Like most Americans, I am suffering from bickering fatigue. The more emotional the president acts as special investigator Robert Mueller’s investigation creeps toward 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue the more determinedly his intimidated Republican defenders dig in and defend, and more confidently opposition Democrats anticipate blood in the water.
What’s going on is unprecedented in modern American history, unsettling enough to make all of us wonder what the heck is going on.
From a learning perspective there are a couple behavioral insights worth taffy-pulling here, followed by a blunt opinion of Trump’s biggest problem.
Behaviorally speaking, no one on either side of the conspiracy/no conspiracy debate will change anyone’s mind until facts (i.e. Mueller’s summary) convince him or her to reluctantly do so.
The reason why is that once the brain forms an opinion — and this is a situation in which every American has one — during subsequent interactions the brain looks for reaffirming evidence that supports what the brain believes is correct. The brain does not seek contrary evidence. In other words, everyone who believes in the “deep state conspiracy” will filter and frame everything he or she sees in support of that conclusion.
Contrarians’ brains work the same way. These men and women will seek and process information through a lens that “knows” the president is guilty of obstruction and dirty dealings.
The second behavioral problem we face deals with the nature of information distribution, which these days is nearly all digital. People rely on the same few information sources day after day, many of which lack fact-checking truth filters. Shame on both sides of the aisle for this one. FOX feeds the Republicans, CNN feeds the Democrats, and neither side spends more than token minutes each day with anything remotely similar to level-headed moderation. There are no winners in a situation like this, just a nation of misinformed, frustrated voters.
But Trump has one very big problem that threatens his presidency, as well as his legacy. His sword of Damocles is the time-tested truth that the presidency does not develop character. The presidency reveals character.
Few will debate that Trump is some degree of dirty, but arguments about over the degree. His misdirection tactics, insults, denials, and lies historically trace back to his days as a young pup conning his way to notoriety in New York City tabloids.
My personal view is that the presidency is a job best held by a man or woman of unimpeachable integrity, and dogged, fact-based news reporting is slowly revealing uncomfortable behaviors that make moderate Americans uneasy. Increasing numbers of voters on both sides of the aisle feel the president is being exposed like an eroding beach in a receding tide.
There is no happy ending to what lies ahead. Trump will be exonerated or exposed. Regardless of the outcome, the nation will be divided.
Time will tell soon enough. Until then Trump’s biggest problem remains the man in the mirror. He is acting like a man with much to hide, not someone of open cooperation. Unfortunately for him, today it seems far too late to change.
For his sake, and our sake, I hope he is exonerated so the shouting stops and he can get on with running the country. But if the hammer falls, I hope the facts do the talking and we move forward together as a nation, rather than apart as individuals.
Be true to the person you see in the mirror. When we are happy with what we see, life gets a whole lot easier.
