The disorder that is Trump will occupy historians as long as humans last, which might not be so long anymore. But there actually isn’t that much to say about him. As chaotic as he seems, he isn’t actually that hard to diagram. Narcissistic, self-serving, ignorant, impulsive. He is a liar in the sense that the things he says are rarely true, but Trump understands truth to be whatever is coming out of his mouth at any given moment, which accounts for his persuasive (to some) tone of sincerity.

But enough about Trump. What will interest historians is the collection of horribly compromised people who surround and serve him. It is these strange iron filings clustering around Trump’s haywire magnetic personality that will come in for scrutiny. His enablers.

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The real story of Trump will be the story of people who let him happen to us. Remember “never Trump?” It turns out “never” is a short, short time.

So yes, let’s begin with members of the Republican Party. They made their bed of lies, and Trump came along to, what do you know, lie in it. The GOP had gotten very comfortable with the practice of dissembling and found it quite rewarding. After all, what are you going to do when the core of your policy agenda is catering to the rich, and your base of voters is not, um, rich? How many different ways can you find to dress up more wealth for the rich as benefiting the non-rich? Many ways, it turns out. Trump is merely the latest, make-America-greatest incarnation of the same ongoing deception.

Here’s a thought experiment. Imagine if the GOP ditched its core agenda directive of more money for the rich. What would change? I’m glad you asked. Everything would change. The long-missed bipartisanship would return, something recognizable as honest debate would return, and basic respect for facts and science would return. Trying to actually provide affordable health coverage would return! Tackling climate change would return. Or begin.

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And what would be lost? Nothing. The divergence in wealth lies at the root of most of our social stresses, which in turn amplifies our political dysfunction.

But, alas, it’s not to be. And so Trump is simply a puzzle piece to complete the serve-the-rich-and-lie-about-it matrix that the GOP has created for itself, and for us.

And that is what explains Trump, as well as the otherwise unexplainable collection of sycophantic individuals who surround him and the endless contortions they will go through to protect him.