Last night, as most of us were having dinner with our families, Donald posted the following threat on his failing social media site:
No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a deal than me. Tragically for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, I am announcing the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country. This will be economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale. Any country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of flight to Iran will itself face tremendous economic consequences. It all needs to stop now. You know who you are. This will be an economic D-Day.
Well, that is comforting. The man with the nuclear codes decided to have a meltdown of such epic proportions that Iran’s foreign minister felt compelled to respond.
This is what Iran’s foreign minister said:
Abbas Araghchi: The so-called economic D-Day is a diversion from America’s own crisis, unprecedented debt, and surging interest cost. Doubling down on failed policies will only bring further defeat. U.S. economic terrorism threatens the global economy and sovereignty worldwide.
I actually hate it when I have to agree with somebody representing the kind of terroristic authoritarian regime that runs Iran, but on one point he is correct.
America’s national debt has now topped $40 trillion for the first time after decades of borrowing to cover military spending, safety net programs, and tax cuts, all of which have been accelerated by Donald’s failed economic policies. The federal government is now on pace to borrow another $2 trillion this year alone, driven in part by the war against Iran, Republican tax cuts, the massive military budget, and the soaring cost of servicing the debt itself.
Interest payments now account for roughly half of the annual deficit.
To put that into perspective, since we started this discussion just a few minutes ago, the United States has spent roughly $6 million simply paying interest on the national debt. That works out to nearly $2 million every single minute.
I do not believe governments should be run like businesses because governments are not businesses. Under certain circumstances, it is entirely appropriate for a government to spend more than it takes in. That is how governments respond to crises, invest in infrastructure, and protect their citizens.
This, however, is something entirely different.
This is reckless.
It weakens us economically. It weakens our national security. It undermines our ability to compete on the world stage. Most importantly, it places Americans at greater risk because the very social programs so many people rely upon become increasingly vulnerable, not only because of Republicans’ inhumane priorities, but because they are profoundly fiscally irresponsible.
The national debt, however, is only part of the story.
There is also the debt Americans themselves are carrying, and those two things often go hand in hand.
Americans now hold $1.26 trillion in credit card debt, just shy of the all-time record set late last year when, what was his name, Donald Trump was also sitting in the Oval Office.
Rising prices for necessities such as groceries and gasoline continue pushing those balances higher while more households fall behind on their monthly payments.
We have seen dangerous explosions in household debt before, most notably in the years leading up to the Great Depression and, more recently, before the financial collapse of 2008.
Instead of focusing on those very real economic problems, however, Donald chose to spend yesterday giving reporters a guided tour of what has now become painfully obvious is his highest priority.
Donald: And now we’re going to walk over and we’re going to see this goes equidistant on the other side. And right over there, if you notice, is where the ballroom and military complex will be. And the military complex is going to have a drone-proofed roof. And you’re going to have on top of the roof, you’re going to have drones, many drones, which will protect Washington DC and will protect the White House. Very important. So let’s take a look at the helipad and we’ll walk together if you’d like.
Yes, you may have to go into debt simply to feed your children, but apparently we should all feel reassured because Donald is spending billions of taxpayer dollars making sure he feels safe.
These so-called renovations are really a wholesale restructuring and desecration of the White House. They are now projected to cost just under a billion dollars, and if history tells us anything, that figure will only continue to rise.
We were originally told the ballroom would be privately funded and cost roughly $200 million. Then the estimate became $300 million. Then $400 million. Then $600 million for the ballroom and bunker.
Now taxpayers are expected to foot the bill, and the projected cost has ballooned to well over $900 million.
That is Donald Trump’s idea of a great deal.
Meanwhile, Americans continue paying higher prices for groceries, gasoline, housing, and healthcare while carrying record levels of personal debt. Those are the problems occupying ordinary Americans every single day.
Donald, on the other hand, is preoccupied with granite walkways, drone-proof roofs, ballrooms, and bunkers. Those priorities tell us everything we need to know about the difference between the lives Americans are actually living and the fantasy world Donald Trump inhabits.
So let us take a look at what is actually happening.
We watched wrecking balls tear down the East Wing of the White House to make room for this ridiculous ballroom. An appeals court ordered Donald to stop construction, but the work continues anyway while the administration waits for the corrupt, illegitimate supermajority on the Supreme Court to step in and rule in his favor.
Then there is the new helipad, something no previous president apparently thought was necessary. The grounds and walkways are being replaced with solid granite and white stone. I am sure knowing that makes paying for groceries a little easier.
There are also upgrades planned for Lafayette Square and a new White House visitor screening center.
Then there is the $5 million no bid contract to cover beautiful bronze statues with gold leaf, destroying the century old patina that had developed over generations.
Nobody asked for this.
Nobody except Donald wanted it.
Yet he has been allowed to spend taxpayer money on yet another vanity project because, apparently, there is always money available when it comes to satisfying Donald Trump’s ego.
Then there is the Kennedy Center, which is now expected to close for two years while undergoing renovations. We do not even know what the final price tag will be.
And, of course, there is the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool. That project has already cost taxpayers approximately $14 million, and it still has not been fixed.
All of this is happening while the United States is at war.
We are at war because Donald chose to start a conflict with Iran.
During this embarrassing tour of his unnecessary and obscenely expensive White House renovation projects, one reporter attempted to redirect Donald’s attention to something that might actually matter: negotiations with Iran.
It was obvious almost immediately that this was not a subject Donald wanted to discuss. It was nowhere near as interesting to him as his ballroom, his bunker, his drone proof roof, or his gold leaf.
Donald: Right now, I think the situation is so good, but maybe at some point. Look, it’s very simple. They have to get rid of completely. They have to get rid of no nuclear weapons. Iran cannot have a nuclear. You know why? Because they’d use it and we’re not going to let them use it. So Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and they won’t. Thank you very much. I’m glad you came out.
Yes, they will not because Donald is apparently going to hold his breath until he turns blue.
That is the entirety of the strategy.
There is no explanation of how diplomacy will succeed. There is no indication that negotiations are progressing. There is no coherent policy beyond repeatedly insisting that Iran “cannot have a nuclear weapon” as though simply saying those words enough times somehow constitutes foreign policy.
Meanwhile, Donald appears completely unconcerned that one of his favorite authoritarian leaders already possesses a substantial nuclear arsenal.
Kim Jong Un controls dozens of nuclear warheads.
That does not seem to bother Donald in the slightest.
Apparently Kim Jong Un is the right kind of dictator.
He starves his own people. He presides over one of the most repressive totalitarian regimes on Earth. His government systematically violates human rights, imprisons political dissidents, and keeps millions of North Koreans trapped under a hereditary dictatorship.
Yet Donald repeatedly praises him, speaks admiringly about him, and treats him as someone worthy of respect.
That contrast tells us everything.
Donald reserves his greatest hostility not for dictators, but for democratic allies, political opponents, journalists, prosecutors, and anybody willing to hold him accountable. At the same time, he repeatedly extends admiration and deference toward authoritarian leaders whose values more closely resemble his own.
While Americans struggle with record debt, rising prices, and growing economic insecurity, Donald continues spending taxpayer money transforming the White House into a monument to himself.
While the national debt climbs past $40 trillion and households increasingly rely on credit cards simply to afford necessities, Donald’s priorities remain fixed on granite, gold leaf, ballrooms, bunkers, and drone proof roofs.
That is not leadership.
It is narcissism masquerading as governance.
And every day Donald spends indulging his own vanity is another day the real problems facing the American people continue to grow worse.
