By Matthew Chapman / AlterNet
The op-ed published in the New York Times Wednesday
by an anonymous senior administration official alleging he or she is part of a
broad internal subterfuge effort against President Donald Trump garnered an
explosive reaction, both from the president himself and from Beltway commentators.
And the op-ed's claim that the writer is not the only one secretly
trying to curtail Trump's behavior is starting to look credible.
On one hand, it may be hard for Trump's critics feel overly grateful for
this alleged silent coup against the president, given that his right-wing
agenda continues apace and none of this internal resistance appears to have
spurred Congress to perform their own oversight duties.
On the other hand, there is no way to know just how much worse the last
two years might have been if Trump had had free reign to pursue his base instincts.
Last year, he tried to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller, only to be
thwarted by now-outgoing White House Counsel Don McGahn. And Bob Woodward's new
book alleges that soon after taking office, Trump wanted to declare war on North Korea and assassinate Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. A counterfactual
universe in which none of Trump's aides ever worked against him might have seen
these things happen.
Whether or not the internal strife in the White House is worth
celebrating, it will almost certainly have the effect of increasing Trump's
terror and paranoia. He was already convinced there is a "deep state" of loyalists to former President Barack Obama
plotting to bring him down, and at one point even carried around a handwritten list of people working for
him who he suspected of treachery.
It remains to be seen whether any of this will fatally doom his
administration. But in any event, the downward spiral continues.
Matthew Chapman is a video game designer, science fiction author, and
political reporter from Austin, TX. Follow him on Twitter @fawfulfan.
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