Strange Days in Washington by J.E. Dean

What is going on with Donald Trump? More importantly, why don’t more people see what I see? And most importantly, how long will the Trump tsunami continue before the America we knew is gone forever?

I choke when Donald Trump pronounces that America has entered a “Golden Age.”  The term is ridiculous in the context of thousands of people having suddenly, unexpectedly, and unjustifiably lost their jobs. Thousands of gifted, experienced, and essential federal workers are gone.

Even if you agree with President Trump that our government was too large and inefficient, why did federal employees have to be summarily fired or sent demeaning emails telling them to resign—or else? What happened to empathy? 

Washingtonians have not forgotten January 6, 2021, and won’t for a long time. The trauma of the January 6 events is now compounded by the pardoning of most people involved in the insurrection. President Trump, of course, escaped accountability. A rumor is circulating that Trump is booking the “J6 Choir,” an ensemble consisting of people arrested on January 6 at the Capitol, to perform at the Kennedy Center. I will not be attending.

President Trump also shook up many of us who live or used to live in Washington, by announcing the sale of various federal buildings, including the headquarters of the Departments of Justice, FBI, Health and Human Services, and the Federal Trade Commission. Where are these departments and agencies supposed to go? Or are they being abolished?

Some of us who worked in Washington, as I did, relied on the government and everyone else following the law. We did not always like the outcomes of policy debates but lived with them. Now, a vengeance-driven President Trump has weaponized (to use Trump’s own term) the federal government against law firms that he either sees as having treated him badly or that he fears will do so in the future. The actions—things like prohibiting the firms from acquiring federal contracts, revoking security clearances, and restricting access to various federal buildings—are arguably illegal and will likely be overturned but are deeply disturbing. What will Trump do next?

Also worrisome is Trump’s recent action against Georgetown Law Center. The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia wrote the school’s dean and informed him that the Department of Justice would not hire Georgetown law students until Georgetown dropped its DEI programs, including the teaching of diversity, equity, and inclusion in academic courses. This is an incredible violation of academic freedom.

Had Trump directed the Dean of Georgetown Law to make reading The Art of the Deal or Melania Trump’s autobiography, Melania, a prerequisite to graduation for Georgetown students, I would not have been more surprised. (So far, Georgetown is defending its academic freedom.)

Trump has also injected himself into the governance of the District of Columbia, which is curious because Trump jets out of the city—to Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster, New Jersey, depending on the time of year—every weekend and sometimes in the middle of the week. Trump had effectively ordered D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser to paint over the “Black Lives Matter” words painted on a street near the White House. 

What will Trump do next to remake D.C. to match his vision of a city grand enough for himself? Who will Trump hire as his Albert Speer?

I close with Trump’s appointment of himself as Chair of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Since the announcement of the appointment, multiple performers have canceled performances, and Hamilton is no longer coming back to the Kennedy Center.

Just last Saturday I read that Trump had appointed Maria Bartiromo and Laura Ingraham to join him on the Kennedy Center Board. What’s going on? These two Fox News giants are not known for their love of music or culture. Bartiromo interviewed Trump on Fox on Sunday morning, two days after receiving her appointment to the Board. What a coincidence!

Empathy, integrity, and rationality have left Washington, D.C. Will Trump surprise us next week by renaming the city, Trump, D.C.? If he did, would it surprise you?

J.E. Dean writes on politics, government, and, too infrequently, other subjects. A former counsel on Capitol Hill and public affairs consultant, Dean also writes for Dean’s List on Medium and Dean’s Issues & Insights on Substack.