The President of the United States tweeted this out recently:
Which was followed by this...
And you know what, for once I actually agree with our Commander-in-Chief. In fact, I think we all see where this presidential term is headed and it's time we accept it: Donald Trump needs his own TV show again.
Some people are unhappy in their jobs. You see them all the time. They have bad body language, a lack of enthusiasm, a paranoid idea that the media is dispersing fake news to undermine them. It's fairly common. But rarely does the guy behind the counter at Cinnabon have the ability to disrupt our country's healthcare system or fire nukes halfway around the world. So when it comes to Donald Trump, we need to do something to adjust his attitude. We need to make him happy again. And was he ever as happy as he was hosting a show? The answer is definitively no.
If there is one thing President Trump hates it's being the president. Working with Congress, waking up early, sitting through meetings (remember he has to have bullet points. This is a sitting president we are talking about) it's all a soul-sucking drag to Trump. If there's one thing that makes it all worth it it's the rallies. He was elected nine months ago but that doesn't mean he has to stop having campaign rallies. Sure, visiting states he won by a clear margin is a drain on his re-election budget but it's a boost to his ego and, boy, does it make him come alive.
Just look at the president get fired up talking about CNN and The Washington Post in front of his adoring fans. The wind is in his sails! He looks downright joyous!
We live in an age where media and politics have merged together in unprecedented ways. Late night personalities are more knowledgable (and necessary) than many news hosts. Celebrities endorse candidates, stump for them and sometimes even run themselves. We consume current events like we do a soap operas. That has all culminated in President Trump being elected but it likely won't end with him. Hell, people really want Dwayne Johnson or Oprah to run for president and, honestly, that doesn't sound too bad.
While Trump was the conclusion to years of Washington and Hollywood mixing, it was never truly his intention to become president. It's been suggested by many others that Trump was just running for an ego boost or to launch a television network of his own. That seems even more obvious as we discover how closely his campaign worked with Russian stooges and other unsavory types. This wasn't a man running for the highest office in the land, this was a corrupt businessman who wanted to give blustery speeches and be cheered on. But as luck would have it, people were buying what he was selling and here we are.
He doesn't want to be president. Not by a long shot. It's why he gets that sparkle in his eyes whenever boasting about ratings. It's why he surrounded himself with truly despicable people who really want to run the show while he stays hands off. It's why he targets late night hosts and throws these unnecessary rallies (essentially creating a show of his own - one without ratings). Get Trump talking about the legislative process and he's deflated and bored. Get him talking about crowd sizes and glowing reviews and he's a whole new man.
So I've got a plan. It's simple really. Let's turn his weekly presidential address into a TV show. Pump some real cash into the budget, bring in a rowdy audience, maybe even a guest or two. Give Donald Trump the thing he wants far more than the Oval Office: his own show. He can ramble on about ratings or football players or Rosie O'Donnell. Give him an hour every week to bloviate about whatever he pleases.
Trump's attention will be so focused on his show that he will let everything else slide. Want that slimy John Cazale knock-off Stephen Miller out of the White House? Give Trump a primetime special and I guarantee he'll sign off on that. How about the Paris Accords, want us to stay committed to those? Let the president have a two-hour clip show of his greatest campaign moments and he'll become your biggest climate change champion. Donald Trump is like a dog chasing a tennis ball. He wants the crowds and the ratings so much that once he gets them he’ll drop everything else. He's chasing the ball, we just need to give it to him. For our own sanity and safety. Go fetch, Donald.
It's funny, as I wrote this piece I convinced myself more and more that it could work. It's far-fetched and nearly impossible to pull off but it sounds plausible doesn't it? I don't know if that's scary or sad or all too appropriate for 2017. I think it's a mix of all three.
The media and pop culture helped craft Donald Trump into the powerful and narcissistic politician he is. Now it's time for those same forces to fence him in. And they won't do it by limiting his exposure. No, instead they can decrease Trump's damage to America by giving him a bigger platform. If we let the bright lights of primetime blind President Trump, we can grasp power from his little claws.