As America implodes, Trump can do anything he wants

As America implodes, Trump can do anything he wants
And we can watch it all from a Cracker Barrel rocking chair

By Brian Karem
White House columnist
Published August 29, 2025 9:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) Thank God. Donald Trump has saved us. The old Cracker Barrel logo is returning.

Having spent too much time traveling across the country since before I knew how to drive, there are two road stops I’ve always loathed to make. Cracker Barrel was one. To me it was just a dining room extension of the Stuckey’s of my youth — which I also hated. I was never a fan of Cracker Barrel’s food, Stuckey’s candies or the kitsch you had to wade through if you had the misfortune of spending time at either establishment. But Cracker Barrel’s porch and rocking chairs are good enough for a road rest, and if you like the food, more power to you. I can barely handle the pecan roll at Stuckey’s.

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When the restaurant announced Tuesday that it was abandoning the makeover for its traditional cornpone, Donny took credit for the about-face and announced it as the crowning achievement of his day — after declaring in a Cabinet Meeting earlier that morning that he could do anything he wanted because, don’t forget, he’s president. A president can’t make or interpret laws, isn’t above the law, can’t declare war or decide how federal money can be spent. He can’t even choose Cabinet members or Supreme Court justices without Senate approval. But in Donny’s delusion, he thinks he can.

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The latest meeting of Donny’s bargain basement Cabinet ran for three-hours-and- seventeen-minutes. Even the New York Times recognized that Trump once again ran it like a reality show. Most media critics say it should have been broken into two episodes. The first hour-and-forty-five minutes should have just featured the effusive fawning praise from Cabinet members and self-congratulations parading as insight from Donny. The second episode could have been dedicated to standup routines from the Cabinet secretaries, followed by some self-congratulatory, deep questions from the press — like what does the president think of two celebrities getting married? What a great question that has nothing to do with Trump invading American cities, trampling citizens’ rights, lying, cheating, stealing and destroying the free markets of capitalism he swore to uphold.

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The MAGA minions are also becoming alarmed at the president’s flagrant violation of the Posse Comitatus law, which is supposed to keep the government from using the military as police officers. The law was a direct result of the Civil War, and it was originally proposed by, wait for it…Republicans. Many members of the military, as well as the National Guard, are also not too happy with Trump for ignoring this law. They have received training as soldiers, not as peacekeepers; they are not officers who are sworn to protect and serve. It is inherently dangerous to arm the military and have them patrol cities throughout the U.S. This isn’t 1968. We aren’t in the Vietnam War. We don’t face the spectacle of thousands of soldiers coming home in body bags. Two of our most important political and moral leaders haven’t been assassinated. Our cities aren’t burning, and there are no riots in the streets — although it appears Trump would like there to be. He is both deflecting attention from his Epstein association and doubling down on his strong-arm tactics to break all resistance to his regime. ...................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/08/29/as-america-implodes-trump-can-do-anything-he-wants/