America's new rules of engagement
It's Trump time once more!
Now, what's the man done this time? Broken some more rules, apparently.
First rule: respect the judiciary. Especially if you have a case pending before it. But Trump can't keep his fingers off his Twitter account, and so after losing a case in federal court in the ongoing drama about his immigration ban, he immediately vented his emotions to his adoring public.
Expressing disappointment or disagreement should be fine, but as usual, Trump took it to a whole new level: the personal one. He attacked not just the ruling; he also went after Judge Robart who ruled against him, describing him as a "so-called judge".
All our lives, we've been taught in various life scenarios to try to separate personal feelings from the professional, career, educational or whatever other setting one may be in. So a student should study hard despite disliking the professor's unfashionable views. A professor should give fair grades despite having the sinking feeling that the student will grow up to be a serial killer. A government permit should be granted even if the applicant smells like he hasn't taken a shower.
In the law, it's pretty much the same thing. The decision of a judge should be taken apart and dissected thoroughly for weaknesses, logical inconsistencies, or plain errors. Most of the time, lawyers and the parties they are representing are supposed to stay far away from who the judge is. One never attacks the judge for his dubious mental intellect or his less than sterling academic credentials. That's called respect for the court.
The only time one can zero in on the judge himself is in case of bias. If the judge has allowed his personal bias for friends or issues to influence his decisions, then one can call the judge out and appeal to a higher body. Otherwise, it's strictly hands off and claws sheathed!
But Trump doesn't seem to have gone through that lesson. Instead of staying on message about what he wants to do and why he's doing it, he went ballistic and torpedoed the judge. In any other scenario, that would have been categorized as contempt of court. Because it clearly was contemptuous. (Bernie Sanders called him out at once).
If Trump isn't cited for contempt by the judiciary, it's probably because they don't want to trigger a constitutional crisis like what he's nearly done by (apparently) refusing to implement the injunction against his executive order. At least that branch is being circumspect. Unfortunately, Trump doesn't seem to know what that word means.
Second rule: don't mix politics with business. Or, don't use your power to favor relatives. Or at least, not overtly. If one has to do it, I'm sure a million subtle ways of steering business to a relative have already been invented.
Not so with Trump, who was furious with Nordstrom's decision to cut Ivanka's clothing line from its stable of designers. Immediately, Trump went to vent his ire on Twitter, and called out "terrible" Nordstrom for its "unfair" treatment of his daughter. So guess what the effect of that was on Nordstrom's stock price? In a fearsome demonstration of one man's ability to affect an entire business straddling the entire continent, Nordstrom's stock price went down by 6% in value in just one day, before bouncing back from, apparently, the support of loyal customers.
What's the message now for American businesses? Do business with Trump, make more money for Trump, and don't screw Trump - or else. What a fearsome place to be in for a rational businessman.
Unfortunately, I doubt that the breaking of the rules and the shaking of the political landscape is good for that beacon of freedom and liberty that is America. The highest office in the land has come crashing down from the firmament, proving to all and sundry that at the end of the day, it's not the office, but the man occupying it, that counts.
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