WSJ Editorial compares Trump to Henry VIII

[question everything]

The World’s Hardest Job

President Trump dumped acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney late Friday evening in favor of North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows, who will be the fourth White House chief of his Presidency. By now Mr. Trump’s handling of his leading aides resembles the way Henry VIII treated his wives. He’s enthusiastic at first, then sours on them for reasons known only to the President, and the next thing you know the guy is banished to Northern Ireland. That’s where Mr. Mulvaney is going as a special envoy, a slot the White House was trying to fill for some time. It’s doubtful Mr. Mulvaney was yearning for this opportunity.

Tumult in this White House is no surprise, and Presidents are entitled to the advisers they want. Mr. Trump is effectively his own chief of staff, he hates to be tied to a daily schedule, and he likes to keep his advisers on edge about their jobs. He never removed Mr. Mulvaney’s “acting” title despite 80-hour workweeks serving a difficult client.

Cabinet members live in fear of appearing to have a sliver of public difference with Mr. Trump on any issue lest they become persona non grata. Appearing to upstage the President, however unintentionally, can be fatal. Mr. Trump has also had four national security advisers in three years because he thinks of himself as his own chief strategist.

Mr. Trump’s partisans are saying the staff change is part of his preparation for the election campaign. But it’s hardly reassuring to the public to sack the chief White House aide in the middle of the coronavirus epidemic. It plays into Joe Biden’s campaign theme, which is essentially to stop the turmoil emanating from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Mr. Meadows has been a dogged defender of the President, which is no doubt part of his appeal. We wish Mr. Meadows luck, though we suggest he not bring anything to his White House office that he can’t take with him at the close of any business day.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-worlds-hardest-job-11583696486 (subscription)

[redstatebluegirl]

1. He looks like him too!

He wants a crown and robes, so that fits.

[bigbrother05]

2. Well, he is on his 3rd wife with Ivanka being the only child he trusts

Maybe he's betting on Barron, but doesn't appear to have any obvious relationship with him.

[stopdiggin]

3. and this from the WSJ !

I don't have a subscr. Did they go on to mention all the "acting heads" and hollowed out agencies? And how this might not be good government? Nah .. probably not.

[lagomorph777]

4. Never thought I'd miss Prick Mulvaney but...

Oh who am I kidding; I hope Mulvaney runs into an IRA uprising over there.

Meadows is more of the same shit. Whatever.

[question everything]

10. Don't forget: Mulvaney once admitted to take calls only from constituents who have gave him money

[DavidDvorkin]

5. Before his personality changed, Henry was intellectually brilliant and widely admired

The comparison fails in that sense.

[Aristus]

7. Not only that, but historians still consider him the best-educated king in England's history.

The image of him as an obese, bellowing buffoon can be a little misleading...

[DavidDvorkin]

8. It's unfortunate that that's the standard image of him

Instead of how he was before he grew ill and obese.

[canetoad]

11. I don't think it's a good analogy either

Abhorrent as the idea may be today, Henry's pressing need was for a male heir. Unfortunately it was easier to blame the wives than the monarch.

Interwoven with this was the image of Henry's potency; what kind of king cannot produce a healthy male child? Interestingly, his first marriage to Catherine of Aragon lasted roughly twenty-five years and by all reports was loving and devoted.

Whether the subsequent five wives and their fates was a result of his deteriorating mental state or whether it was pure hubris, is debatable.

[northoftheborder]

6. At press conferences, I notice all persons speaking have to...

...pay homage to "the Emperor" in their remarks. Never saw so much reverential sucking up in my life. Guess it's required, or "out the door, Bub.."

[Zorro]

9. Well Henry VIII confiscated church properties and burned down monasteries

So he wasn't all bad, unlike our current imPOTUS.