For those of us who once believed that Donald Trump was going to lower prices for working Americans, our eyes have been opened.
When we shop for groceries, fill our gas tanks, pay our power bills, pay our insurance premiums or buy a car, we know the truth is just the opposite.
While the Trump family and friends are reaping the rewards of his presidency, average citizens are struggling. While the top 10% of Americans control 67% of the wealth in America, the bottom 50% of us control 2.5%.
Donald Trump’s best ex-friend Elon Musk has just been made the world’s first trillionaire. The jump in the cost of living is not being felt by Trump or any of his friends. In the past year, wealth of the 10 richest U.S. billionaires surged $698 billion. This can be verified on the Oxfam website.
This unprecedented wealth gap is especially galling at a time when the current administration is doing everything in its power to starve the poorest of the poor in America. While the party out of power is using the only tool they have to insure affordable health care is available (government shutdown) the party in power is unwilling to negotiate even a temporary solution.
Here in Lewis County, there are 13,847 citizens on food assistance (SNAP). Because the majority of voters in our county are Republicans, it follows that a fair percentage of them voted to have this aid cut when they elected Donald Trump.
Federal judges have ruled that emergency funds be dispersed to partially fund the food assistance program. In an effort to bully Democrats into dropping their effort to save health care for millions of Americans, Donald Trump has appealed the ruling, thus stopping the SNAP program.
To help victims of these program cuts, I have been donating what I can to the food bank that serves my neighbors. We could end the SNAP program altogether if the billionaires in America would join me in donating a similar portion of their hoarded wealth to those less fortunate.
Doug Findley
Randle
