Trump the empire builder should be taken seriously

When Donald Trump said yesterday that he intended to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, Hillary Clinton burst out laughing.

So what? It wasn’t a joke. It was a bait and switch to distract his critics, disorient his neighbours and delight his base. Trump’s second presidency began yesterday with

• an inauguration address more upbeat than his first one and yet somehow as sinister;
• a burst of executive orders designed to kick-start an agenda of unabashed American exceptionalism; and
• several reminders for Clinton and others to take Trump seriously if not literally.

To Mars. The first minute of his speech promised a new golden era for a United States envied round the world. Dark broadsides followed against corrupt elites, cross-border gangs and feckless federal agencies, but – quite unlike Trump’s 2017 vision of “American carnage” – he also invoked

• a 19th Century American story of pioneers and cowboys;
• a 20th Century American story of scientific advance in which Americans “split the atom, launched mankind into the heavens and put the universe of human knowledge into the palm of the human hand”;
• Elon Musk’s 21st Century dream of going to Mars (with Musk – net worth $434 billion – applauding nearby); and
• the vaunting ambition of a country where “the impossible is what we do best”.

Old lies were related in a weary monotone belying the fact they could become the basis of policy. They included claims that foreign countries are emptying mental institutions into the stream of migrants heading north to the US and that China runs the Panama Canal (it doesn’t, although Hong Kong-based firms run ports at each end).

New empire. Unfamiliar fanfare was reserved for America’s Manifest Destiny – a term attributed to the Confederate propagandist John O’Sullivan in 1845. Trump revived it to support the uncontroversial notion of America as “as a growing nation that increases our wealth”, and the highly controversial one of a nation that “expands our territory”.

Action plan. Trump had promised “close to 100” executive orders on day one of his presidency. Focusing on energy and the border, Trump has already

• moved to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement;
• declared a national energy emergency to loosen emissions and fuel standards and boost liquefied natural gas production (which could lower European gas prices, currently two to three times higher than in the US); and
• sought an end to birthright citizenship for anyone born in the US, including the children of illegal immigrants.

Trade fade. Orders were promised on trade, but initially only to investigate the practices of foreign countries and assess China’s compliance with a 2020 trade deal. Trump also announced an External Revenue Service to collect tariffs; the tariffs themselves will come later, possibly at lower levels than advertised.

Seriously, not literally. Trump is adept at changing the subject to keep listeners off balance even if the subject seems frivolous or unattainable.

• The Gulf. Can he rename the Gulf of Mexico? Maybe, says the Associated Press, but his purpose is less to make it happen than to show nothing is off limits on his watch. (It’s been suggested before, as a joke, by a Mississippi Democrat in 2012 and by the comedian Stephen Colbert.)
• Greenland still isn’t for sale, but the WSJ’s Matthew Hennessey reckons there’s a 50/50 chance Trump will acquire it by making Denmark an offer it can’t refuse.
• The constitution. No president has suggested ending birthright citizenship before because it’s written into the constitution – but thanks to its repeated airing by Trump and his acolytes one constitutional expert says the idea is “no longer laughable”.

What’s more… Chrystia Freeland, a potential future prime minister of Canada, is so concerned about her southern neighbour’s new expansionism that she wrote yesterday in the Washington Post: “If you hit us, we will hit you back.” It probably won’t happen, but Freeland understands the need to take Trump seriously anyway.