Mike Pence is heading to Cincinnati on Wednesday to talk up Donald Trump’s failed record. But, he can’t spin his boss’ nearly four years of broken promises to working families. Check out just some of what Trump has promised on the campaign trail in southwest Ohio — and the reality that followed:
ON KEEPING OHIOANS SAFE
Promise: “We will make America strong again. We will make America safe again.” [Cincinnati, Oct. 13, 2016]
- Reality: With more than 220,000 Americans dead and more than 8.2 million infected, the United States has 4 percent of the world’s population but 20 percent of infections and deaths. In Ohio alone, more than 183,000 people have contracted the virus, and more than 5,000 have lost their lives.
- Reality: Just last week, Gov. Mike DeWine held a press conference at Lunken Airport — where Pence will be speaking on Wednesday — to warn that the pandemic is “spiraling out of control” in southwest Ohio and that “we’re running out of time.” Today, DeWine announced the highest number of new hospitalizations over a 24-hour period in Ohio since the pandemic began.
- Reality: Even as experts warned of a coming pandemic, Trump sent record shipments of N95 masks overseas. As the Washington Post reported, a shortage of N95 masks still persists six months into the pandemic, “leaving health care workers exposed, patients at risk and public health experts flummoxed over a seemingly simple question: Why is the world’s richest country still struggling to meet the demand for an item that once cost around $1 apiece?”
ON HEALTH CARE
Promise: “We are going to have great health care at a much lower price, and it’s going to be something you’re going to be very proud of.” [Wilmington, Nov. 4, 2016]
- Reality: Even in the midst of a global pandemic, Trump and the Republican Party are attempting to overturn the Affordable Care Act — endangering health coverage for 741,000 Ohioans and threatening protections for as many as 5 million Ohioans with pre-existing conditions. The Ohio Hospital Association has warned that repealing the ACA would put a quarter of the state’s hospitals at risk of closure.
- Reality: Trump’s constant attacks on the Affordable Care Act are already taking a toll on the Buckeye State, as Ohio was one of eight states that saw its uninsured rate jump in 2018. The number of uninsured Ohio children increased by 30,000 from 2016 to 2018.
ON JOBS AND THE ECONOMY
Promise: “I’m going to bring back your jobs.” [Cincinnati, Oct. 13, 2016]
- Reality: Nearly 1.8 million Ohioans have filed for unemployment since the start of the pandemic. Last week, the Labor Department reported that new weekly unemployment claims in Ohio have risen to their highest since mid-August.
- Reality: Even before Trump’s disastrous coronavirus response, 2019 was Ohio’s worst year for job creation since the height of the Great Recession, costing 12,500 jobs.
ON INFRASTRUCTURE
Promise: “Let’s save the money and replace the Brent Spence Bridge in Cincinnati, you like that? Which is critical to the region.” [Wilmington, Nov. 4, 2016]
- Reality: Nearly four years later — even after returning to Cincinnati to campaign for re-election — Trump has failed to deliver promised infrastructure funding.
ON TAXES
Promise: “We will massively cut taxes for the middle class.” [Wilmington, Nov. 4, 2016]
- Reality: Trump’s tax scam will end up raising taxes for 1.6 million Ohioans while handing massive giveaways to billionaires and large corporations — including incentives to ship jobs overseas.
Photo by Joshua Hoehne on Unsplash