What, exactly, are
Republicans up to?
Editor:
Since the Republicans took back the House in 2010, they have repeatedly passed bills to make it easier to fire federal workers, cut salaries, benefits and pensions, and end dues deductions.
Those never made it past President Obama’s veto pen, but you know those bills will be back soon after Trump’s inauguration.
They want to disorganize America’s workforce (think third world), keep it scared and always on the defensive, under their thumb.
I don’t understand how you can shrink government when the population keeps growing.
For weeks now, the Trump transition team has sought out the names of individual employees and such in the government. Why?
1. They sent a 74-point questionnaire to the Department of Energy requesting the names of all employees and contractors who have attended climate change policy conferences, as well as emails and documents associated with the conferences; names of any employees who have worked on President Barack Obama’s climate initiatives; names of staffers who attended any United Nations climate change conferences in the past five years; names of the personnel on any of the inter-agency working groups that calculated the “social cost of carbon.”
2. They asked the State Department for details of programs and jobs aimed at promoting gender equality and the funds allocated.
Why? So they can purge them!
Last week the House Republicans quietly revived the old 1876 Holman Rule giving them the power to slash the annual salary of any individual federal civil servant to as low as $1 and the budget of any individual federal program or project down to zero without having to go through the appropriations process.
So if a particular agency, program, or employee angers Trump and his cabinet of stateless elites (loyal to no nation), or whose research, for instance, doesn’t produce the findings they desire (because it might cut into their profits), they can now easily have offending researcher(s) et al. disappear.
Poof! Gone.
Given Trump’s fondness for revenge and that all of his cabinet nominees really really hate the agencies they are being asked to run, the Holman Rule will make gutting or eliminating them easier.
The Night of the Long Knives was Adolf Hitler’s purge. Joseph Stalin had his Great Purges. Putin purges his opposition in many ways – plus, a lot of journalists are murdered there, with 91 percent of cases never solved.
Note: Trump hasn’t picked a Science Advisor. Like unions, Republicans hate pesky science (slows their unfettered extraction profits).
The Heritage Foundation is telling Trump to eliminate the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy because Trump, his cabinet, the Republicans, and their followers like to make up their own facts. Like coal is clean. For real, it’s in the Republican platform.
Coal is clean. Tell that to Beijing.
Trump and his fellow stateless elites are unfettered of patriotism.
Republicans will now eliminate as many domestic programs as fast as they possibly can.
Read “The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism” by Naomi Kline. (It’s at the library – shelf no. 330.12 Klein.)
She says that while people are reeling from natural disasters (Katrina), wars (Iraq) and economic upheavals (recessions etc.), neoliberal savvy politicians and industry leaders nefariously implement policies that would never pass during normal times.
The 2007 recession and Trump’s shockingly obnoxious/obscene dishonest candidacy qualify. Naomi Klein on Trump Election: “This is a corporate coup d’etat.”
I bet they go to sleep at night dreaming of a permanent government shutdown.
Do Republicans think that cutting domestic programs for the poor will purge America of them? Like they’ll cross the border into Mexico or something?
Diane Daiute
Sweet Home
Divisiveness results
from lack of respect
Editor:
For some time, we have heard from our many news media outlets how divided we are as a nation.
After reading editorials from newspapers and letters to the editor it appears to me that what divides us the most, is ourselves. From the acidic tone, choice of words and phrases that many of these editorials and letters use towards others that have a difference of opinion, it is no wonder why relationships are strained or why we fear each other.
When did it become such an accepted norm in our society to find it so necessary to use words of hatred or publicly assault another person to justify one’s opinion? In many cases the person that is accusing the other person is doing exactly what is they don’t like themselves.
Having a difference of opinion is good, and can be very healthy and productive for all parties if some discipline is used. Maybe if we just focused on good values, common goals, showed some compassion, humbleness and respect for each other while having these discussions, it would move us a little closer to one another and a little less farther apart.
The old saying; “You can attract more bees with honey vs. vinegar,” just might be the best antidote we could practice during these stressful times. Other than a little effort the cost is free. But the benefit each of us will reap as a person and to our community is huge.
Bob Dalton
Sweet Home