Government by television: Trump’s nascent hapless regime recalls this 1979 movie | Opinion

This column has never recommended a movie, but here’s an exception from the film bin of history to find some explanation for what we are witnessing in the planning stages of Donald Trump 2.0. The movie to watch, “Being There,” takes us back to 1979 when it hit the big screen starring Peter Sellers, nominated for Best Actor, and Melvin Douglas who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Role. Shirley MacLaine and Jack Warden filled out the excellent cast.

Being There tells the tale of Chance, a simple-minded gardener, whose employer hears his name incorrectly and calls him Chauncey Gardiner, based on his livelihood. Chauncey utters simple statements that folks interpret as pithy bits of wisdom when, in fact, he is describing the work of a gardener and the seasons that flow through this simple man’s life.

Ultimately, Chauncey’s take on life, derived solely from watching television and tending to his garden, are misinterpreted by people in power including the president of the United States who Chauncey is introduced to by his wealthy employer who advises the president. The president hears one of Chauncey’s simplistic aphorisms as an erudite comment about the economy, and Chauncey is catapulted to fame and eventually the movers and shakers consider Chauncey presidential timber. It goes without saying that the film is a satire, but it might also classify as a 1979 near-future flick given where we are today.

In 2015, the Library of Congress selected “Being There” for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” But who would know that Being There would become even more salient to those of us trying to figure out how Trump was elected in 2016 and then elected again in 2024. The comparison is noteworthy.

Trump, like Chauncey, watches TV where he formulates his worldview. He surely doesn’t read books. He doesn’t read memos loaded with details on how to approach a major issue confronting the nation. He just watches TV and takes advice from the last person he’s seen in his office. These days that seems to be an immigrant from South Africa, Elon Musk.

Trump’s TV moments are essential to understanding how he compares to Chauncey. First, there’s the day he watched TV as insurrectionists stormed the capitol incited by a speech he gave that morning. Staff told Trump his vice president was being escorted to a safe place as rioters waved “Hang Pence” signs. His response: “So what?”

Trump chose not to lift a finger in support of his own vice-president. He even displayed his overreliance on TV during the debate when he was asked to verify his assertion that folks were eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio. Like Chauncey, he said he saw it on TV.

Comparing Trump to Chauncey certainly doesn’t work across the board. Chauncey was a kind and gentle man far removed from the punitive and vengeful Trump, but both exhibit a simple-minded devotion to the TV.

Trump’s Chauncey moments of acquiring his knowledge of the world from TV becomes even clearer when you look at the cast of characters he has nominated for appointments to key Cabinet and White House positions. Where does Trump go? To the TV, of course, and his favorite cable TV channel, Fox News.

For one of the most important jobs in the free world, secretary of defense, Trump chose Pete Hegseth, a Fox News host on weekends. Apparently, Trump’s staff missed Hegseth’s behavior as a serial sexual assaulter in combination with a history of alcohol abuse. His own mother called him “an abuser of women.”

By the time you read this column, Hegseth is likely to have been forced to remove himself from consideration, but it’s not as though information on Trump’s picks for key positions in the new Administration is difficult to find. For example, his book, “American Crusade” refers to “domestic terrorists” and jibes with Trump’s threat to use the military to quell civil protests. You would think Trump’s staff would go immediately to Hegseth’s books to detect whether the nominee could survive the details of his background likely to present problems for his nomination.

Candidates for public office are always vetted for backgrounds that may disqualify them for the position. Everything now revealed by the media could have been accessed by staff charged with protecting the integrity of Trump’s appointments which leads to one of two conclusions.

First, Trump could give a hoot about things that might disqualify a candidate, so why bother with background checks? The president-elect has a ton of disqualifications, and it didn’t prevent him from getting elected. Or Trump was informed of the issues found in the background checks and chose to ignore them. Neither option speaks well of the president-elect’s ability to surround himself with public officials who will do no harm to the United States. (Hard to believe that low bar is all we can hope for these days!)

Like Chauncey, Trump only knows what he sees on TV, and he apparently brushed off the U.S. Constitution’s “advice and consent” clause that requires the Senate to confirm key appointments to the administration. A few Republican Senators and Democrats can question candidates for public office with black marks on their records which forces them to remove their names from consideration or bear the embarrassment of a Senate vote failing to confirm.

The TV president-elect didn’t stop at Hegseth as he plucked TV talent for jobs demanding heavier credentials than acquired in front of a TV camera. Trump chose Dr. Mehmet Oz to run Medicare and Medicaid, once again a candidate with no managerial experience running such programs. But Oz had his own TV show for 13 seasons, enough reason for Trump to appoint him. The most you can say about Oz is that he has no experience running such complex programs, but he billed Medicare as a physician and his advanced age makes him eligible for Medicare benefits.

Sean Duffy was in Congress, but Trump also found him on Fox where he was a co-host, but now will run the Department of Transportation if confirmed. Tom Nichols’ new second edition of “The Death of Expertise” comes to mind with these and other Trump nominees who share the common qualification of little or no experience and expertise for the job.

Now is the time for Idahoans to call the offices of Sens. Jim Risch and Mike Crapo to remind them of their constitutional obligations to approve and consent to the President’s appointments and, most importantly, help them overcome their historic inability to find fault with a very damaged president-elect. Both have recently commented on their willingness to approve Trump’s appointments. Risch has pointed out that “appointments by the president are constrained by the advice and consent of the Senate. The Senate takes that seriously and we vet these.” Let’s hope he votes only for those with the requisite experience and expertise to perform in office.

Meanwhile back at the White House, like Chauncey, Trump will once again have a garden in the White House and plenty of TV’s. All he needs to Make America Cringe Again.

Bob Kustra served as president of Boise State University from 2003 to 2018. He is host of Readers Corner on Boise State Public Radio and is a regular columnist for the Idaho Statesman. He served two terms as Illinois lieutenant governor and 10 years as a state legislator.