Sep 30

Sep 30 The "Enemy From Within"

Chicago, Demonstrations, Donald J. Trump, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

Several days ago, both the pro-Palestinian and “Trump-Out-of-Chicago” forces announced separate emergency demonstrations. The “Trump-Out-of-Chicago” demonstration was scheduled for today at 4:30 PM, across the river from the Trump Tower, while the pro-Palestinian demonstration was scheduled for 5:00 PM, just east of Michigan Avenue along Wacker Drive. I assumed the two groups would eventually merge into one for a march. When I arrived at 4:45 PM for the Trump Tower demonstration, the merger had already taken place, long before the speeches had begun.

One local news outlet reported that 200 people took part, while another put the number at 350. Watching the marchers pass as I stood on an elevated platform, I put the number at 500. No matter. Tonight’s demonstration should have turned out in excess of 100,000 people given this morning’s shameful Trump-Hegseth performance. Hegseth had summoned some 800 high-ranking members of the U.S. military to Quantico, Virginia from their posts throughout the world. The reason why was kept under wraps, resulting in much speculation.

When the big reveal came, Hegseth spoke about warrior culture and standards based on his antiquated views of what constitutes manliness. Like Trump, Hegseth wants to return to the ‘halcyon’ days of Sixties, when Playboy magazine defined what it meant to be a man (and a woman). The latter disrobed so that the former could gaze.

Much of Trump’s speech was highly inappropriate given his focus on partisan issues, which is a big “No, No.” The U.S. military is prohibited from engaging in partisan political activity. To their credit, the military brass sat stone-faced as both Trump and Hegseth spewed nonsense. No applause, nor cheers. Looking at the generals whenever the cameras cut to the audience, I could only imagine just how these seasoned combat veterans must have viewed this spectacle. Most must have found the exercise to be both revolting and offensive.

Trump once again deployed his patented “weave,” jumping from one topic to another. We learned that: (i) he fears falling while walking up stairs because he would look like Joe Biden; (ii) he has now resolved eight wars; (iii) he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize; (iv) the Congo and Venezuela opened their prisons, sending criminals to the U.S.; (iv) since he deployed the National Guard “12” days ago, Washington, D.C. is free of crime; (v) Portland, Oregon is a war zone infested by the radical left; and (vi) the 2020 election was rigged. Nothing new.

Note: 800 National Guard troops were deployed to D.C. one or two days after Trump’s August 11 decision to deploy them, so Trump’s “12-day” reference in incorrect. Trump can’t seem to get a straightforward fact correct, raising a fundamental question: Why was he so upset when the teleprompter stopped working last week during a speech he delivered to the UN General Assembly? He largely speaks off the cuff, improvising as he rambles.

After Trump finished, more than a few commentators speculated that he might be in the early stages of dementia, as did I. At times his delivery was halting and somewhat tentative.

Trump did veer off into some very dangerous and previously unchartered territory. While he didn’t specifically single out tonight’s rallies in Chicago, based on his comments, he would characterize the people who rallied as the “Enemies from Within,” a phrase which includes anyone who disagrees with Trump. He then told the generals:

[W]e should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military National Guard, but military, because we're going into Chicago very soon. That's a big city, with an incompetent governor, stupid governor, stupid.

That single line should have exponentially increased tonight’s turnout. The demonstrators who did turnout included Palestinians, people from Chicago’s large Mexican Community, retirees who took part in the Vietnam-era protests during their college days, and young people who lean socialist or who view corporate America as oppressive and evil.

My intuition told me that the crowd was not packed with professionals, business owners, or well-off suburbanites despite their opposition to the Trump agenda. Nothing will change until those who do not regularly show up in Union Park for the annual May Day commemoration decide to join those who turn out for the now weekly demonstrations against the Trump agenda. Trump’s Republican acolytes dismiss young people who dress in black and prominently display tattoos and face piercings, but lawyers, doctors, journalists, architects, teachers, scientists, tech execs, and merchants aren’t so easily dismissed despite being the “elites” that Trump rails against. They vote, fund political campaigns, and some are active in political parties.

By and large, I found tonight’s demonstration highly disappointing. In their speeches, Trump and Hegseth had given the speakers plenty of fodder, including Hegseth’s demand that the generals lose weight, shave their beards, and forgo female dresses, as well as Trump’s plans to use American cities as training grounds as the military fights crime. While several speakers referenced the two speeches, most recycled remarks that everyone has already heard many times before—speeches that are filled with meaningless rhetoric, including references to colonial oppression, liberation, and economic grievances. While I commend the speakers for continuing to show up, they need to lose their stridency and forego the platitudes before moderates will turn out. Numbers are the key to defeating the Trump agenda.

Before concluding, I offer three additional observations: First, in recent months, the corner of Wacker Drive and Michigan Avenue has become the preferred site for demonstrations. It is a lousy one because there is insufficient sidewalk space, forcing demonstrators to spill into the street, which poses a hazard to them. Perhaps of greater importance, the visuals are terrible because there is no central focal point. The organizers counter, arguing that the corner has much greater visibility than other sites because it is surrounded by hotels and office buildings.

Second, at least one sign made reference to the recent South Park episodes that saw Donald J. Trump impregnate Lucifer. I am amazed how quickly the almost weekly cultural commentary on the Trump Administration is appropriated. A few weeks back, multiple placards referenced Alligator Alcatraz. For several months DOGE and Elon Musk filled the signage. During the first Trump Administration, I recall one demonstrator carrying a large banner filled with Betty White’s image. Plastered above her head was the word “Covfefe.”

Third, and finally, while large numbers of demonstrators didn’t turnout, the news media was out in force. Today’s demonstration provided the media with the local angle on what today’s was today’s national headline.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]