Four decades ago, Robert Fulghum, the American author and pastor, published a bestselling book entitled All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. This argued that the most potent life lessons could and should be learnt in pre-school, including the all-important dictum “clean up your own mess”.
It is worth pondering afresh. In the 14 long months since Donald Trump began his second presidential term, his style has induced profound culture shock in erstwhile allies. Not only has he adopted a capricious, authoritarian style, he has also embraced geoeconomics, as he battles for hegemonic power with China (which matters in Iran, given Beijing’s influence there).
But there is another, less-discussed cultural tic that matters too: Trump does not even pretend he needs to clean up any “mess” he makes. Kindergarten rules do not apply.