What’s the Worst Thing That Could Happen?

Editor,

The President and his supporters have unleashed chaos in our government under a pretense of efficiency. Critical thinkers understand the reality as a self-serving power grab with plentiful opportunities to increase wealth within the inner circle. Many of the administration’s actions are illegal, immoral and/or unconstitutional, a fact that has been ignored by a tone-deaf congress and facilitated by a strangely compliant Supreme Court. So, what’s the worst thing that could happen? Well, that depends on who you are.

If you’re a Capitol Police officer, your attacker has escaped justice. If you’re a diplomat, it might be the loss of USAID funding that transfers America’s soft power to China and other less altruistic nations. If you’re Hispanic, you might be sent to a country where you’d be killed. If you’re a low-income single mother with a young child, you might lose your food source. If you’re a Medicaid recipient, you may lose your benefits. (Fortunately, not until after the 2026 elections!) If you buy products made in Brazil, you might pay a lot more because of punitive tariffs imposed because they are bringing their former President to justice. If you’re an outspoken critic (Rosie O’Donnell?) you might lose your birthright citizenship. If you have a special needs child, your federal support for educational needs probably just ended. If you want to continue watching PBS or listening to NPR, you’ll have to donate more.

I’m an older white guy. For me personally the worst thing that could happen might be losing benefits in which I invested heavily during my working years: Social Security and Medicare. Barring an unexpected, expensive late-life illness, I would survive the loss of those safety nets. Worst case, I’ll bet my kids would pitch in. (Whaddaya say, kids?)

Although I’m not personally in peril, I am anguished about the impact on others and I feel obligated to look at the bigger picture to identify “the worst thing that could happen.” My first thought was that the administration’s irrational and inconsistent actions have so alarmed the rest of the world that America’s ability to nudge other nations toward civility and democracy has been badly eroded. I think that’s bad for everyone on the planet.

But maybe even worse for the future of humanity, we no longer have a collective dialog that centers on facts. Lies about stolen elections or what is being reduced in a spending bill are accepted by enough people that truth is lost in the dust. How can we make decisions that work, or even have relationships without agreeing on truth?

What would YOU say is the worst thing that could happen?

Keith Porter

Grass Valley