| WASHINGTON, D.C. — As Americans face a crushing cost-of-living crisis, Not Above the Law Co-Chair and Public Citizen Co-President Lisa Gilbert and Center for American Progress President Neera Tanden penned a powerful op-ed in Talking Points Memo exposing how President Trump remains insulated in a world of corporate corruption – completely disconnected from the struggles of working families. The op-ed, published yesterday, reveals the stark contrast between Trump’s pay-to-play operation and the economic reality facing ordinary Americans. As Lisa and Neera make clear, Trump’s second term has devolved into a brazen corrupt enterprise that makes his first term look restrained by comparison – from Mar-a-Lago galas where corporate donors buy access to the president to Trump’s plan to award himself millions from the Department of Justice. Read more from Talking Points Memo: “Americans are in a cost-of-living crisis, and in this month’s Democratic landslide elections, they sent President Trump a wake-up call. Utility rates are up 11%since he took office, health care premiums are about to surge for millions — and just as grocery prices were finally stabilizing after pandemic inflation, Trump’s tariffs have driven them up again. “But you wouldn’t know it by watching our president, who has barely uttered a word about this since the start of his second term, apparently lost in a gold-plated version of the White House bubble that traps so many presidents. […] “While every president wrestles with the White House bubble, this one is different from anything we have seen before. While Americans were fuming over rising costs, Trump was tearing down part of the White House for a gold-plated “Bribery Ballroom” funded by giant corporations with tens of billions in federal contracts and major enforcement actions before the federal government. He was announcing his intention to award himself $230 million in tax dollars from the Department of Justice. And he was pardoning his criminal business partner in a presidential crypto scheme that has enriched him by billions. […] “Trump’s authoritarian corruption thrives on making clear that the path of least resistance is to bend the knee and pay off the protection racket. And he methodically, often illegally, brandishes his powers to make the alternate path all but untenable. Far too many are now choosing the easy path. […] “Whether it’s subservient staffers, corporate donors, or international allies, the American people need the reinforcement of the gold-plated bubble to end — the consequences are too severe. “For President Trump, it is time to wake up and listen to the outrage of the American people. That can start with preventing skyrocketing health insurance premiums, ending the attacks on America’s energy supply that drive up utility rates, and stopping the attacks on proven programs like SNAP, Medicaid, disability benefits, and more that vulnerable American kids depend on.” Read the full op-ed here. |
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