Filtering Trump

Trump lacks a moral or intellectual center and acts only from baser concerns. While Biden had guiding principles on the economy and helping the working class, Trump is merely an onion, many layers with no center, only a void of fear and an intense desire to avoid any of its manifestations in weakness, shame or humiliation.

Trump’s actions are best understood through filters of motivations. Whatever he says or does, this is a Trumpian algorithm for media outlets to decode his actions.

Graft—First and foremost, the 2016 campaign and accidentally winning the presidency was all about money. The 2024 campaign was to stay out of jail to make money. Everything he proposes requires a look at who personally benefits financially. Every. Single. Thing.

Sop—He has a base to make happy. Trump’s base loves him, not because he materially improved their lives, but they trust him to act as they would. Leave the World Health Organization? Say you will and make the base feel great with no near-term loss. The media often will not understand the significance of any particular Sop, but they are effective. And Trump does not even need to ultimately deliver—just say he did.

Show—Trump knows a television moment. If his action drives media and shapes coverage, that is a win. If he gets a new cable news music and graphic tag for coverage, all the better. Related to this is what he says to play test ideas—out of town tryouts for new themes to see what sticks.

Retro—He desires a return to an era where he was most comfortable. When men were men, unconcerned with a woman’s consent. People of color were redlined and worked as maids and gardeners. The United States did what it pleased because we had the bomb. Trump’s racism and sexism are based as much in a temporal longing for bygone order as it is in present hatreds.

Debase—He needs everyone to bend the knee. The bigger the person, the more he enjoys it. Since his New York days where society shunned him, he now has a perverse joy in forcing his way and making people who clearly do not like him laugh at his jokes. Hence his preoccupation with revenge. He is constantly concerned he will become the unclothed emperor if anyone succeeds in standing up to undo his intimidation.

Extort—Connected to Debase, but distinct because this is tied to specific government actions designed to target people, businesses or countries. Think “You have a nice business here. It’d be a shame if a tariff ruined it.” Fear of extortion often results in debasement to avoid it, but one can exist without the other.

Darwinism—Trump does believe in a Social Darwinism that holds white people are better and should prevail, whatever that means, and government should not stand in the way of this social selection and manifest destiny. One might simply call this racism, but I sense he has some more organized thoughts on the matter and Social Darwinism is as close to a core as Trump possesses.

Random—Trump will do and say things just to get a rise out of folks. Or he heard it at a Mar-A-Lago dinner. Or because he is narrating his walk on the yellow brick Alzheimer road. It is that simple. The problem is Trump can never back away from a random assertion if challenged by the press, so they stick around for a while if questioned. The media must understand he can be random and that possibility must always be considered—especially if it is new.

Example — Panama Canal Seizure

This checks a number of boxes. Conflict with Panama is certainly a Show—probably would get its own cable news theme music if shots are fired. It is a Sop, because the base will appreciate flexing on brown folks. And it is clearly Retro. But, consider Extortion and Graft for a moment. Who has contracts to operate what on the canal?Does Trump have friends in the port management business? This whole move is much more likely an effort to make money than it is to get the actual canal zone back.

Example — DEI Banning

So many boxes here are checked off. Ironically, this is likely less about Graft than most of his actions. It is a perfect Sop, a strong Show, certainly Retro and very Darwinist. Now, Trump with use extortion to push compliance, but this is to amplify its effect.

Example — Gulf of America

Random start. Now a Sop.

Example — Tariffs

This is simply extortion. All sorts of industries will pay a great deal of money in Graft and Debase themselves with vigor to avoid a tariff on their industry. It is a good Sop for the base, but this one is all follow the money.

So when considering Trump’s actions, run through these filters. Declaring Mexican Drug Cartels as Terrorist Organizations? On the surface it is a Sop, because his base always appreciates Seal teams killing brown folks. It would be a Show. It is an Extortion of the Mexican government. But consider Graft. Money moved throughout Latinx communities for Trump’s 2024 election—where did it come from really? Perhaps, instead of sending Seal Team Six to kill political rivals, Trump instead will use it to select the winner of a cartel war, and get even richer in the process. All things must be considered.

But everyone must give up trying to understand Trump as if he has soul somewhere. That is way off in his rear-view mirror. He only has a need for domination to blunt his fear of being dominated. Everything he does are strategies to dominate by amassing riches and power. It is tragic, but simple.