Remember when Trump, as a candidate and former president, declared that he would turn the economy around for the better, and quickly? He made astounding, frankly hard to believe promises, such as ending the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. And promising also that he would lower the price of gas and groceries right from the first day. And get those prices down quickly, to boot.
Yeah, remember all of that? All of those promises which sounded frankly too good to be true. Too good, truth be told, to really be believed?
And do you remember how he made similar over the top promises the first time that he ran? Promises like building a wall at our southern border, and making Mexico pay for it? And how he would not only build a healthcare system for the country which would cover everybody, and which would be affordable, but doubled down on these promises and boldly suggested that it would be easy to do? Also, how he would pay off the national debt in eight years? How the rest of the world would respect the United States and stop laughing at us, as they presumably were doing, according to him? He also promised that build a registry for Muslims in the United States, and that he would ban all immigration from predominately Islamic nations, remember? Finally, how he promised to have Hillary Clinton locked up (since he apparently believed a president was, or at least should be, all powerful, and thus in control of decisions which clearly fall under the domain of the judicial branch, as well)?
If you remember all of those promises (and many more), then you surely remember how he did not deliver on any of those promises. The promised wall was not built, only small additions to the already existing wall, if you want to call it a wall. Oh, and he certainly did not get Mexico to pay for it, either. That affordable healthcare system that he promised would cover all Americans, and would in fact be easy, proved to be a lie as well. In fact, he lifted not a finger to create such a system. Instead of paying off the national debt in eight years, he increased the national debt by over 25% in his first four year term. His promise that the United States, under him, would command the world's respect was made a mockery when he was literally laughed at by assembled leaders of the world during his speech at the United Nations, as well as when he made a fol of himself when praising the healthcare system of a non-existing African country before leaders of Africa. Also, there was a massive balloon of a crying baby Trump which flew over British skies every time that he visited that country, and parades in Germany with floats specifically mocking Trump. His Muslim ban was struck down by a conservative Supreme Court as unconstitutional, as was his proposed registry. And Hillary Clinton never did get locked up, did she? Again, he was not an all-powerful dictator, so that promise was beyond his control to begin with.
Despite all of those broken promises (and many more) and despite four exhausting years filled with ridiculous, cringe-worthy headlines almost on a daily basis, his supporters never held him accountable. Never did they put his feet to the fire for anything. In fact, it seemed like all of the broken promises were not only quickly forgiven, but even more quickly forgotten. As much as this man lies, it seems that the one time when he told the absolute truth was when he suggested that he could shoot someone in broad daylight in midtown Manhattan and still not lose a single supporter.
He keeps getting away with not just awful behavior, but outright criminal conduct. And yet the American people keep voting him in. Frankly, it hardly matters that he technically did not receive a majority of the vote in this last election. The fact of the matter is that this man legally and officially won not one but two elections. And so, even if they were not consecutive terms, he is now serving a second term.
Guess what? Already, there are broken promises. Grocery and gas prices not only did not go down quickly, but in fact keeps on rising. The war in Ukraine most certainly did not end within 24 hours and, in fact, the disastrous meeting with Zelensky at the White House probably hurt the chances of peace more than anything. Most people fault Trump and his administration for clearly setting up a trap in that meeting, which once again reflected poorly on the United States while all the world was watching. Another thing, not precisely a promise, was that he really did not know anything about Project 2025. Yet as soon as he was in power, all pretense was dropped of not being associated with them or pursuing those goals. In fact, this administration has been aggressively pursuing the stated objectives of Project 2025. Everyone is also still waiting for the promised quick boost of the economy, which was supposed to start improving on Day One, remember? The economy quickly began to tank, and it feels like the Trump White House has been attempting de facto damage control. Trump always harped on the stock market numbers as the measure of his supposed economic success as president. Funny how they are not bragging too much these days, eh? In fact, it seems like the stock market only now might - and I emphasize might - be recovering from the instability fostered by Trump's on again/off again tariffs, which has been the case since almost Day One.
These days, it seems like Trump just shrugs off any problems with the stock market. Today, the Dow Industrials look suspect. Trump, however, just dismissed this as a minor
Promises broken. Once a scam artist, always a scam artist.
It feels to me like Americans who support Trump and expect their lives to improve because of him are a bit like Charlie Brown. You know, when he keeps trying to kick the football, only to have Lucy pull the ball away from him, and he misses the ball and falls to the ground instead? Yup. That pretty much sums up a huge bulk of those people in red states right now. Only now, after they have voted for him for another four years, are some of them waking up to the fact that he and his policies are bad for them. But they had nearly a decade to pay attention to that possibility, which frankly felt more like a probability, even an inevitability, to many of us who never drank the Kool Aid.
Oh, and let us not forget the possibly irrevocable damage with our allies, strictly because of Trump. With their insistence that Canada is not a real country, and is bound to be the "51st state," Trump and his administration has become extremely unpopular in Canada. They have, understandably, pursued closer ties with other countries in order to not rely nearly as heavily on the United States. Likewise, his antagonism towards Europe has rubbed those countries - traditional allies - the wrong way. After meeting him early in his first term, as you may (or may not) recall, several European leaders suggested that they could no longer view the United States as a reliable partner. They took that one step farther this time around and outright suggested that the United States might be a hostile rival. Plus, the Trump administration's aggressive stance towards acquiring Greenland has obviously rubbed many people the wrong way, both in Greenland as well as in Europe (particularly Denmark, of course), as well as in the rest of the world.
Funny how talk of taking over Greenland (and the Panama Canal, and Gaza) and making Canada the 51st state was conspicuous in it's absence when Trump was running for president, isn't it? Yet now, polls are showing that a growing number of Americans (mostly members of the MAGA cult, predictably) now view Canada and Europe with more skepticism and distrust.
Wow.
And they claim that people who oppose them - you know, the "libtards" - are the brainwashed ones?
Right.
All of this and more adds to the sense of the United States as unstable, as a source of turbulence and chaos in the world. That, of course, is why the economic outlook in the future now looks decidedly grim, with many predicting a recession to come. Major embarrassments, like Vice-President Vance outraging China by referring to them as "Chinese peasants" ended what seemed to be the two countries coming to some kind of a compromise, so all of that instability still appears to be having a detrimental impact on the entire world, both politically and economically.
The creeping rise of fascism is something which I have not even bothered to discuss in this particular blog entry, although it most certainly is a reality in the United States right now. Most people can see it on a daily basis, with so many new ridiculous headlines to see and worry over, just like Trump's first four years. Whether people choose to look, or too often to look away really is up to the individual.
We keep seeing other headlines which suggest that Trump's approval rating continue to fall. That in fact, they are at or near historical lows. Significantly more Americans disapprove of the job that Trump and his administration are doing than approve. Frankly, this was so damn predictable.
Sorry, but it's true. It is so eerily reminiscent of 2004, when George W. Bush received another four year term after a disastrous first term. Only after the fact, once Bush already got another term in the Oval Office, did people start to regret their decision and get buyer's remorse. History is repeating, only now it is with Trump.
But you know what, America? That's too damn bad. It's time to suck it up.
After all, this is what you voted for. If you want to blame someone for everything that's going wrong, maybe it's time to look in the mirror. Next time there are elections - always assuming that there actually will be elections to look forward to in the future - maybe give a little bit more serious thought to the choices you make.
By now, we should all know that elections have consequences. And twice now, you voted for this guy to represent you and be your elected face and voice for the next four years, despite his infamously awful track record, which of course was always right there for everyone to see.
All of this is because of the absurd carelessness of far too many American voters.
Remember how people used to sarcastically say "Thanks Obama" for anything that they did not like while he was president? Maybe it's time for a similar saying. Only this time, we should be clearer on who, specifically, is responsible for putting King Con Don into office.
So let me be the first to say it: "Thanks, Trump voters."
Below are the sources which I used in obtaining some of the information used in the above blog entry:
Majority of Americans uneasy over Trump’s economic plan: WSJ poll by Ashleigh Fields - 04/04/25:
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5233705-trump-tariffs-economy-approval-survey/
Donald Trump's Approval Rating Implodes With Republican Pollster Published by Newsweek, Apr 15, 2025:
https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-approval-rating-republican-pollster-2059924
Stock Market News, April 17, 2025: Dow Industrials Slip; Trump Renews Attack on Fed Chair Powell Nvidia stock falls amid continued trade tensions Last Updated: April 17, 2025 at 10:40 PM EDT:
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-trump-tariffs-trade-war-04-17-25
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