President Donald Trump and his fans are badly mistaken if they think a single show of force on Syria and the elevation of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court are going to plug the hole in his sinking ship.
Trump will be bailing water so long as his crew is bitterly fighting in public and his major policy promises remain unfulfilled. Fixing his incompetent, chaotic staff is a precursor to achieving policy goals.
The White House communications team (a gaffe factory), legislative affairs team (could it not see the health-care disaster unfolding?) and White House counsel (which botched the travel ban) are egregiously substandard. Trump likewise cannot operate effectively without a strong chief of staff. He must do better than Reince Priebus.
Once Trump puts competent people in key roles and reduces internecine warfare, he can move on to far-reaching agenda items. Figuring out what trade and tax reforms are possible and pushing through an infrastructure bill should top the list. But until he gets the personnel right, policy initiatives will continue to flop.
Editorial on 04/12/2017