Scoring Points Is The Point The president wants to win for himself, not for the American people Dan Rather and Team Steady Sep 25 Credit: Getty Images We now have an administration in Washington that exists for one reason: the self-importance of Donald Trump. Watching from a distance, it has become a sad spectacle, the worst of its kind many of us have ever witnessed. Scoring political points is everything, with little or no room for negotiation, collateral damage be damned. And the number of people likely to fall victim to Trump’s vengeful politics could soon be much higher. The threat of a government shutdown has become as common as a sunrise in Washington. But suddenly negotiations in Congress over next week’s possible shutdown have been halted and Trump is threatening mass firings of government workers. Extreme? Yes, but it’s all in the name of winning. This president shows scant desire to improve the lives of everyday Americans. He doesn’t have a policy agenda to make life better for his constituents — except for his family and the billionaire posse willing to do what he demands. What Trump does have is an insatiable need to be the victor. It is what drives him. Now, winning can mean many things to him. It can mean “owning the libs.” It can mean exacting vengeance against his perceived enemies. It can mean destroying anything that President Joe Biden or even President Barack Obama created. It can mean forcing corporations, law firms, and universities to do his bidding or suffer the dangerously real consequences. Trump’s modus operandi is to use political leverage and overt threats to get people to do what he wants. Add in cruelty, legally questionable behavior, and a disregard for the civil mores that have dictated political deportment for centuries and you have Trump 2.0 in a nutshell. Over the past week, Trump and the movement he leads have ratcheted up the rhetoric, trying to notch more wins, with many more on his list to blame. On Wednesday, Joshua Jahn allegedly opened fire at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Dallas, killing one detainee and injuring several others. He then killed himself. The demand for information about the killer and his motives was immediate. As usual, before much credible information was available, Trump & Co. filled the void with their own “facts,” all to their advantage. Just hours after the shooting, JD Vance blamed Democrats and labeled the shooter a “violent left-wing extremist,” with no evidence. FBI Director Kash Patel posted a photo of bullet casings he said were from the scene. The words “anti ice” can be seen on one of them. The gunman’s brother told NBC News that Jahn had no interest in politics. Voting records show he was a registered independent. Looking to score political points and secure a win, Trump made sure to quickly paint the perpetrator as one of “them,” or what Trump described as “the Left Wing Domestic Terrorism that is terrorizing our Country.” Even if it is a case of domestic terrorism, whom are we to believe? The once-independent Department of Justice is now compromised and complicit, with the attorney general following Trump’s orders. Stephen Miller, Trump’s deputy chief of staff and political attack dog, recently took the opportunity to demonize the Democratic Party, calling it “a domestic extremist organization.” He went on to vehemently demean half the country. “You have nothing. You are nothing. You are wickedness. You are jealousy. You are envy. You are hatred. You are nothing. You can build nothing. You can produce nothing. You can create nothing,” he shouted. Not to be outdone by his protege, Trump demonized Democrats and further weaponized the presidency for partisan political purposes by warning, “The Department of Justice is also investigating networks of radical-left maniacs who fund, organize, fuel and perpetrate political violence.” On Thursday, The New York Times reported that Trump is making good on that threat. According to the paper, he is demanding the DOJ investigate billionaire George Soros’s philanthropic organization. The Open Society Foundations provide grants to human rights groups and fund pro-democracy work around the world. The 95-year-old Soros has given away $32 billion, a significant portion of his fortune. Trump contends that the foundation promotes civil unrest … with, you guessed it, no evidence. When a president calls upon the DOJ and the attorney general to prosecute a political enemy, as Trump did over the weekend, and the DOJ complies with the request, then you would hope someone would say enough is enough. But no Republican currently in power has or likely will. Two others on Trump’s enemies list also face spurious investigations: former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. On Saturday, Erik Siebert, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, resigned after refusing to prosecute Comey and James, citing a lack of evidence. Are you sensing a theme? Trump hastily appointed one of his personal lawyers, who has been working in the White House Office of the Staff Secretary, as the acting U.S. attorney. Lindsey Halligan is a 36-year-old former insurance lawyer with zero prosecutorial experience Late today, a federal grand jury indicted Comey on charges of giving false statements and obstruction of justice. An important footnote about political violence in America: In 2024, the Department of Justice published a study that found the number of far-right attacks “continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism” in the United States. According to 404 Media, that study, an inconvenient truth for Trump, was deleted from the DOJ website on September 12. In Trump’s constant political game, you can be certain that he is keeping score, determined to “win,” no matter the cost to the country. It is why he constantly praises himself and those with whom he surrounds himself. The losers of this game are the American people, most of whom just want to put food on the table and make sure their kids are safe. For those of us who pay close attention to the public life of the president, it appears to be a life with little joy. We witness mostly anger and retribution. We see few happy moments, real or contrived, as we have with every other president over the decades. You see no family, no grandchildren or pets running around the Oval Office, just floor-to-ceiling gilt. He is playing a never-ending game fueled by rancor. What a sad life he lives. What a sad time for our country. Hard to be optimistic, but optimism is a hallmark of the American spirit. We will get on with our lives because we must. We will be strong and stay informed. Steady is free, but to support my team’s efforts to protect our democracy through the power of independent journalism, we’d appreciate it if you would consider joining as a paid subscriber. It keeps Steady sustainable and accessible for all. No matter how you subscribe, I thank you for being part of the Steady community. Stay Steady, Dan