Trump Putin Summit Hangover - The Morning After
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Trump demanded this summit. It was his plan, took place against advice – especially the bit where he agreed to meet in private with Putin. And it ended as monumental own goal for both Russia and Trump.
Yesterday Trump did to himself what nobody has been able to do, and nothing he has hitherto managed to do: he has made the GOP shy away from him. He also managed to frighten away a many of his Fox cheerleaders.
The GOP Senate Caucus have showed more gumption over the past 96 hours than in all of this Presidency thus far. And it is unlikely to stop here.
Remarkably Putin didn’t really help Trump as he set himself on fire. Instead Putin said he wanted Trump, to win and that he had directed his officials to help him.
Remarkably Putin didn’t really help Trump as he set himself on fire at a Helsinki podium. Instead Putin said he wanted Trump to win and that he had directed his officials to help him.
And in his initial response to the question about Kompromat on Trump, instead of issuing a blanket denial he provided a big (and obviously untrue) story about how Trump wasn’t on his radar in 2013, when he clearly was.
Meanwhile the two indictments, GRU last week, and the new Butina one today (HT @Maddow) show that Mueller’s prosecutors are now in the end game. The GRU indictment contains massive amounts of sources and methods. vox.com/2018/7/16/1757…
Usually National Security prosecutions – especially of foreign agents - are conducted in secret for this reason. Like last weeks DNC hacking indictment, today's Butina indictment - of a Russian operative arrested inside the United States - again lays out the case in public.
Former CIA chief John Brennan’s remarks on their face seemed hyperbolic and indiscreet, whether planned or spontaneous today they became a very important ingredient in the media maelstrom that has followed.
Brennan invoked impeachment. And that is where we now are.
The fact that Trump has been so clearly the author of his own destruction in this moment is very important from a communications perspective. Because there is no one else to blame, no conspiracy to avert to.
For those tasked with bringing the legal and political part of this nightmare to a conclusion, Trump’s inability to control his emotions on the podium in Helsinki, was a Godsend. And will hasten the conclusion to this saga.
With the benefit of hindsight, Trump unleashed (which can be timed to the departure of former NSA H.R. McMaster at the end of March) has very quickly become Trump undefensible.
It turns out that the G7, North Korea, NATO, and Brexit/United Kingdom rolling maelstrom of stupid was a prologue to the main event that took place yesterday.
Question now is what happens next? Can Teflon Trump and his baked on Trumpkin base yet again change the subject, start another bonfire and escape the consequences of his actions once again.
A bunch of things appear to have changed. The first being the pace of the Mueller indictments. Equally important the GOP Senate has already turned 90 degrees from Trump. The 232 tariff powers amendment and NATO censure resolution on Friday is hopefully just the beginning.
A large number of U.S. Senators have today publicly come out and said this is a step too far. And several Representatives also. Speaker Paul Ryan’s clear public statement of criticism yesterday was also a crack in Trump's defence. 
From Senate Leader McConnell’s perspective, the campaign for the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh is now in disarray. Trump has now placed his suitability to continue to serve on the agenda as the principle mid-terms issue.
And the world is also turning. Shortly before the summit the Federal Republic of Germany’s Foreign minister posted a tweet which hints at how the wider world feel about this madness.
And while fear of Russia is in the mix, notwithstanding the injudicious remarks of media commentators and the Skripal murder, it is not that the world is terrified about what Russia might do now.
Putin’s post summit IV with Fox News is arguably helpful in some ways, he at least appears like a rational actor, albeit cunning like a fox.
What the world fears most now is the destruction of American values, and the world order that is based on them. However flawed this order is, it is better than chaos. The impact of Trump/Bannon on emerging hard rightist movements in their own countries is also top of mind.
What isn't yet on the agenda and should be, is what may happen when this comes to its logical conclusion and Trump is removed from office. What will the next American administration do to avenge the United States' honour?
Nobody yet knows what Putin’s goal was in all of this is. I wonder if there even was one. Possibly it was just an opportunity that arose, and it seemed like an opportunity that should be played out to its conclusion.
Putin's interview with Fox's Wallace, and countless previous analyses suggests he feels deeply bitter about what happened after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and feels that the hypocrisy of the west is obnoxious, on which he has an arguable case.
From my perspective – even though this has been doing my head in - the prospect of the end being within sight of this astonishing collective nightmare, enables consideration of potentially positive side effects of the Trumpkin Conspiracy.
Trump and Putin’s attempt to steal/destroy/subvert American democracy has woken us all up to the vulnerability of the system of Government that we thought was bullet proof and had begun to take for granted.
The exit door to this nightmare now looms in front of United States voters on November 6th. I will be looking for much higher than normal turnout – and if that materialises then perhaps we will be on a path to fixing what is broken.
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