Amidst the significantly poor state of the economy, the U.S. government proves time and time again that its priorities stray far from actions to improve the country. Since the election of current President Donald Trump, the Trump Administration has taken several harmful, unconstitutional steps toward weakening the country’s economic condition. In particular, the financial decisions from the government as a whole and this administration have demonstrated a waste of tax dollars and political efforts at the expense of the country it means to protect.
Currently, millions of Americans worry the U.S. will enter a recession amid Trump’s trade war with other countries. Since January 20, Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on goods from countries such as Colombia, Canada and Mexico to retaliate against these nations, specifically Colombia, for refusing to receive Trump’s U.S. military aircraft, which transport immigrants out of the U.S.. An apparent important reason for these aircraft: to protect taxpayer dollars. If the government wishes to protect citizens’ money, it should stop wasting time, energy, utilities and the tax dollars of Americans on unimportant affairs.
“I’ve lived through a recession before, and I feel like for things to get better, sometimes they have to get worse first. I think that yes, it’s okay to be fearful about [a recession], but I think faith is a big thing too. [I think people should] just have faith in what [the government] is doing and that the plans they have are more long-term than the short-term people see,” current issues teacher Rachel Connell said.
April 14, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) associate program Blue Origin, sponsored by Jeff Bezos, launched to the edge of space, conjuring an 11-minute journey off of Earth. The crew included Bezos’ fiancée, Lauren Sánchez; aerospace engineer, Aisha Bowe; social entrepreneur, Amanda Nguyen; executive producer, Kerianne Flynn; broadcast journalist, Gayle King; and singer-songwriter, Katy Perry. With each of the crew members totaling a net worth of at least $400 million, spectators disagree with the use of money and attention brought to the groundbreaking project by the government.
Although a majority of Americans disagree with the waste of money on this trip, NASA associates and government officials claim this journey signifies female empowerment and acts as a tribute to America’s strength. While this crew did exemplify a feminist win by creating the first all-female flight to space, this accomplishment does not justify the poor use of funds amidst a fear of recession in the U.S..
“I think that the concept Blue Origin had for an all-woman flight was positive, but the way they executed it was done poorly. By including a known pop star and a micro-celebrity journalist, rather than actual scientists who could go to space for research, the company failed to accomplish anything. I thought there was no way anyone would approve using tax dollars for something that is not a priority, but apparently they can,” sophomore Justin Roebuck said.
Blue Origin has declined to mention who or what pays for their short expeditions, but with past claims of Bezos using taxpayers’ money, thousands of citizens expect the worst from this company in terms of where their funds originate from. Regardless of whether or not tax money falls directly into the hands of this company, it does fall into the hands of the government, which ultimately funds programs such as NASA and additionally allows these programs to make decisions with their money. While wasting time and money on unimportant cases, the issues of poverty, health research and education remain untouched, defunded or increasingly ignored by government officials.
Nearing a recession, the U.S. might see the same effects that occurred during COVID-19 and the 2008 Great Recession, where unemployment and economic prices rose. Additionally, the U.S. currently experiences the stock market plunging, with several stocks dropping in value as of earlier this month. As recessions always create a lasting impact on an economy, the government should prioritize events or allocate money in the right places to prevent a political and economic downfall.
