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Poor old Joe Biden. He may have won the electoral college and the popular vote, but he will never feel the love of his subordinates like Donald Trump did.
The first plenary meeting of the former president’s cabinet in June 2017 remains an unprecedented oilseed opera. Secretary after secretary almost threw himself at his feet, sang praises and paid homage to the divine emperor of the universe.
Has a parent ever experienced such eternal worship from their child? Only King Lear of Goneril and Regan, perhaps. And most telling was the fact that everyone was allowed to see it. Trump made sure it was one more chapter in his reality TV presidency.
Not really Biden’s style. Its first cabinet meeting on Thursday was moved to the East Room due to coronavirus restrictions – all 16 permanent members wore face masks and sat in a giant plaza with empty chairs between them – but was otherwise a comeback the old way of doing things.
The main item on the agenda was not the sculpted beauty of the American president, nor his imposing intellect, nor his unmistakable manhood, nor his ability to punch holes in one, but simply his freshly announced infrastructure plan of $ 2 billion.
Flanked by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin with Vice President Kamala Harris opposite, Biden said he was asking five cabinet members to “take special responsibility. explain the plan to the American public. “.
He did not respond to any questions from the media and, after less than two and a half minutes, the journalists were kicked out. “I thank the press for being here, but I’ll speak to all of you later.”
But even this brief glimpse behind the curtain says a lot about all that has changed. White men made up nearly three-quarters of Trump’s cabinet; they are only a third of Biden’s.
On Thursday, the East Room included Harris, the first woman and the first woman of color to serve as vice president; Janet Yellen, the first woman to head the treasury department; Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay secretary confirmed to the cabinet; and Deb Haaland, the first Native American in a president’s cabinet.
“This is the first in American history that the cabinet looks like America,” Biden said. “This is what we promised to do, and we did it.”
If Trump represented a reaction against the first black American president, Biden’s cabinet represents a reaction against the reaction.
Their refusal to play cameras with ever-growing sycophancy was also a reminder that the reality TV presidency has not been renewed for a second season.
Ratings are dropping and, such is the absence of scandals, Biden’s pet dogs are making headlines for biting people and dropping poo in a White House hallway. Cabinet members like Tom Vilsack and Denis McDonough simply cannot compete with Ben Carson or Rick Perry for comedic effect.
Save a thought for the late night comedians who suddenly become the cold turkey. How they feasted on that first Trump cabinet meeting, which started with Mike Pence declaring that it was “the greatest privilege of my life to be the vice president to the president who keeps his word to the American people.”
Reince Priebus, the White House chief of staff, continued, “We thank you for the opportunity and blessing you have given us to serve your agenda.” As Trump circled the room, nearly every secretary struggled to outdo the Olympics precedent of obsequiousness.
Late night comedian Stephen Colbert summed up: “They’re adults, some of them billionaires, and they’re just happy to have their leash pulled as the cameras roll for the dear leader.
“I had no idea Trump had such a strict ‘check your balls at the door’ policy. Honestly, it’s next level weird. This is an unprecedented public festival for an emotionally fragile man.
It was, of course, funny until it wasn’t. In a country where politics is the new religion, with all its faith, fervor and absolutes, the worship of this particular Messiah led to the murderous assault on the United States Capitol on January 6. Ordinary Joe is more in the vein of Bertolt Brecht: unhappy the land that needs heroes.
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