During Trump’s silly visit to his wall south of San Diego last week (the one where he tried to reveal secret sensing built into the wall), he made the remarkable claim that 20 world class mountain climbers tried and couldn’t climb it.  The claim was bullshit, of course, like the virtually all of his claims.  The press immediately tried to confirm Trump’s claim by…wait for it…talking to world class climbers.  Said climbers said they had no knowledge of any climbers participating in any test of Trump’s wall, and even added that would help even if asked.  They also gave the parting shot that the wall could be easily scaled.

LOL.

Remember that back in June, Trump caved on his cruel and illegal policy of separating children from their parents on the border.  Even though many kids remain separated , the stated strategy of tearing families apart was reversed.  Well, just now, Trump caved again, agreeing to a short term continuing resolution to reopen the government, and it doesn’t include money for his idiotic wall.  What changed?  Public opinion really did start turning as television reports of weeping federal employees hit the air waves.  Then Christopher Wray, director of the FBI, spoke out to all of his employees about how angry he is over the shutdown; the commandant of the Coast Guard spoke out publicly in opposition, and then, the FAA ordered a ground stop this morning at La Guardia airport in New York citing a shortage of controllers to safely move aircraft through our airspace.  Apparently, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and the tsunami of opposition to his shutdown FINALLY got through the orange ferret sitting on his head.  And he caved.

Trump is now right back to where he was two weeks before Christmas except that millions of Americans have been injured from his folly and his poll numbers are lower if that was even possible.  Oh, and he lied about how so many federal employees wanted him to keep going on the shutdown which is outrageous.  His “deal” to reopen government is only for 3 weeks.  We’ll see what the Dems do.

The funny thing? Trump did get his wall, and her name is Nancy Pelosi.

Trump stormed out of negotiations yesterday when Nancy Pelosi refused to cave to his stupid wall.  He’s starting to figure out that the advice he got from the White House Resident Nazi, Stephen Miller, to shut down the government was not any more smart than separating tender-aged children from their parents at the border.

The wall is idiotic and will never happen.  Think about it; even when Trump controlled the WH, House, and Senate he couldn’t get the wall funded.  Even the invertebrates in Congress refused to acquiesce to such folly, so Trump decided to turn to his mafia upbringing to extort what he wants.  First, it was the government shutdown.  Second it was threatening to declare a national emergency to get what he wants.  After Pelosi just sat there staring at him yesterday, Trump stormed out and went straight to twitter, announcing he was shutting down FEMA funding for California wildfire relief funding.  Never mind that he probably can’t do that, the tactic is clear.

Trump is running the US government like a crime family, not the open and free society that we are.  He sees himself as the absolute authority.  If he doesn’t get what he wants, he turns Full Mafia, threatening millions of innocent Americans with cruelty never before seen in a US president.  What he’s saying to Pelosi is, “Nice little state you have there; it would be a shame if something bad happened to it.”  That is the only explanation of Trump’s bizarre behavior that makes sense.  Watching this train wreck reminded me of Sean Connery’s explanation to Kevin Costner about “the Chicago way” in the Untouchables.

https://youtu.be/xFWfOBfTQLg?t=60

Trump’s problem is that he’s so goddam stupid he doesn’t understand that Mafia tactics only work in the dark.  In the light of day it is completely ineffective.  If he thinks that Pelosi will clutch her pearls and suddenly cave in to his threats in fear of his retribution against her constituents, he’s dumber than he looks, and that’s pretty goddam dumb.

Trump’s Mafia tactics will simply not work with the sole exception of seriously damaging millions of Americans and the Constitution that he swore to protect and defend (before the largest inauguration audience in history) on January 20, 2017.  This episode won’t end well for anyone.

As we all know, Trump painted himself into a corner two weeks ago, driving a stake in the ground over his stupid wall notion after being excoriated by RWNJs Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh for caving.  He promised a wall to his mouth breathers, and, By God, he’s going to deliver.  Nevermind that he also stupidly promised that Mexico was going to pay for it.  While normal people laughed at such a ridiculous assertion, his base lapped it up, and now we find ourselves as Americans being held hostage for one of the most ridiculous self-inflicted crises in US history.

The irony, though, is that Trump did get his wall yesterday, and its name is Nancy Pelosi.  Last November, after playing to his xenophobic base, he got trounced and lost 40 congressional seats, even in safely gerrymandered districts.  These 40 new members were sworn in yesterday, and Pelosi started doing what she’s so good at – governing with an iron hand in a velvet glove.  When she gets finished with Trump he won’t understand what hit him, and won’t even see it until after he’s been run over by her.

Trump’s hastily called non-press conference press conference during the swearing in ceremony yesterday was evidence that he’s unhappy that the attention had shifted from himself and that he’s clearly rattled as the ground under his feet has shifted against him.  His baffling 8 minute nationally televised ramble was the first “press conference” of the year for him, and more amazing, the FIRST TIME he’s ever set foot in the WH briefing room.  That’s correct – Trump’s been president for two years, and has NEVER been to the press room until yesterday.

Trump has recklessly careened head on into the wall named Nancy, and he’s going to learn just how hard and high she is.  We all know that his time in the WH won’t end well, and we’ll soon learn how Pelosi is going to help him along to his final downfall.