Donald Trump's Washington is a nightmare to navigate physically, politically and from an economic standpoint.
On the peaceful shopping and cafe strewn streets of Georgetown, one is likely to meet National Guard troops patrolling with automatic weapons.
One of the great treats for visitors to the US capital was a snap in front of the metal railings of the White House.
The sidewalks around the 'People's House' are closed to ordinary mortals and the perimeter blocked with police, Secret Service and hulking, black four-wheel drives. Much of this could be a scene from the Philip Roth's novel The Plot Against America.
The politics are toxic too. A budget stalemate between the White House and Congress is the current manifestation, providing a new excuse for federal firings at agencies anathema to Trumpian thinking.
Those targeted include workers looking after low-income families, the homeless and elderly citizens. These are an entirely different category to the programme of attempted decapitation of senior economic officials, such as head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Erika McEntarfer, and Federal Reserve governor, Lisa Cook.
In charge: Donald Trump's Washington is a nightmare to navigate physically, politically and from an economic standpoint
Last week I dined with an old friend who heads a vital agency dealing with copyright and artificial intelligence (AI).
Earlier this year, she had been defenestrated by email after delivering a nuanced report on the use of intellectual property by AI and tech.
The dismissal was a terrible shock, especially as her agency reported to Congress rather than the federal government and she had served during the first Trump Administration. She has now been restored to office courtesy of Congressional support and the Court of Appeal.
The single-mindedness and discourtesy of Washington politics also applies to Trump's economic dealings with other States. We all saw six months ago how effective Peter Mandelson's schmoozing proved in delivering a trade deal of sorts.
It is an accord cited by Chancellor Rachel Reeves as boosting productivity and growth prospects.
A big talking point at the IMF and in the corridors of Washington is Trump's devotion to the serial defaulters of Argentina.
Trump is keen on Javier Milei's reforms, including fiscal austerity, an end to central bank financing of government borrowing and market liberalisations.
As effective as they have been, they have done nothing to stem rampant inflation or a run on the peso.
Never mind. With Milei facing elections, he has been wined and dined at the White House. Significantly, instead of having to run to the IMF for support, Uncle Sam has swung into action with a $20billion bail-out from the US exchange equalization fund. These are US government reserves usually deployed at times of economic emergency. More has been pledged as necessary.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent makes no secret of the objective. He has noted that there is a mid-term election coming up and Trump wants Milei to see through his reform agenda.
Trump's willingness to wield the US balance sheet to support his Argentine ally is in marked contrast to the hostility he shows to near neighbours such as Canada.
As a regular reader of the New Yorker magazine, the New York Times and even the conservative Wall Street Journal, I had assumed that criticism of Trump's flagrant abuse of presidential powers was exaggerated. His hegemonic wilful tendencies had to be a myth. His tax cuts and effort to bring some critical manufacturing home had to make sense.
Now, I am not so sure.
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