WASHINGTON — The city takes a deep breath after the president's IndyCar auto races came and went without crashing a precious Smithsonian artwork, and before Congress returns. Cicadas and tennis balls make background music.

Thank god we didn't lose a Cezanne or Renoir as IndyCar drivers circled the National Mall. Some diplomats were uninvited.

I'm proud 100,000 people flocked to the daylong National Book Festival across town, outnumbering the sparse crowds at the races. We are a city of readers, the event covered by C-SPAN.

Authors love to come here, and we have quite a few of our own. Presidential history never gets boring, but historians are looking at a Greek tragedy happening here and now.

This would be the time to face a home truth, everyone, on all sides of the spectrum. Before it's too late.

Donald Trump is acting mad in both senses of the word. It's not a good look for a sweaty president to shout soundbites and insults by his golf courses and flying palace, gifted to him by an Arabian prince.

To sharpen the point, Trump is not in his right mind, spending time on lawsuits, personal enrichment, abruptly cutting a kind neighbor — Canada — and deporting innocent immigrants with his secret police.

You may ask: Does he ever get sick of himself?

He cares not about the direction of the country, nor the war with Iran he started, nor the Republican party, which he's torn into tatters.

Republicans in Congress are quaking in their boots because they are hearing from folks, families and farmers at home: This cannot go on. Everything is going wrong. Republicans know they'll pay the price at the polls in 10 weeks, with nothing to run on, except cutting taxes for the rich and health care for the poor.

The list is long, but Trump never misses an opportunity to say something no president should ever utter. Five thousand sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln are suffering for lack of repairs, plumbing and decent conditions with few days off at port over nine months. Trump, who's never served a day of his life at sea, said the aircraft carrier should deploy for longer.

Military families and voters tend to skew right, but not this time. Politics is hitting too close to home. Veterans are also furious about the overpowering "Arc de Trump" he plans by the sacred sightlines of Arlington National Cemetery.

We should all be ashamed that he is the American president with the personality of a bulldozer. John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Franklin D. Roosevelt dearly loved to laugh, with a dash of charm and wit.

(Former Vice President Kamala Harris lacked gravitas and humor, which may be why she lost to Trump. But not in a landslide.)

Now to the Supreme Court, Trump's most important ally now that Lindsey Graham is gone.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) calls the court "captured" by dark money. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) says checks and balances are gone. Chance has crowned Trump king.

But the scary part staring at us, between now and November's Election Day, is that the six Republican members may well back Trump's war on the Postal Service's mail-in ballots. If things go Trump's way, federal agencies could restrict and confuse voters, state by state, late in the game.

Once again, the diabolical mad drive to win any which way is clear. Does Jan. 6 ring a bell?

Chief Justice John Roberts almost always sides with Trump. He singlehandedly allowed White House ballroom construction to continue 20 hours a day, despite a court challenge by preservationists.

Once upon a time in 1857, an incoming president, James Buchanan, conspired with the Chief Justice, Roger Taney, in the most infamous racist ruling on record. You've heard the name in history class: Dred Scott, an enslaved man. Taney authored this Supreme Court opinion: Black people could never be citizens or have rights "which the white man was bound to respect."

History rhymes again.

Roberts acts as a perfect gentleman, but make no mistake. He's a ruthless right-wing warrior. We witnessed Trump thank him for his immunity ruling on the House floor.

Democrats should win the midterms, but beware: Trump never fights fair.

The author may be reached at JamieStiehm.com. To find out more about Jamie Stiehm and other Creators Syndicate columnists and cartoonists, please visit creators.com.

Photo credit: Caleb Fisher at Unsplash