Did you ever imagine you would see THIS on the chyron of a major news network?
Like millions of Americans on Thursday night, I was shocked to see anchors on the major news networks quoting President Trump verbatim, in reporting his profane description of Haiti, El Salvador, and nations on the African continent. In an Oval Office meeting on—what else?—immigration, the Chief Executive was heard to whine, "Why do we need more Haitians?", and suggested more Norwegians should emigrate to the United States, instead. (Our Nordic friends demurred. Apparently, they’re just fine living in a place with the highest GDP per capita in the world. To them, the United States is a “shithole” by comparison.) Trump’s scabrous remarks were confirmed by Sen. Dick Durbin, who was among a dozen lawmakers present at the meeting. Let this sink in a moment: A sitting President of the United States, without preamble, essentially said, “why are we letting in all these Black and brown people? I want white immigrants!”
You’d be forgiven for thinking Trump had reverted to his old ways as a real-estate developer in 1970s New York City, when he and his father refused to rent apartments to Black applicants, something the Justice Department of the era sued the Trumps over, and won. It’s as if Trump believed America was his own personal, private, property. Oh, wait… Meanwhile, reactions from the denizens of one of those alleged “shithole countries” Trump denounced, are illuminating. Bergson Leneus, who is the first Haitian-American elected to public office in the city of East Orange, NJ, put it very succinctly to me. “[I am] disgusted, uncomfortable, angry, sad, and a whole slew of negative adjectives that I will choose to keep to myself,” he said. “The fact that our President would utter such a vile comment to describe the beautiful country of Haiti and the holy continent of Africa underscores a deep and disturbing pattern of racism, bigotry, and prejudice,” the councilman observed. “The President has no class or sense of diplomacy - characteristics that are required of the highest office in all of the land.” Leneus called on Trump to issue a public apology, but, of course, Trump, as is his usual practice, Tweeted his denial, and congratulated himself for keeping a “tough” stance in immigration.
Like all Americans, whose lineage can eventually be traced back to an immigrant ancestor (with, of course, the exception of Native Americans), the Haitian community takes pride in its heritage on both sides of the ocean. The annual Creole Image Honors ceremony recognizes outstanding achievements among Haitian-Americans. They also know racism when it rears its ugly head. “Statements like the one made by the President are exactly why Creole Image was birthed,” they tell me. “We are looking to educate Haitians and others about the many and ongoing contributions Haitians have made to the world. Racism against Haitians is borne of ignorance and an acceptance of myths as truth— something that is particularly damaging coming from the leader of the free world.” Yes, this is really happening. The Leader Of The Free World™ is damning, in the most unsavory terms, the time-honored tradition of the United States living out the beautiful words of Emma Lazarus’ "Colossus" etched on Lady Liberty’s base in New York Harbor. Daring to call Trump out on his behavior, moreover, makes one an enemy of the people.
That was another stink bomb our Orange Troll lobbed out of the White House—again—this week. In the wake of Michael Wolff's West Wing tell-all indictment of life in the Trump administration, the President vowed once again to weaponize a federal libel law, to silence critics like Wolff (or me). Having repeatedly painted journalists as threats to the Republic, purveyors of “fake news” that fails to extol Trump’s greatness—a man of his stable genius, mind you!—the President now seeks to abrogate the First Amendment. Silencing the free press is always a necessary first step on the path toward authoritarianism. A good friend of mine admonished me just yesterday, that writers like myself, who scrutinize the madness emanating from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, could already be on “watch lists” ordered by Trump. That’s not so far-fetched. Forty-five years ago, President Nixon composed his infamous "enemies list", and used the government’s agencies—most notably the IRS—to cow them into submission. Trump, by contrast, already makes Tricky Dick look like a rank amateur, when it comes to skulduggery and manipulation of the truth.
While everyone’s heads were ping-ponging back and forth trying to keep up with Trump’s machinations over immigration and attacking the media, the President even managed to fold, spindle, and mutilate the facts once more. In the face of blistering protests by Londoners over an upcoming embassy visit, Trump canceled the trip--blaming President Obama, of course. Obama? Well follow Trump’s twisted logic on this one. The original US Embassy building, located in Grosvenor Square, had become vulnerable to possible terrorist attacks, and it was determined that a new, safer structure, in a more secure location, was needed. The Bush administration (remember him?) concurred, and signed off on a plan to relocate the Embassy to its present Battersea site. This decision was taken in 2008, before Obama took office. Obama, as President, sold the old embassy in 2009, and the proceeds from it, and the sale of other US government properties in the city, covered the $1.2 billion cost of constructing the new one. Obama made the sale, but it was Bush’s operation. Such facts don’t matter to Trump, however, because he can’t ever resist an opportunity to smear or defame (!) people of color, especially his predecessor. It’s not “fake news” when the President does it. (Thanks, Tricky Dicky!)
That was this wild week in Trumpland. In just five days, Trump managed to stir up more international tensions, reaffirm his blatant racism, smear the media (again), and blame his canceled trip on the Black man who occupied the chair before him. Only in America. Sigh.
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