Donald
Trump is a threat to both the American people and American democracy.
Consequently, it is no surprise that, by extension, Trump is also a
huge threat to the regular American consumer. That is because his
agenda for America is nothing more than his agenda for himself and
Americans are going to pay.
Trump
Tax Scam
Trump’s
GOP congressional lackeys banded together in December last year to
impose his endorsed tax plan – with “plan” used in the very
loosest sense of the word.
Contrary
to Trump’s pie-in-the-sky assertions that the majority of Americans
will be better off as a result, the very same guy that managed to
bankrupt a casino, has now overseen a tax cut that actually raises
taxes for over 80 million Americans while simultaneously lowering
taxes for the top 1% of richest Americans.
Unless
you’re a billionaire, possibly with a solid gold toilet, this isn’t
really the stuff that regular American consumer spending sprees are
made of.
Pulling
out of the Iran Nuclear Deal
The
US withdrawing from the “Iran Nuclear Deal” has, unsurprisingly,
spooked the oil markets.
The
Middle East, the world’s leading oil producing zone, needs more
stability, not less, to ensure oil production costs remain in check.
Of course, the stable genius that is Trump has now added tension to
that geopolitical hotbed and consequently oil prices are on the rise.
Trips
to the gas station are an increasingly painful experience for
American drivers and small businesses. Maybe the MAGA-crowd likes
paying more at the pump to see Trump at one of his cow-shed rallies?
Must be a MAGA thing.
Trump
and Tariffs
Trump
is gunning for a trade war. With his usual double whammy of both
wanting to grab the headlines and show how much of a “tough guy”
he is (oh how his father should have hugged him more as a child),
Trump has implemented tariffs with trading friends and foes alike.
By
imposing tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, Trump’s
recklessness is going to drive up the cost of things like cars,
trucks and canned goods for the American consumer.
Mick
Mulvaney at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Mulvaney
is to consumer protection as foxes are to hen houses. So Trump,
naturally, made him acting Director of the CFPB in 2017.
In
accordance with Trump’s obsession of repealing anything
Obama-esque, Mulvaney is perfectly aligned with Trump’s slash and
burn approach to regulation.
Mulvaney
has a long history of acrimony towards the CFPB – an organization set up
in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis to ensure that
consumers had better protection from marauding financial institutions
and their questionable business practices.
Prior
to taking up the CFPB reins, Mulvaney made numerous references about
its abolition. As acting Director, he has suspended CFPB recruitment
and cancelled investigations, both pending and present, into
suspected malfeasance by any number of financial institutions. The
end result? The American consumer is at increased risk courtesy of a
Trump endorsed henchman.
Net
Neutrality No More
Net
neutrality was repealed in June this year by the Republican leaning,
Trump endorsed Federal Communications Commission. Net neutrality
ensured that internet-service providers (ISP) treated all online
internet data fairly and provided a level playing field to ensure
that ISPs could not levy fees or slow down services for particular
online content and websites.
That
is no more with the repeal. The bigger ISPs now have the potential to
introduce things like “fast-lane” internet services – where if
you pay more, you get a better service. Kind of like cable TV, if you
are prepared to pay more, you get better service and greater access
to internet services – such as those you had previously taken for
granted before.
Less
internet choice beckons. The only good thing from that?
Maybe
you’ll get to see less of Trump’s puerile, offensive Tweets.
