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Trump’s three big retreats lay bare the limits of his power

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President Donald Trump has been musing about whether he’s the most powerful man in world history — and judging by the results lately, the answer is definitely “no.”

It’s certainly true that Trump has technical tools at his disposal that would have astounded famous pre-20th century contenders for the title of most powerful man, whether Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, Charlemagne or Napoleon. 

Trump’s power, though, isn’t defined by, say, the precision and explosive punch of the Tomahawk missile.

As the leader of a constitutional republic that disperses power and depends ultimately on democratic consent, Trump is operating under constraints that routinely blunt his ambitions.

If the theme of the first year of his second term was aggression on all fronts, his second year has so far been defined by significant retreats.

Late last year, Trump surged DHS forces into Minneapolis, seeking to make an example of the Twin Cities after Somali immigrants were implicated in welfare-fraud schemes.

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