We seem to be watching the slow motion creation of a
dystopian plutocracy. Obfuscated by the administration’s contrived crisis of
dealing with undocumented immigrants and horrific scenes of families being
separated, is an alt-right agenda of dismantling the so called social net. Stories such as a recent one in the New York Times are hidden by other
events of Trump’s creation.
Highlighted here are some salient points from the New York Times article of a few days ago,
“Behind Trump’s Plan to Overhaul the Government: Scaling Back the Safety Net”.
I have depended on the Times for the Truth all my life and I see no reason to disbelieve
any of this about “a small army of conservatives [who] have produced dozens of
initiatives like the cabinet reshuffle proposal, with the goal of dismantling
the social welfare system.”
· *Among the
most consequential ideas is a proposal to shift the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program, a subsistence benefit that provides aid to 42 million poor
and working Americans, from the Agriculture Department to a new mega-agency that
would have “welfare” in its title — a term Mr. Trump uses as a pejorative
catchall for most government benefit programs
·
*Mr. Trump,
for his part, joked on Thursday that the plan was “extraordinarily boring”
before TV cameras in the Cabinet Room.
But being boring in an all-too-exciting White House has provided cover
for a small army of conservatives and think tank veterans who have been quietly
churning out dozens of initiatives like the proposal to reshuffle the cabinet,
with the ultimate goal of dismantling the American social welfare system from
the inside out.
·
*Stephen K.
Bannon, the president’s former adviser,…believes the attack on social programs
will be one of Mr. Trump’s most enduring policy achievements.
·
*Philip G.
Alston, a New York University professor and the United Nations special
rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, agreed with Mr. Bannon’s
assessment. “My sense is they are making very considerable progress, even
though no one is paying much attention,” he said.
·
*As
president, Mr. Trump would become so bored with the details of domestic policy
that aides long ago stopped sharing all but the most top-line specifics of
their plans — including the reorganization, according to several people who
have worked closely with Mr. Trump. If
Mr. Trump is fuzzy on policy, he is acutely attuned to the perils of offending
his base, especially older voters.
·
*The core
of Mr. Trump’s safety net policy is an expansion of work requirements to foster
self-sufficiency among recipients of food assistance, Medicaid and housing
subsidies to reduce dependence on the government. “Our goal is to get people on
the path to self-sufficiency,” Mr. Bremberg said. Its real purpose, advocates
for poor people claim, is to kick hundreds of thousands of the needy off the federal
rolls, to cut taxes for the rich
·
*By early
2017, Heritage produced a government reorganization plan that served as the
initial template for Thursday’s announcement. They also drafted a list of 334
policy recommendations, about half of them aimed at domestic programs for poor
people or Obama-era regulations protecting low-income consumers.
The first part of the plan, cutting taxes for the upper
1%, has already been implemented. What
remains to be seen is the long term impact of those cuts on the deficit; most
economists agree that GPD growth will not offset those cuts. This leaves an
ever growing national debt, something the Republicans staunchly opposed before
and now seem to be content with. When cries of deficit spending reach a crescendo in the future, their “Trump
card” may be to throw the neediest 42 million Americans under the bus in the
name of fiscal responsibility.
