by Vernon A. Williams
Let’s cut to the chase. There are only two reasons to vote for the incumbent president. One of them is totally predicated on a falsehood for all but a few Americans. And the other is rooted in the nation’s “original sin.”
Those who labor under the double-edged misnomer that the current leadership fixed our economy and reflects the only route to sustained growth need to get their facts straight.
Both beliefs are patently untrue, as any true political pundit will attest. The shambles in which George W. Bush left this nation was repaired during the Obama Administration and improved on every single year of his two terms. The Donald simply—as in his childhood—stepped into unearned inheritance.
There is no silver bullet. The most either 45 or Joe Biden can do in 2021 is ease the pain of the pandemic slow down. The difference is that Agent Orange would take a route that would benefit billionaire cronies and make the rich richer, while Democratic leadership will be people oriented.
The Donald has been all about shamelessly pandering to the “haves” at the ruthless expense of the “have nots” throughout his administration.
Unless you are among the elite, highest income bracket, what this administration poured over your financial circumstances during his three-and-a-half years was more like drops than a flowing stream. The “Trumpster” doesn’t mind admitting it. Whenever he boasts about the pre-COVID economy, the first thing he points to is the stock market.
The U.S. Census Bureau says only 10 percent of the richest households in America own 92 percent of all the country’s stock.
In another show of affluence, the drop in home ownership is much more dramatic for those at the lower half of the income ladder. In 2019, only 63 percent of Americans own real estate, down from 75 percent in 2000.
Even more startling is the fact that Black homeownership is losing ground at a more rapid rate. There is a whopping 30 percent gap between Black and White home ownership. A White person with a high school diploma is more likely to own his or her home (61 percent) than a Black college graduate (approximately 54.3 percent).
Structural racism is at least part of the factor that results in traditional lower FICO scores for Blacks Americans—yet another systemic obstacle to home ownership among African Americans. If Blacks owned homes at the same rate as they did in 2000, it would create an additional 770,000 in homeownership.
Unemployment may have been relatively low before COVID, but much of that was due to those who dropped out of the system as well as people willing to work some of the lowest paying jobs. These individuals rarely had work-related health insurance or any other benefits. The national minimum wage has remained at $7.25 an hour for the past 12 years.
Before any influence of the coronavirus shutdowns, 8.6 percent of White workers earned what is called paid poverty wages. Among the Black population’s “working poor” is a disgraceful 19.2 percent or almost one out of every five. Hispanics are not doing much better at 14.6 percent of their population’s “working poor.”
So if the reason for a vote to re-elect couldn’t be the economy for anyone with a brain, what else could be driving this consistent 35-45 percent support for an incumbent who has demonstrated time and time again his incompetence and lack of humanity.
The answer is painfully simple. Racism. This White House has no shame is demonstrating in both word and deed bitter acrimony and contempt for people of color. Those who cast ballots for this man are simply demonstrating their overt or covert racism or endorsement of racist practices.
That is the only explanation why none of the never-ending scandals stick on Teflon Don. So walk away from the coffee break room or commuter banter or any group or one-on-one dialogue that purports the ability to make a case for a scoundrel. There are no excuses for his behavior and assault on everything this republic have ever taken sacred.
The Book of Revelations 13:5 reads:
“And there was given under him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue 42 months.”
From his first full month in office until today, this is about that same amount of time for this ill-gotten presidency. Those sacred words may or not be prophesy. But one thing is certain. Any ballot cast on behalf of this vile incumbency is an endorsement of evil, hatred, mean-spiritedness and bigotry. Plain and simple.
(Reprinted from the Chicago Crusader)
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