The National Debt Increased Under Trump Despite His Promise To Reduce It
Daily total national debt from 2009 to present.
Economists agree that we needed massive deficit spending during the COVID-19 crisis to ward off an economic cataclysm, but federal finances under Trump had become dire even before the pandemic. That happened even though the economy was booming and unemployment was at historically low levels. By the Trump administrations own description, the pre-pandemic national debt level was already a crisis and a grave threat.
The combination of Trumps 2017 tax cut and the lack of any serious spending restraint helped both the deficit and the debt soar. So when the once-in-a-lifetime viral disaster slammed our country and we threw more than $3 trillion into COVID-19-related stimulus, there was no longer any margin for error.
Our national debt has reached immense levels relative to our economy, nearly as high as it was at the end of World War II. But unlike 75 years ago, the massive financial overhang from Medicare and Social Security will make it dramatically more difficult to dig ourselves out of the debt ditch.
A Failure To Help Small Businesses
Even before shelter-in-place orders were commonplace across states, businesses were noticing sharp declines in consumer activity. By the beginning of April, 24 percent of small businesses had reported temporarily shutting down. By mid-May, more than 100,000 small businesses had closed permanently, representing 2 percent of the nations total. The Paycheck Protection Programa provision in the CARES Act intended to help employers keep operations running despite revenue shortfallswas plagued by reports of large, publicly traded companies receiving massive sums while small businesses were left without help. A May report released by the Small Business Administrations inspector general found that the Trump administrations implementation left out minority-owned, woman-owned, and rural businesses. Despite a second round of funding through the program, small businesses are still suffering immensely: Some projections estimate that small business closures could approach 7.5 million if businesses are forced to weather the economic impacts of the outbreak on their own. Though the HEROES Act would strengthen the PPP and provide other assistance to small businesses, much of the economic damage could have been avoided entirely had the Trump administration acted more quickly to contain the outbreak.
Remaking The Federal Judiciary
Appointed a historic number of Federal judges who will interpret the Constitution as written.
- Nominated and confirmed over 230 Federal judges.
- Confirmed 54 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals, making up nearly a third of the entire appellate bench.
- Filled all Court of Appeals vacancies for the first time in four decades.
- Flipped the Second, Third, and Eleventh Circuits from Democrat-appointed majorities to Republican-appointed majorities. And dramatically reshaped the long-liberal Ninth Circuit.
Appointed three Supreme Court justices, expanding its conservative-appointed majority to 6-3.
- Appointed Justice Neil Gorsuch to replace Justice Antonin Scalia.
- Appointed Justice Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy.
- Appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
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Robbing Rural Communities Of Their Natural Amenities
Despite research showing that green policy can bring an additional $8 billion annually to rural communities, Trump has instead spent his time in office rolling back environmental protections and ramping up fossil fuel development.50 For example, the Trump administration has favored gas and oil companies over renewable energy in the leasing of federal land.51 Some of the natural land auctioned off to oil companies is vital, irreplaceable wildlife habitat.52 In total, Trump has stripped federal protections from almost 35 million acres of natural land.53
Natural amenities such as parks and quality outdoor recreation are essential to many rural communities and, in some places, have driven economic growth in recent years.54 By opening up rural areas to more fossil fuel extraction, the Trump administrations policies are trading the long-term viability of rural economies for the profit of giant corporations.
Trumps Impact On The Us Economy
Georgia Strong | United States Fellow
As American President Donald Trumps first Presidential term comes to a close, his economic efforts can start to be fully evaluated. Broadly, Trumps economic policy was greater employment for blue collar workers, and economic growth of 4 to 6 per cent. One of the first programs implemented by President Trump when he was elected was the corporate tax cut scheme. This move likely stimulated the US economy to some extent as gross domestic product rose to 2.9 per cent for 2018. However, the long term economic benefits are wearing off as business investment has declined for the previous two quarters. By February 2020 President Trump was expected to increase the federal deficit by 74 per cent over 4 years.
To put Trumps debt in context, the US annual budget deficit was expected to approximate 4.6 per cent of GDP for 2020, as calculated in January prior to the global economic downturn. Similarly, President Trumps first three years in office all recorded a deficit exceeding 4 per cent of GDP. The only other time the US has partaken in sustained budget deficits of this magnitude is during World War II. A typical budget deficit averages 1.5 per cent of GDP when the economy exhibits relatively strong growth as was the case in 2016 to 2019.
Georgia Strong is the United States Fellow for Young Australians in International Affairs.
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Siding With Agribusiness Against Independent Farmers
The Trump administration has demonstrated a complete disinterest in assisting small farms, as Secretary Perdue made explicit at an event in October 2019, where he was quoted as saying, In America, the big get bigger and the small go out. I dont think in America we, for any small business, we have a guaranteed income or guaranteed profitability.23
One of Trumps first actions in office was to withdraw Obama-era rules that protected livestock farmers from exploitation by powerful agriculture monopolies.24 Specifically, the Trump administration revoked rules that would prohibit meatpackers from paying different prices to farmers with similar products and banned them from retaliating against growers who organized collectively for better contract terms. The rules also prohibited bad-faith negotiation practices or the spurious cancelation of contracts with farmers. The set of rules, formulated by the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration , also strengthened enforcement by lowering the standard for farmers bringing suit against meatpackers under the Packers and Stockyards Act.25 In place of these rules, the Trump administration finalized far weaker rules that some farmer advocates say cement the ability of packers to engage in unfair practices.26
Has Donald Trump Been Good For The Us Economy And For Equality
When asked whod be better for the economy, Americans are much more likely to reply Trump than Biden. And a promise to bring the stock market and prosperity to new heights if elected is one of Trumps promises. So shouldnt people in the US hold their nose today and vote for Trump? After all, its the economy, stupid.
But maybe, before making theirmark, they should look a little more closely at the figures. In 2016 when Trumpcame to office, there were 9.4 million millionaires in the US in 2020 therewere 10.5 million millionaires in the US. So clearly Trumps presidency has been good for realising the Americandream: anyone can become financially successful if they just roll up their sleevesand put in the work.
But what about those inpoverty can they share the American dream? Has Trump helped those people? Well,that depends.
In 2019, after several yearsof Trumps reign, 10.5% of people in theUS were living in poverty. Thats in the richest country in the world with overone-tenth of its people poor. And if you happened to be black and American,then youd belong to a group where 18.8% of the people were in poverty.
In 2018, the average householdincome in the US was $84,600 the average household income for blacks in the USwas $51, 600.
Finally, American billionaireshave had a really good pandemic. If you take the 643 billionaires , those 643 billionaires have managed tomake a combined gain of $845 billion since last March. Nice work if you can getit.
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Ways Donald Trump Has Changed Canada Since Becoming President
It’s been a little over one year since Donald Trump became President of the United States. Yes, it’s felt like far longer, and it’s scary to think we have another three years to go, but that’s where we are.
Obviously a switch-up in the leadership of Canada’s closest trading partner and nearest neighbour is going to have an impact on Canadians. But Trump’s entrance into the Oval Office heralded a lot of change.
To keep track, here are ten ways Donald Trump has changed Canada since becoming president.
Relationship With The News Media
Early into his presidency, Trump developed a highly contentious relationship with the news media, repeatedly referring to them as the “fake news media” and “the enemy of the people.” As a candidate, Trump had refused press credentials for offending publications but said he would not do so if elected. Trump both privately and publicly mused about taking away critical reporters’ White House press credentials. At the same time, the Trump White House gave temporary press passes to far-right pro-Trump fringe outlets, such as InfoWars and The Gateway Pundit, which are known for publishing hoaxes and conspiracy theories.
On his first day in office, Trump falsely accused journalists of understating the size of the crowd at his inauguration and called the news media “among the most dishonest human beings on earth.” Trump’s claims were notably defended by Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who claimed the inauguration crowd had been the biggest in history, a claim disproven by photographs. Trump’s senior adviser Kellyanne Conway then defended Spicer when asked about the falsehood, saying it was an “alternative fact,” not a falsehood.
The Trump Justice Department obtained by court order the 2017 phone logs or email metadata of reporters from CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, BuzzFeed, and Politico as part of investigations into leaks of classified information.
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False And Misleading Statements
Veracity of statements by Donald TrumpFact-checkersThe Washington PostToronto Starthe midterm electionsimpeachment inquiryPost
The number and scale of Trump’s statements in public speeches, remarks, and tweets identified as false by scholars, fact-checkers, and commentators were characterized as unprecedented for an American president and even unprecedented in U.S. politics.The New Yorker called falsehoods a distinctive part of his political identity, and they have also been described by Republican political advisor Amanda Carpenter as a gaslighting tactic. His White House had dismissed the idea of objective truth and his campaign and presidency have been described as being “post-truth” and hyper-Orwellian. Trump’s rhetorical signature included disregarding data from federal institutions that was incompatible to his arguments quoting hearsay, anecdotal evidence, and questionable claims in partisan media denying reality and distracting when falsehoods were exposed.
Actions To Hinder Implementation Of Aca
President Trump continued Republican attacks on the ACA while in office, according to the New York Times, including steps such as:
- Weakening the individual mandate through his first executive order, which resulted in limiting enforcement of mandate penalties by the IRS. For example, tax returns without indications of health insurance will still be processed, overriding instructions from the Obama administration to the IRS to reject them.
- Reducing funding for advertising for the 2017 and 2018 exchange enrollment periods by up to 90%, with other reductions to support resources used to answer questions and help people sign-up for coverage. This action could reduce ACA enrollment.
- Cutting the enrollment period for 2018 by half, to 45 days. The NYT editorial board referred to this as part of a concerted “sabotage” effort.
- Issuing public statements that the exchanges are unstable or in a death spiral. CBO reported in May 2017 that the exchanges would remain stable under current law , but would be less stable if the AHCA were passed.
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Has Donald Trump Fulfilled His 5 Big Economic Promises How They Have Held Up One Year Post
United States President Donald Trump was elected one year ago â at least in part because of his economic promises â in a stunning upset to expected winner Hillary Clinton. In the immediate wake of Trumpâs win, stock markets started to plunge: until investors woke up and seemingly saw things in a new light. Trump promised to cut taxes, after all, an expected boon to corporations.
In his victory speech, Trump said, âWe have a great economic plan,â promising, âwe will double our growth and have the strongest economy anywhere in the world.â Since then stocks have continued to soar, if unevenly. Perhaps predictably, as geopolitical tensions have increased, industries like aerospace and defense have fared best, while market sectors like retail continue to struggle â and shed jobs.
Of course, the stock market is often wrongly used as a surrogate for how the economy is doing â and only about half of Americans own any stock at all, according to Gallup. And even as the keeps hitting new highs, U.S. workers face frustratingly stagnant wages meanwhile, Trumpâs economic agenda â which has been controversial since the start â creates a more complicated picture.
So how is the Trump economy really doing, 12 months since the election?
Here is how well Trump is delivering on five of his key economic promises.
Donald Trump Declares He Launched ‘fastest Economic Comeback In History’ But Did He
With several million U.S. jobs restored following record losses during the first two months of the new coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump has championed the nation’s economic progress and cited it as an example of his administration’s success.
“The Lamestream Media is not talking about what is happening with the Stock Market and JOBS. Both are doing GREAT!” Trump wrote on Twitter Monday morning. “The Radical Left will destroy the USA. Be careful what you wish for!”
The president’s comments trailed a series of similar ones. Speaking about the strengths of his economic policies over presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s at the White House on Friday, Trump said: “I created the greatest economy we’ve ever had. And now, we’re creating it again.”
He claimed his administration initiated “the greatest economic comeback in history” one day earlier, the Washington Post reported.
The Lamestream Media is not talking about what is happening with the Stock Market and JOBS. Both are doing GREAT! The Radical Left will destroy the USA. Be careful what you wish for!
Donald J. Trump
Although national unemployment numbers have decreased steadily since an initial spike in job losses during the first two months of the pandemic, they remain more than twice as high as those reported amid the 2008 and 2009 recession. Jobless claims peaked in March 2009 with 665,000 claims filed over one week.
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