Trump, The Emperor of Ice-Cream

Let be be finale of seem:

The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.
                                   --Wallace Stevens

We have elected the Emperor of Ice-Cream to unnerve as our president, and still act surprised when the ice-cream drips all over us and makes the body politic a mess.

Making fun of Trump—I can’t blame the comedians, our getting ever closer to a downfall is their windfall. (I listen and laugh with them; too bad, though, that the jokes are on us.) I suppose this applies to pundits as well; they-- the progressive ones at least--also seem to be making a living by parsing the latest proof that the emperor has no clothes. But I have less patience with them.  They seem surprised, even shocked, by every importunate tweet, by every wackadoo move our dear leader makes. 

An example: after giving a widely criticized speech to the Boy Scouts, Trump said, “I got a call from the head of the Boy Scouts saying it was the greatest speech that was ever made to them and they were thankful”. Was there such a call? Nope. Similarly, Trump said that the president of Mexico called him to praise the former’s—how I wish he were “a former”-- immigration policies.  If you believe that call ever took place, I would like to sell you some solar panels specially designed for that “big, beautiful” wall that will never be built.

The pundits never cease to be amazed by Trump goose-stepping over the faces of members of an ever-increasingly oppressed minority composed of fact-bearing, truth-telling patriots.  Don’t the pundits have his number yet?   In case you, dear reader, still support our dear leader, let me explain the nature of the cipher that he is.

President Trump is mentally ill.  He really is a pathological narcissist.  It’s not a case  of name-calling, it’s an objective assessment of a textbook case.  If you are interested in how this disorder is defined—and you should be—here is a definition from the Mayo Clinic: Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental disorder in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for admiration and a lack of empathy for others.  But behind this mask of ultraconfidence lies a fragile self-esteem that’s vulnerable to the slightest criticism.

There is simply no better way to understand Trump’s behavior. There are no doubt many people suffering from this condition, many of whom are doomed to long-term therapy--it is apparently a very difficult dis-ease to treat. That someone so afflicted has become the president of the United States and, while he is in power, will continue to afflict us all, is, however,  truly unprecedented.

A narcissist is a frog who needs to be convinced that he is a Prince in order to forget that he lives in a swamp. Deep down he’s convinced that he’s nothing more than a measly little reptile with a big mouth; to contain the anxiety that this slimy self-image causes, he needs, to borrow Emily Dickinson’s immortal phrase, an admiring bog.    If birds tweet his praises, he’ll tweet their praises as well. If he believes that a fly is buzzing with praise for somebody else, he’ll lash out his tongue and devour it.

This is the extent of a narcissist’s morality: mirror, mirror of the pond, tell me I’m great or I’ll despond.

The vast majority of commentators don’t seem to get this, although, as Trump’s pathology continues to be more and more obvious, some of them are beginning to comprehend that our president is not only incompetent, but suffers from a serious mental disorder as well.

One wouldn’t expect a man with a physical condition that causes a high fever to act cool; how can one expect a man with a mental condition that causes a raging inner fever not to act like a fool?

If one has some knowledge of Trump’s illness, one realizes that his actions, however ridiculous and seemingly impulsive when judged by objective standards, arise from his pathology as inevitably as a cough arises when one contracts the flu.

There are so many examples! Trump has mocked a disabled reporter; Trump has belittled very talented people such as Meryl Streep and Jon Stewart.  He has even criticized the pope!  Do you think he would ever have denigrated any of these people if they had praised him?  Meryl Street is one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood? What about the mediocre Scott Baio, who was just about the only “star” who was willing to speak on Trump’s behalf during the Republican Convention?  Remember, pathological narcissists lack empathy.  He doesn’t see persons as persons. He’s rankled by criticism and puffed up by praise; for him, unless others cheer him on, they aren’t worth a nit.

The Emperor of Ice-Cream has no friends, not even allies. Having little or no empathy is incompatible with respect for others as well.  He denounced Jeff Sessions, one of his earliest supporters, for recusing himself from the investigation of Russian collusion. Sessions had no choice; nevertheless, Trump severely criticized him for doing so, since he wanted Sessions to call the investigation off.  What good is an attorney general who is no longer useful to him? Loyalty to the Emperor is the sole criterion for the mini-Nero's imperial support. Recently, Trump even denounced Mitch McConnell, an essential ally, for not being able to deliver for the president's signature a (truly terrible) health care bill--even though McConnell worked tirelessly to do just that, while The Emperor of Ice-Cream simply lay in his dish with a pen.

When he was campaigning, Trump promised to replace Obamacare with affordable medical services for every citizen of the country.  Logically, he would have striven to improve Obamacare, which wouldn’t be that hard to do.  But no.  According to the Emperor, everything about Obamacare is evil.  To understand his hatred for Obamacare and Obama, it is helpful to think of President Obama as Britannicus and Trump as Nero.  Nero had Britannicus, his step-brother, murdered because he was a rival.  No, no, I’m not implying that Trump wants to kill Obama, only his legacy, no matter how damaging rescinding many of the good things Obama did for the country would be. Emperors can’t abide rivals; the Emperor of Ice-cream is no different.

(Why does Trump like dictators and dislike leaders of democratic countries?  That's easy: Duartes and Putins don't criticize him; Merkels and Mays do).

Recently, Trump has been criticized—rightly—for not condemning the recent horrible demonstration of white supremacists and neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, during which one person died and many more were injured.  He remained silent not because (or not only because) he supports white supremacy, (it's bad for business), but due to the praise that these wretched people give him; they are definitely part of his base.  (Note: Just as one is responsible for one's actions while under the influence of alcohol, the fact that Trump suffers from a mental condition does not exculpate him. Trump's failure to denounce white supremacy is a moral outrage; that the president has a personality disorder is no excuse). I’m not claiming that Trump has no racist beliefs, either—far from it—What I am asserting is that he has no sense of morality.  If in some crazy parallel world, African Americans supported Trump, he might well be advocating such things as reparations and a vigorous program of affirmative action for members of Congress.

Mental illness is a devastating condition; if he weren’t the most powerful person in the world, the correct response to Trump would be empathy and compassion.  Since he is president, however, we must see to it that his powers are curtailed—the best solution for us all, of course, would be his removal office as quickly as possible. (I suspect, although I'm not sure, that he colluded with Russia; that he has been involved, at least indirectly, with money laundering, is almost certain.  There is a very good chance that Muller's investigation will reveal an impeachable offense. Let's hope so!)

One way or another, The Emperor of Ice-Cream is going to melt. We must see to it that the whole world doesn’t continue to heat up and melt down with him.