There are people today who still believe Donald Trump was the greatest president we ever had and Joe Biden is a crazy socialist. Take the letter written by Hilda Garza DeShazo (Feb. 17) in response to a letter by Oscar Garza (Feb. 8). Mr. Garza “blasted Trump while DeShazo attacked President Biden and did her best to persuade readers that we would all be better off today if Trump were still head of state. Ms. DeShazo’s letter was somewhat confusing and so I have a couple of questions.
Why would gas be cheaper under Trump than Biden? The world experienced an all-encompassing pandemic that killed millions and brought entire nations to a complete standstill. As a result, the global supply chain blew up, affecting supply and demand, which ultimately determine price. Also, Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the decisions of OPEC (who control 90% of global supply) have significantly altered the world’s oil supply.
What would Trump have done differently about this than Biden? If Trump had put similar effort into controlling gas prices that he put into preparing our country for the pandemic, I believe we would be paying $10 a gallon. Biden has called on the oil industry to roll back gas prices (their profits are record setting). Trump, on the other hand, gave the oil companies (all big businesses) a huge gift of significant tax cuts.
Why do people state that if Trump were still president, inflation “would not be at its highest”? First, the largest 20 economies in the world have been experiencing high inflation since the pandemic, regardless of which political party is in power. When China shut down thousands of factories, it caused shortages of furniture, appliances, computer chips and other products, which lowered supply and pushed prices up. How is this Biden’s fault? The president can try to persuade Congress to pass laws that reduce spending or increase taxes, but that responsibility ultimately falls on Congress.
Finally, why do you think Vladimir Putin would not have attacked Ukraine if Trump were still president? Don’t forget Trump’s “America first” foreign policy, which advocated isolationism and tried to damage our longstanding alliances with Europe. Trump considered withdrawing the United States from NATO, which would have been one of the worst decisions the U.S. could have made and at the same time presented Putin the greatest gift he could ever have dreamed of.
Even back in 2016, Trump was giving Putin his blessing for their illegal annexation of Crimea (which was part of Ukraine). Remember, Trump has always had great regard for Putin. Trump has been impressed with Putin’s authoritarian policies, admiring how he has “great control over his country.” When Russia first invaded Ukraine, Trump congratulated Putin’s move as a “stroke of genius.”
In the four years of his administration, Trump never criticized, condemned or even warned Putin about his actions. Remember that amazing news conference in 2018 with Putin and Trump together answering questions? One can’t forget Trump throwing our intelligence agencies “under the bus” by rejecting their analyses but eagerly accepting Putin’s simple denial of culpability by stating, “He (Putin) just said it’s not Russia. I don’t see any reason why it would be.”
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. However, if your goal is to defend your point of view, it would be wise to include facts. Without any facts, it is just your biased opinion.
Scott Sherman lives in Brownsville.
