery.

Obedient flattery is essential because Trump exults in his narcissistic personality disorder that manifests itself in twitter attacks and a willingness to throw staff members, appointees and anyone who disagrees with him under the proverbial bus.

Narcissism includes pathological self absorption characterized by an inflated self-image, an addiction to grandiosity, attention seeking and relentless exploitation of others. The narcissist is only capable of superficial relationships.

They are incapable of any level of empathy. Their self aggrandizing must be fed by those who surround them. Any level of criticism is unacceptable and angrily confronted.

Trump and his appointees are a danger to our democracy. The Republican Party support for Trump policies and silence in the face of or his tirades are a danger to our democracy.

Clayton Medeiros