THIS WEEK IN…

EVERYDAY LIFE IN A SHIFTING AMERICA

 In only 300 days, life under the Trump administration has already fundamentally changed for many Americans. The recent headlines about the government shutdown highlighted mainly the hunger and healthcare crisis in this country, but the dramatic effects that Trump’s policies have had on the everyday lives of millions are much more widespread. The high import tariffs threaten the survival of small businesses and farms and have driven up prices for everyday goods. Across the country, the mass deployment of armed National Guard troops makes some neighborhoods resemble militarized zones. People of Hispanic background live in constant fear of being stopped on their way to work, flagged down on the highway, or arrested simply for looking “not American enough”. The administration’s dismantling of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs within the federal government has already led to increased discrimination of LGBTQ+ people and people of color.

The president may have claimed that the  “2025 Thanksgiving dinner under Trump is 25% lower than 2024 Thanksgiving dinner under Biden”, citing a Walmart promotion, which fails to mention that the shopping basket contains fewer and lower- quality items. In addition to the many millions receiving food stamps, an even larger number are food insecure reports Mardas Kardas Nelson in 33-cent ramen, peanut butter, and community: How the state’s most food insecure get by. The uncertainty created by Trump’s erratic tariff and trade policies has led to hesitation in both investment and hiring.  As CHRISTOPHER RUGABER reports for the Associated Press, the No Hire Job market leaves unemployed in limbo as threats to economy multiply.  

The end of the government shutdown has not alleviated the dire situation of poor Americans, Americans with jobs that pay too little to live without government subsidies of just over the qualifying amount for federal help.  “It’s hard to speak up when your teeth hurt. It’s hard to stand up when you are hungry. It’s hard to show up when you can’t afford gas,” writes FELISA ROGERS in her personal essay for The Guardian.

Small business owners feel the brunt of higher import costs. At best, they are forced to lay off employees; at worst, they must shut down, in either case with devastating effects on the local communities. Some Northeast Ohio businesses say continued tariffs may cause them to close. “We won’t survive,” they tell GABRIEL KRAMER of WYSO.  Trump’s argument that high tariffs would push American businesses to source and produce their goods domestically may sound appealing in theory, but in practice, it is far from reality.  CLAYTON HENKEL writes for NBC Newsline that  From farmers to entrepreneurs, these homegrown businesses say tariffs are taking a toll on their bottom line. In some cases, tariffs have quadrupled material import costs, forcing business owners to raise prices, take out loans, and cut staff.

The cruelty of masked ICE agents has left many communities throughout the country in constant fear of harassment, assault and arrest.  The numbers of disappeared people are staggering.   CAITLIN DICKERSON repords for The Atlantic in her article, Hundreds of Thousands of Anonymous Deportees, that “amid the president’s fast-moving deportation campaign, the stories of most people being swept up are missed.”  Increasingly, small children become victims of ICE agents’ overzealous pursuit to meet the administration’s deportation and arrest quotas.  “Viral Videos Show Toddlers Caught Up in Aggressive ICE Crackdown,” writes REBECCA SCHNEID in Time.  Video footage published in the Los Angeles Times by  BRITTNY MEJIA and RUBEN VIVES documents one such case:  Armed agents drive off with child after detaining her father In Massachussetts, an “Everett 13-year-old [was] arrested by ICE and sent to [a] Virginia detention facility” reports MARCELA RODRIGUES for the Boston Globe.

Black Americans see Trump’s militarized police presence as an increasing danger to their communities. “I Don’t Feel Safe”: Black Memphis Residents Report Harassment by Trump’s Police Task Force finds a Pro Publica investigation by WENDY C. THOMAS and KATHERINE BURGESS in cooperation with MLK50: Justice Through Journalism.

Rolling back anti-discrimination policies has further threatened the civil rights of non-binary Americans.  Trump’s executive order removing transgender troops from the military recently gained support from the Supreme Court.  In an increasingly transphobic atmosphere, three transgender service members courageously spoke on the record about “the military ban, and the rise of transphobia in the United States.”  Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, one trans officer told JEN RAININ for The Conversationalist,  “I Find Hope in Simply Still Being Here”.

The Trump administration’s policies have reshaped the nation’s social and economic landscape in less than a year, deepening divisions and eroding fundamental rights. For millions of Americans, daily life has become more precarious, fearful, and uncertain. This sentiment is reflected in recent November polls, which show decreasing approval ratings for the Trump administration, even among Republicans. 

…IN OTHER NEWS

The Constitution gives the president almost unconstrained pardon power. However, it was not designed to be used for personal or financial gain. Donald Trump’s pardons and commutations have followed a pattern of overtly political and self-serving decisions. He has rewarded friends, donors and business partners. The latest round of pardons for allies involved in efforts to overturn the 2020 election shows how far Trump is willing to take the abuse of this power by protecting those who have acted on his behalf or even broken the law for him.

JOE HERNANDEZ put together a list of Who has President Trump pardoned and why?

“Only 10 of the roughly 1,600 people granted pardons had filed petitions to the Office of the Pardon Attorney, and even within that small group, some did not appear to meet the Justice Department’s standards and requirements.” JEREMY KOHLER examines Trump’s corrupt pardon spree in How Trump Has Exploited Pardons and Clemency to Reward Allies and Supporters.

DAVID POZEN, a law professor at Columbia University, writes that Trump’s “meting out of pardons for blatantly corrupt and self-serving ends is a classic authoritarian tactic that undermines the rule of law,” in this article by PETER STONE.

Trump’s pardons aren’t just political; more importantly, they’re transactional, argues AARON BLAKE.

Since none of the people pardoned for their involvement in trying to steal the 2020 election face federal charges, “Trump’s clemency grants are symbolic. They are part of Trump’s larger effort to downplay his attempt to subvert the 2020 election and his responsibility for the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress,” writes DAN FRIEDMAN in Trump Issues Fake Pardons For Fake Electors.

Many of Trump’s “recent pardons violate Justice Department policies designed to ensure fairness and public safety”, as JOSEPH NEFF points out in Trump flaunts pardon rules, costs victims and public more than $1 billion.

Some of the people Donald Trump pardoned have “been rearrested, charged or sentenced for other crimes,” among them one January 6 insurrectionist charged with threatening to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Just this week, Jonathan Braun, a convicted drug dealer granted clemency by Trump, was sent back to prison.