Once upon a time there lived a ruler of such frightful insecurity and fragile ego that neither the members of his court nor his subjects ever expressed any misgivings about his behavior. In his short satirical novel Zadig, translated by Donald M. Frame, Voltaire describes the narcissistic great lord Irax: “Peacocks are no less vain, doves no more voluptuous.” He is, we are told, “not bad at bottom but … corrupted by vanity and voluptuousness [who] breathed in nothing but false glory and false pleasures.” Irax “rarely allowed anyone to speak to him, and never anyone to dare to contradict him.”
Zadig, the prime minister of the kingdom, undertakes to rectify the bad behavior. He stages an ostentatious tribute with the cooperation of a vast entourage of the court’s sycophants and via such an uninterrupted litany of fulsome praise for Irax, “expressly for all the good qualities he lacked.”
At first, the testimonials, which included a three-hour dinner accompanied by violinists, singers, and a two-hour cantata that extolled the grandeur, the grace, and the wit of Irax, delighted him. When the litany of praise was repeated throughout the course of that day and the succeeding ones, Irax, exhausted and chastened, begged for it to stop. “He had himself flattered less, had fewer feasts, and was happier,” having come to understand that “always pleasure is no pleasure.”
I was reminded once again of Zadig after seeing the June 12 televised meeting of Donald Trump and his Cabinet, his first full meeting with it since taking office. Trump began the proceedings: “I think we've been about as active as you can possibly be and at a just about record-setting pace,” he told the reverential audience seated around a White House conference table. But as pointed out by CNN, Trump “has no significant legislative achievements and some of his top agenda items are stalled in the courts.”
Nevertheless, no one in his vast entourage of court sycophants…er, Cabinet members, dared to contradict Trump. Instead, by obsequious turns, they began to sing effusively the praises of their ruler.
Given the floor first after Trump’s opening remarks, Vice President Mike Pence, released from the Westworld basement, groveled with a straight face, “This is the greatest privilege of my life…to serve as vice president to a president who's keeping his word to the American people.”
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, on sabbatical from the Keebler factory, followed: “It's an honor to be able to serve you in that regard and to send the exact right message, and the response is fabulous around the country,” he said.
“I want to thank you for getting this country moving again, and working again,” said Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, who just happens to be married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
And on it went.
“It's a new day at the United Nations,” said Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. “We now have a very strong voice. People know what the United States is for. They know what we're against. They see us leading across the board.” Or was it "bored?" There was no transcript available.
“Mr. President, what an incredible honor it is to lead the Department of Health and Human Services at this time under your leadership,” said agency head Tom Price.
Chief of staff Reince Priebus oozed, “On behalf of the entire senior staff around you, Mr. President, we thank you for the opportunity and blessing that you’ve given us to serve your agenda.”
The encomiums, unlike those recited for Irax, were not repeated throughout the day. Nor did the Cabinet meeting include musicians and a three-hour cantata. And Trump, alas, did not appear exhausted or chastened by the tribute.
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