Trump’s America: Hunger, Chaos, and Collapse

“In just nine short months, we have delivered historic results for the American people, and the BEST IS YET TO COME!” That’s what Donald Trump posted this afternoon. I’m not sure what reality he’s living in, but even his most faithful followers know this is as far from the truth as you can get.

While the government is shut down, federal workers are surviving without paychecks. The airspace is closing due to government-mandated flight cancellations. Food banks are overwhelmed. A federal judge had to force the President of the United States to release food benefits to millions of Americans. And still, he says this is the best? He says more of this is coming? I’m not sure how much more we can survive. But we need to believe him. Because this is all intentional. And he is absolutely planning for more “good times.”

You can also tell he’s nervous. He’s pushing propaganda and lies to his MAGA base as hard as he can. He can’t risk losing his grip on them, not while the economy teeters on collapse.

“Happy Anniversary! On this day, November 5th, one year ago, we had one of the Greatest Presidential Victories in History — Such an Honor to represent our Country. Our Economy is BOOMING, and Costs are coming way down. Affordability is our goal. Love to the American People! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP”

Because the one thing Trump truly excels at is manufacturing chaos, crisis, and collapse. And he really pushes the needle when he’s feeling cornered.

This week must be making him desperately uncomfortable. Especially with the Supreme Court signaling they might not side with his authority to impose sweeping tariffs the way he’s been doing. Even the conservative justices appear to be pushing back.

And in response, Trump said it would be “devastating” if they ruled against him. Then, in a rare moment of honesty, he admitted his “precious tariffs” are costing Americans. When asked, “Do you agree then that Americans are paying those tariffs?” Trump said: “I think they might be paying something, but when you take the overall impact, the Americans are gaining tremendously… Look, I’m ending war because of these tariffs. Americans would have to fight in some of these wars.”

It’s telling to hear him finally admit that tariffs are, in fact, taxes, taxes that we pay. Every time he slaps one on imported food, medicine, electronics, or tools, the price hike lands squarely on American families. It shows up at the grocery store. At the pharmacy. At the hardware counter. It’s a quiet, calculated tax on the working and middle class. And like so many authoritarian leaders before him, he cloaks that cruelty in the language of patriotism. But let’s be clear: these tariffs haven’t ended wars. They’ve just made everyday life more expensive, while enriching the people at the top.

Then he posted that Thanksgiving dinner is cheaper under his leadership than it was under Biden. But that too is a propaganda lie.

“2025 Thanksgiving dinner under Trump is 25% lower than 2024 Thanksgiving dinner under Biden, according to Walmart. My cost are lower than the Democrats on everything, especially oil and gas! So the Democrats “affordability” issue is DEAD! STOP LYING!!!” -Trump, Nov. 6, 2025.

He was talking about a marketing gimmick. Stores like Walmart and Aldi offer cheap “holiday baskets” to get shoppers in the door. But real data shows grocery bills have gone up. Families feel it.

And then there’s this part: this year’s Walmart Thanksgiving meal package contains 23 items compared to the 29 from last year. It no longer includes onions, celery, sweet potatoes, chicken broth, poultry seasoning, muffin mix, marshmallows, whipped topping, or pecan pie. It also features lower-cost alternatives for the rolls and cranberries, and only includes one can of cream of mushroom soup instead of the two from last year. With Trump, it’s always double-talk and manipulation. This year’s meal is more processed, less nutritious, and smaller overall. Instead of ingredients to make stuffing, it now includes two boxes of prepared stuffing. They added baby carrots and three boxes of macaroni and cheese. But it’s certainly not cheaper by any stretch of the imagination.

The same pattern, lie, distract, spin, is playing out with SNAP. It’s been almost a week since the last cards were funded and people could buy food. A federal judge had to step in and order the administration to release the full payments. The judge even cited Trump’s own social media post stating that benefits wouldn’t be funded until the government reopened, calling it clear evidence of intent to defy the court. That’s how bad it is. The courts are using his own words to force him to feed the American people. The president of the United States is intentionally starving his own people and is using hunger as leverage.

And while families worry about food, others are stuck at airports. Airlines are canceling 10% of flights at over 40 airports, not because of weather or fuel issues, but because of Trump’s shutdown order. Air traffic controllers, TSA agents, and other critical staff have been working without pay for over 36 days. Some are calling out sick. If this continues, more airspace will close. This is deliberate. Just like authoritarian regimes before him, Trump is destabilizing transportation to pressure workers and manufacture public panic.

Even more alarming? The Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan agency that scores legislation, analyzes economic trends, and helps determine what we can afford, was just hacked by a foreign actor. And it happened during a government shutdown, while 65% of federal cybersecurity teams were furloughed. The very agency responsible for giving Congress the data it needs to govern was left defenseless.

And it begs the question: what agency is next? What other critical departments are being left wide open for attack? The Department of Energy? The Federal Aviation Administration? Social Security? Veterans Affairs? When the government is hollowed out by shutdowns and sabotage, every agency becomes a target. Every system is vulnerable. Every American is at risk.

This isn’t just poor management. It’s national neglect by Trump and his regime.

So we have to ask: do we even have a functioning government anymore? And when this shutdown ends, if it ends, what will be left? Will we be capable of rebuilding? We’ve already lost so much. And I can’t help but wonder: will this even register beyond a fleeting headline? Will anyone be held accountable? Or has the erosion become so constant we no longer recognize the damage?

And this playbook isn’t new. Mussolini handed state power to wealthy industrialists while crushing unions. Hitler used inflation, manufactured scarcity, and military contracts to enrich loyalists and punish dissent. Ferdinand Marcos ran the Philippines into debt, then funneled national wealth to his family and friends. Maduro and Chávez manipulated economic data, weaponized food distribution, and crushed opposition. Putin made billionaires of his friends while letting working-class Russians suffer.

The formula is old: crash the economy, concentrate the wealth, lie about it, and keep just enough people comfortable, or afraid, not to resist.

And if we don’t stop it, we already know how this story ends. Because history has told us. It ends with government reduced to a shell. Still there in name. Still performing the rituals of democracy. But no longer serving the people. It ends with courts that only protect the powerful. With elections that are technically held, but manipulated beyond recognition. With media run by loyalists sharing propaganda instead of truth. With survival dependent on loyalty to the regime.

It ends with mass unemployment and permanent underemployment. With food lines stretching around the block, not because there isn’t enough food, but because the people hoarding the money don’t care if you eat. It ends with the sick dying in waiting rooms. With children going without medicine. With public schools gutted and replaced with ideological training camps.

And it doesn’t happen all at once. It happens in small steps. A shutdown here. A lie repeated until it becomes the official truth. Just ask the Germans who watched Hitler rise and thought, “Surely this will stop soon.” Or the Italians who lived under Mussolini and realized too late that cheering crowds didn’t mean freedom. They saw it coming, but didn’t know how to stop it until it was too late.

This is what economic authoritarianism looks like. And if we don’t stop it, we’ll live in that world too. But maybe this week proved we are not destined for that fate? This past year, we boycotted. We protested. We voted. And it worked. Our voices mattered. We have proven that we have it in us to get through these dark days and build a better America on the other side. We just have to keep moving forward.

I’ll see you tomorrow,
Heather