A Certain Point of View: Writing, Film and Stuff

Why won't the Democrats just give Trump his legacy of the wall like Republicans did so for Obamacare? Dear Anonymous, First, let’s be frank here. The fact that you submitted this question anonymously (and are not following it publicly) says a lot about you and your intention. You know that the historical record shows that Republicans  did not “ give’ President Obama anything when he proposed the Affordable Care Act. As a matter of historical fact, Republicans in Congress not only refused to vote for the ACA, but they also refused to cooperate with their Democratic colleagues to create it. There was no attempt on the GOP’s part to compromise on the ACA, none at all, even though it was based on a Republican-Democratic healthcare plan created at the state level in Massachusetts and signed into law by then-Governor Mitt Romney. Not only that, the ACA did not get one vote, not a  single  vote, from the Republicans in Congress. So, please, Mr. Anonymous, don’t come...

Remember last week's failure of Donald J. Trump's much-touted American Health Care Act ("Trumpcare") to pass through the Republican-controlled Congress? You know, the President's ballyhooed and long-promised project to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act of 2010? Well, guess who Mr. Trump is pinning the blame on? Can you give me three guesses? Ready? Go! If you said that he, like all good leaders tend to do, took responsibility for Trumpcare's big failure last Friday, you'd be wrong. According to ABC News , Mr. Trump once again logged on to Twitter to accuse the GOP, especially the uber-conservative House Freedom Caucus. This influential group of  Republican members of the House of Representatives refused to sign off on the AHCA in part because it would leave millions of Americans without medical insurance. In a sarcastic tweet from his  @realDonaldTrump Twitter account, Mr. Trump said: The Republican House Freedom Caucus was abl...

You'd think that after 64 days as President of the United States of America, Donald J. Trump, the self-styled master of The Art of the Deal, would drop his "alternative facts" shtick and, for once, tell the truth about his words and deeds. Especially his words, because now that he sits in the Oval Office, every utterance (or Twitter tweet) has the potential of becoming national policy.  Well, you would think that if Mr. Trump had learned anything about the Presidency and real leadership before he made his fateful decision to throw his hat in the Presidential campaign ring two years ago. There are plenty of books about the good, the bad, and the ugly Administrations that have led our government since 1789 that Mr. Trump can read, for Pete's sake. Or, since the 45th Chief Executive doesn't like to read, he could probably log on to Netflix, Amazon Video, or any streaming channel that offers documentaries along the lines of The Roosevelts: An Intimate History.  ...

  Donald J. Trump has been in the White House - courtesy of a victory in the Electoral College and (allegedly) a little help from his friends in Russia - for 63 days and counting. In that short (but seemingly endless) period of time, Mr. Trump has managed to become the least credible and most unpopular person ever to sit behind the Resolute desk in  the Oval Office. Despite a small uptick in his approval ratings - Gallup shows that 41% of Americans think he's doing well in the latest poll  - Mr. Trump still has not cracked the ceiling of 50% approval (or better) since he took the oath of office on January 20. No amount of braggadocio, no vast volume of executive orders, no huge batches of Twitter tweets or campaign-style rallies can hide the fact that Mr. Trump is both incompetent and dishonest.  Consider this: according to various news sources, Mr. Trump suffered yet another setback on his way to repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The dismantling of "Oba...