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Financial Times

CommentaryFariborz S. Fatemi March 8, 2017Former Professional Staff MemberHouse Foreign Affairs CommitteeSenate Foreign Relations Committee
There he goes again. Trump, Putin’s “useful idiot,”lying and making things up, his self-delusion and ignorance knows noboundaries. Someone said his White Houseis an “ever-changing mosaic like a lethal kindergarten that never ends.” Some examples: They make up stories aboutterrorism in the US that never happened and then blame the press for notreporting something that never happened. They crow about hiring pledges fromcompanies Trump brought to the White House, but just the opposite is happening.To name a few: General Motors is laying off workers and Foxconn promised tohire 50,000 workers. A bogus promise. The irony is, the very people who profited fromdenuding our country of its manufacturing jobs are now in charge at Commerce. These are the very jobs Trump followers haveeither seen Security, since 9/11, immigrants coming from the sixcountries targeted by the executive order have not been a source of terroristattacks.
Then there is Steve Bannon, Trump’s brain. Both menlove “conspiracy theories” and “alternative facts” which means lying. Both areignorant about government and governing. Both are ill-informed and havepre-conceived views of the world around them. Trump and his sycophants are up to their eyeballs inRussian connection and contact during his campaign and after. Yet they continue to lie and deny, changingtheir stories each time they speak. His national security advisor lied and hadto resign. His attorney general lied and should suffer the same fate. Trump hasnow painted himself in a corner by a false accusation against President Obama,an accusation that brings Trump very close to having committed a felony. Themore they wiggle and lie about the Russian connections, the more they get stuckin the Russian briar patch. What do the Russians have over Trump that makes himroll over and say nice things about Putin? The question must be asked andanswered, have the Russians penetrated the highest levels of our government? By any measurement, that is a clear andpresent danger to our democracy. What else is a clear and present danger? The full scale attack on the reformsinstituted by the Obama/Biden Administration to rescue our country from theexcesses of the Bush/Cheney years that brought on a near depression. Excesses that benefited people like Trump,Bannon and their billionaire cabinet. Now under attack are the safety of our health, cleanair, water, food and the financial system. Public lands are up for exploitationand stealing. Mining companies will not have to clean up the waste dumped intorivers and water. The mentally challengedwill be allowed to buy guns. The peoplewho destroyed middle class housing and profited from its collapse now run thetreasury. All special pleadings andvulture captains of industry are running amok. These are just some examples ofcorruption that is being enabled by the incompetent, brainless, Republican Partycontrolling the Congress. Bannon contributes to and encourages the chaos that isTrump. Bannon openly speaks about his intention to “deconstruct theadministrative state.” Who else has beenworking for years to deconstruct the “administrative state” which is synonymouswith American democracy? The Russians. What does Bannon want to deconstruct? Is it Social Security? Medicare? Pensions?Education? Safety net? Consumer protection? Transportation safety laws?Infrastructure building? Anti-discrimination laws protecting women,labor, minorities, etc.? All that ispart of the so-called administrative state. Since 9/11, we have had a national security state. Half of the budget of $3.8 trillion goes tofund that state, ie., defense, homeland security, FBI, CIA, national securityagencies, etc. Which of these does Bannon want to deconstruct? The ignorance of Trump and Bannon is boundless. Howvery sad.