He’s Not Crazy, He’s a Child

Published in El País
(Spain) on 18 May 2017
by Lluís Bassets (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Caitlin Taylor. Edited by Rachel Pott.
The president is damaging the security of the spy network and interfering in the workings of the justice system.

The theory of the crazy president has been demolished. Now there’s a growing impression that a seven-year-old child has installed himself in the White House, a child who is also rude, capricious, ignorant and spoiled.

Presidential madness can yield returns, such as with Richard Nixon, who came to defend against his collaborators, especially before an enemy that must be deterred by a nuclear threat. A crazy president is unpredictable and out of all control, so do not provoke him or make light of his threats.

It is even worse if the president is a child, because he also has the aforementioned characteristics. We now know that he is a small crazy person who jumps into every puddle and does not know how to move without getting into mischief. As a spoiled child, his flaws are amplified because of his size and older age. It is always someone else’s fault. His failures are always the responsibility of his subordinates, perfect candidates for immediate dismissal.

The whole of Russia is laughing at the feats of the child-president who was promoted by Russian services in the presidential campaign. The latest feat has been the exposure of secrets that were facilitated by Israeli espionage concerning the Islamic State in Syria. It was a double gesture of immaturity, as Trump revealed privileged information and ingratiated himself with the Russians. The damage is terrible: to the security of agents in the field, to the confidence of Israeli services and the rest of the planet, to the political trustworthiness of the White House, and ultimately to the security of the U.S.

The pressure exerted on ex-Director of the FBI James Comey not to investigate former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn’s connections to Moscow is no less serious. If nothing legally prevents the president from making an embarrassing mistake with his gifts to Russian espionage, and the subsequent repercussions with Iran, his pressure on the dismissed director of the FBI will enter into the penal repertoire of obstruction of justice, which leads directly to a process of removal, if the Republican majority acts in accordance with constitutional principles.

Trump reached the White House under the slogan of making his country great again, but his presence in the — until now — most powerful office on the planet is a greater, worrying sign of decline; everything is a paradox and at the same time an irony. How has an individual so lacking in personal, political and moral qualities managed to reach this point? In what way has the United States’ political system, with its complex system of primaries and numerous checks and balances, failed? How to explain the fact that the Republican Party continues to trust someone so quick-tempered instead of encouraging an investigation into his relations with Russia and perhaps his dismissal?

Trump’s presidency is the most palpable demonstration that even the most perfect democracy can end up falling victim to the worst flaws of monarchical succession, where the quality of absolute rulers and the destiny of the people depend on the fate of a genetic connection. The United States in the hands of Trump is like Spain in the hands of Carlos the Bewitched, last of the House of Austria, and the symbol of the decadence of the empire.


No está loco, es un niño
El presidente vulnera la seguridad del espionaje e interfiere en la acción de la justicia

LLUÍS BASSETS

18 MAY 2017 - 00:00 CEST

La teoría del presidente loco ha quedado superada. Ahora prospera la impresión de que se ha instalado en la Casa Blanca un niño de siete años, que además es maleducado y caprichoso, ignorante y consentido.

La locura presidencial podía tener rendimientos, tal como Richard Nixon llegó a defender ante sus colaboradores, especialmente ante un enemigo al que hay que disuadir con la amenaza nuclear. Un presidente loco es imprevisible y se halla fuera de todo control, de forma que no hay que provocarle ni tomar a broma sus amenazas.

Es peor si el presidente es un niño, porque incluye el caso anterior. Ya saben, es un loco pequeñito que se mete en todos los charcos y no sabe moverse sin hacer una trastada tras otra. Sus vicios de infante mimado se ven amplificados por su tamaño y su edad provecta. La culpa siempre es de los otros. Sus fallos son siempre responsabilidad de sus subordinados, perfectos candidatos al despido inminente.

Rusia entera se ríe a mandíbula batiente de las proezas del niño-presidente que sus servicios promocionaron en la campaña electoral. La última ha sido la revelación de secretos facilitados por el espionaje israelí sobre el Estado Islámico en Siria, en un doble gesto de persona inmadura, para exhibir su información privilegiada y congraciarse con los rusos. Los desperfectos son terribles: en la seguridad de los agentes sobre el terreno, en la confianza de los servicios israelíes y del resto del planeta, en la fiabilidad política de la Casa Blanca y en la seguridad de EE UU, en definitiva.

No es menos grave la presión ejercida sobre el exdirector del FBI, James Comey, para que no investigara las relaciones del exconsejero de Seguridad Michael Flynn con Moscú. Si nada impide legalmente al presidente meter la pata con sus regalos al espionaje ruso, y de rebote iraní, las presiones sobre el director del FBI destituido entran en el repertorio penal de obstrucción de la justicia, que conduce directamente al proceso de destitución, si la mayoría republicana actúa de acuerdo con los principios constitucionales.

Trump ha alcanzado la Casa Blanca con la consigna de hacer grande de nuevo a su país pero su presencia en el despacho hasta ahora más poderoso del planeta es un signo mayor e inquietante de decadencia; toda una paradoja y a la vez una ironía. ¿Cómo ha podido llegar hasta aquí un individuo de tan escasas cualidades personales, políticas y morales? ¿En qué ha fallado el sistema político estadounidense, con su complejo sistema de primarias y sus numerosos checks and balances? ¿Cómo se explica que el partido republicano siga confiando en un personaje tan atrabiliario en vez de promover una investigación sobre sus relaciones con Rusia y quizás su destitución?

La presidencia de Donald Trump es la demostración más palpable de que la democracia más perfecta puede terminar incurriendo en los peores vicios de la sucesión monárquica, cuando la calidad de los gobernantes absolutos y el destino de los pueblos dependían del azar de una filiación genética. Estados Unidos en manos de Trump es como España en manos de Carlos II el Hechizado, último Austria y símbolo de la decadencia del imperio.
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