Editor, Times-Union:
In Tony Fleckenstein’s April 8 letter, he defends the current administration’s service-cutting policies as mere attacks on waste, fraud and abuse, while making use of biblical references (“oh, ye of little faith,” “doubting thomas”) to chastise those who place little trust in this White House (and even less in the unelected Elon Musk).
While it is not unusual these days to hear Trump supporters invoke faith-based language to support this decidedly irreligious man and his 19th-century policies, it is both dangerous and impractical for the public to blindly trust any president. Our entire system is based on checks and balances as a hedge against anyone gaining too much power. Such checks and balances are especially essential when you have a man who, when speaking to Congress about supporting his budget plans, offers nothing in the way of practical argumentation to sway them (while skewing his facts, if not outright lying). Rather, Trump urges them to “close your eyes and get there,” in the process revealing with those first three words what this administration – and Mr. Fleckenstein, evidently – wants the entire country to do, no matter what hairbrained scheme they propose.
That’s what they want. Close our eyes while, among other, more urgent matters (attacking the free press and judicial system, departing those with a legal right to be here, rolling back public services, etc.) the “fiscally responsible” Mr. Trump spends one-quarter of his days in office and over $26 million golfing at his own courses, for free (as of March 30 - as for his two-term total thus far, it's 293 days and $151.5 million of your money).
Don’t know about you guys, but I ain’t closin’ my eyes on nobody. Not the golfer-in-chief. Not his onetime-severe critic-now-slathering-lapdog JD Vance. And especially not on some out-of-touch, philandering, marriage-dismissing, billionaire who’s received $38 billion in government contracts while calling social security – the people’s insurance program (not an entitlement, but something we paid for) – a “ponzi scheme.”
Yeah ... he's working "for free."
In short, we're supposed to question our leaders, not blindly bow to them. But if anyone still wants to “close your eyes and get there," you can go right ahead. But don’t be surprised if, when you open them, you have no idea where you are anymore. You will, however, know exactly what got you there.
Charles Eichman
Warsaw, via email