Many people’s objective in the current presidential election is to ensure that Donald Trump does not get re-elected. Rightfully, they are extremely concerned about what damage Trump and his allies will do to the country, including, of course, abandoning American democracy.
Trump has already harmed the country. I will call attention here to some of the damage.
He made the federal budget issue much worse with his tax cut for the rich, enacted during Trump’s first year as President. It primarily benefited corporations and the wealthy. It achieved none of his administration’s goals, and the Congressional Budget Office projected that the 2017 tax cuts would increase the national debt by $1.9 trillion over 11 years.
Trump damaged the judiciary. During his presidency, Trump appointed three Supreme Court Justices and 226 other Right-Wing federal judges to lifetime appointments. His Supreme Court Justices were selected – as Trump himself proclaimed – if they would overturn Roe v. Wade. Of course, they lied when Senators asked them about Roe, declaring that it was settled law. And then they proceeded to unsettle it.
As President, Trump has attacked democracy.
“Here are ten basic democratic norms that Trump fails to comply with or outright repudiates: (1) respect for an independent judiciary, (2) support for a free and independent press, (3) more generally, the importance of independent actors within government, as opposed to actors who simply owe loyalty to the president; (4) a commitment to the peaceful resolution of political disputes rather than encouraging violence; (5) respect for the legitimacy of elections; (6) not using the legal system to attack political opponents; (7) not expressing admiration for foreign autocrats; (8) preserving transparency within government; (9) the maintenance of a sharp separation between the private interests of public servants and the public good; (10) at least a minimal commitment to truth telling.”
This was written in 2019, during the middle of Trump’s administration. Trump’s damage affects American polity. For example, currently, following Trump’s lead, Republican leaders support Putin in his war against Ukraine, which harms American security. A win in Ukraine by Russia is expected to be followed by attacks on other countries, including members of NATO, which the U.S. is sworn to defend—in a war!
Trump obliterated centuries of federal practice. He treated the presidency as just another money-making venture. He paid no attention to the Emoluments Clause, which restricts members of the federal government from receiving gifts . . . from foreign states. Trump had foreign officials stay at his hotel in Washington, which provided money in his pocket, thus violating the emoluments clause. The federal agency watchdog overlooked this issue, therefore establishing a problematic precedent. Also, when he traveled, Trump often had Secret Service and other officials stay at his properties, even when these properties were many miles away from the President’s destination. Once again, he was lining his pockets.
Trump damaged the United States’ international reputation. He immediately withdrew America from the important Paris Climate Accord, which was signed by 196 parties at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference near Paris. The treaty covers climate change “mitigation, adaptation, and finance.”
In addition to cozying up to dictators, Trump actively appeared to be doing work for Putin as he tried to dismantle NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance, or at least withdraw America from it. Putin has long wanted to destroy or weaken NATO, and Trump was actively at work trying to do the same thing. Fortunately, Biden defeated Trump in 2020, and the U.S. rejoined the Paris Accord and restored the compact with our NATO allies.
As things stand, we live under the effects of the first Trump presidency. We must continue to restore our government’s previous operating rules. But first, we must make certain that Trump is not re-elected. Fortunately, he has clearly warned us about what he would do in a second term. It would be the end of the world as we know it. First, he and his henchmen will eliminate democracy and then go further.
