I’ve discussed how, under the big, bad, bill—which is now law— ICE’s budget for detentions will go from $3.4 billion to $45 billion, making it the largest law enforcement agency in history. But actually, when you add in federal enforcement, construction of a border wall, state-level immigration enforcement and other elements, it’s $175 billion dollars, larger than Russia’s military budget.
Republicans bowed to Trump in passing the bill, but if they think they can get away with passing a bill that that many people know a lot about—and don’t like they’re very mistaken. The more people are learning about it, the less popular it is, as polling continues to show. That is a boon for Democrats, but only if they keep educating the public—and in particular those who aren’t paying attention.
Trump has falsely claimed in interviews that the bill includes a provision for “no tax on Social Security.” Now Social Security recipients received a letter, touting the bill and claiming they now had a tax cut. Except it’s not true and is simply a scam—one that could have some recipients thinking they don’t need to pay taxes when they do.