Stimulus Checks

I’m taking a little break from working on the Timberwolves sequel right now to check some news. It seems the big deal at the moment is with stimulus checks. I’m looking at all the things people in this country are struggling with, and I’m happy to see the government offering to do a little to help the American people out. And when I look a little deeper, let me stress LITTLE.

Six-hundred bucks doesn’t seem like it’s going to do much to really help families who have been hit by this horrible disease. It won’t significantly make a difference in their lives. They will still be broke, so I can see them just blowing the money on wasteful things. I mean, if you’re going to be struggling, you might as well be struggling with an Xbox Series X or PS5 in your possession.

I saw a few days ago that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was pushing for $2000 instead of $600. That seems a little more helpful, and might actually help some folks who have been hit the hardest. Then, in an odd move that I can only assume is some half-assed attempt to try to save face or leave American’s with a better taste in their mouths when they’ve been fed a shit sandwich for four years, President Trump has come out and said that he also wouldn’t support the bill until it was raised to $2000. Someone needs to get those snowplows fired up in Hell, because I never thought I’d see the day that AOC and Trump agreed on something. I’m sure if I dig a little deeper, they’ll be diametrically opposed on this issue too, even though they’re fighting for the same thing.

But doesn’t it seem odd that Trump is jumping on that too? It makes me think there’s some fine print in those 5,600 pages that we might want to look at a little more closely. There’s some targeted aid for small businesses, so that’s a positive. There’s also built in support for developing and distributing vaccines, so those are also good things. Then there’s some climate change initiatives which also seem to be things that need to be addressed and I’m happy to see them in there (perhaps this is one of the things that has the president so riled up). I also appreciate the ban on surprise medical bills and the aid for food programs such as Meals on Wheels, which help the elderly. I’ve assisted with Meals on Wheels before, and I can’t tell you how much of an aid that is to some of the older generations who can no longer provide for themselves.

Now of course, here comes the bad. Tucked away in that 5,600 page document was a $200 billion dollar tax break for the top 1%. Was anyone else shocked by this? It’s almost like, OF COURSE THERE WAS. “We’re going to give every American their little table scraps of 600 bucks, as long as we get our billions.”

President Trump said a few hours ago, “Congress found plenty of money for foreign countries, lobbyists and special interests, while sending the bare minimum to the American people who need it,” and I wholeheartedly agree.

AOC said on Monday: “Members of Congress have not read this bill. It’s over 5000 pages, arrived at 2pm today, and we are told to expect a vote on it in 2 hours…This isn’t governance. It’s hostage-taking.”

Senator Ted Cruz, who I mostly loath, also agreed, and for him to agree with AOC is pretty significant. He could probably count the number of times that’s happened on two fingers.

He said, “It’s ABSURD to have a $2.5 trillion spending bill negotiated in secret and then—hours later—demand an up-or-down vote on a bill nobody has had time to read.”

He’s right. They’re all right. This seems like something underhanded, not to help the people, but to help the rich get richer. I’ve always felt—and this only solidifies it—that there should never be riders allowed on bills. Legislation should stand on it’s own, and should have to pass individually. Congress and the Senate should vote for only a single thing at a time. I know they’ll say this is impossible, but that’s only because the corrupt politicians wouldn’t be able to hide things in a mountain of small print and get their crooked deals passed through before anyone can oppose them.

Currently, it feels like a rigged game, like a ring toss or something at a carnival. And now we get our prize! Our $600 trinket from the bottom shelf.