BLAME

January 22, 2018

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher,

101 Main Street #380

Huntington Beach, CA 92648

Dear Congressman,

Re: Blame

It’s a sorry spectacle, to see Republicans and Democrats blaming each other for the current government shutdown. You’d think the Congress of the United States could do better than twelve-year-olds in the schoolyard.

The real blame, as I see it, lies with the man in the Oval Office and those in his administration and his party who are willing to sacrifice all good sense, human decency and honor in their rush to support his every shifting position. Obsessed with the need to be adored and obeyed, he is fearful of making any decision lest it alienate his base—or indeed the last person that he spoke to. Last week, he made nice in that famous televised conference, promising to sign any bill brought to him in the spirit of bipartisanship; yet by the time that bill was brought to him, he had listened to other advisors and had done a volte-face.

Mutual trust, it seems to me, is a prerequisite for any sound negotiation, and Trump destroys trust with his every utterance, promise, and position. A compulsive liar, he is the very antithesis of trust itself. He is also, as it happens, the man who occupies the office of final responsibility, and he shows himself incapable of accepting that responsibility.

The only solution to this problem is for his henchmen, both in the White House and the People’s House, to behave responsibly themselves. Instead, though, they choose to prevaricate on his behalf, and cast the blame on others. In many of my letters, I have begged you to be the one to step forward and tell the truth. You have not done so. Too bad for all of us!

Respectfully,

Peter Clothier, Ph.D.