Viewpoint: Breaking plates
Sneed Collard
Several years ago, a certain influencer built a social media reputation by, among other things, smashing plates on the floor. Not for any particular reason, mind you, but to get a reaction and build his popularity. You may know who I’m talking about, and guess what? It worked. Unfortunately, we now have a president whose methods and imagination have sunk to the same level.
Like most Americans, I had hoped that, upon inauguration, President Trump would take a serious, responsible approach to our national defense, economy, and other pressing issues. After all, he did talk about reducing government waste, something almost everyone can get behind. He also touted his ability to stimulate the economy. Almost immediately, however, Trump dramatically demonstrated his lack of skills and imagination—and a breathtaking ignorance of what’s going on in the world. Instead, his approach to government is simple: break plates.
This wouldn’t be so bad if he actually were breaking plates—and at least stimulating the kitchenware industry. Instead, he and Elon Musk are breaking the very institutions and relationships that we depend on, including our economy. One of the first things Trump did, for instance, was impose tariffs on two of our closest allies, seemingly unaware that doing so would raise prices on food, building materials, and a range of other products that you and I would have to pay for.
Even more damaging has been his ongoing freeze on foreign aid. According to polls, some Americans are suspicious of foreign aid and mistakenly believe that it makes up 25% or more of our budget. The actual percentage? About one percent. As a whole, that money is extremely well-spent. Much of it goes to programs that promote health care and economic growth in the world’s poorest countries, including combating HIV infections and other deadly diseases that could spread here. About a third of the aid goes to helping allies buy military equipment from us and to supporting peacekeeping missions. The rest goes toward providing humanitarian aid and emergency relief, and to supporting justice and democracy in other countries.
When Trump froze foreign aid funding, you could almost see the glee in the eyes of America’s enemies. Yanking funds to support democratic initiatives makes it even easier for Iran, North Korea, and our other authoritarian enemies to expand their power. Yanking money for development, food, healthcare, and educational assistance will no doubt throw even more countries into the spheres of nations we compete with directly.
Amidst the infighting over our relatively paltry assistance to others, for instance, China has aggressively courted other countries with their “Belt and Road” initiative and other aid programs. While most of these programs are blatantly self-serving, the withdrawal of our own support leaves a lot of nations little choice. It’s almost incomprehensible that Trump and the GOP don’t recognize how this will impact our own economy and national security, but SMASH! There goes another plate.
The debris pile from Trump’s broken crockery grows higher every day—and it is just beginning. Some impacts will happen swiftly while others will grow malignant over time, but they will negatively impact every aspect of our lives. While his cheerleaders wave their pom poms, neither they nor Trump seem to have the faintest clue about what to do once all the plates are broken.
Musk and many others are too rich to worry about it, but as usual, the rest of us will suffer. It’s time for Montana’s representatives to show some courage, step up, and tell Trump to put down the plates—and actually make intelligent plans for the future.