Trump 'burning American’s money' to play out his 'gangster nation' fantasy

With U.S. President Donald Trump doubling down on his threat to bomb Iranian power plants, opponents of his war are warning that the Iranian government would likely respond to such attacks by escalating its strikes on U.S. installations in the Middle East. Those opponents are pointing out that a prolonged war in that part of the world will have dire economic consequences, leading to even higher oil prices and — as a result — higher prices for a wide range of goods.

On his Truth Social platform, Trump threatened, "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don't want that to happen, but it probably will."

In an article published on April 7, Salon's Chauncey DeVega argues that Trump is running the United States like a "gangster nation" — and hurting the U.S. economically in the process.

"Trump is burning the American people's money to pay for his expanding war against Iran," DeVega warns. "His administration's militarism is making the American people less safe while systematically undermining the country's economy, democracy and overall quality of life. A gangster nation is rarely prosperous — at least for the average person. According to estimates, the war against Iran costs more than $1 billion a day, with a total cost of at least $50 billion so far."

DeVega continues, "The Pentagon has already requested over $200 billion in additional funding from Congress…. As Politico noted, with an already-struggling economy and an unpopular war, the Pentagon's skyrocketing defense budget could hurt Republicans electorally. But the more important reality is this: Trump's budget request reflects America's collapsing social democracy and the authoritarian logic driving Trump and his MAGA allies."

The Salon journalist stresses that "Trump's war against Iran" and his "militant nationalism" are "not separate from his domestic agenda."

"Military spending generates fewer jobs and less economic growth than comparable spending on education, infrastructure, health care, clean energy and other social safety net programs," DeVega laments. "America cannot be strong abroad if it is hollowing itself out at home, especially as our competitors, including China, are making huge investments in human capital, as well as soft power abroad, because their leaders understand this calculus…. He is most certainly not 'Making America Great Again' or birthing a new golden age. His imperial dreams are instead an American nadir."

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