Boast Loudly and Swing a Big Stick
An Exceptional Thugocracy
In Venezuela, one might say President Trump said “You’re fired!” to Maduro without any firm plan of succession and without any authority to fire Maduro in the first place other than the authority of guns. That’s thugocracy, not democracy.
It’s a violent ethic, a conceit consistent with what Karl Rove reportedly said in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion in 2003:
We’re an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you’re studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we’ll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that’s how things will sort out. We’re history’s actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.
Trump and henchmen like Stephen Miller see themselves as “history’s actors.” They strut on the stage, hogging attention, demanding compliance and affection from the crowd, legends in their own minds, so insulated by narcissism that they’re impervious to legal and moral concerns.
Congress, of course, does basically nothing to stop them. By abdicating its responsibility, Congress is an accessory before the crime. Those who aren’t applauding like Speaker of the House Mike Johnson are holding their fingers to the air, testing the political winds, before saying anything of substance. When profiles in courage are most needed, we get conformity and compliance.
Meanwhile, self-styled Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is busily creating a military of “warriors” empowered by a so-called warrior ethos. In essence, an extra-constitutional one that serves war and imperialism.
The Donroe Doctrine is really about military aggression without respect for international law. It’s a might makes right policy, so any country with “might” (Russia, China, etc.) should feel empowered by Trump’s actions to do whatever they want in their defined spheres of influence. It’s the law of the jungle, a world red in tooth and claw. Or, in business-speak, a retrograde vision of hostile takeovers driven by profits and power. Or, to cite Major General Smedley Butler, gangster capitalism empowered by militarism.
President Teddy Roosevelt famously said: “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” Favor diplomacy, but be prepared to use force when necessary. The Trumpian version is “Boast loudly and swing a big stick.” It’s the language of would-be conquerors, of imperators, of tyrants.
As early as March of 2016, Trump made it clear he’d be unbound by the law in his actions as president. In the aftermath of that, it tells you something about America that he’s been elected and reelected by the “exceptional” nation.
P.S. Below is a headline today at NBC News that tells you something vital about American exceptionalism:
Trump to meet with oil executives at White House
Trump is expected to meet with oil executives at the White House on Friday, according to a White House official.
Representatives from Chevron, Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips are planning to attend, the official said, with more likely to be added.
It's also a war crime and unconstitutional- though finding one of the leaders of the 'opposition' to say so is difficult when they're holding their fingers in the air to see which way the wind blows.
I was trying to understand why the Venezuelan operation disturbed me so much, given all the war crimes of the US over the last century. Then, I read Moon of Alabama's post from yesterday (https://www.moonofalabama.org/2026/01/why-might-makes-right-is-dangerous-for-all-of-us.html) and that made me understand why I was feeling what I was. We have finally burst through all the self images and deceptions to the naked use of violence - and they will be coming for us too.
Trump, et al, are boldly showing us that they have no respect for any laws. What is happening in Venezuela, Sudan, Gaza (how many more places) is barbaric. So many of our politicians are consumed by greed and power, and barely pretend to even care about suffering and human lives.