Trump's base won't regret the "dictator" persona, that’s precisely what they craved, or at least convinced themselves they wanted. They revelled in hyper-masculine, homoerotic portrayals of Trump, casting him as a powerful, shirtless strongman, despite the evident irony of a soft-bodied, ageing man. He was their closest approximation of a “tough” leader, and through sheer cognitive dissonance, they morphed him into a fantasy of authoritarian virility.

Some frothed over those images more than others, didn't they Bobbi?

They wanted the alpha, the iron-fisted leader, and Trump will undoubtedly deliver his trademark pantomime of strength, just as he did in his first term.

What his supporters will ultimately regret, however, are the policies that slip through in his name—the real, substantive changes executed by the faceless functionaries he’ll unleash. Trump will scatter executive orders without regard to their content, delegating everything else, just as before, to anyone willing to pick up the pieces.

After what Trump learned from the midterms, he’ll abandon all conventional oversight. The 'guard rails' of competence, knowledge, and institutional memory will be tossed aside in favour of hand-picked yes-men—the supposed “best people.” This time right away, not half way through his term.

And while he cavorts at rallies, golfs, and engages in brash press conferences we can't hear on the way to his helicopter, policy-making will be left to those who owe their positions to loyalty rather than expertise.

Without a coherent policy agenda of his own and distancing himself from the tedium of governance, Trump will inevitably delegate to those pushing the authoritarian “Project 2025” agenda. His supporters will ultimately regret the rights they’ll lose and the draconian policies left in the wake of his feigned leadership.

They’ll soon feel the sting of tariffs from a trade war with China, rising inflation and interest rates as a result, rising consumer costs, and the economic gut-punch of watching the wealthy receive tax breaks while they shoulder higher bills. But that’s what they chose.

For the rest of us, it’s a front-row seat to absurdity, a darkly comic spectacle of self-destruction. And as his faithful cling to the belief that any fallout is Biden or Harris’s fault, we’ll be here to remind them of the Trump policies that led to the wreckage they can’t face.

In the end, all we can do is laugh, because what else remains?

We're in it for the lulz now.

We just have to hope his damage is contained to the US. 

Mr Sad,
you're a sore loser.
The people voted in a landslide.   291 to 223      

Frank wrote on Nov 7^th, 2024 at 9:00am:


It will be interesting how it pans out.

Much of what Trump promised, the outcomes, they're not achievable with the path he laid out, so it will be interesting to see where things go.

The trade wars, inflation and interest rate rises that his articulate plan will lead to, matched with the tax changes for the higher end as well as company taxes, the majority of Trump's base, the people who voted for him, will end up paying far more than the elites.

They're going to feel the pain even more than they are now, while being told how good things are because the stock market numbers look good.

That wore off real quick last time.  I wonder how long it will take this time?

Bobby. wrote on Nov 7^th, 2024 at 9:12am:

Do you think that you, as an Australian, are a winner with a Trump presidency?