As the day grew long and January 24^th came to an end Donald Trump’s tour of the fire devastation was over. Donald had seen what he came to see and met who he came to meet. The president sat and did a press conference with Karen Bass, Mayor of Los Angeles that evening. Now, putting aside the obvious evident reality that Karen Bass has no business being the mayor of a small city let alone America’s second biggest one, there was a vision that was inescapable to behold.

On display was the most crystallized example I had ever seen when it comes to highlighting the difference between the way Democrats and Republicans view the role of government. Trump told the mayor that he had met with several groups of people who complained to him that they were not even allowed to start the rebuilding of their burnt-out homes for eighteen months.

Donald looked at Karen and asked her whether this was true and Karen said no. Trump pushed and said, I don’t know, many people told me this. Bass started to crack saying that, well, we must get rid of the hazardous waste first, complained about safety, and babbled on. The president zeroed in asking the mayor what is the definition of hazardous waste, who decides that, and why can’t they start tonight. Next, Karen Bass started to backtrack and say well they can start rebuilding in a week as long as they don’t build more than a couple of feet higher.

Right there sitting at the table unwittingly was the difference between how government can get in the way or how government can help. Karen clinging to this huge ideological grab imposing government over the ashes of these people’s homes having no understanding of personal property rights versus Trump sitting there telling her this is their property and they should be able to start rebuilding right now tonight. The press conference highlighted two ideas of how government should work and the role of government in our lives.

I have never seen anything so clear and stark, Democrats’ big government affinity versus Republican smaller government solutions could not be more succinct. There, in the ashes of people’s homes, memories, and dreams two politicians argued over the direction of the fire victims’ collective lives, it just seems so truculent, so despondent, and pertinacious. I know that the million-dollar homes of rich famous movie stars will be the biggest shiny object ever seen, but in the end, my heart goes out to the hurricane victims of North Carolina. The juxtaposition is just so overwhelming; the fires damaged 12,000 structures compared to the 125,000 structures destroyed and damaged by Hurricane Helene.

C. Rich

CRich@AmericaSpeaksInk.com

C. Rich

C. Rich is the voice behind America Speaks Ink, home to the America First Movement. As an author, poet, freelance ghostwriter, and blogger, C. Rich brings a “baked-in” perspective shaped by growing up on the streets and beaches of South Florida in the 1970s-1980s and brings a quintessential Generation-X point of view.

Rich’s writing journey began in 2008 with coverage of the Casey Anthony trial and has since evolved into a wide-ranging exploration of politics, culture, and the issues that define our times. Follow C. Rich’s writing odyssey here at America Speaks Ink and on Amazon with a multi-book series on Donald Trump called “Trump Era: The MAGA Files” and many other books and subjects C. Rich is known to cover.

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