When Melania trump read the Lords Prayer at her husband's Melbourne rally before an adoring mass of Trump-Loving Americans, it was a jaw-dropping moment. This is one of the most enduring texts the world possesses. It calls for making the world heavenly. It advocates forgiveness and promises the same to those who seek it. And here the prayer was in a hyper-political setting. Was this Trumpian brashness? Or was it an inspired sense that much has gone askew in our nation and that such moments are precious? In other words, is Trump trying to co-opt God and bait his enemies into yet another round of distracting back-and-forth?

The prayer is bigger than any political rally, It is bigger than any one religion. Is its power diminished by the political context? Who knows?

This was just one among many questions that rose when one tries to parse the meaning of the Trump statement that was held up by one of his followers at Melbourne.

There is no president who could not have spoken these words. Coming from Trump they have a special resonance. They seem like a breath of decency and hope in the midst of chaos, divisiveness and outright nastiness.

They seem to signal, as he himself did in his speech that he is struggling to find a way to bring all Americans together. Perhaps he is the other side of the Obama-Trump twosome and their messages will blend and result in a solution both could be happy with. That would be delightful. It would modify the verdict that Trump cares only for his own advancement and wealth.

Trump and Obama -- could they be reconciled?

It is possible that Trump and Obama are not that far apart. If Trump wants to bring back jobs he can take much that Obama proposed and dress it up as GOP legislation. That could also be the case with Obamacare along with a host of good things Obama could not get through due to GOP opposition.

Trump is smart enough to know he cannot directly be a centrist or even further to the left, but he has the leeway to accomplish a great deal of good regardless of the name on the legislation. I doubt that there is much sentiment for unity. The tweet below reflects the current divide.

Needed: a new Trump synthesis

OK, let's imagine a good outcome.

  • Suppose all Trump's oligarchic cabinet members perceive that there needs to be some compromise.
  • Suppose Trump and Putin can move the world toward more not less democracy.
  • Suppose Trump gives to inner cities all the perks he has enjoyed.
  • Suppose Trump engages in a major act of reconciliation, like making it possible for Edward Snowden to return ti the US without facing treason charges.

I am not being sarcastic.

I am suggesting the only hope I see. Realtors love the word flip. Trump needs to flip. I don't care if he does and then says it was his idea! But there is a caveat. We have to see some actual deeds that match the good rhetoric. And that sooner than later. Because the alternative is an escalating fight.
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