TDesperation is on the increase in the White House. With a looming forever war happening with Iran, economic pressure on everyday Americans is surging. At the same time, we are witnessing a President that is becoming ever more desperate and erratic.
In thinking that Iran would fold in a manner akin to what happened in Venezuela, this President is in serious trouble with the prospect of the forever war syndrome that has haunted this country for over the past 2 decades. Americans remember well candidate Trump railing against the foolishness of military adventures overseas. Now, here we are again and Americans are not happy..
Similarly, Americans also remember well candidate Trump promising to lower everyday costs of living. But, those darn numbers just will not cooperate. Food and energy prices are up. Housing costs are an increasing challenge. Wages have not kept up adequately to prevent increasing unhappiness toward this administration about the cost of living. Just in the increased costs for gas and diesel due to the Iran debacle, the financial burden for Americans has reached $71 billion (per the Iran War Cost Tracker at the Brown University Watson School of International and Public Affairs.)
Americans also remember well candidate Trump promising to remove the worst of the worst of the illegal immigrants in this country. Heavy handed gestapo-like tactics by poorly trained ICE agents is what we are seeing. Innocent lives are being lost, and even those that are engaged in the process of becoming legal immigrants are being hauled away. Terror among those of non-European heritage - citizens and non-citizens alike- has cast a dark shadow over our country.
Meanwhile, this President has taken the sole position among world leaders to actually counter any efforts to address man-made climate change. For the increasing number of people that have experienced floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and droughts of ever increasing intensity, this is recognized as not just foolish, but insane.
Consider this overview of billion-dollar weather events since 1980 from the National Centers for Environmental Information (these are adjusted numbers to the consumer price index of 2024):
• In the 1980’s, there were 33 weather events costing $22 billion per year with an average of 302 deaths per year.
• In the 1990’s, there were 57 weather events costing $33.5 billion per year and 308 deaths per year.
• From 2000-2009, there were 67 events averaging $62.2 billion per year with 310 deaths per year.
• In the 2010’s, there were 131 events costing $99.5 billion per year with an average of 523 deaths per year.
• From 2020 to 2024, there have been 115 events during this 5 year period. The cost has averaged $149.3 billion per year with loss of life averaging 504 per year. These large (billion dollar) weather disasters from 19802024, have totaled $2.3 trillion in 403 events with over 16,000 lives lost. This is an issue that needs to be addressed - not made worse by boosting the main causes of climate change.
To add insult to injury, it is in our faces that there is an elite class that is becoming richer than ever - including the President and his family. Meanwhile everyday Americans increasingly struggle. The elites are not just leveraging influence within the White House but making the rules of the game to benefit the wealthy. It is the real “Deep State” of extreme personal wealth that has surfaced from the depths of greed and is now found floating within the leadership of our country.
The US has 13 billionaires in key government positions. The overall number of billionaires has increased by 121 in Trump’s second term with their cumulative wealth increasing by 22% (according to Forbes data.)
Besides getting richer than ever, Trump is catching on that he is in trouble with the American people. We see him adding his “scum” label to more and more people while ranting almost incoherently over his social media platform throughout the night.
The “guillotine” threat for Trump and his cronies starts with the specter of impeachment as a result of a shift in power in Congress after the mid term elections. Trump is trying as hard as possible to hamper the turnout against him where Americans can vote out the Republican congressional members that have allowed him to run wild. it is a dangerous time for our country, when you have a powerful deranged President fighting for survival, It means we all need to summon our courage as Americans to stand up for the principles of our nation.
W Laurence Doxsey, Retired, Former Director of Office of Sustainability for City of San Antonio, former Environmental Officer for US Department of Housing and Urban Development, former Sustainability Officer for City of Austin, resides outside Medina.
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