Trump has lofty goals in his attempt to establish absolute authority

In the gospel according to Donald Trump — his book “The Art of the Deal” — the future president laid out his business and life philosophy.

As Trump wrote, “I set very high goals and then I just keep pushing and pushing and pushing to get what I’m after.” “I usually still get what I want, but sometimes I settle for less than I wanted.”

Trump once utilized this tactic to threaten competitor real estate sharks, bargain with contractors, and pursue his commercial interests through countless lawsuits.

He remains the same after twenty-eight years. He simply pushes and pushes and pushes on a larger and more significant stage.

How Trump overcame the curse of being president

The president has been more unchecked than ever during the summer due to his constant efforts to gain leverage and exercise decisive, unconstrained power on several fronts.

For presidents, August has frequently been a brutal month. In a strange mirror image of today, conflict broke out in Gaza and Ukraine in 2014, interrupting President Barack Obama’s vacation and casting doubt on his ability to lead. The eclipse of the 46th president’s administration began on August 26, 2021, when a suicide bomber killed 13 Americans at Kabul International Airport, according to historians of the Biden years.

Trump, who consistently pushes the limits of what constitutes proper legal or constitutional behavior in a president, strode through August ready to break the curse.

Despite warnings from Democratic officials in the city and the state of Illinois to refrain, he culminated his pressure this week by threatening to federalize National Guard troops and dispatch them to Chicago.

Despite Trump’s assertions on Tuesday that the city is in “big trouble” and is a “disaster” due to crime, there are no emergency conditions specified by the US Code that include rebellions, which may make this an obvious legal act.

However, that doesn’t stop the president from threatening to deploy federal troops to neighboring Democratic-controlled cities.

“I (have) the freedom to do anything I like. The United States is led by me as president. At a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Trump stated, “I can do it if I think our country is in danger — and it is in danger in these cities.”

This is in line with the president’s long-held belief that his power is nearly unrestricted and that there are few restrictions on him.

But when Illinois Governor JB Pritzker wrote on X, he appeared to be on solid ground as a potential 2028 presidential candidate. “No, Donald, you are not allowed to do as you please.”

We’ll find out in time.

One of Trump’s most significant power plays to far is his attempt to oust a Fed member.

By declaring this week that he had fired Lisa Cook, a Federal Reserve official, Trump is asserting his power on yet another front. Cook is under investigation by the Department of Justice for possible mortgage violations. She intends to challenge her firing in court and has denied any misconduct.

Whether Trump has the authority to fire Cook is unclear. He’s aiming high and attempting to see whether he can obtain what he wants, though.

It is evident from the statute that the president has the power to dismiss a Federal Reserve employee for good reason. A closer question, in my opinion, is whether the president currently has what constitutes cause, former deputy assistant attorney general Tom Dupree told CNN.

Trump rarely conceals his intentions. He claimed on Tuesday that he had a better chance of receiving a favorable ruling on one of his obsessions, significant interest rate cuts, if he could do away with Cook.

“It will be fantastic when we have a majority,” Trump declared. “Housing will take off once we have a majority, and it will be fantastic. The interest rates that people are paying are excessively high.

In response to a reporter’s question on Tuesday on Cook’s chances of winning in court, Trump shrugged his shoulders. “You are continuously involved in legal disputes. The president stated, “Look, I had a legal battle with corrupt people, with very bad people, that lasted for years.”

The president can accomplish some of his objectives even if Cook’s future is uncertain due to the legal battle. His primary target, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, is being indirectly pressured by his attack on one Fed board member. Additionally, he has the ability to make Cook’s life difficult because he views Cook as an enemy who has betrayed him.

How Trump takes advantage of court delays to further his political objectives

Trump has a history of manipulating the legal system’s processing time to further his political objectives.

For instance, Trump had dismantled USAID by the time fired staff had a chance to legally oppose him.

Additionally, he filed numerous, frequently pointless procedural motions to delay court proceedings and extend the responsibility period for his attempt to rig the 2020 election while he fought four felony indictments as a presidential candidate.

His administration is utilizing the legal system to settle scores now that he is back in power.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who won a civil fraud judgment against Trump, his adult sons, and the Trump business, and California Senator Adam Schiff are among Trump’s political rivals who are being investigated over mortgage paperwork. Both have denied any misconduct and have not been charged.

John Bolton, a first-term Trump national security adviser who regularly attacks the president on television, had FBI investigators show up at his house last week. A court would have granted a search warrant based on the reasonable suspicion that a criminal had been committed. However, the fact that yet another Trump opponent was being investigated did appear to be a bit of a coincidence.

Regarding the search of Bolton’s house, Schiff stated on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “what the president is trying to do here is very systemic and systematic.” “The full weight of the federal government is brought down on anyone who opposes the president, criticizes the president, or says anything that is detrimental to the president’s interests.”

Who is to stop Trump, though?

Although the courts have limited some of his programs, his attempt to increase presidential power is being aided by the growing number of judges the president appoints and a conservative majority on the Supreme Court that occasionally decides in his favor. Additionally, the high court’s decision that presidents enjoy significant immunity for official activities in a case involving one of Trump’s criminal indictments fuelled his picture of impunity.

Congress should also act as a brake. But Republican majorities in the House and Senate are supine to Trump, willingly ceding power to the executive. And the ultimate constitutional curb on his behavior — impeachment — was carried out twice by Democratic House majorities but was thwarted when Republicans in the Senate refused to convict him of high crimes and misdemeanors.

And don’t expect any of the ultra-loyalists on Trump’s hand-picked second-term staff to enforce restraint. During Tuesday’s almost three-hour Cabinet meeting, his staff alternated in lavishly praising the president.

Trump’s sense of his own omnipotence, impunity, vengeance and ambition grows by the day.

Ty Cobb, a former White House attorney during Trump’s first term, told CNN’s Erin Burnett that “anyone who defies him is viewed not as an intellectual adversary but as a vicious opponent.” “Obviously, he is extremely happy when he can exact revenge, and he is equally happy when he can increase his power.”

In terms of respect, virtue, and the rule of law, Cobb continued, “I believe this is something that Americans need to look at seriously because this cannot be what people in the country voted for.”

Nothing, however, will stop Trump from setting lofty goals and never stopping.