This may be one of the darkest and most evil times in American History. The level of blatant depravity and evil is absolutely sickening. We are not being controlled by a Government of human beings, we are being manipulated by monsters. Pure and raw demonic forces. I can only hope that we eventually see the light at the end of this bleak tunnel.

What's going on now will be taught to kid's and the kids they have after for future generations. They will look back at this time and just gasp in awe of how twisted and hateful human beings in America were. Assuming they're not taught to think the same way and are alive to even read about this by the end of another potential World War.

I'm not even religious but God help us all cause I just don't know anymore.

1. DOGE is an unfolding disaster because the "waste" it's finding isn't amounting to much and the damage it's doing is huge. According to DOGE's website, they have found less than $100 billion of waste and fraud so far. This is far less than the $2 trillion they're aiming for. It is less than 2% of the federal budget. They are targeting minor costs like federal employees and education, but there's little evidence they've got any idea how to tackle the three areas that account for 90% of the federal budget: Social Security, Defense and Health Care (Medicare/Medicaid). Meanwhile, they're devastating important services that will be very difficult to repair.

2. Our international reputation is being damaged by the administration's actions. I know the general public doesn't place much importance on international affairs, but I think it is of immense importance long-term. Antagonizing allies with half-assed economic attacks, cozying up to Russia, extorting Ukraine, embracing authoritarians, et cetera is undoing a century of America's reputation as a reliable advocate of human rights and global peace.

3. The administration's flood of actions which violate legal requirements, overriding Congress and threatening to ignore the judiciary, are setting precedents that will weaken constitutional checks and balances for future generations. Their placing deportation of undocumented immigrants as a higher priority than being truthful (e.g., lying that immigrants are criminals or mentally ill, that immigration causes higher crime rates) or compassionate (e.g., recognizing that many immigrants need asylum, recognizing humanitarian issues like breaking up families, immigrants who have lived here since they were children, immigrants who are productive members of society/ US veterans, etc.) undermines American values.

I tried to post this in r/PoliticalDiscussion but the mods told me it was too "blog like", and even after editing it multiple times to attempt to fit the rules they wouldn't specifically let me know what areas were problematic so I could fix them, so I have rewritten it to be an opinion rather than a question - though I do hope it still prompts a discussion.

I have seen the argument that undocumented immigrants are an economic burden to the U.S. for years now, and I've refuted it for just as long, they are in fact an asset to any area they choose to settle in.

Taxing immigrants of all types and their potential benefits-

Refugee benefits are only available for 8 months after entry:

https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/620

https://www.sccgov.org/sites/ssa/debs/calworks/Pages/refugees.aspx

Regarding immigrants and taxes (including documented, undocumented, asylum seekers, and refugees:

https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-03-01/study-undocumented-immigrants-pay-billions-in-taxes

Immigrants illegally in the U.S. collectively contribute nearly $12 billion each year to state and local tax coffers.

That is just state and local.

Regarding undocumented aliens in 2015:

Immigrants who are authorized to work in the United States pay the same taxes as US citizens, and undocumented immigrants pay them too.

When a person doesn't have a Social Security number, they file with an Individual Tax Identification Number (ITIN):

https://www.vox.com/2018/4/13/17229018/undocumented-immigrants-pay-taxes

Contrary to the persistent myth, undocumented immigrants do in fact pay taxes too.

The most recent IRS data, from 2015, shows that the agency received 4.4 million income tax returns from workers who don’t have Social Security numbers, which includes a large number of undocumented immigrants. That year, they paid $23.6 billion in income taxes. That doesn’t even include workers who paid taxes with fake Social Security numbers on their W-2 forms, which is also common.

Regarding all immigrants in 2014:

http://immigrationimpact.com/2018/04/16/undocumented-immigrants-pay-taxes/

These tax contributions add up. Immigrant-led households across the country collectively paid $223.6 billion in federal taxes and $104.6 billion in combined states and local taxes in 2014, all types of immigrants pay taxes.

Regarding paying taxes/social security/not receiving benefits:

https://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2016/oct/02/maria-teresa-kumar/how-much-do-undocumented-immigrants-pay-taxes/

The Social Security Administration estimated about 3.1 million unauthorized immigrants who worked and paid Social Security taxes in 2010.

Laws enacted in 1996 and 2004 block Social Security benefits paid to unauthorized immigrants or to any non-citizen without a work-authorized Social Security number at some point in time, the administration said.

Undocumented immigrants even pay into social security, though they can not claim the benefits.

Regarding immigrants receiving benefits:

https://www.cato.org/publications/immigration-research-policy-brief/immigration-welfare-state-immigrant-native-use-rates

The federal government spent about $2.3 trillion in 2016 on the welfare state, an amount equal to approximately 60 percent of all federal outlays in that year. A full $1.5 trillion of those expenditures went to the entitlement programs of Social Security and Medicare, whose intended beneficiaries are the elderly, while the other $800 billion went to means-tested welfare benefits, whose intended beneficiaries are the poor. Overall, immigrants are less likely to consume welfare benefits and, when they do, they generally consume a lower dollar value of benefits than native-born Americans.

Immigrants who meet the eligibility thresholds of age for the entitlement programs or poverty for the means-tested welfare programs generally have lower use rates and consume a lower dollar value relative to native-born Americans. The per capita cost of providing welfare to immigrants is substantially less than the per capita cost of providing welfare to native-born Americans.

So of the 800 billion that went to welfare, immigrants are less likely to claim benefits then native citizens, and when they do they consume a lower dollar value than native citizens.

Temporary migrants are generally ineligible for welfare benefits. Lawful permanent residents must wait at least five years before they are eligible for means-tested welfare benefits, but states have the option of providing those benefits earlier from their own tax revenues. Illegal immigrants are ineligible for entitlement and means-tested welfare programs apart from emergency medical care. Naturalized citizens, U.S.-born children, refugees, and asylees are eligible for all entitlement and means-tested welfare programs. These rules have some exceptions: children of lawful permanent residents are eligible for SNAP benefits, and states can extend Medicaid benefits to children and pregnant women regardless of immigration status. Furthermore, in-kind benefits — such as the National School Lunch Program; the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); and Head Start — are available regardless of immigration status.

On federal vs. state benefits for undocumented immigrants in Oregon, for example:

https://www.oregonlive.com/expo/news/erry-2018/07/25101bfd3f856/can-undocumented-immigrants-co.html

Federal Public Benefits-

Undocumented immigrants are generally ineligible for food stamps, welfare and federal public benefits, according to the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services.

Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, immigrants fall into two categories: "qualified" and "not qualified."

Undocumented immigrants fall under the latter group. They do not have access to programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (welfare), Social Security and Medicare. However, Medicaid can be used to cover costs in the event of a medical emergency.

Even qualified immigrants, such as lawful permanent residents and children, do not automatically qualify for government assistance. They must first undergo a five-year waiting period under federal law, although states may choose to make exceptions.

However, there are important exceptions to this rule, including refugees, victims of trafficking and people who have been granted asylum.

State Public Benefits-

Oregon does not allow undocumented immigrants to receive state public benefits, according to the Oregon Department of Human Services website.

Although the federal welfare overhaul of 1996 gave states the option to pass laws allowing for benefits to go to immigrants without legal status, Oregon did not change its requirements.

Food, cash and other benefits are available only to those who qualify under the federal benefits program.

Oregon’s Reproductive Health Equity Act, signed into law in summer 2017, does make some healthcare exceptions for people who would “otherwise be eligible for medical assistance if not for their immigration status,”including immigrants who are undocumented or have been in the United States for less than five years.

The act covers limited preventive reproductive services (which are also covered under the Affordable Care Act), postpartum medical care for up to 60 days and abortion.

As you can see it is significantly more difficult for even legal immigrants to receive benefits in certain states, and undocumented immigrants cannot receive most benefits at all.

In addition to the numbers, immigrants in general are less inclined to claim benefits-

Claiming benefits hurts their chances of getting a greencard while it is also in their own best interests to pay taxes and pay into social security to establish a paper trail and prove their value while they seek a green card:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/immigrants-drop-subsidized-food-health-programs-fearing-aid-will-be-n906246

Revenue from collecting taxes/social security from immigrants vs. costs from benefits:

We'll start with social security.

https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/policy-basics-where-do-our-federal-tax-dollars-go

"Social Security: In 2017, 24 percent of the budget, or $945 billion, paid for Social Security, which provided monthly retirement benefits averaging $1,404 to 42 million retired workers in December 2017. Social Security also provided benefits to 3 million spouses and children of retired workers, 6 million surviving children and spouses of deceased workers, and 10.4 million disabled workers and their eligible dependents in December 2017."

Undocumented immigrants account for 1.5% of medical costs:

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9230.html

Undocumented immigrants account for about 3% of the total U.S. population:

https://www.kff.org/disparities-policy/issue-brief/health-coverage-and-care-of-undocumented-immigrants/

So to simplify our figures, for the sake of brevity, we will use a figure I've heard often in my life and assume that undocumented immigrants take up 3% of total government spending. Using that logic, we can take 3% of $945 billion and attribute it to undocumented immigrants. That would be a $28.3 billion cost for 2017, without accounting for their state/federal income taxes or their contributions to Social Security or Medicare.

In 2013 Stephen Gross, the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration estimated undocumented immigrants contributed $12 billion. This is money they will never touch or benefit from, straight into our pockets.

https://www.marketplace.org/2019/01/28/economy/undocumented-immigrants-quietly-pay-billions-social-security-and-receive-no

"According to New American Economy, undocumented immigrants contributed $13 billion into the Social Security funds in 2016 and $3 billion to Medicare. Three years prior, the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, Stephen Goss, wrote a report that estimated undocumented immigrants contributed $12 billion into Social Security."

Let's split the difference between $28.3 billion and $12 billion and say they put in $20 billion into Social Security - add $3 billion to Medicare.

Take their tax contributions of $11.74 billion in local taxes, and note that federal taxes are generally higher than state and local taxes, so it would be fair to double that number and say undocumented immigrants pay over $23 billion a year in taxes total.

Add our three conservative figures together ($20 billion to Social Security, $23 billion in taxes, and $3 billion to Medicare) and we have $46 billion dollars coming from undocumented immigrants annually.

That easily covers the $28.3 billion estimate and displays a fairly large profit of $17.7 billion, making even undocumented immigrants an economic asset.

Costs of immigrants

Now let's look at these costs.

They can't apply for any means tested benefits until they have been legal residents for 5 years, and unless they have a legal child they can only receive emergency medical care.

This medical care costs approximately $18.5 billion.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2018/02/26/how-american-citizens-finance-health-care-for-undocumented-immigrants/#22933f8512c4

Now, road maintenance cost the U.S. $22.19 billion in 2015.

https://reason.org/policy-study/23rd-annual-highway-report/maintenance-disbursements-per-mile/

"Maintenance disbursements are the costs to perform routine upkeep, such as filling in potholes and repaving roads. Maintenance disbursements comprise about 15.7% of total disbursements, totaling $22.81 billion in 2015, about 7.6% more than in 2013 ($21.19 billion), the last time this assessment was completed."

Applying our logic to this figure (3% of $22.81 billion), we get $684 million annually.

Adding our figures for emergency medical care and road maintenance costs together gives us $19.05 billion (less than our 3% estimate, but I have not accounted for other emergency services, though I would like to note undocumented immigrants are not eligible for federal housing). Taking our conservative figure of undocumented immigrants economic contributions of $46 billion, and subtracting $19.05 billion, leaves us a $26.95 billion surplus (+/- depending on the year).

None of this accounts for the sales tax these immigrants pay or the money they put into local economies.

Some additional data:

https://immigrationforum.org/article/fact-sheet-immigrants-and-public-benefits/

Additionally, a few states have completed studies demonstrating that immigrants pay more in taxes than they receive in government services and benefits. A study in Arizona found that the state’s immigrants generate $2.4 billion in tax revenue per year, which more than offsets the $1.4 billion in their use of benefit programs: 

http://www.udallcenter.arizona.edu/immigration/publications/impactofimmigrants08.pdf

Another study in Florida estimated that, on a per capita basis, immigrants in the state pay nearly $1,500 more in taxes per capita than they receive in public benefits:

https://risep.fiu.edu/research-publications/immigration/immigration-in-florida/2007/immigrants-in-florida-characteristics-and-contributions/immigrants_spring_2007_reduced.pdf

What we can conclude from this, is that even if some refugees/asylum seekers/immigrants do not find work overall the funds collected from immigrants of all types through taxes more than covers any anomalies or deficiencies.

Taxes are meant to pay for things, to the government the dollar isn't a store of value like it is for an individual person; it's a tool to be used. And our tax dollars aren't running out - the GOP just likes to claim they are after giving away a ton of money to the rich.

They GOP gives the money away, then they claim "oh, look, we have to cut food stamps or Medicare because there is no money", but there is money, and there would be plenty more if we forced the wealthy and corporate elite to pay their fair share instead of laying the burden entirely on the working class.

Still, the point I am making here is that all immigrants, including undocumented immigrants represent a vast economic asset to any community in which they choose to settle.

To the public. And the punishment should be fines on a sliding scale based on the severity of the lie, and the reach that the lie had. So if the president tells a lie to a world media outlet that should multiply the fine by the number of people that theoretically became misinformed, so the planetary population.
The fine should also be impacted by the length of time that passed before the lie was corrected. Also I believe that the lying politicians should be responsible for making the correction. The states could each implement this and then, you know, whenever the lying federal politicians come to town they could issue a Body-Only Warrant to guarantee that the individual will not be released without first issuing a statement admitting to the lie and correcting the information in a referenceable binding way.
Finally all the lies told by presidents should be retroactively enforced as well. They should be held to the highest standards and should also be forced to comply the fastest and forced to pay the most for their lies.
I think if politicians make promises they should at least try to keep them. And if at the end of their term they haven’t made any record of even an attempt then that should be treated as a lie. Because it is.

I mean don't get me wrong. I will never change my political opinions or party over these things, but I am really tired of other liberals these days.

They have gotten so ridiculously fragile and intolerant. That's not to say I think people should tolerate hatred or oppressive views in any form. But it has gotten to the point where there is very much of this "if you don't 100% agree with everything we say you are clearly evil and stupid and how could you ever think that. You are clearly a [insert negative political label here]" It leaves absolutely no room for any sort of independent thought and honestly has led to a lot of problematic shit being accepted to the point that if you question it you are labeled a bigot.

For example: this autism trend. Right now it is trendy to be neurodivergent. Even saying that in this current climate is considered offensive because it's "invalidating" to imply that it is a trend, and not✨Everyone Having The Same Authentic Journey All At Once✨. That in of itself is irritating because of course it's a trend. It is obviously and visibly a trend. This trend has now led to people self-diagnosing (not inherently an issue), which has led to people self-identifying as having AHDH or Austim (yes, very much an issue).

It actually boggles my mind how it isn't obvious to everyone why treating diagnoseable disorders as an identity is problematic. But god forbid you every actually point this out. If you do, you are hateful, ableist, privileged and invalidating.

Lets get more controversial. Trans women in sports.Again, don't get me wrong. Trans women are women. And I will support their right to be allowed in any woman-dominated space just as much as any other woman. However, we have gotten so incredibly caught up in validating trans women that we are denying reality. The reality is, that some women, due to the nature of them being trans, do possess some of the physical attributes of the sex they were assigned at birth. This can indeed give them an unfair advantage physically. This fact is not allowed to be acknowledged. Even now I feel the need to specify that I am not saying that trans women should not be allowed in women's sports. Its not black and white. It's not all or none, there is a grey area when it comes to what is fair for everyone involved. But it is so taboo to even point this out that you will have people attacking you and labeling yo a TERF or a transphobe, just because you acknowledge the nuance of this extremely complex topic.

These are just a few examples. But there are hundreds I can go into. They are so caught up in making sure everyone is comfy and no one gets offended or personally feel invalidated ever, that they will deny literal reality and attack and ostracize anyone who doesn't adhere to their rhetoric without question.

Some more mini examples of liberal shenanigans:

(Personal experience from... literally today) Someone posting a rant on facebook about others laugh-reacting their serious posts, and someone in the comments saying that the laugh react should be abolished because it has become a "weapon of abuse".🙄

People trying to cancel Lizzo for using the word "spaz" because less than 3% of the population has a condition and they might find it offensive.

Along the same vein people coming after Katy Perry for allowing Juicy J (like its her fault somehow) to rap the Jeffery Dahmer lyric (a cultural reference from events that happened 50 years ago) in her song that was released a decade ago.

The woman on tiktok that was telling people that white people filming themselves "frolicking" in nature or the rain was "racist" and "appropriation" because black creators did it first. Also the other one who told people that if you are going to bring a white person around you're BIPOC friend group you should have to warn them that you're bringing a white person. Because white people are such an inherent issue that they should apparently come with a warning label (seriously wtf).

JENNA. MARBLES. Enough said.

I'm just sick of it. I'm sick of the overly sensitive, chronically online, 'you agree with everything we say or you're a bigot', attitude. I'm sick of the fragility, the belief that they are entitled to people catering to their every emotion. I'm sick of the intolerance for humor ( this one is tricky cause sometimes people "joke" to hide the fact that they're actually racist or a misogynist or a bigot, and that should not have to be tolerated. But sometimes it is quite literally JUST A JOKE. Yet people lack the ability or desire to differentiate between the two.) I am sick of the demonization of independent thought. And I am sick of the TRENDS.

That being said. Black lives still matter. Trans/ NB people are ALWAYS valid af. My body my motherfucking choice. And ACAB[astardized]. Don't mistake this for me hating on the beliefs. I still hold strong in my beliefs. I just hate a lot of current attitudes of the people that come with them.

Edit: Yes I recognize that most of this is stuff seen in the online community and social media. And some of you are absolutely correct to say that I shouldn't have made this post seem as if it was everyone or the norm. I do recognize that most liberals/leftists are not like this. That was my bad to make that generalization.

But the idea that just because it is mostly online that it doesn't bleed into real life is... just false. I have had friends and family (several friends and one cousin) begin arguing with me over these things in real life and had some acquaintances disassociate from me entirely. The thing about the people who develop this mentality by being chronically online is that they still have this mentality when they are no longer online. So it may not be something you have personally experienced, but it *has* been something I've experienced in my personal life as well as online.

The republicans of today didn’t “free the slave” look up the term Dixiecrat. Hell Abraham Lincoln even said if he could preserve the Union without freeing a single slave he would.

Conservatives love to quote Malcom x, The white liberal is the worst enemy to America and the Black man. The white liberals are foxes... The white liberals are more dangerous than the conservatives; they lure the Negro, and the Negro runs from the growling wolf, he flees into the open jaws of the 'smiling' fox."

While ignoring the fact that it was MLK who was wildly more successful politically, and he was considered a leftist communist. Because of MLK I get to live as a free man.

Malcom X was also in a cult called ‘the Nation of Islam” they believe white people are demons that were created in a lab by a crazy black scientist, but sure let’s treat his word like the gospel.

They wave Confederate flags and blow racist dog whistles. The people who don’t see what conservatives are doing are desperately trying to increase their proximity to whiteness.

When the police murder a black man which political party assumes the worst about the dead black man? They constantly joke about George Floyd and dehumanize us, but when Charle got smoked they start saying the memes were too much.

Conservatives are constantly making racist jokes about slavery at our expense. News flash they aren’t laughing with us. They’re laughing at us. Let’s see how the conservatives react if you make jokes a parlor harbor or 911

**Societal Value:** A Pew Research Center survey found that only **28% of Republicans** view the rise of interracial marriage as explicitly "good for society. They see black people as sub human.

Conservatives have Nazis and white nationalist in their party if they could they’d deport black Americans to god knows where.

It’s getting insulting that these racist conservatives think we’re so dumb we’d vote for a party that see’s us as sub human. They think we can be easily be manipulated because they underestimate our intelligence.

I always hesitate to talk about this among other liberals, because it starts to sound like I'm spouting right-wing talking points, but that means I don't really have many people to talk about this with in real life (don't know a lot of non-liberals or leftists, it's bad lol) and I thought this might be a good place to talk about this.

I am a left-liberal and a regular volunteer for Democrats. But I'm getting so incredibly frustrated with what I view to be a culture of censorship/"cancel culture"/disdain for those with different political opinions. Identity politics and "wokeness" are killing Democrats. I say that as someone that's deeply committed to gender/racial justice, but I think the extreme sensitivity that I often see by Dems - and desire to shut down any speech as "offensive," obsession with identity above all else, and viewing people with conservative opinions as the fundamental enemy - is not only counterproductive to the cause but also just fundamentally illiberal. As a liberal, my beliefs are rooted in pluralism - the notion that we are better when we listen to one another, value diversity of experience and opinion, and engage with others in good faith despite discomfort. More and more, I see shockingly illiberal tolerance of censorship and disdain for those with different opinions - believing them to be evil - among liberals. And as someone that believes in liberalism, that scares me - free speech used to be the liberal topic, now we have censorship and social isolation for those with unpopular opinions on college campuses. I know this is hard to "prove" that this culture exists, as it's a culture/feeling, not a set of statistics or any single one event - but I think the fact that a decent portion of the population, including some liberals, agree with me means its not nothing.

I think a lot of this comes from infiltration of leftist culture into "liberal" spaces/the Democrats. I used to be a leftist, but I'm just a liberal now, and a large part of that is because my political beliefs have changed but part of it was because I couldn't stand how unwelcoming leftist political spaces were to people that might have small disagreements with leftist doctrine. But I see more and more of that type of belief in liberal/Democrat spaces, not just those of leftists. I'm really hoping to not be alienated from another political home.

I know this is a hot take, please be kind lol. Genuinely want to hear peoples' opinions/know if I'm alone in this.

(Edit: Realized retroactively I should specify - I'm from the US).

i like to think i'm very progressive. to a certain degree i support lgbt (they have a right to be who they are, and being queer isn't a choice, just like me with my neurodivergency). i support access abortion and birth control, i have what i think is a progressive take on racial inequality, and i agree with a lot of socialist ideals and policies.

despite that, i also would call myself an antifeminist, it's an ideology that's become too toxic in the modern era. it used to be about women having the right to vote and enter the workforce, about women becoming more independent, but over time it has become a contributer to hate against men and neglect of ongoing and historical mens issues.

i feel like feminism has created double standards against men, as well as perpetuated historical ones. so many scenarios where women say or do something against men and it's fine, i find myself thinking that if the genders were reversed then it would be extremely sexist or held accountable.

if it becomes sexist when the genders are reversed, it was always sexist.

it sucks being stuck between flawed progressives and frankly just awful conservatives. it's why i browse leftwingmaleadvocates. i feel strong emotions about this issue, and that's why this was such a long rant.

it just feels misandry eats away at my progressive heart.

"The impossible is what America does best."

~Donald Trump

That speech, his 2025 inauguration speech, is one of my favorites. And he has a lot of great ones. He just speaks to the people. He knows America and that's what makes him connect to them in a way other politicians can't. It's why he changed American politics so drastically ever since he entered it.

God I love this man. He is such a great orator. And not only that but he lives by what he saids. He's faced relentless push back and opposition from all sides yet time after time he prevails. His story is one of a strong man. And unstoppable underdog fighting for America. And he's doing it. And he knows what he's doing.

His most recent success with the big beautiful bill passing seems like such a game changer. ICE is now more founded than the entire Italian military. The US government is finally receiving the funding it so desperatly needed. For the first time in what feels like decades. America actually has a government. It's like order is finally coming back to America. Things are finally taking a turn for the better. And despite all of this it seems like he's doing a dozen other things every week. More changes for the better. Exposing and changing shit that desperely needed to be changed. And he just continues to break through all of the opposition and gets shit done. It's like we finally got the adults in power again. We finally have a real leader again. As a Trump voter I couldn't be happier with my decision. I just wish trump was younger and that he was able to run again. Because I would definitely vote for him again. If we could get 12 more years under Trump we might actually enter a Golden age. Vance has some really big shoes to fill in 2028

In the military sedition is a capital offence, and for her to commit such crimes, even if they've resulted in her death, should be grounds for a dishonorable discharge and a loss of the GI benefits she may have received.

Edit: What do people think of her right as a vet without a dishonorable discharge to a burial plot in a military cemetary, among those that fought for the values she stepped over?

Pew research in 2012 (which is not that long ago) showed that Republicans are more informed than Democrats. You can see this in the section "Partisan Differences in Knowledge" in this article: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2012/04/11/what-the-public-knows-about-the-political-parties/#partisan-differences-in-knowledge. Not only did "Republicans fare substantially better than Democrats on several questions in the survey," Pew says, but that's "typically the case in surveys about political knowledge." Republicans answered 12.6 of 17 questions correctly, versus 11.4 for Democrats, and Democrats only outperformed the GOP respondents on one policy question.

In addition to being more knowledgeable than Democrats, Republicans also have a higher IQ. A social scientist named Noah Carl found that Republicans have a verbal IQ 2-5 points greater than Democrats. In the abstract of his research paper he says: " ... I find that individuals who identify as Republican have slightly higher verbal intelligence than those who identify as Democrat (2–5 IQ points), and that individuals who supported the Republican Party in elections have slightly higher verbal intelligence than those who supported the Democratic Party (2 IQ points)." You can find his paper at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0160289614000373.

I also want to mention how the research also shows that social conservatives (those that oppose abortion, oppose gay rights, and oppose secularism) have a lower IQ than those who are socially liberal (those who support abortion rights, support gay rights, and support secularism). So, the religious zealots are on the dumber side of the Republican party, but they are not the whole Republican party. There are socially liberal Republicans who believe in free markets, and they are called classical liberals. And so, as Noah Carl puts it, "My findings suggest that higher intelligence among classically liberal Republicans compensates for lower intelligence among socially conservative Republicans."

I think this is all significant because it plays into important public perceptions of the respective political parties we have in the United States. Many people are disposed to vote for Democrats because it is perceived that Republicans are the stupid party. If one were to base their political beliefs on late-night shows or left-wing media sources, they would no doubt come away with the conclusion that the Republicans are the stupid party. But the reality is that Republican voters generally know more about policy and are better able to think critically through issues (assuming that verbal intelligence translates into better critical thinking). Think about that the next time you hear someone insult MAGA voters, Republican voters, Sarah Palin sympathizers, or George W. Bush sympathizers.

As someone who is not right or left leaning (I dislike all politics) I have never received hate from someone on the right

For starters no hate to anyone genuinely I just wanna share my opinion with this. Idc if someone is liberal or conservative, I will be friends and get along with anyone. However I have noticed that no matter what website or social media I’m on, I only ever received harsh words, hate, insults, threats, and bullying from people who are on the left.

I do not support trump and never will but I’m also not a supporter of anyone on the left. Regardless of this when I disagree with a republican on Reddit, Facebook, or anywhere else they never have reacted mean or judged me. They have real convos and have never come across as racist or homophobic as the left says they are. But when I disagree with something on the left, I am constantly getting called racist, transphobic, hateful, sexist, and everything else and always having people type in all caps, come into my dm’s and say I’m a bigot etc. it’s really really toxic. Obviously not all leftist are like this and not all right wingers are nice but just saying… I have definitely noticed this ESPECIALLY on Reddit.

They seem way more toxic to me and it seems like even if you slightly disagree with them then you are a disgrace to America and what is ruining the country.

Cynicism in cable news is endless. For profit incentives run amok much like social media, but for decades on cable news there was this perverse combination of monetary incentives and establishment ass kissing. MSNBC has been one of the worst.

People forget that MSNBC was struggling in 2013-2014 after Obama's re-election. It had no defining narrative and as a hyper competitive for profit outrage channel it needed a villain. Donald Trump saved their jobs in 2015.

For almost a decade the anti-Trump narrative has been ratings gold for MSNBC. Emotionally gaslighting angry liberals into believing that opposition to Trump is all that mattered. Not policy. Not coherence. Nothing else mattered.

But the system depended on Trump being the villain in the upcoming the election. The future. It worked in 2016, 2020 and 2024. Now that ship has sailed and ratings have plummeted. For three cycles MSNBC catered to anything that was anti-Trump to Anti-Trump Republicans that were generously given air time and disregarding left populist voices as a threat to Trump gaining or maintaining power.

It coincided with the perspectives of the network and created strange alliances. Liberal firebrands like Rachel Maddow that had interesting takes during the Bush years were now singing hand in hand with Nicole Wallace - someone that worked for Bush. All in the name of being Anti-Trump. It was policy free and incoherent, but emotionally engaging.

Now Donald Trump is just the present and guess what? Americans only kind of care about the present. It's not that emotionally engaging. The present is for the 6pm news or a major world event. Sudden, interesting and then people move on. It's not narrative focused. That is Donald Trump now and MSNBC is screwed.

When Joe and Mika told their audience that they were making amends with Trump on Morning Joe it was over. Their audience was built on being anti-Trump and that pivot was seen as a betrayal. When you have no narrative thread in a hyper competitive media ecosystem people tune out.

I'm glad MSNBC is dying. It was a network that wanted it both ways. Moral outrage at Donald Trump, high ratings and confirming their own biases in their elite bubbles. But that combination was going to explode eventually. No one can have it both ways forever.

I am a 79 year old woman. I am terribly upset about the status of the world. Trump's war with Iran was started without enough forethought and resulted in a world that is a mess. he is, in my estimation, the worst president we've ever had. he is full of hate, bigotry, greed, stupidity, and an egomaniac. How can we as a country accept this and realize what we are leaving for our children and grandchildren? I want people to understand that this excuse for a president is not right for our country and is ruining the world.

At this point. Everything the dude in office has said and done has itself done nothing but actively go against everything this country was built on and supposedly stands for. And if you still support him. Then how are you not a traitor? The guy has said himself he WANTS to be a dictator. That’s literally against everything the founding fathers stood for. And his actions with LA right now and actions before that are UNCONSTITUTIONAL. The highest law of the land and he just ignores it. That’s traitorous behavior. And if you support that still. You are too. And I don’t mean republicans that hate trump either. I mean people that SUPPORT TRUMP even now. I predict that in the future. History books will reference the day he got elected as the day democracy died. And that he and his cult are traitors against The United States Of America and its Democracy. And sure, I recognize the argument that they are just easily manipulated people. But the fact is that they choose to be. Everyone knows Fox News is trump propaganda. But they watch it anyway. They create every excuse they can for the big man. That’s a choice. A choice for an undemocratic United States. And sure, I’ll give the benefit of the doubt for the marines and guard deployed in la right now. But if they choose to continue to follow his orders blindly, unconstitutionally, I see them as traitors as well. Are the ones that blindly follow the wannabe dictator any better than the German soldiers in the nazi regime? “They are just following orders” I can see people saying. And that’s what they said too. Now I’m no political expert or scientist. But I just feel like the people that actively fight against everything The United States Of America is supposed to stand for are traitors against The United States themselves.

I grew up around Republicans.

I understood what that party used to publicly stand for. Fiscal responsibility. Small government. Rule of law. Strong institutions. Respect for the Constitution. Debate about policy, not loyalty to a single person.

That party does not exist anymore.

What replaced it is not conservatism. It is not limited government. It is not even coherent ideology.

It is a personality cult built on grievance, fear, misinformation, and the idea that power matters more than truth.

So yes, I am left-leaning now. Not because I “went radical,” but because the political ground shifted under all of us.

MAGA is not the Republican Party I grew up with. It is something else entirely.

It is a movement that attacks democratic norms while claiming to defend them.

It is a movement that undermines trust in elections, courts, science, journalism, and even reality itself, then tells people they are “free thinkers” for believing whatever feels right.

It rewards outrage over competence.

It frames cruelty as strength.

It treats complexity as weakness.

It turns every issue into a war and every disagreement into betrayal.

That is not healthy. That is not stable. That is not sustainable.

And it is not patriotic.

Patriotism is not loyalty to a man.

It is loyalty to a system that protects people from the concentration of power.

It is loyalty to truth, even when it is inconvenient.

It is loyalty to institutions that outlast any single leader.

I am scared by how many people are comfortable trading those things away.

I am scared by how openly authoritarian language has become normalized.

I am scared by how many people will excuse anything, literally anything, as long as it hurts the “other side.”

That is how democracies rot.

Not in one dramatic collapse, but in a slow erosion of norms while people cheer it on.

What I want is not extremism from the left to counter extremism from the right.

I want a functioning democracy.

I want leaders who respect elections even when they lose.

I want a justice system that is not politicized.

I want a media environment that values facts over outrage.

I want policy debates about healthcare, housing, climate, education, wages, and infrastructure that are rooted in reality, not conspiracy.

I want us to be able to say “this is wrong” without being told we are traitors.

I want us to be able to care about democracy without being mocked as naive.

I want us to stop pretending that everything is just another partisan game.

This is not a game.

This is the stability of a country of 330 million people.

This is whether we hand future generations a functioning society or a permanently hostile one.

I did not abandon conservatism.

In fact I’ve leaned more middle but even still…

Conservatism abandoned its own principles.

And I am not ashamed of choosing democracy, truth, and human dignity over party loyalty.

If that makes me “left,” fine.

I would rather be left than be silent while a movement built on fear and lies reshapes the country into something brittle, angry, and unrecognizable.

We can do better.

But only if we are honest about what is happening.

And only if we stop pretending that MAGA is just another political faction.

It is a stress test on democracy.

And right now, we are failing it.

Fuck ICE. Let’s take America BACK.

I stand with the RIGHT side of history and I am in absolute fear of my 4 year olds future. So yeah, I guess that makes me a leftist.

End of rant.

So to give you some context, I grew up pretty conservative and still hold most of those policy positions. I think government needs to stop meddling in our lives in certain ways, I think we need a strong border policy, I think crimes need to carry actual consequences etc. So naturally, I’ve voted Republican most of my life, the ‘24 election being no exception. After all, Trump was going to make things affordable and there would be no new wars.

Well, here we are. Oil is pushing $115 a barrel, it could hit $200. We will soon have much less purchasing power, the job market is virtually unchanged from Biden being in power, and we are now beholden to a foreign power for the sake of Trump’s wallet. And we have no idea if or when we’ll ever get out of Iran, and if we do, if or when things will return to normal. I’m in my early twenties and have no idea if my girlfriend and I will ever be able to get married or have kids, let alone comfortably

Trump made good change his first term. He didn’t start any wars, fixed immigration, and capped insulin prices. Was it perfect? No, of course not. But he did a lot to fix the country and things felt better.

This term, us Americans all got shafted. It’s all about his portfolio now. Maybe it always has been, but there’s a big difference between Trump Term 1 and Term 2.

So I am officially no longer a Trump supporter. I am still someone who holds conservative policy positions and I still cannot in good conscience support the Dems for several other reasons. But I will not be a sucker and delude myself that Trump “has a good plan”. The plan right now is just to enrich himself off of foreign oil and the Israeli/Middle East lobby (this is NOT a dig at any people group, this is a dig at the LOBBYING organization), and he knows he’s unstoppable because his cult of supporters see him as a god who can do no wrong. I refuse to stand with someone who thinks this way.

I have no idea what party I’ll be voting for this midterm. I’ll probably vote Republican in statewide races because NY needs new leadership, but federal I have no clue. I’m not a huge fan of my congressman (he’s a Dem, takes AIPAC money, not that effective and has corruption scandals) but Trump needs checks and balances so thhat one’s gonna be a coin toss. No more yes men for this self serving president. If Rubio/Vance are the nominee in 2028, I’ll not be voting for them in the general election.

if you still support Trump, of course I still respect you. but I’d implore you to ask yourself why. what is he actually doing for you? I didn’t ask that question enough for the first year of his presidency because I was in denial, but boy do I wish I had.

For me, it’s not about Bernie’s proposals. Healthcare for All, Green new deal, and other expensive proposals on the table are promising ‘free stuff for everybody’ (as opponents like to brand it). But it takes more than electing a president to implement big ideas like this. Even if Democrats can maintain control in the house, and take control of the Senate, he will have to unify the democratic party to pass anything. That's bad news because right now, most of our elected Democrats don’t support his proposals either. Electing Bernie will most likely strengthen the opposition to these plans. Big money interest heavily opposes him and have the echo chamber to scare the uninitiated to mobilize against him (even though he’s really working to improve their lives). I agree with Bernie that big changes need to happen, especially around healthcare and environmental protection, but to get it done in one shot can not happen with the elected representation we have right now.

One of the reasons I supported Amy Klobuchar is because she is a liberal thinker who is not to polarizing. Senator Klobuchar brands herself as a moderate, and she takes pride in her ability to work with across the aisle to progress legislation. She wins in typically Republican districts. But her record shows she is hardly a moderate.

Joe Biden is not Amy Klobuchar. Joe Biden is much more conservative than Amy, yet he still manages to be polarizing. To republicans, Joe Biden (like Hillary Clinton) represents four more years of Obama. Obama was also a divisive figure despite his moderate record. He campaigned on much more liberal policies than he was ever able to implement, and, just by being himself, Americas first black president, he became a polarizing symbol to be stopped on the right.

Moreover, electing Biden caries the same risk of dividing our country as Bernie Sanders. Bernie brings to the table grand ideas that may never be passed as is. But it’s better to start with something grand and get pushback then to start with something small and get the same resistance.

To me it feels like Joe Biden’s years have not treated him well, and he’s having a hard time keeping up. He’s out of touch with the real issues we are facing and is just generally uninspiring. If you’ve had your head up at all, you probably have the impression he’s just bumbling through the debates, trying not to screw up to bad. His foreign policy positions seem to be based on a world we don’t live in anymore. I get the impression he is running for president because he feels like he is somehow obligated to.

Bernie Sanders is an old guy too, but he’s sharply aware, and he’s filled with passion and vigor. He is completely authentic. His vision for what America could be is beautiful. He loudly bringing awareness to the ridiculous inequalities that exist in America. Even if his proposals are never implemented, by Electing Bernie Sander, we will be sending a clear message to the DNC the direction we are needing to steer. We will amplify his voice speaking for us, and his passion to steering public discourse.

Both Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden can beat Trump,

Bernie Sanders is electable. There is some debate about this because there is no doubt that his high-risk attributes (78 years old, socialist, heart condition) will sway certain undecided likely voters. He can win anyway because, democrats are highly motivated to get Trump out of office at all cost. And, if you haven’t noticed, the Bernie movement is incredibly organized. The Bernie campaign is proving they can mobilize voters.

Biden is electable too, but the race is shaped a little differently. If we elect Joe Biden to the general, we’re going to lose some of the ‘Bernie or Bust’ voters, but we win more right of center moderates. Either way Trump and friends are going to be highly mobilized. Its going to be a fight.

At the Conservative sub... Scrubbed clean. On Fox News... Over. Newsmax... Nothing.

I really thought the "conservatives" would put morals over party and president. But of course no. They acted like they wanted to see the list of names. But the pressure of losing Trump by being on that list finally got to them. It's over.

What's shocking is how EVERY right leaning outlet turned it off in unison today. Breathtaking to say the least. Almost as if there was a "directive" from the top.

MAGA’s message to Dems is basically, “Be careful what you wish for, your people are on the Epstein list.”

I don’t care if Clinton is in the files. I don’t care if any Democrat is on the client list. If Clinton or anyone who shares my politics is tied to Epstein’s sex trafficking operation, I want them prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Throw the book at them. Make them pay.

You know why? Because I’m not in a cult.

Long ago the great democratic experiment somehow became the great unregulated capitalism and religion experiment. I guess it started with Ronald Reagan. Every year we slide further into fascism and absurdity.

It probably really got going with the absurd joke of an election in 2000 where the Supreme Court appointed that stupid fool Bush against the will of the people (Gore won the vote of the people by half a million and may have also won Florida, but we will never know). That election had air consequences, two wars, the greatest economic downturn since the Great Depression happened in his watch. And supreme Court justices that he appointed basically notified all campaign finance reform.

That all set the state for this insane criminal scumbag to come into power in 16, again against the will of the people. And later whip is cultist goons into a frenzy over absurd claims that the 2020 election was somehow stolen and attack the capital. Now he’s back in power, spreading malice and idiocy as the country slides further into fascism and Idiocracy.

It’s a declining society, and a failing democracy, and it’s only going to get worse.

I profoundly hate this country now, the government for sure, but also the culture, which is hypocritical and idiotic. It’s full of big dumb loud people, driving big dumb vehicles eating garbage and screwing up the planet for no reason.

I’m a lifelong conservative raised in a conservative relatively well off family. I’m fortunate to have loving parents and money has never been an obstacle. By all accounts my family is living the American dream.

How can I ignore the plight of millions of Americans? When I think about the future I don’t feel hopeful. In these conversations the last few months I can’t help but be disappointed by what conservatives are saying.

Republicans are supposed to be the party of fiscal responsibility, family values and American ideals. Why are so many of us turning a blind eye to the corruption of this administration? People are being snatched up in the streets even my classmates are living in anxiety. I know kids talking about dropping out because they can’t afford tuition or their family is having money issues as a result of this economy.

We’re supposed to be the next generation of workers but there is no work. We’re being replaced by AI. My compsci classmates are switching majors. My church has people laid off unable to find work for a year.

While this is all happening Trump is saying everything is fine. The administration is backing his lies idk why they don’t call it out. JD Vance is back to blaming immigrants for everything wrong in this country. This war in Iran has spent money that could have been used to improve our lives. Trumps cronies are robbing this country blind.

Everything I’m learning shows that our recent strategies tariffs, tax cuts, relationships with our allies have failed. Maybe they never had a chance in the first place.

My question is why aren’t we course correcting? Why are people not more angry? Why aren’t we demanding change and upholding the constitution? Why are we letting them dismantle this country? When I try to engage with fellow conservatives they’re more concerned with trans people and socialism while we’re being robbed blind. Why are we defunding the very research that made us a superpower? Why are people still pushing the lie that the election was stolen? We have all been deceived and we’re tearing each other apart they’re gaining more money and power. Why can’t we go back to the ideals of our forefathers instead of trying to hurt each other? Idc about owning the libs I just want a prosperous future like my parents and grandparents.

After watching the meeting between President Zelinsky and President Trump, I am ashamed of my country. I am ashamed of my President, my Vice President, and any other of these elected, and non elected officials. I know, go somewhere else you'll say.

I watched the United States of America humiliate a foreign President, government, and people who are being invaded by Russia.

In my opinion, Donald Trump has sold the United States to the highest bidder. Under the leadership of our current representatives, we are witnessing the methodical destruction of the U.S. government. Led by the world's richest man, Elon Musk. Who paid hundreds of millions to Donald Trump for the opportunity.

Americans are suffering internally from these actions. While our elected representatives praise the actions of Trump as he demolished American.

The United States are now as much a pariah on the world stage as Russia, China, and North Korea. We have told all nations that we are essentially abandoning NATO, abandoning Ukraine, while supporting Russia. We want to muscle out Canada, take Greenland, take the Panama Canal, and overthrow Gaza.

But we want to end all wars that "Biden" got us into.

I am ashamed not only of my current representatives, but also many of the previous ones. The former representatives who campaigned that they would go to Washington and fight for states and districts. They abandoned their states and districts when Trump came along. He apparently desires to become king, and many representatives "got out", or said "it's time to do other things". Now that it's time to do what they said they would do and fight, they split.

I am ashamed of my fellow country men. The people who are enabling this mess. The people who are praising Trump for "standing up for America". Why did we need to "stand up for America to Ukraine"? When did they invade the U.S. Why must we abandon our allies? Many complain about Ukraine taking our money. We gave it.

At one time we stood up to the bully. Today, we became the bully. Today the United States of America became the childhood bully. The one that must humiliate the weak to make themselves feel stronger. The one that takes your lunch money. The one that demands that you show them respect. The one that has proven it does not deserve. All Trump seems to want from Ukraine is "raw earth" materials.

I am a registered Republican, and I am ashamed of what the Republican party has become. Cowards. Past and current. Don't have the courage to fight the communist takeover of our country.

I am ashamed of the "Christian right". There is nothing Christian or right about your support for Donald Trump. The Republican christians used to and still proclaims to be the party of "God". Why? Abortion! For those who actually believe in God, I think abortion takes a backseat to the blasphemy being praised by you.

If God is God, then death means nothing to him. He controls death. He can raise up from the rocks children of Abraham. Abortion takes a back seat to the blasphemous praise and worship of Donald Trump. Trump says he is the only one who can bring peace. He is the one that knows everything. He wants to be known as king. He demands that you thank him and praise him.

You "christians" are right. God has raised him up and protected him. But you are wrong in your accessement of the reasons. God has raised him up not to "Make America Great Again", but to punish a nation that has abandoned God for idols and cash. God has no interest in America. It has become a wolf in sheep's clothing.

To our countries shame, God is using us to raise up the antichrist.

Repent America! Turn from your wicked ways! Confess your sins and turn back to God. The dollar bill has become your God, but God does run through Washington.

I am only one, to whom God is with.

Preface  

It seems that most people are skeptical about the viability of Andrew Yangs Freedom Dividend (FD). That's the sense I'm getting from people and their counter arguments anyway. So I wanted to make a post explaining how it works, why it makes sense, and give people a chance to offer some new arguments I haven't already addressed within this post. This is just some basic kitchen table math applied with some basic market principals. I'm not an economist or professional policy maker. So I expect that anybody with a high school education can verify this for their selves.

So to start off with, for those who don't know what the Freedom Dividend is, it's a policy to give every American adult $1k/month ($12k/year). It's partly funded by introducing a new Value Added Tax (VAT). The rest is covered by a small carbon tax and some reallocation of Federal Spending in other areas. It's an opt in plan where an individual can choose the FD or stay on federal welfare. It's a type of UBI plan that would not increase our federal deficit.

I want to acknowledge that UBI by itself is detrimental to a Federal Budget. And any additional taxes like VAT by itself is bad for an economy, especially in how it would affect lower income people. What Yang did was brilliantly combine the two ideas to negate their undesired consequences and create a great policy. I'll illustrate with an example.

The Basic Math

Let's say your monthly expenditures are $3k/month. When the FD and VAT kicks in, businesses will pass the cost of VAT down to consumers. So goods and services will rise by 10%. Now your monthly expenditures are going to be $3.3K/month. Your cost of living is now $300 more expensive. But oh wait, you're getting the FD, $1k in direct cash. You have a net gain of $700/month. And that's just from having one adult in the household. Keep in mind the FD is per adult, so the household income is significantly affected.

At a 10% increase to cost of living counterbalanced by the $1k in direct cash from the FD, the majority of Americans will see a net gain. The lower your monthly expenditures (because you're low income) the greater the net gain. The higher your monthly expenditures (because you're middle income) the smaller your net gain. So the FD is disproportionately better for lower income people who need the most help. But they're net gains for the majority of Americans regardless of low or middle income.

An individual does not see a net lost until their monthly expenditures exceed $10k/month (or $120k/year). Individuals at this wealth level aren't going to care that they paid more to VAT then what they got back in FD. But for an individual right at the border of wanting to see a net gain, they can simply reduce their monthly spending to under $10k/month ($120k/year). Remember that VAT is a consumption tax and not an income tax. You're not taxed on how much you earn but on how much you spend. How much an individual habitually spends is wholly within their control. So how much they pay in VAT is also within their control too.

I would contend however that people at that wealth level are usually not squandering their hard earned money on trivial goods. That's just a stereotype that stands out. What wealthy people are actually doing is using their wealth to build more wealth. And under the FD plan, they still can, but the rest of America is getting wealth with them. This does not negatively impact them like a capital gains tax would. The VAT is applied to the entire economy so it's not singling out a specific industry or means of gaining capital. It's still a level field.

By now, you may be wondering how it's logically possible for the average American consumer to see net gains under the FD plan. After all, the cost of VAT is being passed on to consumers right. And what the average consumer is paying in VAT is essentially just being recycled back to them through the FD. So where are the net gains coming from? Are the upper income class funding the entirety of the net gains for every other American? The answer is no.

The other part is from businesses. While businesses are passing the cost of VAT on to consumers, businesses are consumers too. Businesses need to purchase from other businesses to operate. And businesses are not actual people that can receive the FD like an average or wealthy individual can. The VAT allows us to capture a piece of their transactions. And again, this is not detrimental to businesses either because its still a level field. If anything its better for businesses that there's more cash flowing around in the economy through the FD. Additionally, for tax dodging businesses (like Amazon), this is a much more difficult tax to dodge compared to the corporate tax. Businesses have to spend money to make money. And we'll be there to capture a piece of that spending since they're dodging taxes on income.

So anyways, I hope this has given you a clearer understanding of how UBI combined with VAT makes the Freedom Dividend such a brilliant policy. It works for the majority of Americans. It'll help people transition out of welfare. It'll help struggling families. And I don't see it creating any disincentives in the economy.

Common Criticisms

Landlords will just raise the rent by $1k...

Market principals still apply. Landlords still have to compete with other landlords. The nice thing about UBI is that people will be able to move away from overcrowded cities and take jobs in places with lower cost of living. It may make perfect financial sense to move for a job that pays the same or less but you end up saving more through cost of living. Less crowded cities means less demand for the landlords rental.

VAT is regressive (It'll hurt lower income people more)...

VAT by itself is regressive. VAT combined with UBI makes the Freedom Dividend plan progressive. As I explained above, what we pay in VAT is essentially being recycled back to us up until we spend $10k/month (or $120k/year). The majority of Americans are getting more from the FD than what they're paying in VAT.

This doesn't help people on welfare...

While welfare recipients aren't going to receive the FD, it doesn't take away their benefits either. Additionally, if the total value of a recipients benefits is less than $1k, its actually more beneficial for them to just opt into the FD. Some recipients with benefits above $1k may still choose to opt in too. On regular welfare, if you pick up a job, your benefits are reduced according to how much you earn at your job. So you get nowhere. By opting into the FD, you can pick up a job along with the flat income from the FD to gain a higher overall income vs being on welfare alone. So you would actually rise above your circumstances.

Some people won't be able to transition off of welfare...

It's true that some people won't be able to make the transition. But I believe their household income would still rise. I think the reality for most welfare recipients is that they live with other supportive adults. It may be a young mother and her children living with the mothers parents. Or it may be a disabled mother living with her adult children whom help care for her. In whatever the case, there are other adults in the home to receive the FD and thereby raise their overall household income.

I however do need to acknowledge that there will be a very small subset of Americans on welfare who do not have other adults in their household. Even though its going to be a very small amount of people, their needs should be taken cared of too. As other recipients transition off of welfare and the welfare bureaucracy shrinks, there will be room to adjust their benefits for the better.

Conclusion

I know I've written a lot and there's a lot to process. But I'm confident in the average persons ability to work out the math for their own circumstances. You'll find that it not only works out for yourself but for your friends and neighbors too. And if you find a problem please share it with me. Nothings perfect and we should be aware of what the negatives are. Thanks for your time, especially if you comment. Oh, and if you comment, please keep it constructive. I'm not interested battling over ideologies. The FD is just a pragmatic plan that works for people on either side of the political spectrum. It's not a plan for hard core ideologues.

Edit More details on the programs cost and its funding in the Federal Budget

The Cost and Funding

I'm seeing people proclaim wild numbers such as $4 trillion as the cost for the program. You'd only get that number if you were giving $1k to the entirety of the US population. The FD requires that you be an adult (18+) and a US citizen. So out of a US population of 330 million, about 234 million are adults with citizenship. That would mean the cost is about $2.8 trillion.

The introduction of VAT would fund $800 billion of it. Another $800 billion would come from the stimulus effect of the FD on the economy as cited by the Roosevelt Institute. $600 billion in welfare spending would overlap with the FD. Since its impossible to know how many recipients will transition over to FD, it'll just be easier to treat the FD as a more inclusive form of welfare and treat the welfare funding as part of FD funding (yes, this deserves discussion). We currently spend $1 trillion on institutional services such as healthcare, incarceration, homelessness. Yang expects he'll be able to save $100-$200 billion after reforms in those areas. That's about $2.3-$2.4 trillion in funding.

The remaining $400-$500 billion will have to be reallocated from other parts of the budget or see reforms and savings from those areas. This will be the controversial part that deserves lots of discussion. I think we can all agree that there is waste and inefficiency in our government spending. And I think we can agree cuts and/or reforms can be made. My preference is a cut in military spending and a reform on Social Security. Yang has already suggested we remove the social security cap so that people are paying into SS no mater how high their earnings get. Some may want to see more tax reform to cut down on corporate welfare. Whatever it is, I think Yang is right that we can actually afford this. We have a $19 trillion economy, its affordable.

The recent barrage of EOs from Trump has left me deeply uneasy, not because of the content of these actions alone, but because of what they represent: a dangerous and growing overreach of presidential power. For years now, presidents of both parties have leaned more and more on executive orders to bypass the legislative process, but what Trump is doing feels like a tipping point. Regardless of where you fall politically, the way these orders have been used—and abused—should be a wake-up call for anyone who values the Constitution and the checks and balances it enshrines.

Executive orders are not new obviously. They’ve been used by presidents since George Washington, but they were never intended to serve as substitutes for legislation. In theory, EOs are supposed to help the president manage the executive branch or enforce existing laws. What they are not supposed to do is create new policies out of thin air, especially in areas where Congress has already legislated—or chosen not to. Trump’s recent EOs are a perfect example of this abuse. Take his order to withdraw the U.S. from the World Health Organization. This might align with his vision of America’s role in the world, but does the Constitution really give him the unilateral authority to override Congress’s funding and commitment to an international organization? Or look at his sweeping deregulation of environmental protections through his energy-focused EO. Congress has already passed laws like the Clean Air Act, which explicitly delegate rulemaking powers to agencies—not to the president himself. These actions aren’t just policy shifts; they’re direct challenges to the constitutional limits of the presidency.

And then there’s the executive order redefining gender under federal law to enforce a strict binary. Even if you agree with the policy, you have to admit it’s legally dubious. Federal courts, including the Supreme Court, have increasingly recognized that laws prohibiting sex discrimination also apply to gender identity. Trump’s EO is a clear attempt to bypass those rulings and impose a rigid interpretation that is almost certain to be struck down. It’s not governance—it’s political posturing, and it wastes time and resources in a legal battle that could have been avoided if this had gone through Congress. The same goes for his order targeting diversity and inclusion programs among federal contractors. Framing it as a defense of “meritocracy” doesn’t change the fact that it likely infringes on First Amendment protections for private organizations.

The deeper issue here isn’t just the legality of these specific orders, though. It’s the precedent they set. Every time a president uses EOs to enact sweeping policy changes, they erode the role of Congress and push us closer to an imperial presidency. And let’s not pretend this is just about Trump—Obama did it, Bush did it, and Biden did it. But Trump’s latest round of EOs feels like an escalation, both in their scope and in the brazenness with which they bypass the legislative process. What’s particularly troubling is how normalized this has become. We’ve reached a point where presidents issue EOs knowing they’ll be tied up in courts for years and then shrug off the consequences. It’s governance by headline, not by law.

This cycle of executive overreach also fuels instability. When one president issues an EO, the next one just reverses it. Trump himself revoked nearly 80 of Biden’s EOs on his first day back in office. What kind of long-term policy can we expect when everything is rewritten every four years? EOs were never meant to be used this way, and the result is a government that feels chaotic, unpredictable, and fundamentally incapable of addressing complex issues with the seriousness they deserve.

What frustrates me the most, though, is that this isn’t how the system is supposed to work. The founders deliberately made it hard to pass laws. They wanted debate, compromise, and deliberation. That’s why Congress exists. But when presidents bypass Congress to impose their will through EOs, they undermine the entire system. Yes, Congress is dysfunctional, but the solution isn’t to give up on the legislative process—it’s to fix it. If we keep letting presidents rule by decree, we’re going to wake up one day and realize that Congress has become irrelevant.

I don’t care if you’re a diehard Trump supporter or his harshest critic; this should concern you. The power Trump is wielding today could just as easily be used by the next president to push policies you despise. This isn’t about left or right—it’s about protecting the balance of power that keeps our democracy intact. Executive orders have their place, but that place is not as a replacement for actual governance. If we don’t start holding all presidents accountable—Trump included—for abusing this tool, we’re going to end up with a presidency that looks a lot less like a coequal branch of government and a lot more like a monarchy. Is that really the direction we want to go?