Crashing, and Finally Burning

 AS THE DEATH TOLL reached two hundred and thirty thousand in the U.S., Donald Trump Jr., a chip off the old block, said on FOX: "Why do we keep talking about Covid 19 deaths? The number is almost nothing!" Hard to believe, but true. the interviewer looked amazed and confused. Simultaneously, his father reminded us that the more people who died, the more money doctors make, because these are very, very smart people. Trump will be in office until at least January 20, 2021, by which time the Covid 19 dead in America will exceed three hundred thousand. Assuming he isn't barricaded in the white House while civil war rages in American streets, he''ll leave office congratulating himself for controlling the virus and saving countless lives, and expressing dismay that the incoming administration can only lead the nation to ruin. Many people believe that the pandemic is all that cost Trump reelection, if he loses. One of his former advisers point out that he could have assured himself reelection anyway, by merely pretending to be terribly concerned about the pandemic, rather than pretending not to be, as he chose to do. Either way, he is a pretender so, why not pretend to care? Good point. People are palpably angry and afraid; the smart money is on the folks who retreat safely and wisely to their respective bubbles and remain there until spring, at least. The problem which will haunt historians and history is not so much Trump, a tough enough nut to crack, but the millions of avid, devout Trump supporters and precisely what made them tick. The MAGATS will probably be eventually grouped in with other lost cause conservative hopes and dreams,; Revolutionary War loyalists, lost cause confederates, expatriot NAZIs in south America, that sort of thing.Trump supporters will forever remain Trump supporters, though since many of them are older, the breed will vanish relatively soon. They will enshrine his memory with fabrications. They will fabricate a wildly fictional narrative to glorify a life and a career he never had, a presidency which never existed, and accomplishments he never made. They'll be like the lost cause confederate flag which flew from 1865 until recently, only they will vanish faster. For them the bad news is that the historical profession, which always has the last word, will treat Donald Trump very badly, because it will treat him honestly and fairly. The historical profession, like science, improves its understanding over time.First versions are often filled with either undeserved praise or undeserved blame, but over time,  a balanced truth emerges, as objectivity provides better perspective through research and time.That is the worst possible news for the cult of Donald Trump, which will over the decades and centuries become more inexplicable, less sensible, and far less favorably seen by future generations.