Adhocracy

According to Wordsmith.org, an adhocracy (ad-HAWK-ruh-see) is a noun meaning: “1. A flexible, adaptable organization that lacks a formal structure. Or, more commonly, 2. An organization characterized by lack of planning, responding to problems as they emerge rather than anticipating and avoiding them.” As in “ad hoc.” Example of usage: “The shambolic [of or pertaining to a sham] adhocracy of his White House is a perfect reflection of Trump’s own chaotic, disordered thought process and lack of mental discipline.” Rick Wilson; “The Problem in Trump White House?” The Daily Beast (New York); Apr 10^th.

Add to this description an exceptionally thin-skinned ego, unable and unwilling to accept criticism, unwilling to accept expert advice and so ego-centric that anything good that happens is derived from that ego and anything bad that happens is someone else’s fault. To survive, it’s a culture that requires falsehoods, blind categories of blame-carriers and unquestioning cult-like followers who have long-since suspended disbelief. It also makes the self-perceived center of the universe particularly easy to manipulate through false flattery and purposefully giving false or exaggerated credit for events that had little or nothing to do with Mr. Center-of-the-Universe’s actions.

These characteristics are a perfect description of Donald Trump, a view shared by those closest to him. According to NBC News (April 30^th), “White House chief of staff John Kelly has eroded morale in the West Wing in recent months with comments to aides that include insulting the president's intelligence and casting himself as the savior of the country, according to eight current and former White House officials.

“The officials said Kelly portrays himself to Trump administration aides as the lone bulwark against catastrophe, curbing the erratic urges of a president who has a questionable grasp on policy issues and the functions of government. He has referred to Trump as ‘an idiot’ multiple times to underscore his point, according to four officials who say they've witnessed the comments.”

Trump’s inability to maintain a senior staff, his almost non-existent legislative success (effectively taking credit for a long-standing GOP platform pledge seriously to cut corporate taxes, the only major bill that was passed during his administration), criticisms of him from senior members of his own party suggesting that Trump as not an automatic shoe-in as his party’s standard-bearer in 2020, a political heresy, and his nasty proclivity to shoot from the hip without consulting his own senior appointees are pretty classic examples of a dysfunctional adhocracy. His ability to take credit for everything he perceives is good is both a reflection of his Achilles Heel and an example of how easily he can be manipulated by world powers.

Although Trump’s efforts undoubtedly contributed to creating an atmosphere where a pressure-intensive approach was appropriate, Trump addressed a Washington, Michigan rally and claimed sole (Seoul?) responsibility for the détente (and potential entente) between North and South Korea. I think he just might have forgotten that huge changes in the North’s nuclear program, shocking the entire world with how much his military capacity had accelerated and provoking instant attention from the United Nations, all of which occurred during Trump’s first year in office. He was name-calling. The rest of the world was terrified of nuclear war.

The earth woke up to North Korea’s peak malevolence once missiles capable of reaching most of Europe and North America were being tested and a blast that suggested a power only achievable by a full-on hydrogen bomb. That the blast itself created truly destructive earthquakes (destructive even into China), literally collapsing an entire mountain to implode into a giant chasm, and destroying military structures and research facilities on the surface … a signal even to Kim Jong-Un that additional testing at that level was no longer feasible. It was thus a good time for Kim to discuss denuclearization!

But South Korea, desperately wanting to diffuse a growing risk of regional nuclear war, itself began its own offensive to court the North, starting with an invitation to Pyongyang to join the South as part of a pan-Korean athletic team specifically unified for the Olympics. Fearing a loss of the U.S. nuclear umbrella or an economic trade tariff war, South Korean President Moon Jae-in went out of his way quickly to manufacture a myth that this Olympic gesture was only possible because of Trump economic and politic pressure on Kim Jong-un. Wink, wink. Trump bought, as his rally speeches and tweets suggested.

As the South and the North met to reestablish a vastly improved dialogue, working towards replacing the Armistice with a permanent peace, exchanges assurances of non-deployment of military forces, denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, transitioning the DMZ that separates the two Koreas into viable and useful land and not merely a military buffer zone, and even coordinating into the same time zone (the North used to have a 30 minute time differential to make a point), newly confirmed Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo (who has visited with Kim Jong-Un) made it clear that transparent inspections would be necessary, and Trump himself suggested that if a meeting between himself and Kim did take place, he would leave the instant he was not getting what he wanted. But did what the U.S. did or did not do matter anymore?

Still events were leading the Trump-Kim summit. The South had already completed all the groundwork, pretty much controlling the shape of the ultimate agreement. Kim had already consulted China. Whether the North was capable of sustaining a peaceful coexistence with the South was still a huge question, but clearly the United States was running to catch up with what had already taken place. Moon Jae-in felt that Washington appeared to be miffed that they were not part of this process.

The Trump-Kim meeting could not possibly go much farther than what President Moon has already accomplished. So Moon was having another panic attack that Washington would punish South Korea with harsh tariffs (as threatened). But knowing Donald “flattery will get you everywhere” Trump’s obvious manipulability, Moon outdid himself with an inane suggestion, one that could never happen, that Trump be considered for the Nobel Peace prize. Mission accomplished.

I’m Peter Dekom, and the biggest problem with four continuous years of this American adhocracy is whether the damage inflicted on our nation is reversible and, if so, how long that process will take.