Thank you for your supportive efforts in contacting your senators and congressmen, which helped block the passage of Congress and the administration’s inadequate health bill.
Unfortunately our efforts may be needed again since President Trump is determined to present another health bill for vote. If it proves to again deny millions of people their health care, we will oppose it.
The Affordable Health Care program (Obamacare) is in trouble now because President Trump has decided to sabotage it. He seems focused on forcing the failure of the health service rather than a true concern for health care.
First, he caused CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) to go into default in nine states as of Oct. 1 and 22 more may be out of service by Dec. 31. Children’s health insurance was not renewed as it was supposed to have been.
President Trump has also withheld funds designated for health care and has also withdrawn 90% of the advertising program necessary for recruiting young, healthy folks to enroll in the health-care system. These enrollees offset the increased cost of senior health care. To add to this mean-spirited sabotage, the President is also proposing to remove all reproductive health care for women!
Just a week ago a madman slaughtered 58 people, 527 were injured, and I am sure many hundreds more were traumatized by the horrible event. I thought about the tragedy being compounded by the fact that some could not get their health care provided for them.
We should all be outraged that President Trump is trying to abolish our health care, but he has presented himself as a tough, impersonal, womanizing, white supremacist. We, therefore, should have expected uncaring actions.
You will probably think I am in the throes of dementia, but I believe (or want to believe) there may be a caring human being beneath the Trump shell exterior. I believe it’s possible he was mesmerized by Steve Bannon and the alt-right movement.
Now that they are no longer part of the President’s inner circle to influence him, perhaps that shell can be dispelled. He is very changeable and unpredictable and maybe a more reasonable President Trump will be forthcoming. (A first step would be to stop sabotaging health care.)
Trump desires adulation and respect, but that must be earned. Some ways in which he can gain that stature are as follows:
If the President took the courageous step to oppose the gun lobby and enact responsible gun controls, he would certainly be applauded.
There would be overwhelming approval if he re-instated the “Dreamers” Act and welcomed immigrants with reasonable requirements for their visits or life plans.
People would quickly forget and forgive past unpleasantries if he held out an olive branch to our former and present allies, demonstrating our desire to cooperate and support environmental and peacekeeping proposals.
I know I am spouting unrealistic hopes, but if these did occur, President Trump could actually “Make America Great Again!”
Harriet Hausman is a longtime resident of River Forest.