Europe today

Europe is in trouble because of unforced errors and they are trying to undo some of the damage which is causing more problems. First off, the countries went all in on replacing fossil fuels with wind and solar and in many countries shutting down nuclear power plants. This was done without adequate studies which would have pointed out the Europe does not have a lot of wind or sun and done without concern for replacement energy. This led to higher cost for energy and a slow down in manufacturing to the point of layoffs and plant closings. The Ukraine War led to the closing of gas pipelines from Russia which further aggravated the rising cost of energy. Second, they allowed large numbers of legal and illegal immigrants to enter and these people are not assimilating and the result is a rise in crime and stress on public assistance programs. Third, the US has, under Trump, put pressure on Europe to pay for their own national defense instead of relying on US protection. They must now increase defense spending which puts further pressure on the budgets that are already hurting because of the billions being spent to help Ukraine. Fourth, the US has increased tariffs on imports from Europe to more equal the tariffs that Europe applies to US imports. Fifth the whole continent is aging and they do not have enough young people to produce or consume and must rely on exports to China and the US. Sixth and maybe most important, they are weighted down with regulations making the cost of doing business to be uncompetitive with the rest of the world. In 2000 the GDP of the EU was $7 trillion and today it is $18 trillion. Contrast that with the US in 2000 at $10 trillion and today at $30 trillion. The first step in getting out of this mess is to end the war in Ukraine but they want to keep fighting, fearing that Russia will want to take over Eastern Europe.

US growth

The rise and fall of China over the past 40 years was precipitated by actions in the West and in particular the United States. The American consumer, who purports to be concerned about quality of life, closed their eyes to what was going on in China, in order to get inexpensive goods. China set up factories without unions, without workers comp programs, little to no safety regulations, no environmental rules and using child and sometime slave labor to undercut American companies. Then they pushed wind and solar and denigrated the US use of fossil fuels as destroying the earth while they sold solar panels to the US at below manufacturing cost causing US produces to go broke. Starting about ten years ago the US came to the realization that it needed to rebuild its manufacturing base to bring jobs home, to shorten and secure supply chains and for national defense. People suddenly woke up to the fact that important products like pharmaceuticals, baby formula and toilet paper needed to be made at home and not subject to the whims of some foreign power. The reshoring is now underway and China is falling behind. China does not have the consumers needed to purchase their production and their economy is suffering. They, like many aging countries, need the American consumer. China’s problem is further aggravated by their aging population which means not only enough young people to produce the goods but not enough young people to purchase the goods. The US is rebuilding faster than at any time in history and AI is further accelerating the growth. The US now realizes that its need for energy is forcing it to look at the only solution and that is nuclear power.

Putin and nukes

During the 45 years of the cold war, the world was held together by the threat of mutual nuclear destruction or MAD. The longer the Ukraine War goes on, the more Putin sees Russia being destroyed and the use of nuclear weapons becoming a reality. An autocratic leader who understands his power is about to be jeopardized will be willing to end the world rather than lose authority. His bluff will turn into action and this possibility has the sane world running scared. Putin understands this and thus the West will back down when he moves to use nukes. The MAD policy that kept people too afraid to act foolishly, only works when people act rationally. Up to now NATO has acted like the Biden policy of, as long as it takes, but soon they will be looking for ways to end the conflict and simple things like giving up territory will no longer matter. They are slowly coming to the realization that Putin will do whatever it takes to save Mother Russia, even if it means destroying it.

California

Just as America can learn from the mistakes that Europe has made regarding the economy, so can the 49 states learn from the mistakes made by California. Forty years ago, California had 45 refineries and by 2000 they had 23 and now they have 14 with three of those closing. There are no pipelines coming into California so any demand over what they can refine is imported from Saudia Arabia and Iraq. They currently import 70% of their needs and this will increase as these three refineries shut down. They are leaving because they cannot compete with the high cost of state regulations. California already has the highest price for gasoline and this will raise prices further. The state passed a law banning gasoline cars by 2035 but this was done without improving the grid to handle the increased demand for electric charging stations. This is similar to what Europe did when they closed down their coal plants and their nuclear plants before they had adequate replacement energy supplies. This is only one of many ways that regulations in California have caused businesses to leave the state. Another is the cost of homes. California home prices are significantly higher than the U.S. average, with median prices often around $800,000+ compared to a national median hovering near $350,000 (in 2025)

Migrants leaving

So far in Trump’s second term 1.9 million illegal migrants have self-deported and 622,000 have been forced out. Of the estimated 350,000 unaccompanied minors previously considered lost who crossed the border between 2021 and 2025, 129,000 have been located This is an ongoing project and much more is needed especially finding the missing children.

Change in power

Why the country needed Trump or someone like him. Led by the federal government the big corporations combined with big insurance companies, big drug companies, big banks, Wall Street and the national press to widen the wealth gap at the expense of the citizenry. Before Trump entered public life, he recognized that the greatest asset of the United States was the American consumer. The US with 5% of the world’s population consumes 25% of the world’s production. Countries around the world understand this and want to sell to America. The second thing that Trump noticed was the negative trade balance that plagued the US as shown by the trillion-dollar deficits. Why were countries selling so much more to the US than they were buying and one of the reasons was tariffs. Take one example. When an American car is sold in Germany there is a 10% tariff (import tax) and a 19% VAT (value added tax) meaning a total of 29%. When a German car is sold in the US there is a 2.5% tariff. This kind of difference is the case with most countries and thus Trump wanted reciprocal tariffs, that is, what ever a country charges the US will charge the same. Trump recognized that the bureaucracy led by the rich and powerful had become too strong and wanted to reduce their influence or in Trump speak, drain the swamp. This caused alarm in the status quo and they all joined forces to attack Trump, saying he was a threat to democracy when in fact he was a threat to the system. Spearheaded by the press, the powerful have convinced half of the people that Trump is a threat to the country, when in fact he is a threat to their position of power. They are on top and want to stay that way. During the 30 years after WW 2, the US became the manufacturing hub of the world producing 50% of all manufactured goods but in the last 50 years all of this went out of the country and the wealth moved to the top as the middle class all but disappeared. Since 1990 the top one percent of households gain $8.3 million while the bottom 20% gained $8,500. Which group would like to see change?

Cost of healthcare

As the debate to extend the Obamacare subsidies continues, the claim that insurance companies benefit most from these monies is in the news. Recall that Brian Thompson, the CEO of United Healthcare, was murdered in 2024 by a disgruntled citizen who was upset about the high cost of healthcare. Obamacare started paying benefits in 2014 and that year United Healthcare stock was at $100 and today it is $600. There are a number of things that can be done to lower the cost of healthcare but instead the government offers subsidies. What are some things that can lower prices? Give most favored nation status to the US to determine drug prices Eliminate the intermediary companies (PBM’s) that raise the price of drugs Allow companies to form associations to have more buying power when negotiating with insurance companies. Allow companies to negotiate across state lines to increase competition when buying insurance Require transparency in insurance so people can see up front what something will cost and not have to wait until after the service is performed Deport illegal migrants who use emergency services for free as this cost is passed on to the rest of the patients These are things that could be tried instead of first going to subsidies.

Madero

As the situation in Venezuela unfolds it is mindful of the 1989 case in Panama. After the death of Omar Toffijos in 1981, Manual Noriega became the de facto (unelected president). He was an anticommunist who had worked for the CIA but when he came into power he moved toward communism and started using drug money to retain his power. He installed puppet presidents, rigging elections using his control of the military, in other words, a typical dictator. The US was concerned about his leaning toward communism and his expanding of the drugs coming into the US. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Miami on charges of racketeering, drug smuggling and money laundering. The US invaded Panama, captured Noriega, brought him to the US where he was convicted and sent to prison. The same thing is going on with Madero in Venezuela who came to power when Chevez died in 2013. Using his power, the constitution was change giving him authority much like a dictator. He organized the drug business around several other countries using help from communist countries Russia, China, Cuba and Iran. He is considered illegitimate by most of the world and seen as rigging elections. The US is now putting pressure on Madero to vacate by sinking his drug boats and taking over his oil tankers. He has been offered sanctuary in Turkey.

Healthcare cost

When social security started in 1935, life expectancy was 62 years but today that is 78 years. This trend is expected to continue and that along with advances in medical treatment will increase the cost of healthcare. The new treatments are expensive. In 1960 healthcare cost were 5% of GDP and today it is 20%. One fourth of all health cost in a person’s life happens in the last year so one place to look for savings is in elderly patients. This leads to rationing, something that no one wants to hear but may be necessary. Should a ninety-year-old man get a liver transplant. New York recently joined other states in allowing assisted suicide and other countries like Canada and many in Europe have adopted similar rules. On the other end of the spectrum, many abortions are performed on unborns who have various problems that would be costly to treat. Another savings is in the treatment of preemies. Infants born at 24 weeks have an average first year cost of over $600,000. The average stay in a nursing home is 6 months and for dementia patients it’s 30 months and the cost are $10,000 per month. Insurance and private payments cover some of the cost but the government spends $200 billion per year. Encouraging life style changes can save money. The total cost of smoking is $600 billion while drug and alcohol comes to $500 billion.

Trump speech

The main reason why people see so differently is based on whether you look at personality or policy and reports from last night’s speech verify this. Here are some policy issues from the speech. Closing the border Deporting criminal migrants Stopping drugs coming in on boats Keeping inflation under 3% Large tax cuts New foreign investments in manufacturing Bringing jobs back home using tariffs Lowering drug prices Increasing oil and gas Here are some comments by liberals I’m not afraid of Trump Speech was short because he didn’t have many accomplishments Trump is not in touch with the people He’s not well mentally and physically Untethered from reality and truth I heard he blamed Biden Divisive

Future of EV's

The future of electric vehicles is changing as consumers turn away and governments realize that the grid is not up to the challenge and the harm to the environment is more than predicted. Auto companies realize this is not the time or place for EV’s. The final nail in the coffin was the cancelling of the $7,500 tax credit. Ford is pulling back, a move that will result in a $19.5 billion dollar charge against its earning to be taken this quarter. The odd thing is this loss is the result of a management decision and no one seems to be responsible. Mary Berra became CEO of GM in 2013. Here is a brief history of her grand plan. Starting in 2018, GM said it would sell only EV’s by 2035 and 50% of its fleet by 2030. Here is a report from Oct 2025. GM said it is laying off 1,750 workers indefinitely and cutting back 1,670 others as it scales back EV production. GM took a financial hit of $1.6 billion in late 2025 due to scaling back EV plans. Mary Berra is still the CEO.

Deductibles

Throughout the history of Obamacare, the news has always centered on the monthly premium cost but that left the out-of-pocket cost, which primarily involved the annual deductible, out of the discussion. First off, 92% of participants receive subsidies and 60% are enrolled in the Silver Plan. This includes people whose incomes are between 100% ($32,000) and 400% ($128,000) of the poverty level. The annual out of pocket cost for a single person will increase to $10,600 (up from $9.200 in 2025), and for the family plan up to $21,200 from $18,400. The average cost for monthly premiums after subsidies is $120 which is only a small part of the out-of-pocket cost which includes annual deductibles. Very low-income people can qualify for zero cost healthcare but that is under Medicaid not Obamacare. For example, using the Silver Plan A family of four with an income of $50,000 will pay, after subsidies, $100 per month but have a $7,000 annual deductible. If the income is $80,000 the monthly cost would be $200 but the annual deductible would rise to $10,000. Just as when Obamacare first came out, the news is all about monthly premium and people are upset when they see the annual deductible, which many don’t know about until they have their first claim. This is not only poor reporting but could be considered dishonest reporting.

NGO's in MN

When DOGE cracked down on waste and abuse in congress it pointed the finger at NGO’s in particular those associated with US Agency for International Development (USAID) in which there were thousands of NGO’s. USAID was officially shut down in July 2025. It required a deep dive into government to uncover the unusual projects in these NGO’s, many of which became public, things like diversity training in Serbia and transgender opera in Columbia. The conclusion was that some of this money was finding its way into other pockets. The government has just discovered another operation in Minnesota involving waste, fraud and abuse. In Ramsey County, home of St Paul, $38.4 million dollars was paid out to 213 NGO’s and the problems associated with these groups is now being exposed. These organizations are now seen as the first steps in what is becoming a billion-dollar scam where money that was designated to feed hungry children, to provide rental assistance and for Autism treatment centers was used instead to purchase luxury items and to send money overseas. While this is big news in Minnesota not much is being published elsewhere. It seems to many outsiders that other NGO’s in other states may be experiencing similar problems.

Businessman

There are many ways in which Trump operates differently than Biden and one has to do with Trumps view of private business. Case in point is Biden’s CHIPS Act. This act provided $52 billion in subsidies and tax credits to domestic chip research and manufacturing. Trump on the other hand offered $160 billion to Intel, to bolster domestic chip production but as collateral, the government received 344 million shares in Intel. Their goal is once again to become the world’s leader in chip manufacturing and if they are successful, the government can redeem their investment by selling the stock. This happened because Trump is first a businessman and second a politician. This same, thinking outside the box approach, was seen in Trump’s first term when he demanded that the Covid vaccine be fast tracked (operation warp speed) while most politicians would have followed the old tried and true method. This Covid vaccine was developed in less than one year while the previous record was the mumps vaccine in 1960 which took four years. The average for a new vaccine is 12 years.

Prices

What can the government do to keep prices from rising faster than the inflation rate is the main question for the upcoming elections. First off, they can encourage the increase in oil, coal and natural gas to lower the cost of transportation. This includes gas prices for consumers, diesel prices for trucking, farming and rail, jet fuel for airlines and heating oil for homes. Second the Fed can lower interest rates for lower cost home and auto loans and for business loans. Third, reduce regulations to promote new factories that will increase productivity. Forth, bring manufacturing back to America to reduce shipping cost. Fifth, promote free and fair-trade practices Sixth, encourage drug companies to price US drugs like they price other countries The goal is to have wages rise faster than inflation.

Reshoring jobs

For forty plus years politicians colluded with big business to ship manufacturing jobs overseas. The factory workers lost their good paying jobs with good benefits and had to settle for lower paying service jobs with few benefits. Big corporations saw their profits rise year over year and the working class had to take on extra jobs to stay even. The average factory worker, without realizing what was happening, traded their good jobs for cheap products at Walmart. CEO salaries exploded from the 1970s to 2020, with the pay ratio to typical workers skyrocketing from roughly 20-30:1 in the 1970s to over 300:1 by 2020, as top CEO pay grew by over 1,300% (inflation-adjusted) while average worker pay lagged significantly, driven largely by stock options and market forces. The hope is that this trend can be reversed as the jobs come back home.

Cheap energy

The use of tariffs by Trump to negotiate other deals is complicated and difficult to follow. Here is one example of what has happened. Prior to Trump, Germany could sell a $50,000 Mecedes here and incur a 2.5% tariff but the if the US wanted to sell a $50,000 Cadilac in Germany they would pay a 10% tariff plus 19% value added tax (VAT). Today there is no change in the German tariff but the US now charges 15% tariff. This is meant to encourage more German cars being built in the US. The result. German automakers can now build cars cheaper in Alabama than in Stuttgart. A German expert predicts 78,000 automotive jobs will migrate to America. The US production of oil and natural gas has lowered energy cost and the result is more companies coming to the US. German chemical companies can make products cheaper in the US due to factors like lower US energy costs (especially natural gas) and existing production facilities, but recent US tariffs are creating significant pressure, forcing some to cut costs in Germany or shift investment to the US to remain competitive and avoid high import taxes. The US does not want an advantage in tariffs but only fairness or what Trump calls reciprocal tariffs.

MN fraud

Covid fraud has recently come to the attention of Minnesota authorities but these types of activities had their start back in 2014 with childcare schemes to steal state funds. Childcare businesses were set up and then sent in names of children who did not receive care but the money was stolen and much of it sent overseas. The fraud was so wide spread that some people were investing in childcare facilities to get a share of the profits. Suit cases filled with cash were sent to foreign countries. This is legal as long as form FinCEN 105 is filled out. The government has these records and reports are that millions of dollars are involved. In MN fiscal year 2024 the state spent $289 million on childcare and much of this is now found to be fraudulent. Recent developments indicate that similar activities have occurred in the Covid cases of food and autism programs.

Nuclear power now

To understand how the US escaped a bullet, it is necessary to go back to 2010 in Germany. The economy was growing and utility cost were low. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, herself a nuclear chemist, proposed an expansion of nuclear power as a stop gap measure while Germany expanded wind and solar. Then in March 2011 the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan was swamped by a Tsunami and Merkel succumbed to pressure by green groups and she shut down 8 nuke plants immediately and planned to shut down the remaining plants by 2022. This was an emotional reaction and over the next ten years Germany spent $500 billion on wind and solar and their carbon emissions barely moved. They had to use coal to replace the nuclear power because the time lag for wind and solar could not keep pace with demand. The plan was to rely on Russian natural gas to replace the nuclear power but that took time they didn’t have. Then in Feb 2022 the Ukraine War started and Germany lost their supply of natural gas which led to higher energy prices. German industries like steel, chemicals and autos watched energy prices increase fourfold and industries began to shut down and/or move outside the country to places like the US and China where energy cost were low. Germany, the once industrial powerhouse of Europe, is now in the process of deindustrializing. The US realized the pitfalls of green energy and avoided shutting down nuclear plants. Instead, they increased fossil fuel production and started the ground work to expand nuclear. The US understood that energy independence is needed for national security. Trump is actively pushing for a major expansion of nuclear calling for a nuclear energy renaissance. To promote nuclear, Trump is streamlining regulations, investing in new construction and securing the fuel supply chain. This includes an $80 billion dollar partnership for new reactors including SMR’s.

New congress

If the 2026 elections follow the historical path the party not in the White House will gain seats so what changes will the democrats bring to the table. They will try to end the 47% tariff on Chinese imports and if successful will make US produced products more expensive and consumers will get a price break by purchasing lower cost imported goods. This was the case before the tariffs were introduced. They will try to start new benefit programs beginning with subsidies for healthcare cost. Other plans will be to send out checks to cover the cost of food and housing. They will try to cancel student loan debt. Some will include plans for guaranteed monthly income checks and reverse recent cuts to SNAP. There will be increased subsidies to cover the rising cost of healthcare. All of these things will help people but will cause inflation. They will try to increase taxes to cover these cost but that requires congressional approval of two thirds vote in both houses to overturn a presidential veto. To get these things accomplished means waiting until they have both the congress and the White House. Thus, most of the time the new congress will be investigating the president. Several impeachments have already been suggested.

Healthcare cost

The arguments regarding the Covid subsidies offered on Obamacare health plans is in regards to Advanced Premium Tax Credits (APTC). This is money the government sends directly to the insurance to offset the cost to the consumer. When you sign up for coverage you estimate your income and the government calculates your potential subsidy. At tax time you compare the advanced payment with your income and reconcile any differences by paying in more or receiving a refund. Example: John estimates his annual income for the upcoming year at $54,000. The IRS determines that his maximum contribution to Obamacare to be $359. The cost of the Silver Plan is $430 so he gets an APTC subsidy for the difference or $71 per month. This has no effect on the annual deductible which would be about $5,500. His income puts him at 350% of the poverty level. This means his annual out of pocket cost will be his monthly premium plus his annual deductible or $9,800. The cost of this benefit which was enhanced during Covid is $138 billion in 2025 up from $92 billion in 2023. Since there are many on Obamacare whose incomes are lower than John’s the average out of pocket expense is about $5,000. Included in this group are 5 million who pay zero out of pocket. These are single people whose income is less than 150% of the poverty level which for 2025 is $23,475. Even though this is no cost to these people many are not signed up because they are unaware of the benefit. This group includes about 14 million people. There are also 12 million more who are eligible at a small cost but do not sign up because they can sign after they have a claim and avoid the small cost. The cost of healthcare is rising because people are getting older and new procedures are rapidly being introduced. In 2023, Americans paid $14,570 per person for a total healthcare cost of $4.9 trillion. One way to offset these increases is to ration care.

Laden Mohamad Ali

The stories about fraud are swirling around Minneapolis but this is not a new story. The whole situation is too complex to analyze but here is one part that is not well known. In July 2022, Ladan Mohamed Ali, a 32-year-old woman was hired by a local insurance company. She was checked out and within a month she tried to cash an unauthorized company check for $30,000 but it was stopped by the bank. She was charged with check forgery but she was allowed to go free. She didn’t show up for her court date and a bench warrant was issued. The police couldn’t find her but the old insurance company where she worked found out where she was working and notified the police. She was arrested. Fast forward to Sept 2024 and Ali is charged with bribing a juror in the Feeding Our Children case which is part of the recent fraud revelations concerning Covid money. She was given $200,000 for the bribe but kept $80,000 for herself and used the remaining $120,000 for the bribe. About this time, she was arrested for DUI and is still on the street waiting trial. In her latest escapade new court document unsealed show that she received $1.6 million from entities involved in the Covid fraud. While awaiting sentencing for federal bribery charges she remains free and is ordered to go to alcohol treatment.

Covid fraud

The acclamations of fraud in Minnesota regarding the distribution of Covid funds is being handled much the way the illegal border crossing and the decline of President Bidens cognitive abilities were covered. There is a lot of coverage on conservative outlets and silence on liberal sites. Recall that for several years the videos of migrants crossing the border were shown on a number of sources but not on others. Then at the end they all came out pointing out the millions of illegals who had come into the country in just four years. The coverage of Bidens mental decline was only covered on certain sites while most stations remained quiet. It was only last week when the N Y Times came out about Bidens situation. The Minnesota case is just warming up and will probably get more coverage in time but so far major networks are pushing it into the background. A number of investigators believe that Minnesota is not the only state that is suspected of Covid fraud.

Houses

The cost of homes is preventing young people from the American Dream of home ownership. One way to reduce the cost is to reduce the size of the homes. Just a few years ago it was kind of a joke to say starting castles but there was a lot of truth in that statement. In 1950 the average size of a house was 983 square feet and today it is over 2,300 square feet. In Europe today, the house size is more like the US in 1950 with Germany at 1,001, France at 1,206 and England at 947. The average cost of a house in the US in 1950 using today’s dollars is $95,000 and the average house today cost $512,000. Home cost today in the US range from $100 to $400 per sq ft. That means a home builder today could put up a 1,200 sq ft house for $120,000 which would be affordable for a young first-time buyer. This would mean an interest and principal payment of less than $1,000. Is there a market for new smaller homes?

Ilhan Omar

As the Somali community in Minnesota comes under scrutiny for fraud allegations, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is being drawn into the fray. She has been in congress since 2018 and she and her husband who is a political consultant for her campaign have a net worth between $6 and $30 million. In 2019 her campaign paid her husbands consulting firm $2.8 million. The substantial increase in wealth is primarily attributed to her husband's ownership stakes in a venture capital firm and a winery.

Somali

The Somali population in Minnesota is under scrutiny because of allegations of fraud going back to 2018. Here is some data about this group estimated to be 75,000. 52% of children live in poverty vs 8% in the wider community 39% of working age have no high school diploma vs 5% in the community. Half of those who have lived here ten years or more cannot speak English 54% receive food stamps and 73% have one member on Medicaid vs 7% and 18% 89% of all households receive some kind of welfare compared to 21%. Cash welfare (TANF, SSI, etc) 27% for Somali household’s vs 6% for others The Somalis live in one close in area and are finding it difficult to assimilate. In 2023 the state spent $46,000 per person on public assistance the second highest in the country just behind Massachusetts.

Biden bonus

Over the past ten years the cost of Obamacare has increased by 220% or over 20% per year. This plan had a limit on income which allowed a family of four with up to $128,000 of income to qualify for some subsidy. During Covid the Biden ACA bonus removed the income limit so now people who make high income can apply for coverage. The new rule says that if your insurance premium cost more than 8.5% of your gross income you can get ACA help to pay for your insurance. For example, if your income is $200,000 you can qualify for help if your insurance cost more than $17,000 per year. Many self-employed people (business owners) are now receiving subsidies. The average cost of health care insurance for a family is $27,000. The Biden bonus was passed in 2021 with only democratic votes and the estimated cost was $34 billion for two years. It was renewed in 2022 to the end of 2025 at an estimated cost of $64 billion. The democrats want to make this change permanent and the republicans oppose. This was supposed to be a bonus only for Covid but Covid is gone and they want the bonus to continue. It is very difficult to take away a benefit once it starts.

Migrant felons

Since January 2025 more than 1.6 million illegal migrants have voluntarily left the country and 527,000 have been legally deported and 75,000 of those have no felony record. This means their only crime was crossing the border illegally but this can lead to serious consequences. Here is the law. Crossing the U.S. border without authorization is a violation of federal law, considered a misdemeanor for a first offense under 8 U.S.C. § 1325, leading to penalties like fines, jail time, and removal, while subsequent illegal re-entry is a felony, with severe consequences and potential permanent bars from the U.S.. While living in the U.S. without documents is generally a civil matter, the act of crossing without inspection (at a place other than a port of entry) is a federal crime. This means that got a ways (inadmissible encounters) are felons FISCAL YEAR 2024 ENDS WITH NEARLY 3 MILLION INADMISSIBLE ENCOUNTERS, 10.8 MILLION TOTAL ENCOUNTERS SINCE FY2021 Once the felons are deported the government can set a road to citizenship for those who remain, since they will be needed to fill jobs as the manufacturing base returns.

Homeless

During the five years between 2018 and 2023 California spent $24 billion on the homeless problem and the number of homeless increased. The question is where did the money go. California has 12% of the population, 25% of the homeless and 50% of the unhoused homeless. The state gives money to the counties which gives money to the cities and then to the non-profits and then to the sub- contractors. Developer donates to the politician who approves the developer. LA spent $800,000 per unit, not per house, per unit and homeless increased. In 2016 LA voters passed the HHH which set aside $1.2 billion to build 10,000 homes. Years later fewer than 2,000 were built but the money was gone. It went to administrative cost, consultants, environmental impact studies, permitting delays and developers who did not complete projects. There has been no state investigation to find out what happened to the money so the federal government is now investigating.

Pragmatist

True conservatives and liberals cannot understand someone who says they are fiscal conservatives and social liberals but that is where many voters stand. This group sees themselves as pragmatic or middle of the road types. They see the future as: Bringing manufacturing jobs back home. Having reciprocal tariffs meaning free and fair trade A secure border and a path to citizenship for non-criminal migrants. The EU paying for their own defense instead of relying on the US Using the Abraham Accords to unite Saudi Arabia with Israel to rebuild Gaza Negotiating a peaceful settlement to the Ukraine War Realizing the wind and solar cannot replace fossil fuels but nuclear can Forget about EV’s and use natural gas for transportation Provide a proper safety net, one that encourages work and protects those in need Promote small nuclear (modular) reactors Two genders, male and female Push education for the new AI jobs in high school and trade schools Promote trades using the power of private unions Reduce regulations and speed up permitting for residential and commercial projects Maintain energy independence using all means.

Consumers

For the first time in history, the world is facing a demographic inversion. Within 50 years the population will begin to decrease. Many countries are already facing serious population declines especially in the youth. Young people are not only the producers but the consumers of goods. Countries like South Korea and China have highly efficient manufacturing systems but they lack consumers. They produce far more than they consume and thus are heavily reliant on exports and foreign consumers. This puts the United States in the cat bird seat since the US has the largest consumer market in the world. Trump uses this fact as a bargaining tool to put America first. By using tariffs, he forces other countries to bring their production to the US in order to have access to the American consumer. Thus, other countries are planning on investing trillions in the US. Countries like Japan have come to realize that they have such an aging population that they must send their factories to the US in order to sell to the US and take the profits back home to provide for their elderly. To continue this the US must design a pathway to citizenship for all of the illegal migrants in the country. The way forward is to secure the border, deport the criminals, find the missing children and set up work permits for the others. This will lead to green cards and citizenship.

Lower prices

From an article on Fox here is a report from Andrew Bates, a former Biden advisor. The prices Trump and Vance ran on vowing to "immediately" lower — groceries, healthcare, electricity bills – have gone up, while economic growth is down. We’re seeing "recession-level" job loss and unprecedented welfare for the rich. It was a mistake for Trump to say he would lower prices. While prices for individual items may go up and down, overall prices have been rising since WW 2. The fed even targets for a 2% rise. Now democrats are running saying they will lower prices but not how they will do it. They can offer relief to working people by enacting legislation for national health insurance and offering government paid childcare. Some even offer a freedom dividend of $1,000 per month government check. Others offer housing allowances and tuition free college. Trump has already installed most of the policies to lower prices. This includes massive increases in oil, gas and coal production to lower energy cost. In includes reducing regulations in all areas to lower construction cost. Having the fed lower interest rates for home and auto loans. Offering tax deductions for auto loan interest. Keeping inflation below three percent. Wages increasing faster than inflation. Cut government waste with programs like DOGE. Lower taxes on working people by increasing the child tax credit to $2,000. Negotiating lower drug prices. In the long term the growing economy caused by reshoring manufacturing jobs will raise wages, cut transportation cost and increase efficiency using new technology and AI.

NGO's

While Minneapolis is currently dealing with illegalities regarding Covid money the neighboring city of St Paul has some potential problems. The county has been handing out money to various NGO’s and not properly auditing accounts. There are 213 NGO’s which received $38 million. Some have received more than $3 million.

War rules

During the Vietnam War and continuing afterwards the US set forth “rules of engagement” which hindered the US forces. Rules such as don’t fire unless fired upon and target restrictions put US troops in danger. During the fight against ISIS the US would drop warning leaflets to warn drivers who were hauling oil before attacking the convoys. They then claimed that no drivers were killed. This kind of action is what some call clean war. This has come up again with the targeting of drug boats. These sorts of incongruities happen when people in Washington determine battle field actions.

Law

By almost every metric, a broad consensus among policymakers, researchers, and public opinion is that the "war on drugs" has been a failure in achieving its stated goals. The campaign, launched by President Richard Nixon in 1971, has not curbed drug use or ended the drug trade, but has had devastating social and economic consequences. There has been no measurable impact on supply and demand and America has spent over $1 trillion fighting this war and after 50 years drug use remains a problem. The roots of the problem began of all places in schools. When the schools tried to expel disruptive students, they were disproportionately minorities so they stopped. The same thing happened with suspensions. Next it moved to law enforcement. Stop and frisk was an effective way of getting illegal guns off the street but once again it involved too many minorities. For the same reasons, cash bail was eliminated as was incarcerating repeat criminals. The latest initiative is not releasing migrant criminals to federal authorities. Instead, they are comingled with other migrates impeding the feds from arresting them. It is the same strategy used by Hamas when they intersperse fighters with civilians. With the new approach drugs crossing the southern border have been curtailed and boats carrying drugs are being attacked. The next move will be for the drug dealers to kidnap children and put them on the drug boats so they can declare that the US is killing children. This hesitancy has happened in Minneapolis when Somali immigrants were exposed to theft of Covid money and were not prosecuted for fear of being seen as racist. Some people are concerned that minority groups are receiving special treatment under the law.

Lower prices

There are ways to lower the price of certain products but not to lower overall prices. Increase production of oil, natural gas and coal to lower energy cost Lower interest rates to make home loans more affordable Make auto loan interest tax deductible Reduce regulations on home and business construction Reduce supply chain cost by reshoring jobs Demand that Big Pharma offer drug prices to Americans like prices to other countries These are areas where both parties can agree. Then there are many ways of using government money to help people pay their bills. During Covid Biden $2 trillion in checks were sent to people. Some suggest a similar plan to help people pay for the higher cost of things like food and insurance.

Raise taxes

The current tax law renewed under Trump’s big bill means that a family of four can have $80,000 of income and pay zero income tax. This represents 53% of families. Couples with incomes of $750,000 up will pay the highest marginal tax rate of 37%. This does not include state income tax. This represents 1.4 million families. Raising taxes on the rich means these families. This group currently pays 40% of all income taxes which totaled one trillion dollars in 2025. If the top rate is raised to 50% this will bring in another $250 billion. Another way to raise revenue is to eliminate the capital gains tax and that would bring in $360 billion. This is money that goes mainly to wealthy people.

AOC

Is AOC the face of the democratic party? Polling data consistently shows she has high approval ratings among Democratic voters. Some polls indicate she is the individual most often named by voters (around 26%) when asked who the face of the party is, outperforming other prominent Democrats like Vice President Kamala Harris and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Here are some of her policy positions. The New Green Deal, Medicare for all, free college tuition, stricter gun laws, housing as a human right, defund police, supports cancelling student loan, supports biological men in women’s sports and locker rooms, supports LGBTQ community which includes drag performers in elementary schools, support CRT and keeping information from parents. Her stump speeches along with Bernie Sanders are composed mainly of negative remarks about Trump. He is described as a corrupt authoritarian and a threat to democracy. This is a policy also followed by Mayor Mamdani of NY City. Missing from both is a plan to grow the economy and create good jobs other than using government subsidies in the Green deal to create jobs. The main emphasis is on using tax money to provide benefits to certain groups. The question is, will this approach appeal to moderate democrats. Her one interest about the private sector is to raise corporate taxes.