When a Toddler Runs the White House

“No more lies.”

- Rage Against the Machine, “Take the Power Back”

As it is currently written, the law is clear: only the name of the slain President John F. Kennedy can appear on the performing arts center in our nation’s capital. In compliance with that statute, the judge ruled that Donald Trump’s name must be removed from the building.

Like a toddler trying to control the narrative, the administration stalled until the threatening parent was almost at three before finally sending workers to remove the letters. The “construction tarp” they erected has covered the entrance ever since, conveniently concealing the public reminder that Trump is not a king who can act with impunity.

Not content to let the issue die, the pouting president made his next move: if he couldn’t place his name on the building, he would have the letters carved directly into the marble instead. It was a semantic dodge meant to skirt the judge's ruling and make the inscription far harder to remove.

What the president cannot change is the public’s reaction to his antics. After taking control of the center’s governing board and installing himself as its leader, artists began refusing to perform, tour stops of traveling shows were abruptly canceled, and ticket sales plunged to historic lows.

As the administration fights in court to close public operations for two years so that its supposedly much-needed renovations can begin, it is clear that Trump’s handling of the center has failed. With a disapproval rating that sits at 58% and only 32% of those polled approving of his performance, the Kennedy Center controversies have become a metaphor for Trump’s entire second term.

Unable to govern successfully, Trump uses the tools of a petulant toddler: redirect, obfuscate, and lie. When a reporter asks an inconvenient question, he attacks and attempts to humiliate. He blows so much hot air that reality distorts in the haze.

And just as the Kennedy Center has become a monument to his tantrum‑driven leadership, Trump carried that same toddler‑logic onto the world stage in his war in Iran.

When he initially attacked Iran, Trump said the hostilities would last “four to five weeks.” On dozens of occasions, he has declared victory or stated that the fighting was almost over. The most consequential of these was on May 1, 2026, when he formally notified Congress that hostilities with Iran had ended, eliminating the legal requirement for him to obtain authorization from the legislative branch to continue his war.

But still, the fighting continues.

Consistent with the rest of the Trump presidency, this war with Iran has been badly planned and poorly executed. There are widespread reports that we are running out of the weaponry needed to sustain the fight, leaving us vulnerable in other parts of the globe and diminishing our standing as the leader of the free world. Members of our military are the ones paying the heaviest price.

It was not surprising when reports surfaced that a crisis of declining morale was festering aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. With a record-breaking deployment of over 265 days and more than 200 days without a port call, military families are expressing concern over mental health, supply shortages, and living conditions. One report stated that a sailor went overboard and had to be rescued, an incident the administration insists was not a suicide attempt.

“not nearly long enough.”

- Trump, commenting on the length of the Abraham Lincoln’s deployment

But given the sheer number of lies propagated by this administration, can that denial be taken at face value? Video proved that Alex Pretti was not attacking immigration officers when he was killed. The Justice Department had to drop felony charges against a former Olympian and admit that shoddy workmanship caused the damage to the Reflecting Pool. With a record like that, what would stop them from covering their asses over a possible suicide attempt in a mission that is going very badly for them?

When asked to respond to the concerns about food and hygiene expressed by relatives of those on board, he did what any toddler would do when caught red-handed - denied it with a pouty dismissal: “No, they're not.”

Apparently, no one could have predicted that waging war in the area where 20% of the world’s oil passes through would affect gas prices, but Americans are now paying 44% more since Trump first attacked Iran. Despite winning his second term based on the false premise that inflation was rampant, the President now says that Americans should accept paying “a little bit more for your gasoline” as a price for his war. Like any good toddler, he then claimed that the Strait of Hormuz would soon be a “territory of the United States.” As with Canada, Venezuela, Greenland, and Cuba, he all but declared, “mine.”

The fallout of Trump’s war in Iran is only exacerbating an affordability crisis that Trump claimed only he could solve. Biden had brought down the post-pandemic inflation rate to about 3% from a peak of 9.1%. The current rate is 3.36%. With the Fed's goal at 2%, the problem is definitely not solved, but you wouldn’t know it from listening to Trump.

Earlier in August, Trump posted a video on his social media site dedicated to circulating his propaganda. It showed that he was the “lowest of the last 10 presidents on inflation.” While this is technically true, it is only because his term is just 18 months old, while the other terms were all four years. Since the rate shown is cumulative over the entire term, his rate is guaranteed to increase. When comparing inflation at the same point in each presidency, Trump’s 4.71% is the fourth highest of the ten terms. His “favorite” president, Obama, had lower inflation during both of his terms.

The grocery store is where many consumers feel the brunt of the affordability crisis. Even though deflation is just as bad for consumers as hyperactive inflation, Trump promised to cut prices “on Day One.” Year over year, beef and veal prices are 11.8% higher, pork is 2.4% higher, and fresh vegetables are 9.9% higher. The only product category that has gotten cheaper is eggs, as that industry recovered from the effects of the Avian Flu that sent prices soaring at the end of the Biden presidency.

The toddler in the Oval Office would prefer you ignore your grocery store receipts. He says that while he “inherited very, very high costs, and they're all coming down now.”

Redirect, obfuscate, and lie - the toddler’s holy trinity.

In November we will get to see what kind of parents the American people are. Will they ignore Trump’s bad behavior, insist that he is really a good boy, and continue with the status quo? Or will they finally realize that it is time to impose some discipline and give Trump a Congress that will actually hold him accountable?

Carl Petersen is a former Green Party candidate for the LAUSD School Board and a longtime advocate for public education and special needs families. Now based in Washington State, he writes about politics, culture, and their intersections at TheDifrntDrmr.