Trump gets a plane. This lavish gift is a reminder of the creeping redistribution of wealth in today's world. His America becomes the resort for zombie parvenus.
The president is envious of the glitter, and he tries unconvicingly to emulate. He only copies. His Mar-a-Lago faux rococo is invading the White House which might end up looking more like a decor than Jefferson's magnum opus.
Problems are piling up and the tricks that are the trademark of this Maga clique only delay, distract or hide. Even the second clown-in-chief, Elon Musk, starts to look distraught. Let's not dwell on the women in this administration who look like they're auditioning for The Housewives of Washington DC.
Let's imagine Tocqueville returning to America in search of a follow-up to his Democracy in America. He would be devastated by the war that is being waged against all the principles he experienced earlier. The rule of law is gone, the separation of powers is no longer and most commands are in the hands of a group of corrupt amateurs. The president follows the script of the mad man who is institutionalizing unpredictability. This erratic pattern stands against any form of enlightened leadership.
The West copes, the world observes and the United States loses its compass. Europeans look trapped in a series of contradictory impulses from an American administration that lost its balance. This change affects both the heart of the matter and the external expression thereof. The Trump style looks more like a provincial beauty parlor out of Dynasty than a cool projection of reliable power and taste.
Currently Trump is being flattered to such an extent that he acts euphoric. His Middle East tour is his Prozac. He pretends not to have permanent enemies, without blushing....
At the end of the day, the world will eventually tire of the successive repetitive shocks. America gets lost in the Maga mist but it will eventually get tired of the "antics". The world at large keeps its cool for now. Europe has the most to loose and cannot count any longer on a partnership wherein the Maga antipathy versus everything European gets a free ride. Hillary Clinton warned against the "deplorables". Now they take over the pilot's seat. A bumpy ride lies ahead. Europeans had better fasten their seatbelts until the day the turbulence will have self-exhausted.
Certain numbers stand out: Napoleon's 100 days after Elba, President Kennedy's 1000 days. Now we suffer 100 days of President Trump's orchestrated madness, some Season in Hell (without Arthur Rimbaud, sadly).
It is an undeniable fact that questions abound and that answers are non-existent or unconvincing. If the reality we undergo is also destabilising the mind, we should not forget that all this is bluff, yoyo policies that lack a coherent strategy. The "apostles" around the mad king have neither credibility nor a moral/ intellectual compass. In between playing golf and looking at Fox News there is no "there" there.
Asians are regrouping, sub-Sahara Africa is left to its own devices, the Middle East follows the President's hotel trail, Russia and China have a hard time hiding their mépris, Canada, Mexico and Australia are increasing their distance. The EU has no other choice than trying to monitor the contradictions in its own midst, the the Hungarian joker, the Polish hard liner, the Danish Hamlet, the Bonapartist Macron and the sly Meloni.
The cards on the table open a window of opportunities for Trump, who can create havoc with no effort. Nevertheless he must pay attention to slipping poll numbers or a growing frustration in Washington's elites, who are becoming impatient under the dureness of this other Marvel creature.
As long as in the second term Trump can avoid confrontation in his ranks he is relatively safe. He certainly doesn't want to risk the problems created during his first term by the few establisment personalities in his administration. This time he deliberately chose to be surrounded by a claque of willing amateurs, chosen for servility rather than talent.
Soon we could witness a Strindberg scenario wherein he will be eaten raw by some of his partners who will anesthesize him through flattery and hotel licenses. By the way he has only the certified logistical support of Steve Witkoff, his hotel concierge-in-chief.