There are lies, damned lies, and then there is the federal budget.
Here is an article that appeared in the 6/19/2025 Florida Sun Sentinel:
That’s what we refer to as “learning,” Mr. Corbin.Trump’s spending bill threatens democracy and federal deficit
By Steve Corbin, The Fulcrum
As a lifelong marketer and Consumer Behavior professor, it’s interesting to observe how people’s opinions change as details of an issue become more apparent.
Behavioral change – once information and knowledge increase – is common among people who are open-minded, educated, and critical thinker.
The author, Steve Corbin, clearly identifies himself as one of those individuals who values open-mindedness, education, and critical thinking. I believe he thinks that those who agree with him embody these same qualities as well. This sentiment is likely shared by many others.
It’s called “human nature.”
But I wonder how he feels about those who view much of his article as nonsense.
Here are additional excerpts from his article, along with my thoughts on the implication that the disapproval rating of the “Big Beautiful Bill” increased as citizens became more informed about its contents.
I consider that to be mostly nonsensical. The disapproval rating increased because Elon Musk and many economists criticized it. The masses followed where the leaders directed them.
Conduct your own survey by asking the next person you meet, “Do you like the bill? Why or why not?” You will likely receive vague responses such as, “It increases the debt,” or “It’s bad for the poor.”
These general statements only loosely relate to the specifics of the bill and are often more reflective of the individual’s feelings toward Trump than an informed understanding of the bill itself.
Besides the megabill projecting to increase America’s budget deficit by $2.4 trillion, citizens’ top 10 concerns are noted below.“Increasing the budget deficit by $2.4 trillion is more properly stated,” “Increases the federal government’s support for economic growth by $2.4 trillion.”The most disconcerting aspect of the omnibus bill is listed last, as it undermines the checks and balances system that ensures separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches Americans have revered for the past 250 years.
Without federal deficit spending, the economy would enter a recession, and even more likely, a depression.
In either case, recession or depression, the ONLY cure would be massive federal deficit spending.
Corbin fails to challenge the common myth about deficits, and his mention of it as a concern only spreads misinformation.
1) Medicaid: At least $600 billion will be cut from Medicaid, which will strip health care coverage from an estimated 10-15 million low-income Americans and close down over 300 rural hospitals (CHOPR).True, the bill mandates it, but Corbin implies that it is necessary. Without collecting a penny in taxes, the federal government could fund comprehensive, generous Medicare (not just Medicaid) for everyone in America.
Congress and the President could achieve this simply by voting. Two votes, one from the Senate and one from the House, followed by the President’s signature, and the necessary funds would be available.
2) Taxes: The measure has a reverse-Robin Hood scenario that extends and expands tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, while lower-income earners would see reduced benefits or a net income loss; the estimated cost is around $3.8-$4.3 trillion during the 2025-2034 time period.
Mr. Corbin neglects to mention that while federal taxes can be a burden on the economy, they do not fund federal spending. The primary purposes of federal taxes are:
- To control the economy by penalizing what Congress and the President want to discourage, and by rewarding those they want to help. No federal tax dollars are used for spending. In fact, they are destroyed the instant they are received at the Treasury.
- To assure demand for the U.S. dollar by requiring that taxes be paid in dollars.
The major function of federal taxes today is to widen the income/power/Gap between the rich donors and the rest of us. Let me put this in bold, all-caps, so there will be no misunderstanding.”
FEDERAL TAXES DO NOT FUND FEDERAL SPENDING
State and local taxes fund state and local government spending, so Mr. Corbin is either unaware of this fact or dishonest. There are no other possibilities.
3) SNAP: Spending on SNAP, America’s food assistance program for low-income earners and the disabled, will be slashed by $267 billion, affecting the food security of 7.4 million people (Center on Budget and Policy).
In this context, we discuss morality. Many individuals who do not rely on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) tend to lack concern for low-income workers. Those who are better off often view those in need as lazy or irresponsible, thinking they seek free handouts to spend on drugs and weapons.
Too many people who identify as Christians are CINOs (Christians In Name Only). They often contradict Jesus’s teachings and misquote the Bible to justify selfishness, harshness, and bigotry.
If it cost you nothing, would you help a starving, poor child? SNAP is a program that costs you and your fellow taxpayers nothing and helps millions of the starving poor. Mr. Corbin never mentions that.
4) Estate Taxes: The estate tax exemption would be raised and indexed for inflation, allowing wealthy families to pass on up to $30 million tax-free to their heirs, resulting in $200 billion in lost revenue to the U.S. Treasury.The estate tax is a woefully inadequate, poorly designed, quasi-attempt to mollify the masses by pretending to punish the rich.
It mostly doesn’t work, but in the few cases it does work, it punishes the private sector by removing dollars from the economy.
Instead of making insincere efforts to penalize the wealthy, a more effective approach would be to support those who are less fortunate. Funding initiatives like Medicare for All, Education for All, Food for All, and Housing for All can ultimately improve the lives of everyone.
That, after all, is the purpose of government — the reason why we voluntarily submit ourselves to the government’s rule-making.
5) Clean Energy:The elimination of tax incentives for solar, wind, and electric vehicles ($561 billion) will affect approximately 250,000 Americans working in these sectors (CNBC).
The government is utilizing tax laws as intended: to regulate the economy. Unfortunately, the oil and coal industries contribute more money in bribes to Congress, leading Congress to favor fossil fuels over renewable energy sources, which exacerbates global warming.
To make their position more acceptable to the general public, right-wing individuals often deny the existence of global warming. If they do admit that it exists, they argue that humans are not responsible for it. Even if they acknowledge human responsibility, they claim that there is nothing we can do to address the issue due to the actions of China.
And anyway, the election was stolen.
6) Private Education: A new tax credit for donations to private school voucher programs expands federal support for private education. FYI: The majority of Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, support increasing funding for public schools over private school vouchers (Center for American Progress).
Most funding for education comes from sources that do not have monetary sovereignty, such as states, counties, cities, villages, businesses, and private individuals. As a result, funding is limited, which, not coincidentally, contributes to the growing gaps in income, wealth, and power between the rich and others.
As though that Gap were not wide enough, there is another Gap-widening effort. The Christion-right’s continual attempts to widen the Gap between them and everyone else, even those not among the Christian-right.
Let Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, agnostics, and even non-fundamentalist Christians beware.
The money solution lies in the source of money, the federal government. Federal financial support for all education — Pre-K through advanced degrees.
America’s current system creates dramatically underpaid teachers and administrators, which results in excellent schooling for the wealthiest few, and terrible schooling for the rest. That, of course, is all part of the Gap-widening plan.7) State and Local Tax (SALT):The tax deduction cap would be raised to $40,000, benefiting wealthier households in high-taxed states for $916 billion (Reuters).Federal taxes should be reduced, but increasing tax deductions for the wealthy is not the solution. Instead, the federal government should make direct payments to all.
Consider it this way: If a wealthy individual falls into the 36% tax bracket, they effectively “benefit” from 36% of the $40,000 SALT deduction, which amounts to about $14,000. Instead of giving each affluent family $14,000, the government should provide every family with $14,000, tax-free.
8) Post-Secondary Education:Federal subsidized loans for college students will be eliminated and Pell Grant eligibility tightened, making post-secondary education less accessible for many, especially for students from low- and middle-income families (Atlanta Journal-Constitution).
Education is essential for the future of Americans, which is why the founders of this nation established free primary education for most citizens, a practice that continues today.
However, the current world needs our nation to provide more than primary and even secondary education.
The rich don’t need the loans. The poor can’t pay them back.
The federal government has infinite dollars and destroys all the dollars it receives. Paying the government back does nothing for the government, but it impoverishes millions of Americans.
Instead of doing the right thing — i.e. cancel all the debt and fund college for every student — the government does exactly the wrong thing. It continues to collect on the loans, but cancels future financial support.
Why? Because the current administration is more focused on widening the Gap between the rich and the rest than any in history. And Mr. Corbin goes along with the Lie.
Is it ignorance of malevolence? You decide.
9) Environment:The proposal expands leasing of public lands for drilling, mining, and logging and authorizes the sale of public lands, reversing environmental protectionssupported by the majority of Americans.
Hey, who cares about our environment when there’s money to be made? Mr. Corbin is correct to mention this disaster.
10) Judicial Oversight (Section 70302): This provision, described in a single paragraph buried about halfway through the act, restricts judges’ ability to enforce court orders and weakens judicial authority over the executive branch.I’m not sure why Mr. Corbin is so shocked about this. The Supreme Court already has opened that barn door by ruling that Trump can do any damn thing he wants so long as he can claim it’s part of his job.The impact on democracy of the 10th identified component of Trump’s legislation justifies further explanation.
This provision restricts the ability of federal courts to enforce their rulings against the government and impose contempt of court citations.
This is significant because this clause means judges would have a much more difficult time holding Trump and his appointees, as well as future presidencies, in contempt for defying preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders, thereby severely impacting the rule of law.
Arrest a Congressperson? No problem. Handcuff a mayoral candidate? OK, so long as the candidate is a Democrat. Lie, cheat steal, violate the Emoluments clause and make billions from the Presidency? Who cares?
We already have a convicted felon for a President, so why does Mr. Corbin think contempt of Congress would be a deterrent, or even possible with this Congress and SCOTUS?
Legal experts warn that this provision significantly undermines judicial authority and renders many existing and future court orders unenforceable. This stipulation undermines America’s checks and balances between the three branches of government, a cornerstone of the U.S. Constitution.“Checks and balances”? Mr. Corbin must be kidding.
Section 70302 alone in the measure says that democracy is in jeopardy for you, your children, and your grandchildren. If the bill passes with section 70302 intact, an authoritarian, totalitarian, and fascist-oriented America is almost assured in perpetuity.You get what you vote for. Trump made no secret about who and what he is. And still he won the election.
Are people going to complain about “authoritarianism, totalitarianism, fascism,” and the misinformation surrounding Medicare, Medicaid, student loans, Social Security, the environment, global warming, and countless other problems that a wise government could address?
Nah. As long as we, the people, can stand by while ICE kicks in doors to deport innocent, valuable immigrants, and we, the people, bar anyone who isn’t a white Christian, why should we worry about unimportant issues like facts and voting?
Right, Steve?
Steve Corbin is a Professor Emeritus of Marketing, University of Northern Iowa, and a non-paid freelance opinion editor and guest columnist contributor to 246 news agencies and 48 social media platforms in 45 states.
Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
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