There’s a Hands Around The Kennedy Center protest happening this evening in Washington. I only know about it because Lynda Carter shared it to Facebook yesterday. She added, “AMERICA built this city. Not a president.”
Turns out Carter and Trump have been social acquaintances for many years. She even performed at one of his properties in the ’80s. Fortunately for her, she was too old by then for him to try the dressing room “Just passing through, girls, I own this pageant …” move on her.
Good to see her defending the arts. And where are you, really, when you’re on the wrong side of Wonder Woman? As Cassandra noted earlier this week, he’s an abuser who needs to be disabused, and that is prime territory for superheroes.
COURTING TROUBLE
The more significant pushback is coming at Trump in court, thanks to Rep. Joyce Beatty. First off, just take a second to enjoy how much extra annoyance Trump is feeling because this is the person thwarting his desire to put a vanity plate on the Kennedy Center.
Beatty’s lawyers just persuaded a judge to require Trump to give 30 days advance notice before any demolition at the site.
This comes after Trump finally gave up all pretense and threatened that he would only support renovations at the Kennedy Center if he could put his name on it.
This might remind you of Trump hopping on the phone with President Zelenskyy in 2019 and telling him sure, we’ll send the missiles, except “I would like you to do us a favor” first.
That call, unlike this situation, might have involved an attempt to enlist a foreign country to do political dirty work for him. But what they have in common is Congressionally appropriated funds (in this case, $257 million for renovations).
If you’re president, they actually don’t just let you do it when it comes to withholding what Congress has designated. In fact, it seems like forever ago, but that little stunt got Trump impeached the first time. Yet here we are again.
LOW-IMPULSE-CONTROL INDIVIDUAL
It’s incredible to watch Trump’s insecurities and desperation for recognition collide with good judgment about staying out of harm’s way in terms of lawsuits and politics.
Did I ever mention the time I went to a Peter Gabriel concert, and a guy nearby kept yelling the same futile song request for THE ENTIRE SHOW? The best part was the song he wanted.
As Trump deteriorates, the insecurity and desperation are pretty obviously gaining the upper hand.
Which sounds like good news, except for what George Conway recently distilled in 12 words (per HCR):
“To destroy things he can’t possess or control is his essential nature.”
But that’s what we signed up for when we elected a guy who ran for POTUS to stay out of jail, line his pockets, and punish his political enemies (in that order).
Hats off to Mrs. Carter and Rep. Beatty for trying to mitigate the fallout in the meantime — doing it for themselves and the rest of us as well.
Onward!