Is the Swamp Prevailing?
When the Germanic chieftain, Arminius, organized the stunning destruction of three Roman legions—whom he had led astray in the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD—many in Rome perceived it as catastrophic proof that the Roman legions were not invincible after all. This disaster struck many as a harbinger that Rome was vulnerable to the machinations of skilled rebels like Arminius.
Roman pessimists at the time failed to understand that even disasters such as the Battle of Teutoburg Forest were the result of just one capable and determined man (Arminius), and scarcely diminished the power of the Roman military and administrative apparatus. The Roman commander Varus didn’t know what he was doing, but he was just one small cog in a gigantic machine.
Just twelve years later, Arminius was assassinated—probably by a member of his own clan—and the Germanic resistance that he organized was dissolved. Though Rome reduced its ambitions in Germania, its defeat at Teutoberg did little to reduce its power.
Increasingly, Donald J. Trump is looking like Arminius. Trump was elected with the mandate to dismantle the Deep State, but it appears that the Military Industrial, Bio-Pharmaceutical, and Oligarchic-Mafia Complexes that run Washington D.C. are too strong for even this man of exceptional energy, ability, and fighting spirit.