A VERITABLE ONE-MAN SHOW…PT BARNUM WOULD BE PROUD (REAGAN NOT SO MUCH)

 I don’t know if anybody has  noticed, but Donald “The Don” Trump is dilapidating eighty years of US leadership history in a matter of days.

I’ll get to the mobster-style ambush Vice President JD Vance laid with Trump for Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky in a minute, but first, let’s talk about the right-wing propagandist who got himself a coveted White House press pass and used it, in his role as a fake-news promoter, to ask perhaps the most inane yet incendiary question ever formulated at a summit meeting venue. I’m talking about the idiot (there’s just no other word if we’re giving him the benefit of the doubt, and if we aren’t, then it makes that question malicious, and him a provocateur—although, perhaps, the adjective “useful” before “idiot” would be appropriate here) who, in the midst of a major discussion between two heads of state, broke in to ask President Zelensky why he didn’t wear a suit.

Such a moronic, taunting, disrespectful and mal-intentioned query could only have come from the quarters in which it originated: the so-called Right Side Broadcasting Network, best known for adoring live-stream coverage of Trump’s rallies, town halls, and public events. With the new rise of Trump to the presidency, the network, which relies heavily on YouTube and Rumble for its audience, currently has nearly two million largely MAGA subscribers. In other words, the “reporter” was a MAGA-fake-news plant.

Trump with MAGA minion Brian Glenn

As for the name of the moron who asked the question, it was none other than Brian Glenn, there for a far-right propaganda outfit called Real America’s Voice. That might not mean much to a lot of my readers, many of whom tend to seek out fact-based news outlets for their information. But if you’re one of many Americans who, unfortunately,  subscribe to wild conspiracy theories and Trumpian prevarication, then Glenn may be something of a minor god in your world (where Trump is the big-dog god) since he is a champion conspiracy-theory disseminator.

Oh, did I mention that, among other achievements, Glenn is also the high-flying MAGA celebrity-climber who has scaled Mount Marjorie? That’s right, Brian and Marjorie (Taylor Greene, a.k.a. “Moscow Marjorie”) have been going steady for some time now. So he clearly has direct access to a fecund source of conspiracy gossip and MAGA dogma. 

Brian and Margie, going steady

The question could not have been more crucially timed if it had been planned in advance—or was it? It served as the lit fuse that touched off the fiery shouting match between the Vance-Trump tag-team and the Ukrainian president. It seemed specifically aimed at infuriating President Zelensky, when he was already being badgered by Vance, who seemed thoroughly amused at that sort of question’s being put to a foreign dignitary. It was the sort of question that, had it been asked of Trump by—oh, I don’t know, say, The Associated Press—would have gotten that news medium banished from the White House press core. (Oh wait! The AP was banned for less, simply for refusing to add the fictitious name, Gulf of America, to its stylebook).

Suffice it to say that Glenn’s network  was selected to fill a “secondary TV” role in the White House press pool—CNN has been relegated to that same category, which didn’t exist before last week. Indeed, the White House granted that press pass to Glenn, even as Trump continued to block reporters from The AP, one of America’s most major sources of objective news coverage, from attending. This policy began last week, with the White House handpicking the reporters it permits to attend  presidential meetings held in reduced settings, such as the Oval Office.

Glenn’s query could not have been more impertinent or captious: “Why don’t you wear a suit?” asked Glenn. “You’re at the highest level in this country’s office, and you refuse to wear a suit.” And then, insultingly, he doubled down, asking, “Just want to see if—do you own a suit? A lot of Americans have problems with you not respecting the office.”

President Zelensky sought to keep his cool, answering eloquently in his second language, “I will wear costume after this war will finish." The word for “suit” translates into Ukrainian as  kostyum. But whether intentional or not, the word “costume” in English couldn’t have been more accurate, since the only participant in that room not masquerading as a gentleman, when they were far from it, was the Ukrainian head of state. He was the only one who dressed honestly for the occasion, wearing the combat fatigues of a leader defending his nation and Europe against a war of aggression perpetrated against it by Russia, a dictatorial imperialist power. A power that, until six weeks ago, US leadership still recognized as what it is, one of America’s two most threatening rivals, and, currently the number one  most imminent threat to international peace and security.

As if to lighten the shocking and uncomfortable moment Glenn had created, President Zelensky then quipped, “Maybe something like yours, yes. Maybe something better, I don't know,” sparking laughter in the room. Then he added,  “Maybe something cheaper.”

The Ukrainian leader’s skill as a former comedian could have defused a tense moment. But that wasn’t the game plan. Vice President J.D. Vance—an Ohioan, I’m ashamed to say, like myself—wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through his fingers. He seized on Glenn’s “disrespect” comment to say, “For four years, the United States of America, we had a president who stood up at press conferences and talked tough about Vladimir Putin, and then Putin invaded Ukraine and destroyed a significant chunk of the country. The path to peace and the path to prosperity is, maybe, engaging in diplomacy. We tried the pathway of Joe Biden, of thumping our chest and pretending that the president of the United States’ words mattered more than the president of the United States’ actions. What makes America a good country is America engaging in diplomacy. That’s what President Trump is doing.”

Zelensky countered, “OK. So he (Putin) occupied it, our parts, big parts of Ukraine, parts of east and Crimea. So he occupied it in 2014. So during a lot of years—I’m not speaking about just Biden, but those times was (Barack) Obama, then President Obama, then President Trump, then President Biden, now President Trump. And, God bless, now, President Trump will stop him. But during 2014, nobody stopped him. He just occupied and took. He killed people…

Trump, who apparently has the attention span of a gnat, and was evidently not listening, said, “Oh, 2014? I was not here.”

And Vance, ever quick to repeat anything Trump says, added, “That’s exactly right.”

Again Zelensky countered, saying, “Yes, but during 2014 ‘til 2022, the situation is the same, that people have been dying on the contact line. Nobody stopped him (Putin). You know that we had conversations with him, a lot of conversations, my bilateral conversation. And we signed with him, me, like, you, President, in 2019, I signed with him the deal. I signed with him, (French President Emmanuel) Macron and (former German Chancellor Angela) Merkel. We signed ceasefire… But after that, he broke the ceasefire, he killed our people, and he didn’t exchange prisoners. We signed the exchange of prisoners. But he didn’t do it. What kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about? What do you mean?”

Seeing that Zelensky was getting the upper hand in reminding the press that Russia was the aggressor, Vance quickly doubled down, and acting as if he were the head of state and not Trump, lectured Zelensky, saying,  “I’m talking about the kind of diplomacy that’s going to end the destruction of your country. Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media. Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to this conflict.”

Clearly, of course, litigating it in front of the American media had been exactly what Vance and Trump had been seeking to do. Usually, when there is a visiting head of state coming to negotiate a deal, the photo op will be short and nothing of consequence will be discussed publicly until negotiations have ended. But the Trump White House seems to have decided to use the presser simply as a means of humiliating President Zelensky, of showing him that the only ones that mattered in talks about Ukraine were the two major powers involved, the US and Russia, since Trump has also blithely ignored Europe completely as an intimately and strategically interested party. The clear purpose was to demonstrate to Zelensky (and to Trump’s base), in mob boss style,  that he didn’t matter. That Ukraine didn’t matter. That only Trump and Putin mattered.

Indeed, Trump would later tip his hand, saying as much when, after the blow-up, he crowed, “I think it’s good for the American people to see what’s going on. I think it’s very important. That’s why I kept this going so long.” Then, addressing Zelensky directly, “ You have to be thankful.”

Having tired of Vance’s impertinence, President Zelensky asked the VP, “Have you ever been to Ukraine that you say what problems we have?”

“I have been to –” Vance muttered, obviously caught off guard.

“Come once,” Zelensky suggested.

Then like a kid in grammar school who hadn’t done his homework, Vance said,  “I’ve actually watched and seen the stories, and I know that what happens is you bring people, you bring them on a propaganda tour, Mr. President. Do you disagree that you’ve had problems, bringing people into your military?”

“We have problems…”

“And do you think that is respectful, to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country?”

“First of all,” said the Ukrainian president, “during the war, everybody has problems, even you. But you have nice ocean and don’t feel now. But you will feel it in the future. God bless –”

That’s when Trump blew up and talked to Zelensky in his best mobster style, telling him not to tell the US how it would feel. Talking down to him like the principal scolding a school kid,  saying “You don’t know that. You don’t know that… Because you’re in no position to dictate that.” He and Vance went on tag-teaming President Zelensky, and Trump’s lecture continued,  “You’re not in a good position. You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards.”

Zelensky, appropriately, said,  “I’m not playing cards. I’m very serious, Mr. President. I’m very serious.”

“You’re playing cards,” said Trump. “You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people. You’re gambling with World War III.”

Vance returned to his sophomoric “magic words” argument, again asking, “Have you said thank you once?”

To which President Zelensky answered, “A lot of times. Even today.” Anyone who has ever listened to anything the Ukrainian president has ever said about US aid knew this was true. Perhaps no other recipient of American aid in history has been more expressive about his appreciation than President Zelensky.

But Vance doubled down: “No, in this entire meeting…” And then in a complete non sequitur, he added, “You went to Pennsylvania and campaigned for the opposition in October.”

To which President Zelensky said, “No.”

Vance continued to badger him, “Offer some words of appreciation for the United States of America and the president who’s trying to save your country.”

Overwhelmed by such a lack of manners and propriety, President Zelensky said,  “Please. You think that if you will speak very loudly about the war, you can…”

And was immediately interrupted by Trump, who blustered,  “He’s not speaking loudly. He’s not speaking loudly. Your country is in big trouble.”

 “Can I answer —” President Zelensky tried, to which Trump barked,  “No, no. You’ve done a lot of talking. Your country is in big trouble.”

It was an utterly vile display of disrespect and bullying, and it is difficult to believe that it wasn’t planned that way, since Trump ended the contentious meeting by saying, “This is going to be great television. I will say that.” And coming from a former reality show star, who does everything necessary to stay at the top of the daily news schedule, that says a lot.

Make Russia Great Again

But the tone is nothing new. Such displays of disrespect have come to typify how the Trump regime treats America’s natural allies. Meanwhile, his most fawning, laudatory, and embarrassingly acquiescent behavior has been reserved for America’s natural enemies, and for predators bent on preying on democratic nations.

Putin’s spokesman, Dimitry Peskov said it all. Obviously pleased beyond all expectations with  the blow-up and with the ignominious expulsion of President Zelensky from the White House, Peskov said,  “The new (US) administration is rapidly changing all foreign policy configurations.  This largely aligns with our vision.”

He could not have stated it more accurately. Under Donald Trump, in just six weeks, the US has all but abandoned its Western allies and democracy, and embraced authoritarianism and the world’s most repressive and dangerous regime. He has, in a word, surrendered the US to our principal enemy, and turned his back on our friends.