It seems that what Trump supporters were hoping to achieve by electing Trump to be their president was really to reduce the effect of the federal government and the interaction of the federal government in their lives.
It would seem that the total destruction of the federal government is synonymous with clearing the swamp. It made me wonder what the federal government really does do for the citizens of the United States of America.
This is the list that I’ve come up with:
Federal:
1. Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
2. Immigration law
3. Federal discrimination and civil right laws protecting against racial, age, gender and disability discrimination
4. Provides 8% in funding for educational programs and stimulates a dialogue on how to create a globally competitive educational system
5. Bankruptcy laws
6. Patent and copyright laws
7. Federal criminal law such as tax fraud law and the counterfeiting of money
8. Oversees repair, management, and funding for interstate highways and national parks
9. Provides roughly 1% of necessary funding towards the arts
10. Federal voting laws
State laws:
There are 50 states and several commonwealths and territories within the U.S. Each one has its own system of laws and courts that handle the following:
1. Criminal matters
2. Divorce and family matters
3. Workers Compensation for injuries at work
4. Personal injuries, such as car or medical malpractice
5. Welfare, public assistances, or medical matters
6. Wills, inheritance and estates
7. Real estate and other properties
8. State laws govern overall educational standards
9. The major portion of funding for education is provided by the state
9. Oversees repair, management, and funding for state highways and parks
10. States provide about 2% of funding towards the arts in contrast to the federal government’s 1% of funding.
11. States oversee business contracts
12. State voting laws
City/local:
1. Local safety (police and fire department)
2. Rent laws (leasing, rent control, evictions, living conditions)
3. Zoning laws
4. Oversees repair, management, and funding for city roads, parks and recreational areas
5. They provides roughly 3% of funding towards the arts.
These provision are all made by federal, state, or local governments. I went over this list pretty carefully and I couldn’t find very much that I would like to give up or have taken away from me. I can understand that people feel that the government is not adequately addressing their needs.
Over the past 90 years, since Franklin D. Roosevelt, many of these laws and institutions have been created by various presidents in order to protect and benefit all of us who live in the United States of America. Everyone who can work and can contribute is obliged to do so. Not everyone contributes equally, some need more from the government than others do, but that is that nature of living in our democracy.
I understand that although the intention is to benefit or protect everyone, there will always be imperfections. My belief is that we should work to correct and improve, but not to destroy the structures that have been put in place. If there are inadequacies it is the right of the citizens of this country to seek to improve and make changes. However, what this president and administration has done to destroy all of these benefits is not constructive.
It is up to all of us to vote for the people locally and nationally who will seek to make the improvements, changes, and find remedies that will satisfy the needs of the neediest member of our society. Don’t toss the baby with the bathwater. Hit the streets!
