Secretary Clinton has the numbers to become the Democratic nominee. Her win over Sanders in California further confirms her place in American history. Since her Philippic attack on Trump's character, she has found her groove back. Her temperament is more suited for a controlled undermining of the adversary than for carpet bombing. The hard-core ultra right fringe of the GOP is feeling the heat and is sending out its usual suspects, bearing the old tiresome "negatives".
Remaining in the Democratic camp is the Bernie Sanders-factor. He is the indubitable spokesman for a leftist agenda, with staying power. One might question if his message--at times over generous, at times out of sync--is realistic, but it is hard to doubt some of his more earnest intentions. This newborn Democrat's proposals cannot be ignored and the party's platform might have to take some extra luggage on board.
Trump, meanwhile, sounds totally out of self-control. Insults pile up. The reality showman has taken over the neo-politician. The banks of the riverbed of the
"admissible" have been flooded by the "unseemly". The use of the teleprompter will not stop him. He has created something toxic which might well lead to very perverse, unforeseeable consequences. In his vocabulary there is no room for atonement. In fact, if elected, he might well wreck the moral and constitutional backbone of the American system. The Republican establishment is in panic mode.
Secretary Clinton is prepared but premeditated, intelligent but calculating. Her many incursions in the no-man's-land which separates the correct from the ambiguous can be distracting. Nevertheless, she towers over the political landscape, even when she has to juggle more than one sword of Damocles at the same time. She still has to come clear (?) with the FBI regarding her e-mail contortions. The Republicans will no doubt make public the Benghazi findings at an "appropriate" time.
In the end, her epic life story fits in the American saga, and there is no one to come close.
The coming months will be ugly. Trump will make sure that rules of courtesy and restraint need not apply. The gutter will replace the battle-field. He will zoom in to avoid being forced into coherence. Secretary Clinton will have to stay on the high ground to avoid being dragged through the mud.
The Republicans must meditate on Oscar Wilde's assertion that there are only two tragedies in life. One being not getting what one wants and the other being actually getting it.
The Democrats have to avoid a civil, generational war between the more established Clinton camp and the left, which found in the persona of Bernie Sanders the answer to their frustrations. The President might have to intervene, but his cerebral, often sarcastic, tone might be too highbrow for the current times.
There is an abundance of parallels in history for this Republican Frankenstein. Some are over the top, some are legitimate. Trump belongs to the ideological family of current Hungarian, Polish and, mutatis mutandis, Turkish leaders.
A Brexit, which he seems to favor, would only aggravate existing fissures and create further financial, strategic and cultural disorder which could benefit him in the short-term.
"Anybody but Trump" sounds derogatory but in the present circumstances it is becoming too risky to bet on a " Paul's conversion on the road to Damacus" scenario. Donald Trump is beyond recovery, indeed. The pathology has entered the political scene, for now.
If elected, Secretary Clinton can be the transformational "persona" again, this time with President Obama's support.
No comments:
Post a Comment