Donald Trump continued his educational tour on Wednesday with a visit to St. Charles, Mo. There Trump noted that it was the location where Lewis and Clarke prepared to make their push up the Missouri River. Which was one of those facts hidden in history books, so Trump “only learned it a couple of days ago.”
But other than complaining that people didn’t like it when he “took jewelry” — a statement that will require a consultation with a Trump translator — most of the rambling, colorless, lifeless speech was Trump’s attempt to sell the Republican tax plan. Trump repeatedly attempted to pass off the tax plan as something that wouldn’t benefit him.
“It’s not good for me. I've got some very wealthy friends who are not happy with me.”
That idea that this was a middle class tax cut or even a “tax cut for workers” was one that Trump would return to again, and again, and … again. And that’s because Trump identifies with the little people.
"The rich people actually don't like me. People who like me best are the workers. Those are the people I grew up with. Those are the people I worked on construction sites with."
Which is why so many people have fond memories of little Donnie Trump bossing them around with his tiny clipboard and oh-so-cute suits, just like an average kid. And why Trump’s cabinet is so notably full of ordinary Joes like Gary Cohn and Stephen Mnuchin and Rex Tillerson. Trump did eye some people at the front row and declare that he could tell they were both very rich, and that they loved their kids, as he went on to complain about how Democrats were trying to keep rich people from passing on their wealth to their kids — just one feature of this bill that would keep over a billion dollars in Trump’s family.
In addition to the tax bill, Trump declared that Republicans were not done with health care, but would return to it after the tax bill is signed. Then Trump reached deep into the Reagan Recycling bag to pull out his next topic — welfare reform.
“We’re going to do Welfare reform. I know people who work three jobs and who live next door to someone who doesn't work at all, and the person who doesn't work at all is doing better than the person who's working their ass off. So we're going into welfare reform.”
Who does Trump know who lives next to someone on welfare? For that matter, who does he know who has three jobs — other than Jared? But Trump was in one of the whitest spots in Missouri. He had to blow at least one dog whistle.
Trump tossed in the standard amount of bragging, suggesting that the stock market under Obama had been flat, despite over 90 months of bull market before Trump came to town. Trump also claimed two million jobs, but to get there he added into Obama’s last quarter — and failed to note that was less than the gains in the previous year.
There was a rather token mention of the wall, a little bragging about wrecking wetlands that would have been preserved under the Waters of the United States rule, and some grinning over the work he did to help pay day lenders pick pockets by taking the first step to cripple Consumer Protection. And there was his now standard line that Democrats want illegal migrants to “pour into the country” with no concern over origins, but Trump had nothing new to add to the dull routine he’s established on these topics.
At one point he mentioned that the tax cut would be “rocketfuel” which triggered Trump to follow with a mention of “little rocket man” who is “a sick puppy,” but that and an insulting imitation of Asian allies was the extent of Trump’s foreign policy minute.
Trump returned to what seemed an endless series of repeats of statements about this tax bill, which is definitely going to be for working people … because he says so. But then, Trump declared that we were already winning. In fact he reminded people that he used to say they would get tired of winning and that …
"I used to say it, and that's what's happening."
So be on the lookout for people who are wearied with all the winning.
Trump then took a little time for a personal swipe at Claire McCaskill, then finished out with that seasonal favorite — the war on Christmas.
“You don't see Merry Christmas. You don't see Merry Christmas anymore."
No, Donald. We see the signs. We just don’t have a Merry Christmas anymore. You took care of that.