BY EMERSON LAYNE

For as difficult it is to keep up with politics or even talk about it, especially how emotionally draining politics can be, it’s still important to keep up with it. Some people don’t want to even look at politics anymore, which to a certain extent is understandable. But politics and politicians create our laws, keep our country flowing, and create inevitable chaos the average person will be punished for. Not even a year into President Trump’s presidency, there is so much national and international chaos that it’s desensitizing. 

Where to begin? Well, in summary, Trump has made countless executive orders, ranging from transgender rights, immigration, to tariffs, the latter two having the most spotlight as of recently. For immigration, Trump enacted the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a war-time law, to have alleged Venezuelan gang members deported to El Salvador. One man, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, was accidentally sent to El Salvador due to “administrative error”. The Trump administration has gone into controversy over whether or not they will have Abrego Garcia transported back to the US, while still stating Abrego Garcia was still a part of the Venezuelan gangs. For tariffs, Trump has enforced dozens of tariffs on many countries including China and small arctic islands only inhabited by penguins. China and others have enforced their own tariffs back at the US, while other countries, allegedly, have proposed settlements and treaties. 

On the war side of things, Trump and Vice President JD Vance had a meeting with Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office back in March. The meeting quickly ensued an argument between Trump, Vance and Zelensky. Zelensky repeatedly stated his desire for peace and warned about Russia, while Vance and Trump insinuated that Ukraine started the war and that Zelensky doesn’t want peace. During a press meeting with Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the Israeli-Hamas war, Trump stated that they will eradicate Hamas and deport all people within Gaza to other countries. Trump states he then plans on making Gaza a resort “made of gold”. 

While judges and groups have been pushing back on Trump’s executive orders and the like, major decisions are still slipping through the cracks and are going to severely affect the American people. Tariffs are going to hit the people’s pockets like a bombshell, while Trump is trying to dominate global trade. Then there’s measles spreading down in Texas, being blamed on poor diets by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is known to have spread anti-vaccine misinformation. With China and other countries furious at the US, it’s reasonable to assume that the future of the US, or the world for that matter, is headed down a dark path. It’s up in the air what that path and conclusion will look like. Whatever it is, it’s not going to be pretty, and the people are going to face it. 

Just within a few months, so much has happened politically that wasn’t even discussed in this article. There is constant frustration, fear, and worry that it’s difficult to even think about what is happening. For how difficult it is, it’s still important to know what is happening. Especially when millions of people are going to be on the chopping block, or already have lives with government workers being mass fired, people need to know what is happening. For how draining and desensitizing politics are, it’s a great insight on how people are going to be affected. Affected in more ways than one.