Sadly, we have become accustomed to Trump’s lies about the presumed progress the USA made under his watch. It’s time to take a hard look at his domestic policy which is inflicting terrible damage and anguish on the majority of Americans. Trump knows he lies just about everything, but he continues to successfully sell his lies to his base, representing the 25 to 30 percent of Americans who still believe every word he says.
Trump’s immigration policy disgraces this country, built by immigrants and a beacon of hope for those seeking a new life and new opportunities. The outrage began with his “Muslim ban”, targeting those from Muslim-majority countries he deemed a threat, followed by even more discriminatory executive orders and proclamations. Another ban targeted asylum seekers at the southern border and shamelessly ordered the separation of children from their parents, placing them in cages unfit even for stray animals.
He refused to consider legislation granting citizenship to the approximately two million Dreamers, including nearly 700,000 DACA recipients, who know no other country. He insists on building a useless wall along the Mexican border costing billions, which by all accounts will be ineffective and not stop a determined migrant crossing. Finally, he refused to grant a path to citizenship to nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants who are integral to not just US industries, but culture. He put in charge of immigration policy his ruthless, disdainful, and white supremacist advisor Steven Miller, whose narrow-minded approach to immigration is surpassed only by his bigotry and hollow soul.
America’s future national security and global leadership is intertwined, as it has always been, with its domestic health and vitality. Any Republican or Democratic president who fails to grasp this does so at his peril
Trump’s tax cut legislation far from benefits all Americans. Every study shows that it benefits the rich the most, and is in fact harming middle-class and low-income families. While unemployment is at a record low, wages remain stagnant and an increasing number of families are often forced to choose between food and medicine. He dishonestly equates the stock market’s breaking records (before the coronavirus outbreak) to a healthy economy, when the vast majority of Americans do not trade in the stock market and derive no benefit from its past repeated gains. The tax cut also increased the national debt by over $1 trillion, while poverty is on the rise.
Since Trump failed to repeal Obamacare, he has opted instead to gut it, causing many millions to lose coverage. Trump constantly lies on his positions, especially pre-existing conditions. For example, he tweeted: “I was the person who saved Pre-Existing Conditions in your Healthcare, you have it now…” Actually, healthcare for people with pre-existing conditions was guaranteed by Obamacare; Trump’s proposed alternative doesn’t cover them and his claim to the contrary is a flat-out lie.
To prove his determination to gut federal support from safety net programs, including healthcare, Trump proposes cutting billions from them in his $4.8 trillion budget proposal for 2021. This includes $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and ACA over a decade, strongly contradicting his public statements.
The National Center for Children in Poverty estimates that 15 million children– 21 percent of all American children– live in families with incomes below the federal poverty threshold, a measurement which has been shown to underestimate the basic needs of families. An estimated 3.5 million Americans— including 1.25 million children— will suffer one or more episodes of homelessness this year.
In 2019, the US spent more than $100 billion on the Child Tax Credit. The only problem is that it fails to help those who need the tax credit the most. Twenty-three million children are ineligible for the full credit because their parents earn too little to qualify, as its current structure benefits higher-income families. Over 50 percent of Hispanic and Black children are ineligible to benefit in full, and nearly 1 in 5 Blacks not at all.
Another failure is not proposing any significant legislation for the USA’s crumbling infrastructure, as he promised during his 216 campaign. The American Society of Civil Engineers says this country’s infrastructure is in desperate need of investment. On its 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the country receiveda D+, the same as in 2013.
The ASCE estimates we need to spend roughly $4.5 trillion over the next five years to fix the country’s roads, bridges, dams, and other infrastructure. In the past 20 years alone, there have been a number of catastrophic bridge failures leading to the deaths and injuries of hundreds. The poor condition of roads, waterways, parks, and schools have affected cities and small towns all over. The increasing number of floods, due in part to climate change, are made worse due to failing infrastructure.
Trump’s denial of climate change is one of his most dangerous positions as President. His numerous actions, including withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on climate change, increasing environmental deregulation, and embedding climate change deniers in the EPA and Department of the Interior, are dangerous shams. The scientific evidence of climate change is overwhelming, but Trump still claims climate change is fiction. The unprecedented fires in the Amazon, Australia, and California, rising sea temperatures, and the intensity of hurricanes only a blind man like Trump can deny.
In August 2019, the Trump administration planned to cut regulations for methane emissions, a major contributor to climate change. The USA is the world’s second-largest polluter after China, and more than any other country bears the responsibility to cut down on gas emissions. Also, Trump has sought to open millions of acres of public land and water to drilling, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and has lifted an Obama-era moratorium on new coal mining leases on public land.”
America’s opioid crisis affects people from all walks of life and economic backgrounds. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, between 21 to 29 percent of patients prescribed opioids misuse them, eight to 12 percent develop an addiction, and four to six percent who misuse prescription opioids eventually transition to heroin. In addition, roughly 130 people die every day after overdosing on opioids— which includes prescription pain killers, heroin, and synthetics like fentanyl.
Trump’s response has been dismal, though he takes credit for the overall drop in drug overdose deaths in 2018. Even with that drop, 2018 was still the second highest year for such deaths— surpassed only by 2017. The opioid crisis is at its heart a public health crisis, yet Trump continues to advocate pulling funding for Medicaid and repealing the ACA, programs which have enabled especially low-income Americans to access health care and reduce opioid-related overdose deaths.
Trump’s unwillingness to enact gun control laws makes him complicit in the over 100 Americans’ deaths daily by firearms. In 2017, gun deaths reached their highest level since 1968, nearly 40,000. For every person killed in a gun homicide, six others are injured. Additionally, as the Giffords Law Center reports, there is an average of one mass shooting every day in the USA.
Even on background checks and assault rifles, Trump flip-flopped because he has really never committed himself genuinely to effective gun-control laws. Trump regularly ties mass shooting to mental illness alone, and calls for more mental institutions rather than stricter gun laws. Trump has done virtually nothing to enact common sense gun legislation and has remained entirely in the pocket of the gun lobby and the NRA.
Despite Trump’s claims, his trade wars have done little to offset the trade gap with China. US farmers are angry over Trump’s lies in this trade war. China’s tariffs are closing off the world’s biggest export market for US agricultural products.
Trump’s lies about trade apply equally to NAFTA. Again, in one of his misleading remarks, he said: “We’re taking NAFTA– one of the worst deals ever made in the history of trade– and we are redoing it…We lost thousands of factories and millions of jobs because of NAFTA…We’re turning it around. Already, Chrysler is coming back with auto plants… We’re making incredible trade deals.” In fact, the newly-negotiated USMCA trade agreement hardly differs from NAFTA, but leave it to Trump to boast about how much better it is.
In sum, Trump’s disastrous domestic policies will impact the lives and wellbeing of most Americans for years to come. His failures must be exposed for all, and drastic corrective measures must be taken to address them systematically. The cost will certainly be astronomical, but then, with a clear vision, determination, and responsible budgeting and equitable taxation over a period of five to seven years, much of America’s domestic ills can be addressed on a continuing basis.
America’s future national security and global leadership is intertwined, as it has always been, with its domestic health and vitality. Any Republican or Democratic president who fails to grasp this does so at his peril.
Source : https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2020/03/09/trumps-disastrous-domestic-policy/?fbclid=IwAR2FTi8qIhF6n_Y05deEpsI1hj_SWXFe-3Y3TXhgb6ssWEQyhzvAJapwRmE