Anchor Struck

In my nearly 80 years on this planet, I have never seen a seven-day stretch as eventful as this one. On Saturday Trump’s name was removed from the Kennedy Performing Center, so Aging Orange had the original name covered (mostly) with a tarp, calling even more attention to his infinite pettiness and vanity. On Sunday he celebrated his 80th birthday at the White House with the most outrageous event there since the British torched it in 1814. In a $60 million outdoor venue (“The Claw”) built for only one night of UFC fights, one of the combatants informed us that Michelle Obama is a man. My disgust was partially mollified when he then bellowed “Am I right, America?” and the testosterone-saturated crowd responded only mildly.

On Wednesday Trump signed the Iran agreement, a turd that would defy any polishing. It was so bad that even right wing pundits and politicians backpedaled furiously. The President declared it a unprecedented deal. All was lost . . . until Thursday. Diametrically opposed to Trump’s black hole of greed and hostility, the Obama family offered hope and love at the dedication of Barack’s library, topped off by Stevie Wonder singing “Higher Ground” — a song about faith and redemption — as the Obama family and the massive crowd full of celebrities sang and danced along. And today Italy’s Foreign Minister cancelled his trip to the U.S. because Donny J. had insulted the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Seems that he said she had “begged” him for a photo at the G7 Summit. Meloni took exception.

Oh, and it’s Juneteenth.

As if the insufficient tarp wasn’t enough of a gift, the reflecting pool is the one that keeps on giving. Trump first said it would cost a mere $1.8 million. But the project, a no-bid contract given to one of his donors, has risen to $14 mil and has been a disaster. The blue paint is already peeling off, having to fight through an algae bloom which itself is battling state-of-the-art ozone nanobubbler technology. The scientist or pool maintenance person who could have warned The Donald about that algae thing may have been DOGE’d.

I keep looking for inflection points in this life. I think the negative GOP response to the Iran deal will loosen some serious backlash, which most likely would cause him to double down yet again. 137 days until the mid-term elections. The Republicans lost 40 seats in the House in 2018, Don’s first mid-term. Do you have ample popcorn?