Thoughts on Trump’s Inauguration on 1/20/25 – What Can/Should be Done?
The American people and their elected and appointed representatives made a series of bad mistakes electing Donald Trump as President of the United States for a second time.
He should have been convicted by the United States Senate after his impeachment by the House for trying to overthrow the government on January 6, 2021. He was spared by the actions of GOP leaders -- Senator Mitch McConnell and Representative Kevin McCarthy.
He should have been convicted by the courts. Attorney General Merrick Garland was slow to act in appointing a special counsel to investigate and prosecute Trump for his actions in seeking to overturn his electoral defeat in 2020. The US Supreme Court delayed his trial and then invented a brand-new doctrine of presidential immunity to shield Trump. Judge Cannon issued a string of unsupportable rulings that allowed Trump to avoid going to trial in Florida for taking and concealing national security documents. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis chose to have an ill-timed affair with the lead prosecutor, which in turn delayed and derailed her prosecution of Trump.
President Biden failed to step down in a timely fashion to allow his Democratic successor to be chosen by the nation’s voters. His family and political advisors failed to intervene in timely and appropriate fashion and tell him that due to his age and increasing physical infirmities, he should not seek a second term.
The American people had ample knowledge and evidence of Trump’s personal, professional and political failings, yet they elected him to a second term with a narrow majority in both Houses of Congress and a Supreme Court ideologically inclined to allow him wide latitude.
The American people want their President to build a better economy and slow and reverse inflation. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/02/29/americans-top-policy-priority-for-2024-strengthening-the-economy/ Republicans want the President to stop illegal immigration and reduce rates of crime. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/02/29/americans-top-policy-priority-for-2024-strengthening-the-economy/
Trump’s own stated priorities are stopping immigration, cutting tax rates for the rich, and imposing steep tariffs on our trading partners.
He wants to round up and deport up to 10 million immigrants, end birthright citizenship, end asylum, suspend refugee resettlement, and use the US military to achieve these goals. https://www.npr.org/2025/01/20/g-s1-43650/trump-inauguration-day-one-immigration
Trump wants to cut taxes on corporations, high income individuals, tips, overtime and Social Security. https://www.factcheck.org/2024/12/trumps-agenda-taxes/ “The cost is $8-10 trillion over ten years. Those earning $1 million or more (the top 1%) would get an average tax cut of about $70,000, or 3.2%. Those earning $5 million and above (the top 0.1%) save about $280,000 in taxes, or 3%.” “Middle-income earners would get a tax cut of about $1,000, or about 1.3% of after-tax income because of the extension.”
Trump wants to impose 60% tariffs on goods imported from China and 10% on goods imported from all other nations. https://www.factcheck.org/2024/12/trumps-agenda-taxes/ “Trump’s proposal for a universal 10% tariff and 60% tariff on Chinese goods would raise federal revenue by a net $2.8 trillion over 10 years.” “The Tax Policy Center found that a 10% universal tariff plus 60% on Chinese goods would reduce after-tax income in 2025 by about $1,800 per household on average.” The harms are tilted to lower and middle income individuals and families.
In my opinion, the Trump deportations and tariffs will be highly inflationary and do very substantial damage to the US economy and US standing with our allies near and far. Some of the Trump changes require Congressional action; others such as ending birthright citizenship require amending the US Constitution. Others can be done through executive action subject to review by the courts.
He has nominated some awful members to his Administration, including Pete Hegesth, Robert Kennedy Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, Kash Patel to name just a few. They are subject to Senate confirmation. We need to let our Senators know our opposition right now.
There are a few good ideas and few good people in here among the avalanche of bad ones. We should be supportive of the few good ones (e.g. restoring the state and local tax deduction and ending the tax on Social Security benefits) while opposing the multitude of bad and very bad ones.