The Trump con
Now that Donald Trump has won the election, let’s review what happened. America has rejected the democratic socialism of Bernie Sanders and the liberalism of Hillary Clinton, and now it will embrace Donald Trump’s government of the wealthy. Now the rich and powerful have control of the government, and they can promote their interests with little interference.
I don’t know if the American people will like it. Trump was a master of a good con. Clinton and President Barack Obama were seen as the enemy. Now that Trump has won, they are good people. For anyone who voted for him because they saw him as a rebel and outsider, those days are over. I believe he is an opportunist who conned voters.
Now that he is president, Trump has said he will give us more tax breaks and further deregulation, issues that in part led to the financial meltdown and housing bubble during the Bush administration. His company invested a million dollars in the company behind the Dakota Access pipeline, which Trump likely will approve when he gets into office.
Let’s not forget his tax returns being audited by IRS, but now he gets to pick the agency’s director. I believe we’ve been conned.
Steven Roth
Swans Island
Help Syrian refugees
In these times, our nation is not a welcoming place to families who have had to flee their homes because of violence. In Lebanon, one in four of its residents are Syrian families who want to return to their homes. The United Nations is providing basic monthly stipends to these families so they can purchase food, housing and a few necessities. By shopping in local markets, refugees can survive and in a small way support the economy.
We can help in this holiday season by supporting the U.N. Syrian Refugee fund, the International Rescue Committee, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children and Mercy Corp.
Carole Beal
Bar Harbor
Trump voters defend the oppressed
If a person voted for Donald Trump despite all those horrible things he said because she just thought he would make some improvement in her life that the status-quo had not accomplished — bring back lost factory jobs, reduce regulations that stifle businesses, recalibrate policies in her favor, address the flaws in the health care system — or just did not like the other choice, this is not the grievance I protest and not the reason I express discontent. I do not hate Trump supporters. I invite them to stand up and prove themselves.
If their support for Trump does not mean they are racists, then stand up now for minorities who are being attacked and pledge to defend them against harassment and brutality. If their support for Trump does not mean they are misogynists, then stand up now for women’s rights and pledge to defend their rights.
I welcome their voices in what has been a long and frightening silence. If they don’t stand up for these things now, then I have to believe they voted for Trump precisely because of the hateful things he said and promised to do. I would have to believe they agree with them totally, are OK with him appointing white supremacists and support any policies that bring about the degradation of human rights and the environment. If they do not stand up now, then they can not claim they are unjustly labeled. They will have to own it.
Sarah Holland
Camden