Google Gemini was used to research this piece. This Essay was posted on 10/26/2025.
There is no question over Donald Trump’s legal violations and his disregard for Constitutional norms. The media coverage tells how ICE agents violate individual rights and National Guard soldiers get involved in civic issues they are not trained to handle. There are illegal tariffs and fake emergencies. And there is the unauthorized demolition of the East Wing. All of this is concerning, but little is said about the unnecessary side effects that harm all of us.
There are Trump’s tariffs. Lower courts have ruled against Trump’s tariff policies, but the Supreme Court has not made a final ruling. Meanwhile, tariffs are driving up prices, because tariffs act like a consumer tax and add cost to purchases. It turns out that other countries don’t pay the tariffs. Instead, the middle class pays for the tariffs in the end. So, tariffs are ineffective in the complex world economy, and they create more inflation. Tariffs hurt the middle class that pays for them, and they hurt business owners by squeezing their profit margins.
Then there is ICE. Legal issues aside, ICE is not generally rounding up the rapists and drug dealers. Instead, they are cherry-picking farm workers that just happen to be harvesting most of the vegetables we eat. ICE raids on farmworkers can lead to a 20% drop in food production, and that loss leads to market shortages and higher food prices. Have you noticed empty shelves in the frozen veggie section, lately?
What do we want, higher inflation or deporting hardworking citizens over a misdemeanor that occurred decades ago. It is like putting someone in jail for 10 years over a minor disorderly conduct charge. And we haven’t even talked about the people dropped from Medicaid or the random boats that were bombed.
Click for Next Essay: The Endless Shutdown