The Meltdown of the United States |
Photo by Eric Brehm
“The whole world has decided that the U.S. government has no idea what it’s doing.”
– Mark Blyth, “Inflation: A Guide for Users and Losers,” (New York Times, April 14, 2025.)
Professor Mark Blyth’s remarks were aimed at the Trump administration’s creation of turmoil in the world’s financial markets due to its completely inept handling of the bond markets and the start of a trade war with China. But Blyth’s charge could have been leveled at every aspect of Trump’s governance over the past three months, beginning with the appointment of the most inexperienced and least capable cabinet secretaries and agency heads in the history of the United States. Donald Trump’s inauguration address for his first term in 2017 talked of “American Carnage.” Well, eight years later, here we are—American Carnage.
In less than 90 days, the United States under Trump has become a very different country. It is not an exaggeration to say that the United States is facing a meltdown that will be difficult to reverse. The executive branch has taken on powers that are usually associated with wartime requirements. The legislative branch has been largely neutralized because of the near total abdication of the Republican Party. And the judicial system is facing an unprecedented challenge from a president and vice president who have no respect for our courts and our judges. Trump has fired at least 15 inspectors general who were tasked by the Congress to root out abuses in federal agencies. This is an open invitation for corruption and abuse.
The United States is facing existential, constitutional, and identity crises that mark the country’s decline; the impact can already be seen in terms of our domestic and international instability.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS: Donald Trump’s failure to obey the Supreme Court’s unsigned order last week to take steps to garner the return of a Salvadoran migrant—Kilmar Abrego Garcia—marked the beginning of a constitutional crisis that was anticipated by many who feared Trump’s return to the White House. Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported to the most notorious prison in El Salvador, and there is still no evidence of wrongdoing on his part. He has never been arrested or accused of a crime. El Salvador President Nayib Bukele told Trump on April 14 that he would not........