The “Frank” is Frank Bruni, long-time NYT columnist.<\/p>\n
Yesterday, the title of his column, “The Vanity and Inanity of the Trump White House,” drew me right in, because of the language. I’m a sucker for good phrases and stuff like that. And Bruni gave me pots of pleasure wielding that knife in his language, excerpts of which I’m now sharing with you so you, too, can have pots of pleasure:<\/p>\n
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. practices the politics of narcissism…<\/em><\/p>\n Thus, RFK Jr is saying to us…<\/p>\n I flaunt a sun-sizzled appearance, so you should have the same leathery license.<\/em><\/p>\n About two months ago, the health secretary nixed a proposal by the Food and Drug Administration to make tanning beds, like alcohol and cigarettes, off-limits to minors…Is there some melanoma lobby we don\u2019t know about?<\/em><\/p>\n [The Trumpers are] fixated on looks \u2014 to a degree that\u2019s not remotely normal, in a manner that\u2019s positively cartoonish, with no appreciation for how much of themselves and their vacuous governing philosophy they\u2019re revealing.<\/em><\/p>\n Never have I witnessed a White House so devoted to surfaces. Surfaces caked with makeup. Surfaces puffed up with hair spray. Surfaces glossed with gold. Surfaces that glitter blue \u2014 or someday might, if the over-budget overhaul of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool ever works out as promised.<\/em><\/p>\n Your sheen is your success, and you are what you impersonate.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cOn top of everything else, he is \u2018central casting,\u2019\u201d Trump wrote in the late January social media post that announced <\/em>[Kevin] Warsh\u2019s selection.<\/em><\/p>\n All the world\u2019s a television show, \u201ccentral casting\u201d is a recurring compliment and handsomeness or beauty establishes a kind of superiority, which in turn bequeaths confidence, which then begets dominance. By his zoology, an aviary of peacocks equals a menagerie of lions.<\/em><\/p>\n And what peacocks these putzes are. In many other milieus, Kristi Noem\u2019s comically voluminous tresses, suspiciously plump visage and unsubtle makeup would be a waste of aggressive cosmetology. In Trump\u2019s circle, they established her as a fierce warrior goddess…<\/em><\/p>\n In many other milieus, Pete Hegseth\u2019s habit of sharing videos of his workouts would be seen as a grossly self-enamored distraction. In Trump\u2019s circle, they\u2019re a testament to his tenacity…Nothing spells imminent doom like a cabinet member\u2019s pecs.<\/em><\/p>\n Trump treats physical vanity as a secret handshake, a sign that you get his egotistic ethos and you belong. If you\u2019re not strutting, you\u2019re not selling.<\/em><\/p>\n Pitch and packaging are everything. Perfect them and you don\u2019t have to worry about the product itself…That thinking informs the cabinet secretaries\u2019 physical preening just as it explains the president\u2019s oratorical preening \u2014 all those ludicrous superlatives \u2014 and his emphasis on costumes, scenery and slogans.<\/em><\/p>\n The war with Iran is Operation Epic Fury, and it has demonstrated anew that the Trump administration\u2019s initiatives are lavishly marketed rather than carefully conceived. Assessments of the war\u2019s progress change daily, even hourly, and repeatedly turn out to be unreliable, because they\u2019re often just phrases put through the language equivalent of tanning beds to be given a glow and bronzed just so. That\u2019s what\u2019s important. Not the cancer growing beneath.<\/em><\/p>\n Brilliant, and deeply wise.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The “Frank” is Frank Bruni, long-time NYT columnist. Yesterday, the title of his column, “The Vanity and Inanity of the Trump White House,” drew me right in, because of the language. I’m a sucker for good phrases and stuff like … Continue reading