Date: 2026-03-06 Page is: DBtxt003.php txt00028894
TRUMP IMPLODING
Richard Wolff: Behind the Economy: July 20th, 2025
Bad News Hits HARD ...Trump Publicly Loses Control
Richard Wolff: Behind the Economy: July 20th, 2025
Bad News Hits HARD ...Trump Publicly Loses Control
Original article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUyxU0hpjJA
Peter Burgess COMMENTARY
Peter Burgess
Transcript
- 0:00
- Intro – Trump Spirals on Live Camera
- Let us be crystal clear. Donald Trump is
- not simply facing political opposition.
- He is being crushed under the weight of
- his own design. And now for the first
- time, the American public is no longer
- looking away. At Lentille, one of the
- most accurate pollsters of 2024, shows
- Democrats leading Republicans 51% to
- 43%. That's not just a statistical
- difference. That's a collapse of
- confidence in Trump's ability to
- deliver. Even conservativeleaning Ipsos
- has his approval sinking to 41%. Other
- polls place him deep in the 30s. That's
- a death nail in electoral politics. The
- illusion is cracking. His scandals,
- financial, sexual, criminal, are
- converging in real time. The old tricks,
- they're not working anymore. He can't
- distract, deflect, or dominate the
- headlines without a mountain of
- backlash. And what does that tell us? It
- tells us that something deeper is
- shifting. We begin with polling data,
- not just numbers, but clear expressions
- 1:01
- of public sentiment. But what's dragging
- him down is more than just voter
- fatigue. It's the accumulation of truths
- long buried. We now have credible
- information surfacing about his
- involvement in disturbing events.
- Footage from the 1991 beauty pageant he
- hosted for girls as young as 14 is now
- public record. It is not speculation
- anymore. its documentation. The man who
- claims to represent American values is
- exposed as deeply embedded in a web of
- exploitation, vanity, and deceit. We
- also must address the deeper
- implications. Trump has sued Rupert
- Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for
- 10 billion, yes, billion, for what he
- calls damage to his reputation. That
- tells us he's not just desperate, he's
- delusional. His presidency wasn't just
- about Trump. It was about a political
- class that enabled this behavior. A
- media ecosystem that profited from the
- drama and an electorate that out of
- despair gambled on a con man. Now the
- 2:02
- price of that gamble is coming due. You
- don't sue your allies unless you're
- panicking. And you certainly don't sue
- over a reputation already battered by
- felony indictments, civil judgments for
- Epstein Pressure Explodes
- 2:14
- sexual abuse, and connections to Jeffrey
- Epstein's trafficking circle. Understand
- what this means. The man who once
- weaponized lawsuits against critics is
- now flailing against former friends.
- This isn't strategy, it's survival
- instinct. Trump knows he's losing grip.
- His inner circle is shrinking. His
- support among independents is eroding.
- And the media that once amplified him is
- now turning the lens back on his most
- grotesque chapters. That's the real
- story. And here is where the economic
- lesson begins. When a figure like Trump
- builds his brand on fraud, spectacle,
- and distraction, the fallout isn't
- personal, it's structural. What we are
- witnessing is the unraveling of not just
- a political figure, but an entire
- ideology rooted in spectacle over
- 3:00
- substance, ego over policy, and cruelty
- over governance. Let's get serious. If
- we want to understand the crisis Trump
- now finds himself in, we must confront
- the rot that was always there hidden in
- plain sight. This isn't just about
- failing polls or bad press. These men
- represent a system, a network of
- exploitation that Donald Trump didn't
- just brush against. He was embedded in
- it. Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker
- with connections to elites across the
- globe, was once described by Trump as a
- terrific guy who liked them young. That
- quote is not a rumor. It's on record.
- Trump and Epstein were close enough that
- multiple sources, including Epstein's
- former girlfriend, called them bros.
- Wingman. This is about the deeply
- disturbing alliances and behaviors that
- Donald Trump cultivated for decades, and
- now the public is finally forced to face
- it. He was credibly accused of sexual
- abuse and coercion involving underage
- girls. His agencies were known to
- 4:00
- facilitate exactly the kind of grooming
- and trafficking behavior that Epstein
- specialized in. And Trump, he partnered
- with Casablancas. He didn't expose the
- system, he profited from it. The names
- Jeffrey Epstein and John Casablancas may
- sound like footnotes in a tabloid
- scandal, but they are not. Casablancas,
- founder of Elite Model Management,
- wasn't just another modeling mogul. We
- now have visual evidence video from a
- 4:28
- Tariffs & Economic Suicide
- 1991 pageant hosted by Trump for girls
- as young as 14. This wasn't he some
- innocent charity event. It was a parade
- of exploitation. He invited teenage
- contestants to his private club, ogled
- them, and reportedly made crude comments
- about their bodies. Trump's legal and
- moral liabilities are now bleeding into
- political instability.
- His supporters are being forced to
- choose. Do they stand by a man accused
- of years of abuse and corruption? Or do
- they face the truth, painful as it is?
- 5:01
- Most institutions, especially on the
- right, have chosen the former that
- reveals just how far the rot has spread.
- This isn't gossip. This is
- documentation.
- It's a reckoning for everyone who
- enabled him, who stayed silent, who
- dismissed the voices of women and girls
- for decades. And now the stories are
- surfacing. The lawsuits are flying and
- the damage control is failing. Trump is
- spiraling because the mask is off. And
- it points to a pattern of behavior that
- stretches back decades culminating in a
- presidency that never severed itself
- from that past. It merely disguised it.
- And let me be clear, these are not
- isolated incidents. They are symptoms of
- a culture that protects the wealthy and
- powerful from accountability.
- a system where billionaires can
- associate with traffickers and abusers
- and face no consequences until the truth
- spills out so violently that it can't be
- ignored anymore. That moment is now. But
- here's what makes this especially
- 6:00
- dangerous. This is not just Trump's
- reckoning. And when you build power on a
- foundation of lies, eventually the truth
- comes knocking. And when it does, it
- doesn't whisper, it roars. The core of
- this unraveling, the legal front, Donald
- Trump, is now entangled in a series of
- lawsuits and judicial defeats that not
- only reveal the depth of his corruption,
- but also the collapse of the legal
- impunity he once enjoyed. The system
- that once shielded him is now turning
- against him piece by piece. And this is
- not by accident. This is the result of a
- man who believed laws were for the poor
- and loopholes for the rich. Judges are
- rejecting his motions, setting trial
- dates, and making it clear Trump will
- not escape accountability forever. Let's
- start with the $10 billion lawsuit
- against Rupert Murdoch and the Wall
- Street Journal. A model where wealthy
- elites could play by their own rules,
- weaponize the courts, and still pretend
- to be the voice of the people. That
- model is being exposed, and it's not
- 7:02
- The MAGA Cult Starts to Crumble
- pretty. That's right. Trump is suing one
- of his oldest ideological allies. Why?
- because they dared report on him
- critically. Trump is not fighting for
- power anymore. He's fighting for
- survival. But when the law, the truth,
- and public sentiment begin aligning
- against a man who once stood at the top,
- you're not witnessing a campaign. You're
- witnessing a collapse. He claims the
- damage to his reputation is worth
- billions. And you have to ask what
- reputation. The man is a convicted
- fraudster found liable for sexual abuse,
- facing multiple indictments, and exposed
- for decades of disturbing relationships.
- This lawsuit is not about justice. It's
- about ego and desperation. But here's
- the kicker. While he's trying to sue
- others, he's losing his own legal
- battles at a staggering rate. Just
- recently, Trump lost a major case
- against Bob Woodward. Trump sued the
- legendary journalist and publisher Simon
- and Schustster, claiming copyright
- 8:01
- ownership over the recordings of his own
- voice. He argued absurdly that he had a
- right to control how his words were
- published. A Republican appointed judge
- shut it down. And that ruling isn't just
- a legal defeat. It's a symbolic one. It
- means even the judiciary long stacked in
- his favor is no longer buying what Trump
- is selling. Meanwhile, other legal
- storms continue to gather. Trump's
- attempts to delay and dismiss
- indictments, whether related to
- classified documents, election
- interference, or financial fraud, are
- unraveling one after another. And this
- matters because in a functioning
- democracy, no one, no matter how
- wealthy, famous, or politically
- connected, should be above the law. That
- was the myth Trump sold his base, that
- he was untouchable, that he would
- dismantle the deep state before it could
- touch him. But what we see now is the
- exact opposite. Trump is being touched
- by lawsuits, subpoenas, and court
- rulings that cut deeper than any
- 9:01
- political ad ever could. Here's the
- broader implication. Trump's legal
- implosion is not just about one man.
- It's about the unraveling of a model.
- This legal earthquake tells us something
- crucial. Trump is not fighting for power
- anymore. He's fighting for survival. But
- when the law, the truth, and public
- sentiment begin aligning against a man
- who once stood at the top, you're not
- witnessing a campaign. You're witnessing
- a collapse. Let's shift focus to the
- economy, a subject Trump claims as his
- strong suit. But here's the truth. His
- policies are sabotaging the very economy
- he brags about. But the data tells us
- the opposite. We are watching inflation
- explode. Commodity prices spike and
- consumers squeezed harder than ever.
- Why? Because tariffs are taxes. They're
- Final Collapse – Trump Loses Control
- 9:49
- not paid by foreign countries. They're
- paid by American consumers and
- businesses. The average price of ground
- beef in the US has surged to over $6 per
- pound beef stake, up over 8% in a single
- 10:03
- year. When Trump wages trade wars with
- allies, countries like Canada, Mexico,
- Brazil, he weakens diplomatic ties. And
- in a multipolar world economy, where
- countries like China, India, and blocks
- like bricks are gaining influence, these
- broken alliances have long-term
- consequences. America becomes isolated
- and American labor pays the price. He
- understands leverage, spectacle, and
- deception, but that doesn't build an
- economy that erodess it. And what we are
- seeing now is the cost of letting an
- amateur masquerade as an architect. Why?
- Because Trump's chaotic trade policies,
- tariffs on Mexico, threats to Canadian
- beef exports, and attacks on global
- supply chains are making food more
- expensive across the board. They hurt
- the workingclass communities, he claims
- to speak for. Farmers lose markets.
- Truckers face fuel sir charges. Middle
- class families stretch thinner
- 11:01
- paychecks. Families feel it. And yet
- Trump insists he's protecting American
- workers. And this is not theoretical. We
- are now living through the consequences
- of an administration that substituted
- economic understanding with slogans,
- trade wars, and egoomania. When you
- raise tariffs on imports, two things
- happen. And while Trump clings to his
- cult of personality, the rest of us are
- left holding the bill. First, consumer
- prices go up. Second, US exporters often
- face retaliation that damages industries
- Trump claims to champion, like
- agriculture, autos, and manufacturing.
- Why? Brazil, the largest orange juice
- exporter to the United States, is now a
- target of Trump's reckless tariff war.
- He slapped a 50% tariff on Brazil
- allegedly to pressure the release of
- Jerbolsaro, the disgraced former
- president and Trump ally. That's not
- economic policy. That's political
- blackmail disguised as trade strategy.
- 12:00
- Let's break this down. Take tariffs, one
- of Trump's favorite tools. He once said,
- 'Trade wars are good and easy to win.
- Want proof? Let's look at basic goods.
- Orange juice prices are up 54% and it
- gets worse. But here's what you must
- understand. Tariffs are not isolated
- economic levers. They are deeply
- connected to broader economic
- structures. And this damage doesn't stop
- at the checkout counter. All of this is
- happening while Trump continues to
- enrich himself and his cronies. The
- tariffs don't hurt his businesses. This
- isn't economic nationalism. This is
- economic self harm. And let me say this
- clearly, Trump doesn't understand
- economics. In the end, these tariffs are
- not about jobs or patriotism. They are
- about vengeance, distraction, and power.
- Now, let us bring all of this together
- because what we are seeing is not just a
- moment of bad press or another news
- cycle turning against Donald Trump. No,
- we are witnessing the slow
- 13:00
- disintegration of his political cult. A
- structure built on lies, rage, and
- spectacle is finally cracking under the
- weight of reality. It starts with the
- optics. Donald Trump can no longer
- perform the strongman routine
- convincingly. The lawsuits, the economic
- sabotage, the mounting scandals, from
- Epstein to elite models, from sexual
- abuse to corporate fraud have started to
- shake the loyalty of independents and
- the less radical Republicans. And the
- poll numbers reflect that shift. His
- approval ratings are in freef fall, and
- the more he tries to reassert himself
- through lawsuits, rallies, or vengeance
- politics, the more he exposes his
- desperation. First the public
- performances falter, then the legal
- walls closen, then the loyalists begin
- to defect. The damage he inflicted on
- political institutions, social trust,
- truth itself will take years to repair.
- But understanding how he fell is
- essential. And history will remember
- 14:00
- this moment not as his comeback, but as
- his unraveling, because it reminds us of
- the cost of allowing charisma to replace
- competence, of letting grievance fuel
- governance, and of mistaking cruelty for
- strength. We've seen it in history.
- Nixon, Berlesone, Bolsinaro, and now
- Trump. At his latest press conference,
- he referred to Japan's prime minister as
- Mr. Japan fumbled through racist
- impressions and mumbled about imaginary
- Senate campaigns. These aren't minor
- gaffs. They're signs of cognitive
- decline. And more importantly, they're
- signs that his aura of dominance is
- gone. It was always a house of cards.
- Built on economic myths, manufactured
- fear and media manipulation. For years,
- he framed himself as a messiah for the
- forgotten American. But behind that
- image was always a holocora billionaire
- who exploited workers, mocked the
- vulnerable, and hid behind propaganda.
- People aren't laughing with him anymore.
- They're cringing. The spell is breaking.
- 15:02
- Now the media machine that once elevated
- him is documenting his collapse. Now the
- legal system is closing in, and what
- we're left with is not a powerful man,
- but a frightened one. Then there's the
- Epstein panic. When asked about his long
- documented friendship with Jeffrey
- Epstein, Trump didn't answer. He fled.
- He literally ran from the press. A man
- who once relished confrontation now
- recoils from accountability. This from
- the same Trump who used to boast about
- saying it like it is. Well, not anymore.
- Now he runs. Even his own base is
- beginning to notice. But the real story,
- the one few are willing to say out loud,
- is that Trumpism was never sustainable.
- Now the workers he betrayed are seeing
- the truth. This is how authoritarian
- figures fall. Not all at once, but in
- pieces. But let's be clear, this
- collapse will not fix what came before.
- Donald Trump is not just losing power,
- he is losing control.