National emergency

Caligula or Nero?
The comparison is apt —
He’s a bulging petty tyrant
Whose mind has clearly snap’t.

A solipsistic toddler
Who thinks the country’s his
To play with as he chooses
Making money for his biz.

Negotiate and compromise?
That’s a sucker’s game.
He’d rather pout and rant and tweet
And stridently proclaim

A national emergency
(It plays well with his base)
And undermine democracy
To save his sorry face.

And all his sniv’ling sycophants
In congress and the press
Pat his back and kiss his bum
For they could not care less

If constitutional governance
Would just evaporate —
Then listen to what praise they’ll bleat
For America the Great.

Buff Whitman-Bradley’s poetry has been widely published in print and online journals. He has a new book coming out from Finishing Line Press, A Friendly Little Tavern Somewhere Near the Pleiades. Read other articles by Buff.