I often write social commentaries on several political topics, which I submit and have published online.
It seems that only a few mere seconds after my commentaries appear in cyberspace, which in any way criticize Donald Trump’s actions or policies, two men who define themselves as “orthodox Jews” challenge my analyzes, while also usually attacking my character, intelligence, mental stability, and most of all, my standing with Hashem (the Jewish God) as expressed in the Torah (the Jewish holy book). In other words, they claim that I am not a good Jew.
Whatever! Though I have studied the texts of several religions, I learned long ago never to debate these texts with anyone.
Responding to one of my recent articles, “Trump’s Obvious Psychological Afflictions Plus Diminishing Cognitive Abilities Portends Disaster,” one of the men wrote: “Barukh Hashem (‘blessed is God’ or ‘blessed is the name’) for Pres Trump and for the upcoming Vance administration.”
Oh, Hashem forbid!
The other man, being thankful for Trump, asked me to imagine what life would be like if Kamala Harris had become president.
It took me a mere few minutes to compile a list, though I could have continued ad infinitum:
- Lower inflation,
- lower energy and grocery prices,
- no invasion of Venezuela and Iran,
- 16 military lives would have been saved,
- most likely no corruption,
- no illegal destruction of the White House,
- no pardons for the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrectionists,
- subsidies for affordable healthcare (while not eliminating 17 million lower income people from being insured),
- no grifting billions of dollars while in office,
- no breaking our country’s historic alliances,
- strong and continued ties with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), with the United Nations (UN), and with our other allies around the world to solve common problems and to serve as trading partners,
- no retreat from the World Health Organization (WHO),
- no termination of foreign aid (for example, through USAID), which is predicted to kill literally millions of starving and ill people under Trump’s neo-fascist regime,
- improvement in our overall standing in the world,
- funding for Ukraine’s war against Russia’s terrorism,
- commitment to just and humane immigration policies, infusing more funding into hiring agents to process those who wish to enter the country, and codification of protections for “Dreamers”;
- a reduction or elimination of injuries and deaths related to ICE enforcement policies,
- support for police reform and prison reform, including initiatives to ensure a working partnership between departments and the communities they serve, and instituting humane policies such as “no choke holds,” the wearing of officer webcams, and others,
- not so high across-the-board tariffs that have increased prices here in the U.S. under Trump,
- no day-by-day scandals as in the Trump regime,
- continued support and in some programs, increased funding for public safety net programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, supplemental nutrition assistance programs (aka. SNAP) or other food assistance programs (such as free school breakfasts and lunches), reduction or elimination of student loan debt,
- someone who actually works for the American people and not someone who works only to enrich himself as does Trump,
- no hiring of family members to conduct foreign and domestic policy,
- choosing people to fill important government positions (including cabinet members) who are the most qualified for the positions they are to hold,
- commitment to limiting the continued disastrous climate crisis by earmarking more funding for renewable sources of clean energy while ensuring more clean energy jobs and retraining of the workforce, and cleaning of our waterways and the air,
- continued research grants to our universities (including funding to find cures to diseases),
- we would not be in the midst of a measles and whooping cough epidemic,
- rather than eliminating the Department of Education as Trump has done, Harris would have most likely advocated for increased funding that would expand services to special needs students,
- remaining in the Paris Climate Accords,
- would not have torn up the previous nuclear agreement with Iran (as Trump had done in his first regime) that was negotiated under the Obama administration,
- work toward free or subsidized quality childcare, child tax credits, and paid family parental leave,
- work toward a more equitable tax code where the rich paid their fair share,
- elimination of the Trump tax code that rewarded the rich and powerful,
- elimination of stock trading for congressional members,
- no special favors for forever evading annual tax auditing,
- continued and improved consumer protections on all products (including prescription drugs), and passage and enforcement of appropriate regulations on business and industry to protect the safety of the public and reduce exorbitant price gouging,
- advocating that Congress codifies reproductive rights for all women,
- support for marriage equality and for transgender equality and access to gender-affirming care,
- nomination of Supreme Court justices to counterbalance the conservative members of the court nominated during Trump’s first regime,
- expansion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the federal government,
- advancement of firm and consistent support for labor unions and the process of collective bargaining, a guaranteed federal living minimum hourly, and a yearly wage,
- elimination of income tax on Social Security payments,
- continued activism to ensure fair and equitable voting rights for all qualified citizens (regardless of their social identities and backgrounds), and the advancement of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act,
- advocacy for reasonable and effective gun safety measures,
- support for a strengthening of the wall separating religion and government, and opposition to the concept and practice of white Christian nationalism,
- support for a genuine partnership between the federal, state, and local governments with final authority resting in the federal government,
- dedication to ethics in politics as well as truth, facts, and decency,
- reduction of the day-to-day drama we have seen under Trump.
Yes, many of the items on my list are contingent on Kamala Harris having a Democratic majority in both houses of Congress. But at the very least, if Harris had been elected, we would not have experienced the United States as the declining democracy that it has become under the Trump regime.
I welcome any additions you might provide as my list is certainly not exhaustive.
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