Donald Trump never wanted to be president in the traditional sense, subject to the tiresome constraints imposed by the US Constitution. Indeed, he tried that and didn’t like it. Today, instead, he plays at being king.
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He displays the vanity, mood swings, pettiness, rancor against perceived enemies and — above all — determination to showcase his mastery that for millennia characterized absolute monarchs. America’s king and Prince JD Vance, his mouthpiece in Munich last week, have put US allies on notice that henceforward they must approach his throne as vassals and suppliants — or not at all.
Anybody who has seen the BBC drama series Wolf Hall, set in the 16th century reign of Henry VIII, can catch the flavor of courts with their mingling of glitz, intrigue, whimsy and, above all, fear. Every man and woman who sought to traffic with kings and queens knew that they were taking their lives in their hands. When the will of the ruler was the only arbiter, their destinies hinged upon his goodwill. If this became forfeit, they were ruined or executed. “Off with their heads!”, cries the Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland. Henry VIII and his regal kin said the same, for real. Meanwhile, corruption was institutionalized — power, or at least influence at court, was the only path to riches.
In the palaces of monarchs, falsehood was a way of life. Most of those