Alright y'all. Here is one last Lunch Tracker update, and then I'm taking a break from Trump for a long time. I'll come back in a couple of years close to when his term is over and finish it out. But as for now, Trump is now down to 89 points total, which is just enough to end the lunch.
However, keep in mind: should a miracle happen and Trump starts acting like a great leader, as described in 7 Habits, the Bible, the Book of Mormon (for my LDS friends), and the D&C, and if he undoes some of these items and stops all the other bad things yet to come from happening, the lunch would be back on. I probably wouldn't count on it, but I've seen bigger miracles happen, so who knows?
So why the big break? I don't know -- I probably shouldn't waste time explaining myself, but I read something today by a good friend ... comparing American people with the Finnish, and how the Finnish are generally happier. Their secret: they don't waste time arguing, but rather, they sincerely care about other people, and tend to put others above themselves. The Finnish simply enjoy life and live it out to their fullest. And you know what? Sounds good to me. There's just so much more to life, so why waste it all?
I've already delivered my message on Trump, which has definitely been received, and there is nothing else I can do at this time, other than to focus on other parts of my overall mission in life. So, when it comes to Trump, I'm no longer going to engage -- complete stop.
One exception: I do plan to continue the Political Track of my already planned-out "Always Be Better" series, as those videos will be much more about general political topics -- something that I believe will help us in the post-Trump world and help to eventually unify us all.
Okay -- back to the business at hand. I'm going to go quickly through these points, and then I'm done. Today, Trump loses 6 points total.
The Retribution Continues
"Uses presidential power or agencies to go after current or political opponents" 3 pts. total. (1 pt previously taken away.)
"Imprisons at least one prominent political opponent critical of Trump" 5 pts. total. (0 pts previously taken away.)
Here, I'm going to take away 1 point from each of these two items for a total of 2 points.
Since last I reported, Trump has issued several newer executive orders to go after law firms who had worked on cases against him. He has also named specific people in his executive orders and memos, including one of my heroes: Chris Krebs. His agencies have started arresting opponents: a judge, a mayor, and soon, possibly some House Representatives. I find it ironic that Trump's DOJ has created a "Weaponization Working Group" when I've never seen this amount of government weaponization in my life. And they've only just begun.
The Military on Our Soil?
"Uses active troops against US civilians" 7 pts. total. (0 pts previously taken away.)
Trump loses 1 point today because he has issued an executive order that could allow for the deployment of the "military and national security assets in local jurisdictions" to help fight crime. It does mention "non-lethal capabilities," but it does sound like Stage 1 of our very own storm troopers.
The First Attacks on the Media
"Punishes at least one media outlet through executive branch (suing doesn't count)" 3 pts. total. (0 pts previously taken away.)
Trump loses 1 point today because he has issued an executive order to strip funding from CPB (which in turn funds PBS and NPR). The name of the executive order implies that these news sources are biased, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Anyone who actually listens to NPR knows they present both conservative and liberal ideas -- and they try to do so without the spin.
Privately-run media sources, on the other hand, tend to have much more bias and spin. That's why I believe NPR and PBS have such an important role.
Note: I'm not taking off all 3 points, because NPR/PBS are in a special situation where they do indeed receive governmental funds, and withdrawing these funds are indeed within the realm of Congress.
More Attacks on Transgenders
"LGBTQ protections are lessened" 2 pts. total. (1 pt previously taken away.)
Since I last reported, attacks on transgender people have just gotten worse, including being again banned from military service. And in general, Trump's war on "DEI" and anything that looks like mitigating discrimination has made life tougher on basically anyone who isn't a white Christian male. So, Trump loses another 1 point. And part of me wonders in hindsight why I didn't just delete both points the first time I had reported this.
Yes -- Trump is Making Boo-koo Bucks
"Collects more than $1B from his followers while in office" 1 pt. total. (0 pts previously taken away.)
Trump has already made more than $1B through several different schemes funded almost entirely by his followers. He has even learned how to manipulate the stock market with his announcements, and has helped many of his close associates to get rich from this. Seriously -- I've never seen this level of corruption and conflicts of interest in any sitting president.
Okay -- this ends today's Lunch Tracker update, and I'm done-done for a long time. I'll be back again some day. I wish all of you good luck. See you on the other side.
