The Ghosts of Christmas Past Haunting Trump’s White House |
In Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, the Ghost of Christmas Past doesn’t punish or terrify. Instead, it reminds. The haunting is less mystical than moral, illustrating how history lingers when its lessons go unlearned.
The tale remains especially relevant in the White House today, and not just because of the holiday season. Besides, Melania hates Christmas.
Every presidential administration wrestles with its own ghosts. President Trump and his Cabinet of Scrooges are shadowed by two figures whose failures stemmed not from circumstance but character: Herbert Hoover and J. Edgar Hoover. Though their paths barely crossed, their legacies of economic neglect and systemic coercion are ever-present.
Herbert Hoover embodied the moral failure of inaction. When the Great Depression devastated the nation, he refused to treat widespread suffering as a call for federal intervention. The catastrophic results included soaring unemployment, hunger, disease, and death. Americans experienced what it means when their government refused responsibility for pain.
Trump’s governing style reflects this refusal to face reality, with consequences stemming from