Schadenfreude: It’s Not Just For Breakfast Anymore

Trump's cabinet is a 'grab bag' of 'freaks' — and that could save democracy: legal expert https://t.co/Qg6jjTsOsS

— Raw Story (@RawStory) November 14, 2024

Popehat explains it all for you:

Institutions are very difficult to change. The populist sentiment “send in an outsider and have them clean house” requires an outsider smart and disciplined enough to overcome the fact they don’t understand what they’re changing. Otherwise the inside stubbornly and passive-aggressively thwarts the outsider. You can burn the institution to the ground but that doesn’t leave you with an institution you can use effectively as a weapon.

James Watt was Reagan’s Secretary of the Interior, and the Man Most Likely To Turn The West Loose From Washington Control. Watt literally meant to use his perch to allow the Sagebrush Rebellion to liberate the land west of the Rockies from federal domination.

Do you remember the Sagebrush Rebellion? Ever even heard of it? You’d practically have to be an historian now to even recognize the name. Yeah, it didn’t accomplish much of anything. Oh,Watt tried. But there were chains upon those hands, he was just riding on a train. He was never in charge of anything, including his own megalomania. He disappeared in the sands of history.

Cheney and Rumsfeld were different, and much more dangerous. They knew how Washington worked. They knew where the levers of power were, and how to use them. Rumsfeld controlled the DOD. Cheney controlled the White House. They didn’t want to “change” D.C. They wanted to exploit it. And they did. Ruthlessly, and very effectively.

Gabbard, Hegspeth, Noem, Gaetz and Huckabee couldn’t organize a two-car funeral procession. 

Tulsi Gabbard is perhaps the worst candidate because she’ll just be another conduct for Russian intelligence misinformation; and conduits run both ways. She could give up information as easily as she receives bullshit. But aside from that:

Trump’s laziness, poor attention span, tendency to be distracted by petty grievances and threats to his ego, and total lack of loyalty to anyone will be impediments to his agenda. The people he picks tend to be a grab bag of personality disorders who squabble and fight for power, he tends to screw them over when they annoy him, and they’re all quite annoying. 

I’m not saying that things won’t be bad. As I’ve said recently, I expect things to be very bad for a long time, possibly a generation, as a result of America’s choice. What I am saying is that perhaps they will not be as bad as they could be because God, in His wisdom, has chosen to make these people weird freaks along the way to letting them run the place. This is a time to cherish every hope and embrace every ally. Trump and Trumpists are dysfunctional weirdos and that fact is our ally. Cold comfort is still comfort.

Annoying and destined to be wholly ineffective:

Do you think Matt Gaetz is going to work the hours necessary to not just learn DoJ but run it in detail? All of the interns are college graduates. Does Kristi Noem strike you as someone who handles stress well? Does war crimes enthusiast Pete Hegseth have the people skills to manage the viper’s nest that’s the Pentagon?

In the meantime, let the buyer’s remorse set in.  WSJ editorial board, come on down!

"The military isn’t Mr. Trump’s enemy, and a purge mentality will court political trouble and demoralize the ranks," the editorial board argued. "The draft executive order, leaked to the press, about forming a group of former officers to rule on the fitness of current generals would be a mistake that smacks of politicizing the officer corps." 

The editorial also argued against taking out his anger against former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley on other military leaders. 

"Firing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs CQ Brown would also be counterproductive," they wrote. "Mr. Trump is still furious about former Chairman Mark Milley’s criticisms, and not without cause, but Mr. Trump promoted Gen. Milley. The better path is to look for officers who understand the current global dangers and have good ideas for what to do about it. Adm. Sam Paparo of the U.S. Indo-Pacific command is one." 

The editors also expressed concern that Hegseth seems to be obsessed with purging any "woke" elements from the American military rather than focusing on more immediate and concrete problems. 

"In the context of America’s security challenges, wokeness is a small concern," they argued.

And it just gets better:

As he recalled, "I was at a conference yesterday and there were a whole bunch of investors when the news came down and I would say up until that moment so many of them had a big grin on their face about where the market was going, the economy, all of that." 

"When it first came across the phone, there were people including, by the way myself, who thought it was a parody account, who literally thought it was The Onion and they didn't believe it and the shift in tone went from, 'Wow, we're going to have a great economy and all of these things and I don't have to worry,' to, 'Okay, maybe now I have to worry' was like in the blink of an eye." 

"And then all night it was the same thing with my phone lighting up from people in the business community who I think are still hopeful in their own ways about the economic issues and the like," he elaborated. "But when it comes to law and order, when it comes to the Justice Department and what this is ultimately going to look like, what prosecutions are going to look like, that threw a lot of people back on their feet." 

"The question is whether they can stand up and say so publicly and I think unfortunately the answer is still no and especially no because of the role this individual may ultimately play," he added.

A blunt reminder that economic issues only exist because of government stability, competence, and predictability. Also a reminder that Wall Street is no more insightful, intelligent, or sensible than the rest of us.

Schadenfreude is just German for “Cold comfort is still comfort.”