Trump is Failing

Trump promised to lower inflation, the price of eggs and consumer products, and end the war in Ukraine on day one, although he has a reputation for fabricating “alternate facts”:  “ The election was stolen!” “Covid will be gone very quickly”; and “The Haitians are eating the cats and dogs!” etc.

Inflation is spiraling while friendly oligarchs make donations to his campaign in return for big tax breaks in the coming budget.  This will add 328 trillion dollars to the deficit! Elon Musk is allowed to gut public agencies and illegally freeze the budgets of  U.S. agencies, like U.S.A.I.D, while firing the folks working on the prevention of Ebola “by mistake.” 

Musk went into sensitive areas like the U.S. Treasury and the F.B.I. to access our personnel files without proper clearance or approval from Congress!  We still don’t  know what files were accessed during these visits or what is being done with them.

Musk acknowledged making mistakes at one of Trump’s press conferences.  One mistake was firing Nuclear Energy Commission workers who had access to nuclear codes.  These acts were clearly illegal and unconstitutional and are now working their way through the courts.  Meanwhile, thousands of public workers in agencies already short-handed, like the F.A.A., are struggling to prevent catastrophic events, like airplane crashes.

Many of these fired employees have exemplary working records.  The people these agencies are designed to help are doing without public services, like delivering food for hungry people.  The farmers who contracted  to grow the food are losing markets for their produce. The reason given for all these changes is to save government money. Many of the firings are Trump’s retribution for disloyalty.  The F.B.I. agents assigned to investigating the people who invaded the capitol on Jan. 6th have been fired for doing their jobs, while the people convicted for  crimes that the nation watched on TV have been pardoned.

The recently televised oval office meeting with President Zelensky, was a lot like the old Jerry Springer Show!  It was embarrassing to have our president and vice-president gang up in an angry verbal assault on Zelensky, saying he didn’t show enough gratitude while not allowing him to talk to defend himself.

Trump is frequently flattering toward Putin, who he talks to separately. He accuses Zelensky of being a dictator and starting the invasion of Ukraine, while demanding that Ukraine pay for military aid they received with precious metals from their country.  At the U.N meeting before the oval office meeting, Hegseth, the new U.S. Secretary of Defense, asserted that Ukraine would not be able to claim any of the land that was taken by Russia, and that they would not be allowed to join NATO in the future.  Adding insult to injury, the U.S. joined Russia, North Korea, and Belarus in voting against the U.N. resolution to condemn  Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Our economy is in a state of chaos because of Trump’s threats of tariffs against our allies, which will add to consumer prices for imports, while illegally dismantling our federal programs that protect us from disease, toxic pollution, airport safety, infrastructure development, public health, and relief from natural disasters.  We are not safer with Trump siding with dictators in negotiations that enhance the possibility of future aggression from our enemies. This is not the bright future that Trump promised during his campaign.