Trump’s farewell address is a long list of perceived policy victories, but an assault on reality. At the heart of Trump’s worldview are dangerous conspiracies. Sugar-coated with American exceptionalism, his claims are not in touch with the historical realities of his administration. Trump’s manipulation is to tell his followers over and over again what they want to hear, what they (and perhaps all of us in some ways) wish were true. But, it rings hollow if you listen very hard. The vast majority of Trump’s “policy victories” are mistakes, mistakes that brought about real problems for the nation. Take the killing of Sulaimani. Trump touts this as a win for America. In reality, it permanently complicates US-Iranian relations, as demonstrated by the promise of retaliation on the anniversary of Sulamani’s death. Not to mention the fact that the United Nations has declared the attack a violation of international law. And that Iraqi government is permanently angry about an assault on its sovereignty. The president boasts of how many African-American and Latinx people saw their wages increase under his presidency, and then insights white supremacists. He claims to have fixed NAFTA (which needed to be done) and then frays America’s relationship with its major trading partners. As a new administration takes over, everyone must come to understand that the victories that Trump boasts about were really failures. And failure is something Trump never admits to. Trump takes failure and creates the illusion of success; it is the hallmark not only of his presidency but of the majority of his life.
The most important task for the Biden administration is to create an alternative narrative from the one that Trump uses to explain away the destruction left behind from his presidency. Let us hope Biden is up to the task, and that he fully understands the urgency needed in these circumstances. Biden will need to take the conspiracy head on, without pulling punches. He will need to confront people, both voters and elected members of congress, who are willing to rewrite the history of the Trump administration even as this dark chapter in American history closes. If in the name of achieving unity Biden cannot, or worse yet will not do this, the nightmare of the Trump presidency and terrible ideas that created that nightmare will haunt America for a very long time.
On the 6th there was an assault on the capitol, but it came about because of an assault on reality.
Progressive Without Apology 