The Guardian- The incompetence and infighting at the White House dismay America�s allies and encourage its enemies

The sense of things falling apart in Washington is palpable � and a matter of growing, serious international concern. Donald Trump�s latest asinine act of gesture politics, the�forced resignation of his chief of staff, Reince Priebus, has shone a spotlight on the extraordinary chaos inside the White House. Even normally sober, experienced Washington observers now refer to the West Wing as a viper�s nest of seething rivalry, bitter feuds, gross incompetence and an unparalleled leadership vacuum.

Like some kind of Shakespearean villain-clown, Trump plays not to the gallery but to the pit. He is a Falstaff without the humour or the self-awareness, a cowardly, bullying Richard III without a clue. Late-night US satirists find in this an unending source of high comedy. If they did not laugh, they would cry. The world is witnessing the dramatic unfolding of a tragedy whose main victims are a seemingly helpless American audience, America�s system of balanced governance and its global reputation as a leading democratic light.

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