The ‘Trump Effect’

Published in El Periodico
(Spain) on 25 August 2017
by Jordi Puntí (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Tom Walker. Edited by Elizabeth Cosgriff.
Among the consequences of Donald Trump’s erratic and crazy administration, there is one that until recently would have been unthinkable: He has been making George W. Bush look good. Or, in other words, he has succeeded in making Bush Jr.’s reputation look spotless. Only 15 years ago, Bush was the most hated president; half the world was demonstrating in support of “no to war” and no one, except for the "Trio of the Azores,"* was swallowing the lies about weapons of mass destruction. Not much later, Trump was in New York, and in more than one conversation with friends, Bush’s name came up. All right, they said, his decisions were awful and he was surrounded by a gang of nabobs (Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove). Maybe he was a puppet, but at least he was not a populist, a male chauvinist and a racist like Trump.

Then, as it turned out, he broke agreements on climate change, in line with Trump’s views, and took critical positions on issues like euthanasia, stem cell research and abortion, that Barack Obama had to work hard to reverse. The strange thing is that the restoration of Bush’s popularity has been accomplished through art. Since he left office, the former president has dedicated himself to painting portraits. At first, he painted world leaders with whom he had interacted, including people like Vladimir Putin, the Dalai Lama and Nicolas Sarkozy.

Success, however, arrived with a book of portraits of U.S. soldiers, veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, wounded physically or mentally. The artistic quality? Yes, that is an issue. Search the internet. One critic said that he was influenced by Lucian Freud, but that is giving him too much credit. In any case, underlying it is the cynicism of his painting soldiers who returned alive from the killing fields of war to which he sent them.

Who would have imagined, then, that Bush would be the first one of the “Trio of the Azores” to be rehabilitated, thanks to Trump and the diversion of Bush’s art? Tony Blair is not talked about much, and in the U.K. he is only mentioned when he is being accused of war crimes or when attempts are being made to get him tried in the International Court of Justice. As regards José María Aznar, he shaved his mustache and has promoted conspiracy theories; his punishment is that not even Mariano Rajoy** is able to come up with a “Trump effect’” for him.

*Translator’s note: “Trio of the Azores" is the English translation of a phrase common in the Spanish press at the time, referring to George W. Bush (U.S.), Tony Blair (U.K.) and José María Aznar (Spain); these three were the only major world leaders who continued to try to justify the Iraq war on the basis of the alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. ”Azores” refers to a meeting the three leaders held in those islands on March 15, 2003.

**Editor’s note: Mariano Rajoy is the prime minister of Spain.


EL PEOR PRESIDENTE
El 'efecto Trump'
El gobierno errático y demencial de Donald Trump ha conseguido que el prestigio de George W. Bush, el más odiado hace 15 años, parezca intacto

Entre las consecuencias del gobierno errático y demencial de Donald Trump hay una que hasta hace poco era impensable: ha hecho bueno a George W. Bush. O, dicho de otro modo, ha conseguido que el prestigio de Bush hijo parezca intacto. No hace ni 15 años, Bush era el presidente más odiado; medio mundo se manifestaba por el 'no a la guerra' y nadie, salvo el trío de las Azores, se tragaba las mentiras sobre las armas de destrucción masiva. Hace poco, en cambio, estuve en Nueva York y en más de una conversación con amigos salió el nombre de Bush. De acuerdo, decían, sus decisiones eran terribles y se rodeaba de una corte de sátrapas (Rumsfeld, Cheney, Karl Rove). Quizá era un títere, pero al menos no era populista, machista y racista como Donald Trump.

Luego resulta que Bush rompió acuerdos sobre el cambio climático que están en la línea de Trump, y que mantuvo una posición crítica en temas como la eutanasia, la investigación en células madre o el aborto, que Obama sólo pudo revertir a duras penas. Lo curioso es que la restauración de la popularidad de Bush se haya producido por la vía del arte. Una vez retirado, el expresidente se ha dedicado a pintar retratos. Primero pintó a líderes mundiales con quien había tratado, nombres como Putin, el dalái lama o Sarkozy.

El éxito, sin embargo, le ha llegado con un libro de retratos de soldados de su país, veteranos de la guerra de Irak o Afganistán, con heridas físicas o mentales. ¿La calidad artística? Se puede considerar, sí. Busquen en internet. Algún crítico ha dicho que tiene influencia de Lucian Freud, pero esto es hacerle un favor excesivo. En todo caso, por debajo está el cinismo de pintar a los soldados que él envió al matadero de la guerra y volvieron vivos.

Gracias a Trump y la excusa del arte, pues, quién se imaginaba que Bush sería el primero del trío de las Azores en resarcirse. De Tony Blair ni se habla, y en Gran Bretaña sólo se le cita para acusarle de crímenes de guerra e intentar que le juzgue la Corte Penal Internacional. En cuanto a Aznar, se ha afeitado el bigote y conspira, y su pena es que ni siquiera Rajoy le pudo procurar un 'efecto Trump'.

This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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