Laughing Off Trump’s Agenda Would Be a Fatal Error

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/laughing-off-trumps-agenda-would-be-a-fatal-error/

Since Donald Trump first took office in 2016, we have struggled to answer whether his defining characteristic—and that of his administration—is ignorance, incompetence, greed, or malevolence.

You might ask whether choosing among these base traits is useful, given that each clearly plays some role shaping the outcomes with which we must now contend. But it matters. If Trump and those around him are merely not up to the job, or they are just bumbling clowns, then it’s easier to shrug off what they say and do. If they lack the capacity to achieve their goals, then we needn’t worry so much— all we need do is cringe and wait for it all to collapse beneath the weight of its own stupidity.

But it has become increasingly clear that the roots of the current U.S. administration are not just reckless. Recent developments have shown that laughing off Trump & Co. is a dangerous miscalculation.