Trump, a one-man demolition squad – but popular

The Perils of Pauline were episodes in a 1914 silent black-and-white film serial about an independent-minded US heiress who for a year seeks adventures before marrying her suitor and settling into family life. She wants to take a balloon ride, fly a plane, and drive a racing car. However, her evil guardian is determined to use her adventures to eliminate her and steal her fortune. Pauline, an innocent girl who does no harm to anyone, survives and, presumably, lives happily ever with her loyal sweetheart. Screened as women were campaigning for the vote in the US, the serial made an impression on the public by showing that women had ambitions away from home and hearth. After decades of campaigning at considerable of violence and imprisonment, they were granted the vote in 1920.

Like the perils of Pauline, the perils of Donald Trump are self-induced but his adventures threaten his compatriots, US democracy and global stability. The impression he has made on the US and world public since he entered politics in 2015 has been largely negative and destructive. He has taken over the Republican party, divided the US, and promoted destructive policies at home and abroad. He cannot claim to be an innocent.

Pauline’s perils were immediate and physical, Trump’s perils are long-term and legal.

Trump’s coming criminal trials could overlap and even develop into media rather than film serials. The first, due to open on January 2nd in Washington, DC, involves Trump’s alleged conspiracy to overturn the result of the 2020 election. The second trial in Georgia over his attempt to pressure officials into overturning Joe Biden’s win in that state, has been fixed for February 25th. The third, dealing with allegedly illegal payments to a porn star, has been scheduled for March 25th. In the fourth, on May 29th, Trump is set to be tried on allegations that he illegally retained classified documents when he left office. His lawyers have already argued that they need more time to prepare for his trials and could, perhaps, win postponement of one or two as they could interfere with his campaign for the presidency. Unlike Pauline who suffered her tribulations in the era of silent films, Trump protests his innocence loudly in person and endlessly in print online. At election campaign venues he claims that he has “done nothing wrong” and he is a victim of a hunt.” Donald Trump has never been a victim.

The fictional Pauline was an inexperienced green young adventurer in her 20s, real life Trump is a controversial 77-year-old businessman, television personality, and latter day politician who has been branded the worst ever US president. He was the first to be impeached twice although he was not compelled to leave office. He violated his oath of office to preserve and protect the US by using his position to promote his personal business interests rather than the country’s interests. Trump also threatened the US Constitution — which he swore to uphold - by refusing to accept that he lost the 2020 election. Instead, he claimed it was rigged against him and incited his deluded supporters to riot at the Capitol in Washington as Congress was meeting to prevent legislators from confirming Democrat Joe Bidon’s presidency.

Although the fictional Pauline’s perils had no negative consequences, a second four-year term in office for Trump would be disastrous. He failed the most serious challenge he faced during his time in the White House. His denial of the covid pandemic and refusal to encourage US citizens to take the disease seriously cost hundreds of thousands of lives. He encouraged states to ignore health experts’ advice by staying at home, getting vaccinated and wearing masks. He organised mass meetings which put attendees at risk of infection. He continued risky behaviour even after contracting and falling seriously ill with Covid. He exploited cultural differences between Covid deniers and Covid believers to boost the existing division between US conspiracy-ridden reactionaries and pragmatic liberals. During Biden’s presidency this has grown and made nearly impossible bipartisan resolution of major US problems.

On the international level, Trump was particularly destructive, prompting many world leaders and citizens to mistrust and disrespect the US itself.

After Trump took office in January 2017, he withdrew from the Paris climate accord which committed nations to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, thereby losing four years in the battle against climate change. At Israel’s instigation, he pulled out of UNESCO, the UN’s education and cultural body, and the UN Human Rights Council.

Trump reversed his predecessor’s policy of drawing-down US forces in Afghanistan and pledged to continue the battle against the Taliban. But, in 2018 Trump reversed his own policy by entering into peace talks with the Taliban and in February 2020 the Trump administration signed a peace deal which involved the withdrawal of US troops with the last 2,500 to leave in May 2021. In exchange for turning over Afghanistan to the Taliban, Trump received assurances that the Taliban would prevent al-Qaeda and its offshoots from launching attacks on the US from Afghan territory. After Biden became president, he postponed the pullout until August. For two years now, Afghanistan has been a disaster zone – going from bad to worse.

In 2017, Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and promised to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. In March 2018 he closed the US consulate in occupied East Jerusalem and the Palestinian mission in Washington. Trump also reduced funding to the UN agency caring for Palestinian refugees and in August of that year, he cut all US financial commitments to the agency.

In 2018, Trump also withdrew from the 2015 six-power agreement limiting Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions and imposed 1,500 new sanctions on Iran. After a year, Tehran retaliated by gradually violating its commitments to the deal and amassing large stockpiles of uranium enriched to 60 per cent purity, short of the 90 per cent needed for weaponisation (although Iran has denied any intention of making nuclear arms).

Despite his bad performance, according to Five-Thirty-Eight, Trump continues to have 39.3 per cent favourable rating against 56.4 disapproval rating among US voters and enjoys a 54.5 per cent lead in the Republican primary race.. His rival, Biden, has a disapproval rating of 54.4 per cent, an approval rating of 40.9 per cent. Biden is ahead in the Democratic party polls by 64.9 per cent. A Quinnipiac poll shows the two men are virtually tied in the 2024 election stakes with Biden backed by 47 per cent and Trump 46 per cent. A separate poll conducted by the Associated Press revealed that 53 per cent of voters would not vote for Trump and 43 per cent saying they would not vote for Biden.

The four court cases mentioned above are the most commanding and publicised. There are more cases against Trump as well as cases he is pursuing against others. While Biden is far from being an ideal candidate for a second term, he is not Trump.