The Empire Strikes Back

We're dividing up the world, old style.

Photo by Dave Photoz on Unsplash

Last night, Trump made it very clear that we’re entering a brave new world. Or maybe a brave old world. Colonies, mercantilism, empires. It’s all back in style.

During a speech to a joint session of Congress, Trump talked about invading Greenland, taking back the Panama Canal, and forcing the Ukraine to accept major land losses to Russia, while giving us their minerals.

We’re dividing up the world between Putin and Xi like it’s a game of Risk. They’ll let us take Greenland, Canada, Mexico, and the Panama Canal, if we let them take Ukraine and Taiwan. The rest of the world will get carved up or ignored.

At one point last night, Trump said, “Eight million dollars to promote LGBTQI+ in the African nation of Lesotho, which nobody has ever heard of." Yes, an American president mocked a small sovereign nation in Africa. Then, he and friends snickered like teenage boys in the back of a classroom. It’s shocking behavior, but that’s the new normal. He treated Zelenskyy with the same contempt last week.

Side note: Trump mentioned Biden’s name 16 times last night. This was highly unusual compared to other State of the Union speeches, which tend to be forward looking and policy prescriptive. I don’t think I ever heard a president ridicule his predecessor with as much venom before. It wasn’t enough to beat Biden in the last election. He wants to plow his name into the earth. He holds grudges against those who helped Harris.

We are no longer the world’s policeman, the guardian of democracy. According to Trump, giving money and supplies to foster democracy abroad made us the patsies of the world. Suckers. It made us weak. If other countries want to degenerate into chaos, then that’s their problem. If people die from starvation or in war, it’s okay if it’s in a forgettable African nation.

Sovereignty doesn’t matter. We can invade Greenland if we like. Treaties don’t matter. We can’t take back the Panama Canal if we like. If another country has shiny minerals, we’ll take them.

The new message is America First, and Trump means it. It’s a throwback not to 50s style realpolitik and spheres of influences, but to 18th century colonial systems with France, England, Spain, and Portugal dividing up Africa and the new world.

What Does “America First” Mean at Home?

What happens within the United States? If “might makes right” on the international stage, what’s going to happen at home? I advocate for vulnerable families, who are very worried about the priorities of the Trump administration.

What’s going to happen to day programs for adults with autism and Down syndrome? What’s going to happen to Medicaid for poor families that need access to neurologists and other specialists? What’s going to happen to families that need SNAP to put food on the table? What’s going to happen in schools where almost none of the students can read on grade level?

We want more than a shiny sheriff badge. We want programs and support.

Trump didn’t address those worries of vulnerable families last night. I’m not sure how Greenland is going to help those vulnerable families. I don’t know how gender wars will help them. In an hour and 40 minutes, he said nothing that would help families like mine.

At one point, he said that JFK Jr. was going to find out the origins of autism. Billions of dollars have already been spent on autism research, with no definitive answers. Researchers found that autism isn’t caused by one genetic misstep or by a single environmental trigger. There is no miracle cure. It’s here, and we have to deal with it.

Instead of wasting more money on finding the origins of autism, we should be spending money on helping autistic people and their families with social supports and quality education. But Trump isn’t interested in that less glamorous work of social programs.

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