Tracking America’s freefall down the rabbit hole of mad politics

“We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.”

The Cheshire Cat, “Alice in Wonderland”

If anyone thought otherwise, American politics has long since crashed through Alice’s looking glass into Wonderland. The Cheshire Cat is right. “We’re all mad here.” How else can the current political madness be explained?

Miles of newsprint and gallons of ink have failed to grapple with this question. And no rational or objective answers are credible or even believable. 

A former president had been indicted four times with 91 charges leveled against him. They are serious, including conspiracy to alter the results of the 2020 presidential election and obstruction of justice in the matter of illegal possession and storage of highly classified material.

The current president has allowed his relationship with his eldest surviving child to cloud his judgment, trapping him in what, at best, can be seen as serious perceived conflicts of interest that could, and the operative word is could, lead to allegations that President Biden is involved in some form of criminal activities. 

But the Wonderland analogy does not stop there.

War rages in Ukraine. As the highly anticipated Ukrainian offensive to recover territory unlawfully seized by Russia faces a stubborn defense, the White House is increasingly criticized. One critique is that it’s not supplying sufficient war material and support quickly enough for Kyiv to achieve its objectives. The other is that the second anniversary of the disastrous evacuation from Kabul is a reminder that past administration blunders may not be confined to Afghanistan.

Then there are the environmental disasters: destructive wildfires in Maui and extreme weather off the coast of Southern California with Hurricane Hilary, a curious name that Alice might observe. Unprecedented rainfalls are likely and cannot be dismissed merely as changing weather patterns. 

Congress is not in session while on summer recess. Yet, it has not approved all the required authorization and appropriation bills to prevent a government shutdown Oct. 1st. And Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-Ala.) hold on military promotions could cause a national security crisis.

This is one of the vagaries of the Constitution. Nowhere does that document give the authority to any member of the Senate to place a hold on a nominee. This affects about 300 senior officers, including all members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Each of the current service chiefs has been made “acting” chief. However, the Federal Vacancies Reform Act specifies that a person can serve only in an “acting” capacity for 210 days.  

If Tuberville does not change his mind or is not induced to do so, the Joint Chiefs of Staff will have no legal authority to hold those positions. Suppose the president orders U.S. forces into action, or Congress passes an authorization to use force. Without a legally authorized chain of command, how is that done?

To return to “Alice and Wonderland,” things are getting “curiouser and curiouser.”

The first Republican presidential debate takes place in two days. Trump says he won’t participate. Will it make a difference? Already, anti-Trumpers are citing the 14th Amendment as grounds for disqualifying a presidential candidate who supported insurrection or rebellion. Passed after the Civil War, such an action to remove Trump, if approved by a court, would immediately end up in the Supreme Court.

Imagine if the Supreme Court voted 6-3 along party lines to allow Trump to stand for office. When the court ruled in Bush v. Gore in 2000 to end the Florida presidential recount, then-Vice President Al Gore accepted the finding. Regardless of whether the court ruled to disqualify Trump or not, would public response overwhelm the Jan. 6 riot and desecration of the Capitol? 

In the past, crises came in ones or twos. Rarely did the nation face three or more crises at the same time. The Stock Market Crash of 1929, Pearl Harbor in 1941, the Kennedy assassination in 1963, Saddam Hussein’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait, 9/11  and Russia’s February 2022 assault on Ukraine were single crises. And even the combination of Watergate and the October 1973 Arab-Israeli War was a unique multi-crisis.

But how can the nation respond to two, three or more simultaneous events, especially if each reflects different environmental, political, economic, financial or military crises? I have repeatedly raised this question in this publication and in my book, citing seven overriding “Massive Attacks of Disruption and Destruction” for which we are woefully unprepared in dealing.  

Alice’s Wonderland may not be the best analogy. But, much like the title character, unless or until this nation is prepared to realize that we collectively face a series of potentially existential dangers, we will not be safe or secure. The choice is ours.

Harlan K. Ullman, Ph.D., is a senior adviser at the Washington, D.C., Atlantic Council and the prime author of the “shock and awe” military doctrine. His 12th book was “The Fifth Horseman and the New MAD.”