fbpx

“If nine out of ten people think you are drunk, you better lie down.”

[additional-authors]
January 31, 2018

That’s how I thought of President Trump as I watched him drone on and on about how much he has done to lift the United States out of the “carnage” that he described in his inaugural address to make our nation only a year later the strongest, wealthiest, and most unified nation in our history, giving no credit to the President who preceded him who dug the country out of the worst recession since the Great Depression.

This is nothing new to this Trump who claims credit for an economy he had little to do with, describes a unified America that is anything but unified, that he is a compassionate leader despite shamelessly parading before the nation the tragedies of others for his political purposes, and who denies thee of the most important events of the last year, the Russian intrusion into the American election, the Me-Too movement, and global warming that has had disastrous environmental impact.

I’m reminded of what Dr. George Vaillant, a psychiatrist, and Professor at Harvard Medical School, described as illustrative of the denial of Truth that Trump displays every day:

“It is all too common for caterpillars to become butterflies and then maintain that in their youth they had been little butterflies.”

I am hoping that the 20 percent of independents who Trump was clearly trying to woo in his SOTU speech so as to lift his dismal poll numbers out of the gutter didn’t fall for the pablum that he was selling last night.

Did you enjoy this article?
You'll love our roundtable.

True Legends and a Smoked Brisket

This week we share our column with one of our favorite Instagram bloggers, New Yorker Jeff Mosczyc (pronounced Mah-zik). As the son of a German immigrant father and a first-generation Hungarian mother, his mouthwatering, meat-centric recipes reflect his Ashkenazi background.

Father’s Day Food

This year’s Father’s Day round-up features recipes from different ends of the Jewish spectrum: dill pickle kraut and a Moroccan tomato dip.

What Will Bibi Do?

With the U.S. and Iran signing a ceasefire deal that limits Israel’s options, the Israeli prime minister is facing a most difficult moment during an election year.

Trump’s Civilizational Moment

It all depends on one mercurial and imperfect man in the White House. But whether he succeeds or fails, he is leading a free world, much of which no longer understands what it needs to do to survive.

When ‘Peace’ Breaks Out

Ultimately, although he presented himself as a disruptor, Trump remains captive to the conceptual frameworks, values and norms of Western societies, which place them at a disadvantage in the current clash of civilizations.

We Need a Long-Term Strategy to Deal with Iran

In handing Tehran the keys to lock up the region without a fight, Trump would become the first American president to sign away his country’s right to ply international waters freely.

Hope Is Not a Foreign Policy

The “deal,” as far as is known right now, is simply a 60-day extension of the ceasefire. The can will be kicked down the road.

A Heavenly Service

During these days when it is so easy to succumb to despair, religious services can serve as a wonderful antidote to hopelessness. Especially this one.

What My Soul Knows Before I Do

Sometimes the soul arrives before the explanation does. And sometimes, just before dawn, the world becomes quiet enough for us to notice the first light.

Jewish Caucus Stands Up

One of the best-kept secrets in California politics is the effectiveness and growing influence of the Legislative Jewish Caucus.

Did Trump and Bibi Lose to a Strait Flush?

There’s no bigger sign of failure than to consider a return to the status quo at Hormuz a “great deal.” Never mind that Iran will no doubt use the Strait as leverage in the future.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.