President Trump: What’s in your wallet?
Listen to this articleAt $40 a pop, Trump’s election headgear is a strange thing for the president himself to endorse now that he’s actually been elected to office. The time and place in which he wears hats featuring 45/USA in bold font also struck a chord — particularly with those suffering in the wake of Harvey’s violent sweep in Texas. Jamie Feldman of The Huffington Post reported that Donald Trump has been wearing his own merchandise more times than not while supporting Hurricane Harvey victims.
Pictures and videos show a proudly hat-adorned president, thanking those involved in the rescue and support of Harvey’s victims, as Texas faces a natural disaster that has already killed more than 10 people and caused power outages for over 100,000. According to U.S. News reporters Mollie Reilly, Hayley Miller and Dominique Mosbergen, this tropical storm has broken records for rainfall, projecting a displacement of over 30,000 people and causing nearly 500,000 to seek federal assistance for damage, amenities, healthcare and basic necessities as the state heals.
In times like these, we’ve seen every president in our history step up, literally hats off to the people they are supposed to protect and serve and represent during natural disasters, such as Katrina or Sandy. This so-called leader has been boasting about crowd size during recovery efforts and sneering at the lack thereof in Arizona, reports Business Insider’s Eliza Relman and Salon’s Matthew Rozsa.
Perhaps crowd size variance has more to do with the need for recovery in Texas and the boring repeat of empty slogans in Arizona, but the thought can hardly seep into the mind of a man who regularly gets flattery reports from White House staff, which one can safely assume are most likely false by omission of many blatant truths, if the press reports from those staff members are to be believed.
This is a man who needs flattery, as evidenced by his attitude towards George Gigicos, who was told he would never be allowed to organize another rally after his doing so for the rally in Phoenix, where the president’s crowd size was less sizable than desired. Trump delivered a meandering and manic speech boasting of his achievements and calling for the federal government to step up in their support of his “wall” if they didn’t want to face funding cuts.
And that begs the question: Why is this president so obsessed with someone else funding everything? He didn’t want to pay for campaign ads, so he behaved like a maniac to get free media coverage. He doesn’t want to pay for a wall, so he demands this of Mexico or the federal government. He apparently doesn’t want to think about walking around a desecrated landscape hit by flooding without making a few bucks off selling his merchandise. Where does it end?
What his supporters wanted was an experienced businessman who is fed up with the political establishment. What they’re getting is a demagogue more entitled than any millennial, and certainly more than any shrewd and calculating man of financial planning and industrial fortitude.
If you really want to put that $40 toward a good cause, donate it to the people of Texas.
Here are just some of the organizations where you can send money to help the victims of Tropical Storm Harvey.
Red Cross
Houston Food Bank
United Way of Greater Houston
Photos are YouTube screenshots
Megan Wallin is a young writer with a background in the social sciences and an interest in seeking the extraordinary in the mundane. A Seattle native, she finds complaining about the constant drizzle and overabundance of Starbucks coffee therapeutic. With varied work experiences as a residential counselor, preprimary educator, musician, writing tutor and college newspaper reporter/editor, Megan is thrilled to offer a unique perspective through writing, research and open dialogue.