Flashing Red Lights

Let's say you're visiting the NASA Command Center in Houston during a space launch. You notice a flashing warning signal coming from a technician's computer screen. The technician gets activated, and you know a problem needs to be solved. But then two, three, four other screens light up, and pandelirium ensues. You go from concerned to scared. It's one thing to address a problem on a space mission. That's complicated enough. But what chance do you have when multiple problems flare up at the same time?

That's Donald Trump's presidency. Way too many flashing red lights. And today was one of those days.

First, all day long Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, was flashing lights about the intelligence his committee was receiving on Russian election interference in 2020. Yes, Blumenthal's a Democrat, but he's usually fairly measured.

Tactics & techniques described frighteningly in this global report make past Russian disruption look quaint & rudimentary—like child’s play.

So 2016 was bad, but it was just child's play compared to what the Russians are already cooking up. But he can't share it because it's classified.

Then the Republicans announce that Trump may make his Republican Party nomination acceptance speech from the Rose Garden, almost surely an illegal use of government resources for campaign purposes according to the Hatch Act. Asked about that today, Trump replied:

There is no Hatch Act because it doesn't pertain to the president.

He's not entirely wrong. There are certainly technicalities. But we've never had a president use the White House as a campaign prop in the ways Trump does.

Earlier in the day, Trump was saying vote by mail is okay in Republican-run states because they're managed well, but no way in Democratic states. He : 

You'll never know who the winner is, but the winner's going to be me.

How comforting, right? The Russians are cheating, but the Republicans don't want us to know. And Trump is cheating. So it's all good. 

Of course we're still in a pandemic. As his press conference was ending, more news broke out: for the first time, Facebook took down a Trump post because it was, well, a lie. Trump told Fox News that children are "almost immune" from Covid-19, then posted the clip on social media. Facebook and Twitter both took it down.

During today's coronavirus press briefing Trump had already said, "“It’s going away. It’ll go away. Things go away."

Poof. Like magic.

One more item. Yesterday, and with zero evidence, Trump told reporters the massive explosion in Beirut was likely a terrorist attack. It's hard to overestimate the irresponsibility of this claim, which Trump attributed to generals. As experts began ruling out that theory, today Trump lowered his claim essentially to, some people say this, and some people say that. That left it to Defense Secretary Mark Esper--how does he still have a job?--to correct Trump: although the US is "still getting information on what happened," "most believe" the explosion "was an accident, as reported."

In some ways Trump is dumber than a box of rocks. But do not underestimate him. 

1. Maybe he's dumb in some ways, but he still has a certain kind of crocodile intelligence that allows him to amass power and money. He's still considered charismatic by his followers.
2. Trump is surrounded by people who are less stupid and quite strategic. They give him advice.
3. Republican politicians are terrified of Trump and will back him up on every point. 
4. Sometimes it's accidental. And sometimes it's strategic. But every day Trump sets off so many fires that nobody can keep up. That makes him very dangerous.

Update: Reports indicate that Deutsche Bank has complied with NY prosecutors, sending them Trump's financial records.