“To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle.”-George Orwell.
For previous entries, click here.
On the one hand, this is not the most important story in the world. But on the other hand, it lays bare a lot of things that are right in front of our noses.
Here are a number of thoughts.
- Federal Contracts. Note how Trump threatens to take away Musk’s federal contracts. This is just another example of Trump treating federal contracts like his personal toys that he can give and take away. It is not hyperbole to call this a dictatorial approach to governance.
- Buying Influence. Musk clearly thinks he bought influence and is pouting in public that he didn’t get his money’s worth.
- Deficits and Debt. Really, everyone should see, yet again, how all of this is not a real issue for Trump or the Republican Party. It all put a lie to the whole DOGE bit, as we all knew.
- Rationalizations! Prepare yourself for the rationalizations. A bunch of MAGA types are now going to all of a sudden realize what a fool Musk is, and a lot of Musk fans are going to turn on Trump. At a bare minimum, a lot of people who embraced the Musk-Trump bromance are going to have to rewire their brains and opinions to accommodate this outcome.
- Epstein! The Epstein Files attack is playing to a certain segment of the right-wing internet. It will affect the rationalization stuff.
This fits into the “in front of our noses” thread because it is easy to look at all this stupid chaos and dismiss it as either a joke or a distraction.
But it should not be dismissed. This is a perfect illustration of the way Trump approaches government. It illustrates his poor character and chaotic decision-making. It shows how mercurial and transactional he is. It should help people see, if they will look, how you can’t trust what he says. Just look at the superlatives rained down on Musk and how quickly that became threats and invective.
This matters not because it shows him changing his mind. It matters because Trump, up and until recently, told us to trust Musk as he unleashed him on the federal government to the detriment of thousands of people and to the state capacity of the United States. It illustrates the capricious, irresponsible, and emotional way Trump makes decisions.
I would remind us all how it is impossible to envision any other president of either party over time acting anything like this. And yet, like Michael Bailey noted recently, this is “normal” for a lot of young people.
It is remarkably easy to see that all this is background noise, but this is core Trump on display.
(It says plenty about Musk as well as about how much dangerous power accrues to billionaires, but those are their own discussions.)
Some relevant social media entries.
