Donald Trump is once again trying to con the American people. He wants us to believe he’s a “generous” guy. (I know, right?) This time he gives piddly to the Department of Education, then takes BIGLY away. And he appoints the ‘Huckster,’ Sarah Huckabee Sanders to sell the BS along with Trump’s billionaire BFF Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. To Trump and DeVos, his gift of 100K is almost pocket change, but they play along for the peasants.
Here is the NOW THIS video capturing the exchange followed by the transcript.
Video
Video Transcript
NOW THIS: Trump just donated $100,000 to the Education Department. After calling for a $9.2 billion cut to education.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders (White House Press Secretary): In this quarter, the President will be donating his salary to the Department of Education. Secretary Devos, it is my pleasure, on behalf of the President of the United States, to present a check for $100,000 to the Department of Education.
Betsy Devos (Secretary of Education): I wanna start by saying how grateful I am to the President for his generous gift. He and I have had many conversations about how best to put students’ needs first and ensure we are setting them up for a lifetime of success.
NOW THIS: At his rate he’ll make up the cut in 23,000 years
Reporter: You just announced the President will be donating his second -quarter salary of $100,000 to the Department of Education, so clearly he must care about education. Why then, is he calling for $9.2 billion in spending cuts to the Department of Education in the next budget?
Sarah Huckabee Sanders: We have an outrageous deficit and we’re looking to make things so that we have a balanced budget within the next 10 years. The president campaigned on it. He’s committed to seeing it through. He’s also committed to education as you can see by his own personal commitment.
In persobal “commitment,” Sarah must mean “personal gain.” Most all we’ve seen Trump do is benefit Trump. In May of 2017, Fortune via The Associated Press writes:
A $1 trillion spending bill Trump signed Friday while in Bedminster includes $61 million to reimburse law enforcement agencies for the costs of protecting Trump and his family when they are at his private properties in New York and Florida. The bill would cover expenses incurred at Trump Tower and the Mar-a-Lago resort from the Nov. 8 election through September.
That bill also adds $58 million for additional Secret Service costs such as rent in Trump Tower and housing for agents at Mar-a-Lago.
That’s just for his protection. Each trip Trump makes to Mar-a-Lago, Trump profits, while costing taxpayers an average of $3 million per trip.
The absurdity is off the scales, leaving millions to ask: “How did this man get elected and why is he still in office?” The former question is still in question and many have their own theories. But given the Russian collusion investigation and the known hacking that most Republicans say had no affect on the election results (sure), the answer will remain up in the air for—now.
As for an answer to the latter question—again, we don't know. However, the fact that he still occupies the Oval Office has most of the country and world shocked, outraged, terrified and/or befuddled. Yes, the Trump era will end, but it can’t come too soon.
(The ‘Huckster’ nickname for Sarah Huckabee Sanders is compliments of Robin Cole Jett on Facebook. I was using “Huckers” and thought it clever, but “Huckster” is perfection, especially by Merriam Websters’ first definition. Thank you, Robin!
Definition of huckster
-
1: hawker, peddler; especially : one who sells or advertises something in an aggressive, dishonest, or annoying way