The grownups are gone, or soon will be. The Washington Post’s Philip Rucker writes “the era of containment is over.”
“For two years, they tried to tutor and confine him. They taught him history, explained nuances and gamed out reverberations. They urged careful deliberation, counseled restraint and prepared talking points to try to sell mainstream actions to a restive conservative base hungry for disruption. But in the end, they failed.”
The so-called “seasoned advisors” who tried to corral the impulses of Donald Trump have thrown in the towel.
“Trump will enter his third year as president unbound — at war with his perceived enemies, determined to follow through on the hard-line promises of his insurgent campaign and fearful of any cleavage in his political coalition.”
Good @PhilipRucker piece on Trump grinding down the guardrails. https://t.co/PhfmOIVH9l
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) December 22, 2018
“Trump is surrounding himself with “yes” men and women — at least relative to Mattis and other former military generals who tried to keep him at bay — who see their jobs as executing his vision, even when they disagree. He has designated some officials, including the new White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, as “acting,” meaning they must labor to please the president to eventually be empowered in their positions permanently. And he is railing against his handpicked chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome H. Powell, whom he blames for the sliding market and says he never should have chosen.”
This piece is worthy of your time.