I will not claim a message from God for what follows, however, the Christianity of my heritage has taught me that compassion for the least among us, the poor, the homeless, the persecuted, the refugee, tending to those lacking the basic needs to survive is fundamental to being a Christian. God stands for justice and compassion and against cruelty.
Perhaps you believe the deluge of executive orders from Washington has nothing to do with you or your life. I suggest that both on a personal level and a compassionate moral level, you would be wrong. I offer up a number of examples. Weigh in. Vote Yea/Nay, approve/disapprove. But as you decide, consider this. Imagine that God had the deciding vote when these proposals come to the floor. How would He vote?
Here's a few guidelines to help you.
- Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Matthew 25:40
- Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. Proverbs 14:31
- So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. Romans 14:12
Here's your ballot.
{Yea/Nay} 1. Gut Medicaid ($880M) impacting hospitals where the poorest 24% of the country and 2/3 of nursing home residents get their health care. Add to that cuts to SNAP (food stamps, $230B), Head Start & Meals on Wheels. Reference: AJMC
{Yea/Nay} 2. Layoff up to half of Social Security's 57,000 employees. Social Security administrator Martin O’Malley warned: “Social Security is being driven to a total system collapse.” Reference: NPR
{Yea/Nay} 3. Massively cut NIH research funding to universities across the country as well as labs of Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins and others .. derailing cancer, cardiovascular, neuroscience research - to highlight but a few. Gut the CDC … and fire those fighting the bird flu contagion. Reference: NBC
{Yea/Nay} 4. Eliminate USAID which provides humanitarian aid - food supplies, vaccines, medical treatment to the most desperate people and allow food deliveries to rot on ships. Reference: NBC
{Yea/Nay} 5. Fire the top 6 military leaders including the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and replace them with sycophants. Reference: NPR
{Yea/Nay} 6. Cut veterans benefits and VA Medical Centers. Reference: NBC
{Yea/Nay} 7. Incarcerate migrants in a 30,000-bed detention facility at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay. Reference: Immigration Impact
{Yea/Nay} 8. Side with Russia at the UN and threatened to abandon Ukraine unless Ukraine agrees to deliver extortion level $500B in rare earth minerals. Reference: BBC
{Yea/Nay} 9. Eliminate support for Climate Change mitigations. Reference: Sabin Center
{Yea/Nay}. 10. Forbid all diversity and equality efforts, defining them as discrimination against whites. Reference: Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
{Yea/Nay} 11. Give tax cuts to the wealthy while raising taxes on the poor and middle class and increasing the deficit by at least $4.6T Reference: CBPP
{Yea/Nay} 12. Layoff tens of thousands of federal workers from USAID, DOD, DOJ, Homeland Security, FEMA, NOAA, Consumer Protection, Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Health & Human Services, Department of Interior, Small Business Administration, Rural Development, Rural heath initiatives, Rural airport funding and EPA by 65%, an agency that delivers health benefits that outweigh its costs, authors say, by more than 30 to 1. Reference: ABCNews
{Yea/Nay} 13. Eliminate the Department of Education and the education grants it administers along with its support for disabled students and fighting discrimination against them. Reference: NBC
{Yea/Nay} 14. Pardon Jan 6 insurrectionists including Proud Boys, Oath Keeper leaders along with convicted criminals such as the 6 who nearly beat an officer to death and an operative of Silk Road, a dark web marketplace for illegal narcotics and weapons. Reference: ProPublica
{Yea/Nay} 15. Layoff National Park employees, wildfire fighters, ... Reference: KGNU
{Yea/Nay} 16. Institute 25% tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada that will cost families an estimated $1700 per year and negatively impact farm income - and likely slow the economy and affect Wall Street. Reference: APNews
{Yea/Nay} 17. Take away the power of the purse from Congress and give it to the unelected world's richest man. Reference: APNews
{Yea/Nay} 18. Slash the independent Postal Service and move it to the Department of Commerce which would then put vote by mail under the control of the President. Reference: Democracy Docket
{Yea/Nay} 19. Cut the IRS by 50% because we can save money by not collecting taxes or auditing. Reference: CNN
{Yea/Nay} 20. Let's just ignore any cyber threat from Russia. Reference: NBCNews
{Yea/Nay} 21. Halt all aid to Ukraine. Reference: ABCNews
OK, tally your votes: ____ in favor. ____ opposed.
Consider it your credit score when you face Saint Peter.
Full Disclosure. My ballot: 0 Yea. 21 Nay.
Copyright © 2025 Dave Hoplin
