At the same time I can't help but feel there's something more to all of this.

A TALE OF TWO CABINET MEMBERS

I. REX TILLERSON

Regardless of politics, Rex Tillerson was a vaguely-credible choice for Secretary of State. He had a credible degree from a credible school and worked his way up from entry level to CEO of ExxonMobil. While he lacked foreign policy experience, he had reasonable credentials from the business world to make him a bold, but not bugshit, choice to be our point man on foreign diplomacy. Not that any of that really mattered; he was hired because he looked like a Secretary of State, any number of sources have confirmed this. Unfortunately for Rex he set out to do the job he was hired to do and presumed a reasonable degree of independence. Thus was Rex Tillerson fired by tweet after thirteen months while on the shitter midflight. As aligned with Trump's goals as he was, he wasn't an utter lickspittle. Thus did Rex Tillerson retire to ignominy where he mostly counts his money or some shit, who knows.

II. PETER NAVARRO

Unlike Rex Tillerson, Peter Navarro has never been anyone's credible choice for anything. He's been a joke in the finance industry for nigh onto 30 years, largely known for bugshit ideas with no basis in truth and some seriously cranky opinions about China and tariffs. But he's on TV a lot. Note that he didn't get a major role in the last administration because "TV Economist" went to Larry Kudlow, whose main claim to fame was being Jim Cramer's straight man on "Kudlow & Cramer." Unlike Rex Tillerson or 99% of the first Trump Administration, Peter Navarro never said shit about anything Trump wanted of him and, in fact, went to prison rather than testify against Trump. Thus does Peter Navarro and his splendidly stupid ideas about tariffs hold Trump's attention... until it doesn't. And then it does. And then it doesn't. And then it does again. And then it doesn't. The best idea Trump has ever heard is the last idea Trump heard. This is as well-documented as his desire for people who look like the role over people who can do the role.

Neither of these guys are the ones you want running things. But everyone credible is fuckin' gone, man. If John Bolton thinks you're a lightweight, you're a lightweight and the John Bolton level of competence was entirely gone by 2019. We're now talking about Deputy Director of the FBI Dan Bongino. If Diamond & Silk hadn't half-died of COVID they'd probably be co-chairs of the Department of Sassy MAGA or some shit. People forget but this fucking happened. "Oops I fired my pandemic response team better go check Yahoo!Answers."

Venezuela is the shithole it is now because Chavez and then Maduro relied so heavily on cronies that every competent career professional exited the country. Iran had a similar problem but was less brutal; Cambodia had a similar problem but was more brutal. The Trump playbook is to absolutely drive out all the careerists who know what the fuck they're doing to replace them with loyalists, but there just aren't that many loyalists eager to go be park rangers or whatever. Not only that but the Trump administration doesn't have the authority that Chavez or Khomeini or Pol Pot had so he's stuck being thwarted in his dictatorial desires by the American legislative process.

He also doesn't really wanna be a dictator. I mean, he does, but that's only because dictators can play golf whenever they want. He's a deeply venial man with an utter disinterest in the world and he's getting on in years. The last thing he wants to do is work. So he's surrounded by lickspittles each pushing their own agenda, being careful not to push so hard that they get replaced by someone who will cause less work. And everyone with any competence is fuckin' gone, man.

The "billionaire class" didn't want Trump. When you've lost the Koch Brothers you've lost. Yeah, Elon pumped a bunch of money into Trump but that's because Elon is a Twitter-poisoned edgelord who disregards everyone who doesn't suck his cock. Yeah, Jeff Bezos bent the knee but that's because we gave JEDI to Microsoft. Yeah, Mark Zuckerberg bent the knee but that's because his entire empire is one monopoly bust from oblivion - have you seen Facebook's mote lately? Trump is a populist voted for by idiots who were mad about inflation surrounded by incompetents who think they can catch a falling knife.

Never attribute to malice that which is more easily explained by incompetence.

- Napoleon Bonaparte