Jim Lein

Minot

We should have seen this coming: a presidential government shutdown because he didn’t get his way. In this case it was a wall.

This is one of two main behaviors in his skill set: deals that others are expected to accept-or else. The other is firing people.

Go along-or you are fired. If he could fire senators and representatives, he would.

It’s very mob-like, and even though he is our president, he is not the man at the top, the boss of bosses. He is deferential to bosses like Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, two real tough operators.

Putin and the prince were captured on camera at an international meeting, just after the brutal murder and dismembering of Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia, laughing and joking together like fraternity brothers, while the other national leaders were all very serious and adult.

Hardly any elected Republicans stand up to the president, even though he cannot fire them.

The threat that he will campaign against them next election seems sufficient to cow them, our two senators included.

Without Democrats in Congress he would have his way every time, no matter how impulsive and illegal and undemocratic and harmful to some it might be.

Our founding fathers set up a system of checks and balances, a system our president finds extremely confining and chafing. He can’t stand it. He can’t stand any limits, any form of no.