Our View: Have you had enough ‘winning’ yet?

President Donald Trump promised Americans a lot of “winning” during his second term as president, but the chaos of the last two months shows anything but victories. Instead, Washington is in chaos.

But maybe America is waking up. Scores of protests are scheduled around the nation April 5. And recent polling shows more Americans disapprove of what Trump is doing than approve.

How’s this for a bunch of winning:

Trade war. Trump started a completely unnecessary global trade war by slapping tariffs on everything from steel to cars to food. He just doesn’t understand the basic economics that Americans, not foreigners, will pay for tariffs, i.e. self-inflicted taxes, on imported goods. Wall Street is not pleased as strong markets are now fluctuating.

Global risks. Trump’s authoritarian, knee-jerk approach to foreign policy — and inexperienced advisers who shared secret military plans with a journalist — has plunged American leadership in the world to new lows. Longtime allies no longer trust the United States because of an erratic leader who bullies, badgers and lies.

Slash and burn. Americans are alarmed at how Trump has put an unelected billionaire with huge conflicts of interest in charge of a so-called efficiency effort. In reality, it’s nothing more than acts of retribution to cut agencies that help people in need instead of billionaires. Cuts to Medicaid, medical research, parks, museums, Social Security, education will make America duller, not greater.

Immigration chaos. The Trump team’s arrogant approach to handling immigration — snatching people off streets and sending them away — smacks of fascism. The nation needs to follow the rule of law, not the rule of one.

Putin’s puppet. As one United States senator recently said, Trump’s actions with Russia show appeasement in the continuing bromance with President Vladimir Putin. At issue: Repeating Russian talking points as American gospel, unilaterally taking negotiating tools off the table, cutting arms shipments to a struggling Ukraine and sandbagging Ukraine’s president at a White House meeting.

Following a dizzying array of executive orders by Trump, his administration currently faces a dizzying array of lawsuits related to American values and institutions that we have taken for granted. Examples: Birthright citizenship, the constitutional separation of powers, immigration policy, the Jan. 6 riots and aftermath of pardons as well as funding for parks, agencies, research, foreign aid and more.

In short, the America you grew up with is under assault. Unfortunately, secrecy and arrogance are filtering down to state and local governments. Just witness how state Republican leaders want to cut the income tax to a flat rate in a move that would make 60% of South Carolinians pay more. Or view the growing secrecy throughout the city of Charleston, which won’t engage fully with media or voter inquiries about how policy is being set and money being used.

This week in Washington, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., highlighted how the nation is at a crossroads after two failed months of the Trump administration. It’s time for the country to stand together for democracy, he said in a history-making 25-hour speech.

“This is not right or left, it is right or wrong,” he said. “This is not a partisan moment. It is a moral moment. Where do you stand?”