December 12, 2024

COLUMN: Questions as the dust settles

The 2024 election is now over. The president-elect is Donald Trump. Yes, it was an overwhelming and to some a surprising victory. There will not be an attempted insurrection on the day the vote is to be certified. There will not be a fight over the “sanctity of the vote.” There will be a peaceful transfer of power. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will attend the inauguration ceremony as the 47th President of the United States takes the solemn oath to protect the Constitution of the United States. I’m grateful that a long-time norm will be followed as the transfer of power takes place.

I have a few questions for the majority of the voting electorate. Did you read the fine print?

You may have voted for mass deportation, but the reality is it will lead to higher grocery prices, higher taxes and weaker communities. Removing immigrant workers means losing a vital part of the workforce, tax base and community fabric. Industries like farming, meatpacking, construction and hospitality rely heavily on immigrant labor. Who will step in to do this work? The costs of mass deportation—both financial and logistical—are enormous, and they’ll ultimately be passed on to you. Immigrants are a vital part of our community and without them, Iowans will suffer.

The president-elect demands absolute loyalty, even from Congress and the courts. This undermines the system of checks and balances that is the foundation of our democracy. No branch of government should serve as a rubber stamp for the executive. The Constitution ensures that power is shared and balanced to protect our freedoms—not concentrated in one person’s hands. When making appointments to positions of importance we are now seeing party loyalists instead of those committed to public service. What happens to vaccines for seniors, clean drinking water, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security when those in power seek to cut spending at any cost?

Promises to lower the cost of gas, groceries and goods sound great, but adding tariffs on imports will only make things more expensive. Tariffs are essentially a tax on goods, and that cost is passed directly to you, the consumer. How does that help working families struggling to make ends meet?

The new Cabinet appointees lack the experience needed for their roles. Without expertise they won’t be able to navigate the complex challenges of governing. This undermines the credibility of our country both at home and abroad and puts critical decisions in the hands of people who may not be prepared for the job.

We will all stay tuned to see how everything plays out over time. If the president-elect fulfills all the campaign promises made, the United States we have known will look vastly different.

When people show you who they are, believe them. If I’m going to trust anything, I will trust actions over words