Three things to like or dislike about Trump

In coming to grips with everything that is happening, it seems to me that there are THREE different reasons to be happy, or unhappy, with the president.  What are they?

The first is policy

There are ample policy actions that were either implemented by executive order in the first days of the Trump presidency.  Many more are moving ahead in Congress on the expectation that Trump will sign legislation that aligns with the Republican agenda. Policy also drives his cabinet and other political appointments (and there are a lot more of them than most people realize).

There are plenty of things in this mass of policy actions and appointments to like or dislike.  Mostly, I dislike them.

The second is personality

Donald Trump can be charming, but he can also be a jerk.  There are people who like him in his argumentative, brash, factually-challenged mode.  Other people are turned off.

Count me among those turned off.

The third is competence

Every time we turn around, the president, personally, the White House collectively, or senior Trump aides and surrogates are messing up.  They try to pass it off as inconsequential, but the underlying recurring theme is incompetence -- people who don't know what they are doing.

This presumably does not bother some people, because, you know, when you're in a new job it can take a while to get the hang of it.

Count me among the people it bothers.  Misstep after misstep demonstrates clearly that Trump and his senior aides are fundamentally incompetent, bumbling around  and making misstep after misstep.

In fact, count me as a person who does not trust Trump and his advisers to do anything right.  I do not think I am alone in this, and it is not good to have a president of the United States who engenders mistrust.

So what?

There are plenty of Republicans who are unhappy with what is happening, but they are not yet ready to cross Trump.

Why? Because elected Republican officials are pretty much obligated to support the republican agenda of repealing health care, reducing regulations, enriching the rich, etc.  They may not even like certain elements of this agenda, but they are Republicans so they have no choice but to support it.

Donald Trump in the White House means success in the Republican agenda, no matter how competent or incompetent the man is.