Like much of our country, I was less than thrilled with the candidates of the 2016 presidential election. When election day rolled around, I was deeply disappointed with the results. Since the November election, there’s one sentiment I’ve heard a lot from Democrats and Republicans alike: Give Donald Trump a chance.
I like to give people the benefit of the doubt. Despite the repeated disrespectful, harmful, and baseless statements that Mr. Trump made over the course of his campaign, lots of people expressed their hopes that as an elected president, Mr. Trump would change his rhetoric, language, and behavior. Many of the comments he has made have been unprofessional to say the least, certainly things one wouldn’t expect from a global leader. Mr. Trump was inaugurated nearly one week ago on January 20.
Since his inauguration, Donald Trump has signed several executive actions. Unfortunately, these actions have been as damaging and dangerous as Mr. Trump’s campaign rhetoric. In the single week he has been in office, Mr. Trump has approved the following measures among others:
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The border wall- One of his continued campaign promises was to build a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump signed an executive action for the beginnings of this wall. Despite numerous claims that Mexico will pay for the wall, Trump has now suggested a heavy import tax to pay for the wall. Such a wall would be costly and ineffective.
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Immigration deportation- Mr. Trump has introduced an executive order which prioritizes certain groups for deportation and calls for increased pressure on immigration officials and even local law officers to deport undocumented immigrants. It also demands that federal grants from “sanctuary” cities, which do not enforce some immigration laws, be blocked.
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Dakota Access and Keystone Pipelines- These pipelines, where construction was tentatively delayed in December of 2016 have been put on track for speedy approval. The proposed route of the pipeline project cuts through Native American land in North Dakota, and raises several environmental red flags. Concerned protesters have pointed to a number of issues surrounding the pipeline project, including oil contamination of the Standing Rock water supply. Mr. Trump’s new executive order puts the DAPL back on track, despite the environmental and human rights concerns surrounding the project.
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Defunding abortion- Trump has eliminated all federal funding for organizations that offer abortion services. This includes Planned Parenthood, an organization which provides numerous other health services for women including mammograms, cholesterol screening, vaccines, diabetes screening, and prenatal care. Planned Parenthood and other organizations will have to rely purely on donations to provide these and other services.
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Affordable Care Act- Mr. Trump’s very first executive order was to “minimize the economic burden” of the Affordable Care Act, which provides healthcare for over 20 million people. Furthermore, Mr. Trump’s administration “seeks the prompt repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”, without first providing an alternate system of national healthcare.
In addition to these executive orders, Mr. Trump has taken a number of other alarming actions. He has instituted a gag order on several federal employees which seems to target scientists in the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture. A few twitter accounts, like that of the Badlands National Park, acted in defiance of this order, spreading information about climate change, which Mr. Trump claims is a hoax. Mr. Trump’s heavy-handed control over the media and his continued denial of climate change is extremely worrying.
He has also announced his administration’s plans to defund grants which support the arts and humanities, including organizations such as PBS and NPR. A statement from the Trump administration calls the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities “waste” and suggests that these are the areas in which the federal government should cut spending. In 2016, the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting combined made up less than .02% of the federal budget. These already under-funded programs are crucial to American society, and defunding them is a dangerous step down a slippery slope.
Yet another source of concern for many has been the arrest of six journalists who were reporting on Mr. Trump’s inauguration itself. Charged with “rioting or inciting to riot”, these six men face up to ten years in jail and/or fines up to $25,000. However, there seems to be little evidence for their arrest. Jack Keller, one of the men facing these charges, has stated that “I want to make it absolutely clear…that I was there as a journalist and was simply observing the J20 protest”. The suspicious circumstances of these arrests is deeply concerning for a society which claims to value free speech. Mr. Trump’s heavy control over the government and his attacks on the media are extremely worrying at a time when it is critical to be aware of the current events of our country.
Many people urged the country to give Donald Trump a chance after his election. They said there was nothing we could do to change it now, and we had to give him a chance to prove his naysayers wrong. However, within a week of his inauguration, Mr. Trump has already threatened the rights of undocumented immigrants, reproductive rights, and freedom of the press. He has supported the North Dakota Access Pipeline, despite its potential for environmental destruction and human rights violations, as well as devaluing the arts and humanities while suggesting they be defunded. To those who asked us to give Mr. Trump a chance: He has had his chance and used it to violate American ideals, threaten key programs, and target certain groups in our country. Donald Trump’s presidency has only lasted a week, but he has thoroughly squandered his chance through his destructive and dangerous policies.