CONFRONTING THE ISSUE – AT 12:53 P.M. ET:  Many of us who have tried to support the president, and believe he has some superb ideas, and note that he has actually accomplished important results,  are nevertheless troubled by his personal style and the way it detracts from his administration.

Andrew Malcolm, a solidly conservative commentator whom I deeply respect, is tackling the issue.  From McClatchy:

Every commander in chief makes revealing mistakes, of course. Barack Obama thought his nation’s motto was E Pluribus Unum and Austrians speak Austrian.

But Donald J. Trump is taking this to a whole new level. He seems to confuse headstrong with decisive. And he is so certain of his own keen judgment and skills that he regularly rejects the advice of the skilled professionals he’s hired to advise him.

The latest of many such instances involves the late Sen. John McCain. We hire politicians to grease the wheels of our democracy, to help with the sticky problems we cannot solve by ourselves. Not to make new ones to distract us from yesterday’s problems.

I’ve worked for politicians who absolutely could not stand another individual in public life. Detest is the word. But the public never knew it. In fact, even the other person may not have known it.

Because the best politicians have the self-discipline to work with or around others to get results.

Frustrating for media, of course, which thrives on conflict. But such behavior avoids totally unnecessary fights and troubles, if only out of mutual self-interest. They might need each other at some future time.

Clearly, Trump and McCain disliked each other. Trump attended a military prep school and received numerous draft deferments. McCain descended from a long line of military family members and graduated from the Naval Academy albeit, he would joke, at the bottom of his class.

Back during his presidential campaign, Trump said McCain was no hero for getting shot down over North Vietnam and serving nearly six torturous years as a POW. It was a needless shot. They weren’t competing.

Do you remember McCain’s reply at the time? Neither do I. There was none.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  Andrew sums up our anguish very well.  The president has made needless enemies, even in his own party.  If the Dems win the House and impeach him, he will need friends. Nixon needed friends, and couldn't find them.  I fear we may see a repeat. 

What a tragedy.  We finally have a president who asks the right questions and disturbs the comfortable establishment, and his own flaws may sink him.  Never underestimate the mean-spiritedness of the Democratic Party in trying to hound a president from power.

September 5, 2018