Trump---the problem is the mouth

 The one thing that is certain about Trump is all kinds of crap will spew from his mouth hole.  From COVID won't be a problem, to drink bleach to cure COVID.  Or there are good guys on both sides (yes the crusader in chief against antisemitism on college campuses doesn't have a problem with guys with tiki torches chanting 'jews will not replace us' in Charlottesville).  

Specifically with tariffs, the rules change by the hour.  The rational for tariffs change by the minute.  Team Trump claims he is just a flexible negagioter but he isn't.  He just spews constant crap.  But of course much of what comes out of the President of the United States isn't crap, and even if it is its impactful crap.  We ignore him at our risk.  He said he loves tariffs and he has started a tariff war.  He has said he will do whatever it takes to deport people he finds threatening and he has ignored habeas and the rule of law to do just that.  

What is remarkable about the verbal diarrhea that spouts from the Presidents mouth is not just the crazy uncertainty around positions, but the positions themselves.  If we were to go back to college statistics class and look at the potential distribution of stuff a president might say or propose it would look like a bell curve and the distribution of positions would bounce around a bit but around a certain central core of what political scientists would call 'norms'.  Like maybe we try to raises taxes a bit or cut taxes on investment a bit but not lets eliminate the IRS.

President Trump has no norms.  There is no center.  There is no bell curve distribution of comments and views.  A quick list of things to consider:

1. He pardoned violent insurrectionists who attacked the capital to prevent the peaceful transfer of power

2.  He talks about staying in office beyond two terms

3.  He parrots Russian talking points about who started the Ukraine war (hint its Russia)

4.  He proposes turning Gaza into a Trump resort

5.  He proposes making Canada the 51st state

6.  He proposes taking over Greenland--from our NATO ally

7.  He launches a meme coin

8.  He has a publicly traded stock

9.  He refuses court orders to bring back someone he illegally deported (too bad not so sad)

10.  He threatens to pull Harvard's tax exempt status if they don't agree to .....well lets put it in Trump speak, 'be his bitch'.  Now I could point out that many evangelical churches have become much more explicitly political than Harvard supporting Trump from the pulpit but that is not the point---the point is you either obey the most powerful man in the world or he will hurt you.

The center point for all past presidents bell curve of thoughts was around democracy, the center point for Trump is around personal power---and that is autocracy pure and simple.