Feb. 14 is Valentine’s Day. I know it has become a big deal thanks to the greeting card industry, restaurateurs and the flower shops. On that day, we take a moment to declare our affection for a loved one in some tangible fashion. Whether you are rich, middle class or poor, most of us engage in this ritual, l because that’s what you do on that special day.
I would like to propose that there be a special day set aside when President Trump tells working-class Americans how much he loves them and shows it with some tangible act. If you look back at his three years in office, he has taken dozens of steps to destroy the quality of life for millions of Americans who do not understand the depths to which he has gone to harm them.
Periodically, I turn on the TV to watch a few minutes of President Trump’s campaign rally in some far off place. I wonder whether any of those people who are standing behind him on the platform have a clue as to how much damage Mr. Trump has done to harm them in significant ways. Let’s start with healthcare. Recently, I saw the president proclaim, “no one has done more than me to protect your coverage for pre-existing conditions.” Many of those people applaud totally unaware of his long time efforts to destroy the Affordable Care Act.
At this very minute, there is a major case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, which will decide whether the health coverage of 20 million people will be ended, with no alternative available. The major backer of this litigation is the current president who has fought for the immediate repeal of the ACA from the day he was sworn into office. Luckily, for candidate Trump, the decision has been moved into next year, so he will be spared having to defend his advocacy until 2021.
But facts are facts and the so-called leader of the free world has only contempt for his constituents. A short time ago, the Trump White House announced that they are willing to give state funding for Medicaid in the form of “block grants.” These are confusing words for any layperson and even an elected official. Under current procedures, states get their federal support based on the needs of their residents and under a flexible formula.
If a state agrees to accept a block grant in a specific amount, should the demand for money increase due to higher cancer rates or other illnesses, the state will cut back on coverage for people getting Medicaid. Block grants are the dream of conservatives who for years were determined to end Social Security and Medicare. Sadly, there are a number of Republican governors who would love to grab block grants and the cut off coverage for the recipients.
The next target of President Trump is food stamps. I know that some of our readers think that food stamps go to some poor, illiterate person, buying beer with a food stamp. But, take the case of Marie M., a single mother living in Levittown. She has a low paying job and is the sole supporter of her children who were abandoned by their father. With her meager salary and her food stamps, she is able to put food on the table. She is not some welfare cheat. She is a neighbor who like many others survives on her small stamp allocation.
Officials have estimated that some 800,000 people will lose their food stamps this year. Most of them live in the red states that our President visits as part of his vanity tour. I doubt that he will talk about his cuts in food stamps, while he proclaims how great he has made America. It is a sure thing that many of the people screaming their love for him do not have a clue about his record of harming their interests.
These are just a few of the many things that President Trump has done to carry out his agenda. But wouldn’t it be nice if one day the Commander-in-Chief would announce that he has some tangible gift for hard-working Americans in need. And it doesn’t have to wait for the next Valentine’s Day.
