Chaos, Controversy, and Confusion

Bob Schieffer, television journalist with CBS News since 1969: 

America has never experienced anything like the Trump presidency.

It is ending as it began--in chaos, controversy, and confusion. He told us America was broken, and only he could fix it.

His reign mirrored his own chaotic life. He lurched from one crisis to another, from financial windfalls to bankruptcies, from tabloid scandals to audacious lies.

Rudy Giuliani

He introduced us to a bizarre cast of characters, from porn stars to the crackpots and clowns who inhabit the dark fringes of American politics. Some, like Rudy Giuliani seemed to melt before our eyes, as his hair dye trickled down his cheek during a news conference.

Most he touched were diminished by the experience. Others, who sought power by riding the back of the tiger, wound up inside.

He played down the pandemic and found kind words for Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, but seemed determined to drive a wedge between America and our traditional allies.

Yes, the stock market went up, but the nation's deficit and national debt ballooned to record levels.

As we saw in those awful scenes unfolding in the Capitol, we came to understand that the man who had a manic desire for power had no real understanding of the power he possessed, or what happens when it is misused.

He will be gone soon, but he showed us America was not broken; he was.

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Face the Nation   01/10/2021