Trump took office on Friday, January 20th and in less than a week, he’s made changes to the White House in the typical Trump fashion we’ve come to know – alarming claims, tweets, and new protocols.
Here are some of his first actions as President you should know about:
The Environmental Protection Agency has seen a halt from Trump Administration, instating a “communications ban.” The word “climate change” is being eradicated from the White House; at the same time, legislation is being introduced to push forward fossil fuel usage in America in order to spur job growth. However, ignoring the fact that climate change is irrefutably happening coupled with censoring the EPA is a disturbing motion to censor agencies that are in place to inform Americans.
2. Lying about Inauguration Size
Infamously a meme at this point, the first action of Press Secretary Sean Spicer was to lie about the attendance size of Trump’s Inauguration. That’s just plain scary. A government official lied about something that we can see with our own eyes, and it was something as trivial as attendance size. How do we move on from here? How do we trust a White House that told a lie that we can so clearly discredit?
3. Lying about How Many People Voted Illegally
Does Trump know that he’s president, and that he won the election? This refusal to accept that you are more likely to be struck by lightning than to vote illegally has been proven by numerous fact checkers. There. Is. Zero. Evidence. Of. Fraud. Again, gaining American trust – especially those who vehemently dislike him – is not achieved by blatantly lying about something that is so easily disprovable.
Trump reversed the ruling on the Dakota Access Pipeline in his first couple days in office. Expect massive amounts of protest to reemerge as Native Americans fight to keep their land safe. Senator Diane Feinstein illuminated the issue on her Twitter account, stating, “I believe it’s a grave mistake to build pipelines we do not need and do little to increase energy security. Keystone XL, Dakota Access pipelines are widely opposed by local communities and pose environmental risks. There are many ways to build a modern energy system without jeopardizing clean water or destabilizing the climate. If the president wants true energy security, he should work with Congress on a bipartisan infrastructure plan.” Whtat’s especially concerning is how Trump is moving forward with one risky pipeline, while Flint, Michigan still has an estimated year to go before their drinking water is clean – all caused from pipes that leaked.
Abortion is a heated subject for most Americans; however, Trump’s reinstatement of the Global Gag Rule poses more issues than the Republicans could hope to fix. The Global Gag Rule makes it so that any organization around the world that receives money from the USA must no longer provide abortion (or even suggest it) as an option to women they treat worldwide. However, the opposite effect is often seen as “the gag rule has been shown to increase abortion rates, particularly unsafe abortions.” So instead of keeping women and children healthy, this rule has the complete opposite effect, keeping women – especially poor women – in the dark about their reproductive health.
If you hear about a policy and don’t understand what’s happening, search the Internet and find a reputable news source that has reported on it or talk to someone you know is an expert in the field. Keep yourselves informed, collegiettes.
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