By Colleen O’Connor
There’s sound advice for President Trump and both political parties in a centuries-old children’s nursery rhyme that everyone knows.
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.
In the age of dueling tweets amid looming political and economic chaos, it seems most appropriate.
Someone’s fall appears imminent.
Attempting to craft the fifth “short-term” government funding bill, Congress and the President are at odds with each other, themselves, the debt, the Dreamers, and longstanding defense and domestic spending priorities.
The deadline to fix these “non-fixables” is Friday and there’s a pending spring recess on tap shortly thereafter.
Senate leaders have a plan, but there’s no guarantee the House will accept it.
But, the most frightening specter, hovering any responsibly crafted budget—needed to keep the government open—is “The Wall.”
And President Trump’s position atop it. He insists funding for it must be included in the budget.
Recall his signature campaign promise: “I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I’ll build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border and I’ll have Mexico pay for that wall.”
And he champions his wall constantly—most recently at his State of the Union address.
The trouble is that the U.S. border with Mexico is roughly 2,000 miles long and is so geographically challenging — the Rio Grande and Colorado River, numerous mountains and vast wastelands — and includes so much acreage held in private hands that the cost is nearly incalculable.
The latest, very conservative price tag, is $50 billion. So, who will pay? And how will it get included in the budget deal?
Trump’s stance, which he constantly tweets, is that “Mexico will pay” for the wall.
However, just as vehemently, and vociferously, former Mexican President, Vincent Fox tweets back that Mexico “won’t pay for that f***ing wall! Be clear with US tax payers. They will pay for it.”
Americans oppose either paying for or building the wall by almost a two-thirds margin — 63 percent versus 34 percent in an ABC News/Washington Post poll.
The Democrats thought they obtained a compromise, but Trump withdrew his support. He wants his “great, beautiful wall.”
As opposition mounts, the President has doubled down and remains—like Humpty Dumpty—perched precariously atop his wall, heedless of any criticism or dangers.
Janet Napolitano, former governor of Arizona and Homeland Security Secretary, humorously rebutted the logic of the President’s wall: “Show me a 50-foot wall and I’ll show you a 51-foot ladder.”
To say nothing of the sophisticated underground drug tunnels, submarine boats, drones and well-disguised fishing boats that defy any walls.
Or those Mother Goose-era low-tech “catapults’ coming back into use. Simply fling the contraband over the wall and watch the Border Patrol give chase.
Nonetheless, Trump teeters on his wall. At times he has agreed to a see-through wall, at times an electric fence or other a high-tech wall, more border guards, and even serious immigration reform to deal with the Dreamers and keep his wall.
While facing the reality of former campaign aides pleading guilty and turning state’s evidence in the Russia probe, damning national intelligence evidence on Russia’s meddling in the U.S. presidential election, and the possibility of his own indictment, Trump still sits atop his wall.
No wall. No immigration deal. No Dreamers. No Democrats. No budget.
Simple. Just like the nursery rhyme.
But, what happens after Humpty Dumpty’s great fall?
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.
A childhood reminder of the perils facing the President.
Colleen O’Connor is a native San Diegan and a retired college professor.
