Collapse

"This is bigger than Watergate." -- Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY)

   Less than a month into the presidential term of Donald Trump, there are signs pointing to a failure of his administration to get its act together and move toward some form of efficiency in governing.
   So far, two major appointees have withdrawn their nominations, another was fired, a third needed the tie-breaking vote of the vice president to get Senate consent, a fourth with no related experience barely squeaked through the approval process for secretary of education, and another has a history of suing the very agency he is expected to lead.
   In response, the president has defended the man he fired, blaming "fake media" for publishing "illegal leaks" of information that led to Michael Flynn resigning, at the president's request, from his post as director of national security after just 24 days on the job.

   Behind this is the Logan Act, a 1799 law that prohibits private citizens from contacting foreign officials about U.S. diplomatic relations. Flynn reportedly talked to the Russian ambassador about government sanctions before taking starting his new government job.
   Whether he did this on his own or with Trump's encouragement and approval is an open question. But it does focus on international relations and private citizens' activity, since the conversation took place before the inauguration.

   The president has made much of the importance of vetting immigrants before they are allowed to come to America. Perhaps he should vet his choices for major government posts more thoroughly, given their poor performance in getting approved by the Senate because of their lack of related experience.
   Meanwhile, the president complains of "unfair" treatment when journalists reveal his shortcomings, faults and falsehoods.
   How much more childish can a 70-year-old man get when he cries "That's not fair!" every time he gets caught in a lie?   
   His approval rating has already gone negative after just eight days in office. What are the odds that his entire political project will collapse like a house of cards in a bankrupt Atlantic City casino?