There are many sayings of hope associated with the word “America”: Home of the brave, land of the free, and the promise that people will have new opportunities in the U.S. Nonetheless, while these ideals exist, people are going hungry and losing their families.
President Donald Trump began his ballroom building at the White House in September. This renovation is expected to cost $300 million, to which he said no taxpayer dollars would be used. His very rich friends, as well as himself, are funding the entire project. The ballroom will be approximately 90,000 square feet, and will be almost twice the size of the rest of the White House. He also said that his building would not cause damage to the White House’s structure. However, despite this, he demolished the entire East Wing of the historic building. The best part is that he plans to name the ballroom after himself: “The President Donald J. Trump Ballroom,” according to ABC News.
The ballroom itself isn’t the main problem; it’s about citizens potentially losing their SNAP benefits. The organization is for low-income families and individuals who may not be able to afford food for a number of reasons. The Trump Administration played a role in this by only offering partial benefits for the month of November and threatened to withhold them entirely. Families are expected only to get 50 percent of the usual monthly aid. This is influential for families who survive on food assistance. The Trump Administration says the big ballroom is its main priority, but what about U.S. citizens depending on food stamps and EBT cards? The rich are getting their lavish parties, while the poor beg for equity. The president preaches about being a community but excludes those who have low income or are a part of the Democratic Party.
Moving forward, SNAP benefits aren’t the only problem the economy is facing. The government recently shut down, and the Trump Administration blames Democrats for this. And Trump himself says he will withhold SNAP benefits until the Democratic party can agree and the government is up and running again. As we face this shutdown, the public can expect over a million federal employees to go without pay, and loss of healthcare due to prices going up and families not being able to afford coverage. The democratic party is asking that healthcare remain the same cost, to which the Republican Party wanted to negotiate for a higher price, leading to the shutdown.
Vice President JD Vance said to the public, “The Chuck Schumer AOC wing of the Democratic party shut down the government because they said to us, we will open the government, but only if you give billions of dollars of funding for healthcare for illegal aliens.” A person of power should never refer to immigrants as aliens. Having racism in the office is not equality for all. It’s setting our country back hundreds of years and allowing a particular narrative that racism is normal. Vance is a prime example of why one should pay attention in school.
Trump’s ballroom will serve as a constant reminder to the U.S. that voting truly does matter, and who is elected to office matters. A selfish man can come in with promises of “Making America Great Again” and leave his people begging for basic human necessities. In a time of little to no hope, at least there will be that pretentious ballroom; maybe Mr. President will even save us a dance.
