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A morbid prediction but maybe not
“Perceptions,” by Gerry Warner
Op-Ed Commentary
Barely a month ago, though it seems like an eternity, I made a prediction and I still stand by that prediction no matter what anyone says.
Donald J. Trump will not finish his term!
Scoff as you may, I’m not withdrawing that prediction even though many of you may heap scorn on my attempts to imitate Cassandra, who predicted many horrific events that came true to the shame of her doubting detractors. So here’s mine and you can put away your tar and feathers where they belong.
So how many American presidents have been assassinated in 246 years of turbulent American history? If you say four, you’re correct; namely Abraham Lincoln (1865), James Garfield (1881) William McKinley (1901), John Kennedy (1964). But there has also been numerous assassination attempts over the years, including Teddy Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, FDR, Harry Truman, Gerald Ford (twice) Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. And that’s not all of them on a long and bloody list.
So, what’s the chance of another presidential assassination attempt? More than I would care to risk. In Trump’s case, he’s had two already and possibly another. But Maga Man doesn’t talk much about it. He’s too busy issuing presidential executive orders for new tariffs.
Then there’s the health issue. Trump is a big man physically – six foot three, 236 lbs. and a Body Mass Index of 29.5, which is on the unhealthy end of the BMI. He’s not young either with his 79th birthday coming up June 14 and he’s known to love sugary sodas, red meat and burgers, a diet known to be a factor in many stroke cases. But even if his health continues to hold up, Trump leads a dangerous life politically.
There was a time when no one dared to disagree with the bumptious bully but that’s changing and changing fast as Trump continues to sign executive orders issuing tariffs against Canada and numerous other countries. Making the situation even more vexing is that Trump sometimes delays the tariff orders only to bring them back stronger than ever. Meanwhile, newly installed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said his call from Trump this week was “cordial” but Canada will still fight the destructive tariffs.
“This is a very direct attack,” said Carney in a press scrum after he talked with Trump by phone. “We will defend our workers. We will defend our companies. We will defend our country.” But will these strong words scare Trump? Not likely, considering the US has close to 10 times the population of Canada, a GDP of $27.2 trillion compared to Canada’s paltry $2.89 trillion and a military force of more than a million fighters while Canada has only 71,500 troops in uniform and 30,000 in the reserves.
Despite the huge discrepancy on all fronts, Carney continues to talk bravely announcing a $2 billion “strategic response fund” to protect Canadian auto jobs as well as more billions for steel, aluminum, lumber, pharmaceuticals and other trade commodities.
Canada “needs to dramatically reduce our reliance on the United States,” he said and warned: “I don’t want to set unreasonable expectations. The road ahead will be long. There is no silver bullet, there is no quick fix.”
Brave talk, but wouldn’t it be a lot easier if Trump would just have a heart attack? Or perhaps suffer a coup if there are any gutsy Republicans left to carry out such a hopeful prediction.
– Gerry Warner is a retired journalist who believes coups are sometimes. necessary.
