(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Donald
Trump's decision to go it alone with rapid fire announcements on
healthcare and Iran reflects his boiling frustration with the limits of
presidential power, analysts say.
The US president made a brazen move
on Thursday night to halt payments to insurers under Barack Obama's
healthcare law. Democrats accused him of a 'temper tantrum and spiteful
attempt to sabotage legislation he promised but failed to replace. Less
than 24 hours later, he condemned the government of Iran as he
decertified his predecessor's nuclear deal, defying his own Cabinet and
disquieting European allies.
The one-two punch showed Trump straining
to assail Obama's legacy but stopping short of terminating either the
Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, or the Iran nuclear accord.
Both are back in the hands of Congress, a source of constant
exasperation for the property tycoon turned novice politician, who finds
himself isolated and lashing out.
'The Congress has been frustrating
to him, John Kelly, the White House chief of staff, told reporters.
'Of course, our government is designed to be slow, and it is. His sense,
I think, as a man who is outside the Washington arena, a businessman,
much more of a man of action, I would say his great frustration is the
process that he now finds himself (in).
'Because, in his view, the
solutions are obvious, whether it's tax cuts and tax reform, healthcare,
infrastructure programmes, strengthening our military. To him, these
all seem like obvious things that need to be done to protect the
American people, bring jobs back.
Since taking office 10 months ago
as the first US president with no previous political or military
experience, Trump has been given a crash course in the workings of
government and the delicate balance of power between the White House,
Capitol Hill and the courts. That his writ only runs so far has come as a
rude awakening. His executive orders can only achieve so much, and
frustrations have sometimes spilled out in impetuous speeches and
tweets.
Rick Tyler, a political analyst and partner at Foundry
Strategies, said: 'He is acutely aware of the limits of presidential
power. It's not like being the CEO of a company where you just do what
you want to do.
'By using executive orders, Trump is making something
happen on healthcare. He's prevented from changing it himself, but will
force another branch of power to react. It's the same on Iran.
Having
repeatedly vented his anger at the Republican-controlled Senate for
failing to repeal and replace Obamacare, despite seven years of
promises, Trump has now thrown a spanner in the works by ending the
so-called cost-sharing subsidies that help people on low incomes. The
White House claims the government cannot legally continue to pay the
subsidies because it lacks formal authorisation by Congress.
The
president explained on Friday: 'It's step by step by step and that was a
very big step on Thursday… We're going to have great healthcare in our
country. We're taking a little different route than we had hoped,
because Congress forgot what their pledges were. So we're going a little
different route. But you know what? In the end, it's going to be just
as effective, and maybe it will even be better.
The intervention,
however, could backfire. It was condemned by Democrats including the
House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, who told reporters: 'The president
single-handedly decided to raise America's health premiums for no reason
other than spite and cruelty. Senator Chris Murphy tweeted: 'Trump's
decision to stop ACA payments is nuclear grade bananas, a temper tantrum
that sets the entire health system on fire.
Doctors' groups also
warned of 'dramatic, if not catastrophic, increases in premiums across
the country and millions of Americans losing coverage. Nineteen states
plan to sue.
Trump has previously blamed the lack of healthcare fixes
on Obama or Congress, but he now he risks being held personally
responsible for cutting the system off at the knees. Robert Shrum, a
Democratic consultant, said: 'The healthcare thing is madness in both
policy and politics. He's wilful, he's angry, he's clearly lashing out.
He was better off leaving healthcare to Lamar Alexander and Patty
Murray, the senators working on a bipartisan deal.
Trump's claim
that Iran has not lived up to the spirit of the nuclear deal and his
threat to terminate it also put him at odds with his Secretary of State,
Rex Tillerson, and his Defence Secretary, Jim Mattis.
Evan McMullin,
a former CIA operative and independent presidential candidate, wrote
via e-mail: 'I think the president's actions on healthcare and Iran are
the latest examples of his standing political strategy, which is to
throw red meat to his base in order to maintain his base, as evidence of
his unfitness and inability to govern mounts.
'If anything, his use
of this tactic seems to be accelerating as it becomes increasingly
clear, even to some of his closest friends and political allies, that he
is failing.
This acceleration coincides with reports of a darkening
in Trump's mood. A report in Vanity Fair magazine, citing two sources,
claimed he had vented to his longtime security chief, Keith Schiller: 'I
hate everyone in the White House! There are a few exceptions, but I
hate them!
The journalist Gabriel Sherman also wrote that several
people close to the president told him that Trump was unstable, 'losing a
step and unravelling. Such concerns appear to be reaching a critical
mass. NBC News reported that Tillerson had referred to Trump as a moron.
The president insisted the story was false, but challenged Tillerson to
an IQ contest.
Then Senator Bob Corker became one of the few
Republicans on Capitol Hill to openly denounce Trump, though it is
widely suspected that he speaks for many colleagues. During a Twitter
clash last Sunday, Corker wrote: 'It's a shame the White House has
become an adult day care center. Someone obviously missed their shift
this morning.
In an interview with the New York Times, the senator
from Tennessee said: 'I know for a fact that every single day at the
White House, it's a situation of trying to contain him … He doesn't
realise that we could be heading towards World War III with the kind of
comments that he's making.
He also told the Washington Post on
Friday that Trump had rendered Tillerson's powerless with remarks about
his attempts to talk to North Korea.
Thomas Barrack Jr, a billionaire
who was the top fundraiser for Trump's election campaign, said he has
been shocked and stunned by some of the president's incendiary rhetoric
and tweets.
'He thinks he has to be loyal to his base, Barrack told
the Washington Post. 'I keep on saying, ‘But who is your base? You don't
have a natural base. Your base now is the world and America, so you
have all these constituencies; show them who you really are.' In my
opinion, he's better than this.
If anyone can get through to Trump, it may be Barrack, one of his oldest friends.
Rich
Galen, a Republican strategist, said: 'That got everybody's attention
because he's buddy and spoke at the Republican convention. So there
seems to be some change. That's part of what's feeding it.
McMullin
agreed that Trump seemed rattled by the recent criticisms from
Tillerson, Corker and Barrack. 'He probably understands their remarks
represent a new stage of acceptance setting in across the country, even
among his supporters, that he is unfit and incapable.
'That, I think,
is inspiring his accelerated efforts to throw red meat to his base to
shore up their support. I expect that to continue, if not intensify, and
to result in increasing political challenges for the GOP as 2017 and
2018 elections approach and in years to come. — Guardian News and Media
MENAFN1510201700670000ID1095952588
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.