Draper: How many of the nation’s problems are Biden’s fault?

Let’s discuss the national debt, taxes, immigration, funding for Ukraine and Israel, and inflation.

As we see our national debt balloon, let’s not forget that Congress gave itself an untaxed raise of $34,000 per year to spend on rent and meals, with no receipts required, on top of their salaries of $174,000 per year. Multiply that by the 435 members of the House of Representatives, many of whom are multimillionaires, and you know where $14,790,000 is going. Does your employer do this for you?

Then, let’s take into consideration the billions of dollars in earmarks. These are those neat little requests for money for their districts to impress their voters, while doing nothing for the country as a whole. In fiscal year 2023, these amounted to $26 billion. In the past, these have included funds for a teapot museum and a bridge to nowhere. Then, there is the $40,000 being spent on new congressional pins because they don’t like the color of the current ones.

This spending, with the tax cuts from the prior administration, has decimated the debt. Even the rich — Bill Gates, Abigail Disney, Valerie Rockefeller and John Driscoll of Walgreens, along with 250 other ultra-wealthy — have signed a letter saying they should pay more in taxes. Under the Biden crackdown, some $520 million has been recouped from those who do not pay their fair share.

Since 2004, there have been at least five bills introduced to address the issue of immigration, and each time, they have been shot down by Republicans. Joe Biden asked, on his first day in office, for an immigration reform act. The Lankford/Murphy/Sinema bill just shot down was the strongest yet, even endorsed by our Border Patrol agents. We must set a path for immigration without the yearslong wait for court decisions and work permits. We already do not have enough workers for many jobs, and that is only going to get worse as our population ages and our birth rates remain low. Massive restrictions on immigration will mean crops are not picked, packinghouses will not function, you will not have food in the stores, and our economy will tumble. They are not the importers of fentanyl, as some would have you believe. Ninety percent of these drugs come through official ports of entry, not by illegal immigrants but by U.S. citizens. Remember, unless you are an American Indian, your people are also immigrants.

Aid for Ukraine must be passed now. Nearly $40 billion of this aid would be spent in the U.S., making missiles, artillery shells and other military equipment. As we see Vladimir Putin become more emboldened, it is only a matter of time until he attacks a NATO country. Then, the blood of our American military will be on the hands of Republicans.

Everyone should condemn the barbaric attack of Oct. 7, 2023, in Israel, and the perpetrators should be executed. However, this has been brewing for over 75 years because of the Israeli government. At the formation of Israel, the Palestinian people were forced off their land, driven into walled enclaves, forced to depend on foreign aid for food and denied any say in government. They were treated just like the American Indian.

The House has had more time off this year than they have spent working. After they passed the continuing resolution, they were off for 10 days. Now, they have taken another two weeks, returning Wednesday. Please note all this time off in the face of another possible government shutdown, when the resolution expires in early March.

Why do they get paid if they are not working?

It seems everyone wants to blame the president for inflation. He has no control over gas prices, as many tankers and container ships now have to go around the Horn of Africa because of the dangers in the Red Sea. He has no control over the price of beef, as our nationwide cattle inventory has dropped to its lowest level since the 1970s because of persistent drought making feed prices skyrocket. Let’s not forget that it is your spending that has fueled inflation and, at the same time, has produced the fastest economic recovery in the world.

Doris W. Draper

Houston

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