A ‘golden age’ for America or nothing more than fool’s gold?

Glenn Whitaker

Letter to the Editor

Grand Junction Daily Sentinel

February 12, 2025

I am amused by those like Mr. Kearsley who are proclaiming a new “golden age” under Donald Trump. I’m wondering how “golden” it is so far for those who expected Trump to improve their lives economically? Eggs are more expensive, groceries remain at all-time highs, gasoline prices have gone up by at least 27 cents nationally and Trump is now admitting that bringing prices down is “very hard” despite his promise to bring them down on day one.

How will grocery and labor prices decline when he deports the immigrant workers who provide the food we eat and the construction of our new homes and businesses? Is it “golden” to start trade wars with Canada, Mexico and China, our biggest trading partners?

Even Trump now admits that tariffs will increase prices for the goods we import including electronics, auto parts and gasoline? Was it “golden” when he created chaos by freezing funding of all government spending including Medicare and Social Security? Is it “golden” to end price controls on medicine such as insulin? Is it “golden” to allow an unelected billionaire, Elon Musk, access to America’s most sensitive information in the Treasury Department — effectively giving him our Social Security numbers and our bank accounts, not to mention the power to stop payment on Social Security checks and Medicare reimbursements.

Is it “golden” for Trump to eliminate the Department of Education so that our underfunded public schools get even less funding than they do now? Is it “golden” for him to purge the FBI, CIA and DOJ of career employees who have kept us safe from countless terror attacks and who prosecute drug traffickers and child pornographers?

I could go on, but suffice it to say, the only “gold” most of us can see so far is, at best, “fool’s gold.”

GLENN WHITAKER

Glade Park