On Friday, July 18, I started gathering bits of news to share in a blog post on Friday, July 25, but by Saturday morning I had accumulated more than enough for a blog post. Therefore, this Friday’s post became today’s post.
With legislation, Executive Orders, Executive Proclamations, and changes to the U.S. Tax Code coming down the pike daily, it is difficult to tell whether some of the items are MAGA (Make America Great Again) or MAHA (Make America Healthy Again).
Air Pollution
Bloomberg reported that Trump signed a proclamation last Thursday night “allowing chemical makers, coal-fired power plants and other facilities to bypass a range of environmental regulations on grounds that the waivers are needed for national security purposes.”
It is amazing what falls into the “national security” category in 2025!
The facilities have been given a two-year waiver from adhering to Environmental Protection Agency rules.
Included in the waiver are certain facilities of United States Steel Corp., Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc., Dow, Inc., BASF SE, Phillips 66, and Citgo Petroleum Corp. Also, coal-fired power plants in Ohio, Illinois, and Colorado were exempted from air pollution mandates that limit emission of mercury and other toxins.
It seems Trump is determined to take us back to the “good old days” of choking air pollution that his followers younger than 60 years old don’t understand because they are too young to remember them.
I’m confused. Is this MAGA (Make America Great Again) or MAHA (Make American Healthy Again)?
Personal Medical Debt
I thought Trump didn’t like for one judge to have the power to make a ruling that affects the whole country, but I guess it depends on the ruling and how it fits into Trump’s desires.
A Trump-appointed judge has overturned a Biden-era rule that removed medical debt from individuals’ credit reports.
So now, if you’ve had a catastrophic illness or accident, that medical debt will now show up on your credit report. It’s one more way for Trump to kick people when they’re down.
Is this Making American Great Again or Making America Healthy Again?
Environmental Protection Agency Firings
The New York Times reported, “The EPA said that it would eliminate its scientific research arm and begin firing hundreds of chemists, biologists, toxicologists and other scientists, after denying for months that it intended to do so.”
Someone tell me: Is this Making America Great Again or Making America Healthy Again? I’m at a loss to know how this fits into either one of those grandiose Trump slogans.
New $250 “Visa Integrity Fee”
As if people in other countries already didn’t want to visit the United States under the current political climate, it just came to light that Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” which Congress adopted slaps a new $250 “visa integrity fee’ on visitors to the United States.
After September 30, 2025, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem can increase the fee at her discretion.
Trump and Professional Sports Mascots
Trump is demanding that the Washington Commanders of the National Football League and the Cleveland Guardians of the Major League Baseball change their mascots back, respectively, to the Redskins and Indians. He claims Native Americans are “clamoring” for the name changes.
As usual, it is a case of blackmail. The Washington Redskins now play at a stadium in Landover, Maryland. But in April the franchise started working on a deal to move the team back to the District of Columbia if a new stadium can be built on the site of the old Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium.
Now, Trump is threatening to put the skids on the stadium deal if the franchise owners do not change the team’s name back to the Washington Redskins.
I’m not sure what his beef is with Cleveland, but his new slogan yesterday was MIGA (Make Indians Great Again.) The Cleveland Indians changed their name to the Cleveland Guardians in 2021 after Native Americans had called for them to drop “Indians” as their mascot for decades.
Hurricane Helene Update
North Carolina Governor Josh Stein and his wife, North Carolina First Lady Anna Stein, spent last week in western North Carolina to take advantage of the beauty and recreational opportunities the region offers and to draw attention to the fact that most of the area is reopened now and in need of the economic support that tourists bring.
As of Friday, of the 1,457 roads that were closed in western North Carolina last September due to Hurricane Helene, all but 34 are now completely open! That’s the full opening of 10 roads just last week. Forty-three roads have partial access.
I-40 at the Tennessee line is still just opened with a total of two lanes and a 35 m.p.h. speed limit, and most of the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina is still closed.
Until my next blog post
Support the First Amendment rights that comedians have… or had until last Thursday. The First Amendment might not always be there.
Support your local public library system. It might not always be there.
Read whatever you want to read. The day may come when you cannot do that.
Pay attention to current events as reported by reputable news media. (By the way, the orange narcissist’s propaganda outlets do not fall into that category.)
Don’t be too distracted by the political chaos and dismantling of our democracy that you forget the people of Ukraine, western North Carolina, and the Hill Country of Texas.
Janet
Janet's Writing Blog 