NEWFANE-Like a spoiled child, Donald Trump is whining about wanting a birthday parade that will cost us, the taxpayers, as much as $45 million.
Like a spoiled child, Trump runs home whenever possible to escape the political heat of Washington to indulge in golf. We foot that bill, too. As of February, or one month into his presidency, one estimate of his trips to Mar-a-Lago was over $10.7 million (more than half a billion dollars if this continues for four years).
He knows he can't legally jail people without a trial so he hustles suspects, in the middle of the night, to a prison in El Salvador. That is costing you and me another $6 million per year, or multiplied by four years of his presidency, $24 million.
He just accepted a plane from Qatar. He claims it's free, but our Air Force will have to completely overhaul it before it's secure enough for the president. We'll pay for that with our tax dollars as well.
He claims that our national debt is too high. In order to get that under control we have to control our spending. Instead of controlling his own unnecessary expenses he's targeting middle- and low-income people by eliminating, or reducing, government services like FEMA and Air Traffic Control. The raids on federal offices by Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) will likely not produce enough savings to reduce the national debt.
If your life hasn't already been destroyed by DOGE, this is what's on the horizon.
Trump has finally admitted the truth about tariffs. Instead of bringing great wealth to the U.S., he is advising us that his tariffs will, after all, create a little hardship.
I guess that depends upon who you are. For many of us tariffs will create a huge hardship. Many will lose their jobs as the economy slows down. We will all pay again in the form of higher prices. But Trump claims that we can all get through this hardship by giving our little girls one doll instead of 30 - and no more than five pencils for Christmas. In other words, we must tighten our belts while he spends more of our tax dollars on frivolous whims.
Some people can't tighten their belts - they are already too tight. Now we are being threatened by reductions in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid. The government spending bill that has passed the House of Representatives reduces those benefits.
These reductions will impose direct and indirect costs to all of us, including reduced hospital services and higher out-of-pocket costs. Trump's self-image of a thoughtful president would be shattered if he reduces Medicaid, so he'll let his supportive Republican members of Congress take care of that dirty work.
Trump is ignoring the will of the American people. Some of you may have bought the MAGA cap and other Trump treasures. You might have donated to his campaign to ensure his election win. He promised you paradise. You will remember him forever. But he forgot you the second you cast your vote.
Never voted for Trump? Well, he never cared about you anyway.
Jane Olmstead
Newfane
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