I never used to be a political wonk. Oh, I kept up with the news and knew what was going on nationally and internationally. That was easier to do, of course, when the only news outlets were TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines.

Most of them were reliable in what they covered. The Fairness Doctrine ensured that the news would give us both sides of an issue.

Politicians in the Cult

Politicians then, as now, had an eye out for themselves. The men did their jobs. They chased sex and money on the side. There weren’t enough women in the federal government to make a difference.

But the Senators and Congressmen weren’t batsh*t crazy. They didn’t belong to a cult of the unitary presidency with the White House occupied by a malignant narcissist and congenital liar. For the most part they sounded sane, acted sane, and kept their indiscretions on the down low.

Corruption hid in the back rooms because if it hit the six o’clock news, a politician could lose his job with all the lovely perks that go with it.

Those Were the Days

So, it was possible back then to wake up in the morning thinking about things other than how the President was going to destroy norms, torpedo processes, ignore laws, demolish the White House, build monuments to himself, and appoint incompetent, unqualified flaming idiots to Cabinet positions.

Good times.

Unfortunately, those days are history, and I wake up with a sense of dread. What is he going to do today? Will it be something small like tearing down the East Wing of the White House or a much bigger offense such as threatening to destroy an entire civilization?

Will he be insulting the mentally ill, veterans, dyslexic and autistic people, citizens with brown skin, prisoners of war, reporters who ask difficult questions, or anyone who disagrees with him? Or will he confine his insults to the Democrats in general and President Biden in particular?

I Remember the Old Days

I remember when Presidents maintained the office’s dignity by limiting how often they dealt personally with the press. Now we have one who runs his mouth on Air Force One flying to and from one of his golf resorts at taxpayer expense. He loves the attention, the deference (Sir! Mr. President!), the spotlight.

What he says during these impromptu pressers is anyone’s guess. We do know that ratings are more important to him than truth.

I remember when Presidents confined their lust to consenting adults. Now we have a man who consorted and cavorted with a pedophile for many years. The stories and emails detailing what he did and said with children young enough to be his granddaughter would revolt anyone.

I remember (not so long ago) when a President nominated people of intellect and distinction to serve in his Cabinet. Now we have a collection of men and women who know nothing about their departments and see their jobs as portals to accumulating wealth. We also appear to have two drunks heading departments critical to American security. Cabinet meetings begin with the Secretaries taking turns stroking their boss’s ego with embarrassing and humiliating praise that would have been unthinkable before this regime.

News of the Day

Every day begins with news that ranges from puzzling to disgusting, to terrifying. Our adrenal glands go into overload before breakfast. The pundits opine on what he said, did or posted on his private social media company or to another country’s leader. Monitors race to evaluate the veracity of what he said so they can respond with the truth. (Not that it matters.)

By noon our jaws are dropping at what we have heard or seen so far. At six pm, the news anchors are looking behind the curtain to find something else—anything else—to talk about.

And that’s just Tuesday.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

These days I’m a policy wonk because that’s what it takes to survive this regime. But some light shines at the end of the tunnel. Even his followers are starting to understand that they have been conned by a New York con man who doesn’t care about them and their problems.

They are beginning to register the cracks in the orange paint and the bald head beneath the phony hair. Things that don’t add up bother them now where they got swept under the rug before.

After a while, it all adds up: Fake blood on his ear, little girls raped, billions raked in by him and his family, NATO weakened, another golf weekend, food you can’t afford, a war no one asked for, gasoline over $4 a gallon.

The list goes on and anger is growing, even among MAGA’s ranks.

Perhaps this week it won’t be just another Tuesday. Maybe this week he’ll finally overdo it. I’d love to wake up to that.