(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
TRICKS, TRAPS, AND POLITICAL CHICANERY [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-07-20
TRICKS, TRAPS, AND POLITICAL CHICANERY
By Don C. Reed
As you know, conservatives own the political show at present, controlling the House, Senate, Presidency, a 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court—and a tax-free status for a mountain of money.
But If Democrats win in 2026, and regain the House of Representatives, we can work toward fairness again.
In the meantime we are stuck with the damages of what President Trump called a “Big Beautiful Bill”. It is a law now, and definitely “Big”; but then anything can be supersized—--even bloated-- if you are willing to go deep enough in debt.
Trump’s law is loaded with tricks, traps and political chicanery. It affects other laws, some genuinely valuable.
Like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), originally called the food stamp program. The name was changed, perhaps because it was easy to remember, while SNAP’s full name is not. But by any name, the program works: it feeds hungry people. Its effectiveness, however, will soon be reduced by simple but effective maneuvers, including:
SNAP recipients must soon fill out ultra-complicated application forms— and not just once, but repeatedly, as often as every month. (1)
Heavier work requirements will be imposed, perhaps 80 hours a month—and who provides childcare in the meantime? (2)
Delays will be imposed. As MSNBC columnist Rachel Maddow pointed out, some program changes won’t go into effect until after the 2026 elections. This may sound harmless, but consider: if we are braced for something bad, and it does not happen, we may forget about it, and miss our chance to respond seriously, i.e. vote the rascals out! (3)
Positive or negative, America needs to know, who is responsible for what?
If Republicans bring program cuts, needless suffering and empty bellies, while at the same time increasing (exploding!) the National Debt, Americans need to be clear on that.
And as Democrats fight for Social Security, Medicaid, and Food Stamps—while lowering the National Debt—our country should know that too.
President Bill Clinton, by the way, got the deficit down to zero—but Trump raised it up--to one trillion dollars in debt. (4)
2.
https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/expanded-work-requirements-in-house-republican-bill-would-take-away-food#:~:text=This%20means%20that%20the%20vast,following%20interactive%20map%20and%20table.
3.
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/05/gop-megabill-cliffs-tax-cuts-medicaid-00439973
4.
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2019/jul/29/tweets/republican-presidents-democrats-contribute-deficit/
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/7/20/2334286/-TRICKS-TRAPS-AND-POLITICAL-CHICANERY?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web
Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/
