Trump and the empty chairs

The empty chair routine, of course, has been done before. Donald Trump used the image of two empty chairs when he tried to explain why he was so disgusted that two veteran Democrats, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader, and Senator Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority leader, boycotted a meeting at the White House which the president had called to discuss his proposed tax reforms. It was a colourful moment which summed up not just Trump's extreme irritation at being spurned by the two most senior Democrats but also the state of relations between the two parties. Those two empty chairs said more about Trump's problems in Congress than almost anything. The other most notable empty chair image was given to us courtesy of Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood. That was back in 2012 when Eastwood, one of my all-time favourite icons of the movie business, was making a hugely promoted address to the Republican National Convention. The empty chair was supposed to contain Barack Obama. It was intended to be a clever joke, with Eastwood chatting to the invisible Obama to put across his view that the "sitting" president did not deserve a second term. Most people thought it was a ghastly embarrassment. Another guy who thought an empty chair would make a good theatrical device was William Shakespeare, or as one of my American friends one said to me, "Bill Shakespeare". In Macbeth, there is one empty chair at the banquet given by Macbeth in Act III. The missing guest is his old friend, Banquo, who had just been murdered by Macbeth's henchmen. The chair, of course, for those who know the play, is suddenly filled by Banquo's bloodstained ghost whom only Macbeth can see. Take it from me for those who haven't seen the play performed, it's considerably more dramatic a moment than when Eastwood addressed the empty chair at the convention. Trump's two empty chairs idea was pretty effective although it only helped to underline the predicament he is facing in everything he is trying to do. There is not a whisper of compromise in Congress right now. It's a dire situation. Extra extra! Just a quick comment on the latest big cheese American broadcaster to lose his job over sexual harassment allegations. Matt Lauer has been sacked by NBC because a female colleague came forward with a detailed description of his conduct which the high-ups at NBC considered was sufficiently awful to send him packing. The list of big names being accused of "inappropriate conduct" is getting longer by the week. The fall of Charlie Rose of CBS was a huge surprise to those of us who enjoyed his interview style but knew nothing of his bizarre personal behaviour. Matt Lauer is also an excellent interviewer and presenter and we don't yet know what he is supposed to have done wrong. But where will it end? When Charlie Rose was outed as an alleged female abuser, Matt Lauer appeared on NBC and asked searching questions of people on his programme about the dramatic end of Rose's previously distinguished career. Did he by any chance have any sneaking fear at the back of his mind as he asked the questions about whether he too might be found out and exposed? And how many other high-profile American presenters are even now carrying on their broadcasting jobs in a state of permanent suspense and dread?