An Unworthy President

The way Trump adopts and announces his decisions has very serious consequences.

Donald Trump’s latest display of ill-considered foreign policy, (first with his green light to a Turkish offensive in Syria at the expense of the Kurds who had until that point been allies, and then with his threats towards Turkey for carrying out precisely what he had given his support for), has shaken the American political landscape. It is yet another example of the chaos that reigns in the White House, which has led to prominent Republican Party figures openly criticizing the president with little more than a year remaining until the presidential elections.

The way Trump adopts and announces his decisions is far from incidental; it has very serious consequences that, for example in the case of the Turkish military offensive, can be evaluated in terms of human lives. It is debatable when a U.S. president uses social media to communicate his decisions with everyone, including people within his own team. However, what is totally unacceptable is joking about issues which affect millions of people by adding incomprehensible ironies to his tweets like “my great and unmatched wisdom” when talking about a war unleashed against the Kurdish population which he himself facilitated.

The House of Representatives has opened an impeachment inquiry against Trump for using his position, with the help a foreign power, for personal purposes. These unpredictable ups and downs have damaged not only America’s image, but also damaged the confidence that democracies across the world have in the superpower; and prominent Republican leaders in the Senate, where the conservative party has a majority and is in a position to prevent an impeachment, accuse Trump of having “stained the honor” of his country.

Trump is testing the institutional boundaries of the world’s most powerful democracy. It would therefore be fitting for the same democratic system to teach the New York billionaire that if you break the rules and dishonor the presidency, you must pay.