America Isn’t Broken—Trump Just Wants You to Think It Is
Reject the fear. The facts show a strong, thriving nation worth defending.
Author’s note: I will be back to analyze the strike in Iran and discuss what comes next in a day or two. For now, it’s important to remember some of the good things and the reasons we fight together!
Although the war in Iran rightly holds our attention, it’s important to remember that the issues we cared about before still matter. We must continue to hold the Trump administration accountable for its outrageous abuses of power and stay vigilant in the fight for our democracy. We must also reject his dark, dishonest vision of America—a vision built on a pack of lies.
The idea that America is going to hell has never been true. In fact, we live in one of the most prosperous nations on Earth. We have the most advanced medical care in the world. Our system of higher education is unmatched. And while crime briefly spiked during the pandemic, it has continued its decades-long decline. We may not be living in a utopia, but the facts remain reassuring.
Take the economy, for example. Our Gross Domestic Product is more than 50 percent higher than that of our nearest rival, China. Remember when all the panic happend about “China will overtake us by 2020?” Not yet. Adjust for population, and the gap is even more stark: the average American household’s share of GDP is about $86,000, compared to just $13,000 in China.
Despite China’s state-driven growth, its economy doesn’t work for most of its people. Middle-class status remains out of reach for the majority. Medical care is expensive and unreliable. In contrast, we have more doctors per capita and higher quality care—so much so that people from around the world come to the U.S. for advanced treatments. Go to the airport in Rochester MN sometime, as I have, and see the huge jets sitting there waiting for their client at the Mayo Clinic. While there is certainly much to do on the cost side, and some new ideas coming forward such as Mark Cuban’s “cost-plus” drugs, the quality of care remains unmatched.
At home, Trump’s fearmongering about crime doesn’t match reality. The murder rate is on track to hit its lowest point since record-keeping began in 1960. And despite the talking points, immigrants—including those here without documentation—commit fewer crimes than native-born citizens and often make communities safer.
The same goes for higher education. Far from being a threat, our universities are a strategic national advantage. The U.S. is home to seven of the world’s top ten universities. Thanks to them, we lead in basic science, medical research, computer science, and technological innovation. While Trump sows fear about foreign students, many of them stay, become citizens, and help drive American innovation forward.
None of these strengths are mentioned by Trump or his allies. Instead, they promote a worldview designed to terrify and divide. And unfortunately, many Americans believe him. They’ve bought into his distorted version of reality and think radical action is needed to "save" a country that isn’t actually failing.
Fueled by that fear, Trump has deployed masked federal agents to round up undocumented immigrants and sent in the National Guard to back them. He’s attacked universities, threatened their funding, and waged an economic policy of trade wars and tax cuts that benefit the wealthy far more than the middle class. His secretary of Health and Human Services stoked distrust in our medical system—then gutted the very research that leads to life-saving breakthroughs.
If you take Trump and his minions at their word, we should all be stockpiling guns and canned goods, distrusting our doctors, and dismantling higher education. But if you believe in reality, you see the truth: this country—our country—is strong. It’s not perfect, but it’s worth defending. There are many piles of canned goods and other “apocalypse ready” items that have….expired.
So share the truth. Talk to people. Push back on the lies. And let everything good about life in America inspire you to protect it.
This is more to what you’ll speak of next than what you said here but I’d like your thoughts on two topics: first, the legality of Trump bombing Iran without getting congressional approval and second, the senate parliamentarian’s recent rulings striking down of the provisions of the BBB, specifically trying to take away the ability for the court to hold the administration in contempt and the various immigrations provisions.
With respect to what you said here, while I don’t disagree in principal, our excellent healthcare system is out of financial reach for many of us. Our higher ed is also increasingly unaffordable for many or comes with massive debt in the way of student loans. Our supply chain is fragile, a point driven home by TACO and his tariff threats. That doesn’t mean I think it’s bad, just flawed.
Nice to have a positive message to start off the week.