Almost four months into his second presidency, Donald Trump continues to be one of the most divisive presidents in U.S. history. Trump is still adored by his hardcore MAGA base, while his critics are finding even more to dislike about his second presidency than they did about his first. And it remains to be seen how swing voters and independents will feel about him when the 2026 midterms arrive.
In an article published on May 17, New York Magazine’s Ross Barkan argues that “corruption” is the main thing that makes Trump’s second term uniquely bad.
“What does seem genuinely new, even by the standards of America’s warped history, is the unabashed corruption,” Barkan stresses. “No president, really, has favor-traded like Trump. No president has ever tried to blatantly enrich himself like this while in office. No president has ever hung a for-sale sign over the White House — not like this, anyway. Trump is poised to accept a $400 million luxury jet from the Qatari royal family, which feels like something of a capstone to his latest corruption binge…. And then there’s his crypto hustle.”
Alternet: ‘Breadth of corruption’: How Trump is ramping up to ‘blatantly enrich himself in office’
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