Two seemingly disparate items. One common theme:
Item #1
This is a flat out lie. Easily disprovable in literally about 5 seconds. Using Microsoft Edge as a browser (don’t @ me), I asked “are there any states that don't require documentation and/or certification to receive welfare benefits?” The answer (note the links to verifiable citations):
There are no U.S. states that completely eliminate documentation or certification requirements for receiving welfare benefits. All major federal and state welfare programs — including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — require applicants to provide proof of identity, legal status, and sometimes income or asset verification before benefits can be issued legalclarity.org+1.
Why Documentation Is Required
Federal law mandates verification: Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (1996), states must confirm applicants’ legal status and identity before issuing federal benefits like TANF or SNAP legalclarity.org.
Fraud prevention: States must verify that applicants meet income, resource, and work requirements, often through interviews and document checks USDA Food and Nutrition Service.
Recertification: Most states require periodic re‑verification of eligibility, including proof of income, expenses, and legal status Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
This needs to be called out - but not just as a lie. As a purposeful effort to confuse - and harm - the people these government officials are supposedly serving.
Item #2
Remember, Trump’s tariffs are illegal. Also, remember that a tariff is a tax that governments place on goods coming into their country, and tariffs are actually paid at the port in the United States where goods arrive and are paid by the company that is importing the goods. To repeat, “The process in the United States is straightforward. When a ship full of foreign goods arrives at an American port, U.S. Customs and Border Protection collects the tariff. The company importing the goods pays the tax, typically within 10 days of the goods clearing customs.”
As Carl Quintanilla (doing excellent journalism) points out, Trump’s illegal tariffs have resulted in “suppressing wages” for working people.
The Common Theme
The common theme here is corruption. It’s actually so bald-faced that it’s almost hard to believe.
Lying is corruption.
Illegal taxes are corruption.
In both instances, this corruption is directly harming the people of the Unites States.
Regarding government assistance:
In FY2024, approx. 41.7 million people (12.3% of the entire U.S. Population) received Food Assistance (SNAP)
In FY 2024, approx. 2 million people (0.6% of the entire U.S. Population) received Direct Cash Payments (TANF)
In FY 2024, approx. 88.2 million people (26% of the entire U.S. Population) received Health Insurance (Medicaid)
In FY 2024, approx. 5.2 million people (1.5% of the entire U.S. Population) received Rental Assistance (Housing Choice Voucher Program)
In FY 2024, approx. 6.7 million people (2% of the entire U.S. Population) received Food & Nutrition Assistance for Pregnant Women and Children (WIC)
Note: these numbers are NOT cumulative. Many people receive benefits from more than one program. Nonetheless, a shit ton of people in the U.S. require government assistance just to survive (not thrive, survive)
Regarding wages:
Let’s just refer back to the ever-punchable Kevin Hassett:
Also, this wonderful little tidbit:
The typical CEO compensation package rose nearly 6% in 2025 to $17.7 million, as company boards rewarded their top executives for bigger profits and higher stock prices, and gave them incentives to stick around and make even more money for shareholders.
The median employee at companies in the S&P 500 earned $89,744, reflecting a 4.7% increase year over year. While that gain outpaced the rate of inflation in 2025, many workers were still feeling pinched by the accumulation of higher prices over the past few years and had to cut corners to make ends meet and run up credit card debt to pay for everyday necessities.
…
At half the companies in AP’s survey it would take the worker at the middle of the company’s pay scale 200 years to make what the CEO did in one, up from 192 years in last year’s survey. Companies have been required to disclose this so-called pay ratio since 2018.
While the biggest gaps occur at companies where the CEO received compensation loaded with one-time awards of stock, the pay ratio also tends to be highest at companies in industries where wages are typically low. For instance, at Coca-Cola, its CEO earned nearly 1,739 times the median pay of $17,947 for its workers. The CEO at the retailer TJX Cos. makes about 1,774 times what a worker making the company’s median pay does.
BTW, is government supposed to be “meaner”? Besides being a**holes, these guys are so hermetically sealed in their cult that they are clueless on their messaging.
It’s The Corruption, Stupid. This is the thread. This is the message from Democratic candidates and incumbents. This is the most corrupt administration in U.S. history, Trump is the most corrupt President ever and he is supported by the most complicitly corrupt Congress and political party in the history of our country.
This is The Way.
