Trump didn’t meet with flooding victims, but he will give $1 million to their relief. Eventually. Probably.
President Trump made it a point to visit Texas days after Hurricane Harvey, standing on a truck bumper and waving a Texas flag. What he didn’t do is meet directly with victims of the deadly storm that took dozens of lives and displaced thousands.
On Thursday, Energy Secretary Rick Perry, a former Texas governor, explained why: „He was advised: The better place for you to go is Corpus Christi or San Antonio or Austin, where no search and rescue resources would be pulled away from what they’re doing.“
Instead, Trump on Thursday pledged to give $1 million to Hurricane Harvey relief. That’s twice what pop star Miley Cyrus pledged and about a 10th of what NFL star J. Watt pooled together.
Just when Trump will give that money remains to be seen: He pledged to donate the same amount to veterans‘ charities last year, but only did so once reporters looked into it months later.
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The Trump administration underscored its hatred for Obamacare on Thursday, slashing 90% of the funds slated promote health care enrollment under the Affordable Care Act. Advertising will drop from $100 million to $10 million, health officials said. More than 12 million signed up for Obamacare in 2017— many in states that swung for Trump.
Meanwhile, John Kasich and John Hickenlooper, bless their hearts, handed Congress their plan to improve health care on Thursday.
The White House responded on Thursday to Russia’s decision to kick 755 U. S. diplomats out of the country last month. The Kremlin’s move came after the U. S. slapped stronger sanctions on Moscow in part over apparent meddling in the 2016 election. The Trump administration ordered Russia to close its consulate in San Francisco and scale back diplomatic presence in New York City and Washington. Still, no Russian diplomats will have to leave.
Trump, not exactly a friend to undocumented immigrants, is looking at ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also known as DACA. The Obama-era program protects from deportation nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants who came to the U. S. as children. On Wednesday, a slew of leaders — 130 mayors, 230 state lawmakers and hundreds of faith leaders, judges, police chiefs and sheriffs signed a statement asking Trump to reconsider. Their argument: DREAMers make real contributions to the economy, and the U. S. would lose $460 billion over the next decade if DACA ended.
