A Big, Beautiful Theft
Redistribution of wealth is fine now, actually
Once upon a time, stealing from the rich to give to the poor was a fairytale. But the rich just rewrote and reversed the Robin Hood story.
Redistribution is fine now — as long as the money flows uphill.
‘One Big Beautiful Bill’
Late last night (May 21, 2025) the House passed what they’re calling — seriously — the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”
Yes, this is a stupid thing to call it. As Trump’s dementia progresses, expect a lot more bills to be named according to his weird verbal tics.
You can read the entire big “beautiful” mess for yourself. It’s important to note the Senate still needs to pass it. Trump’s signature is assured, so our only hope is for it to fail in the Senate, or at least for the Senate to make major changes to it (which is certain).
We all remember how bills work, right? (If not, let this old Schoolhouse Rock ditty refresh your memory.)
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says this: “... in general, resources would decrease for households in the lowest decile (tenth) of the income distribution, whereas resources would increase for households in the highest decile.”
Translation: The rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer. By design.
Maybe you’re not poor
So maybe you don’t care.
Ask yourself a few questions, though. Are your elderly parents or grandparents in a nursing home? Or do you suspect that day is coming soon?
Prepare to bring them home to your house. Even if your elders were always fairly well off, it doesn’t take long to burn through assets when you’re paying more than $10K per month for a nursing home. You say you can’t take care of them because you work full time? Not MAGA’s problem.
You have a disabled niece who relies on SNAP to buy groceries? Oh well. Maybe you could drop off some beans and rice for her once in a while.
But the deficit!
I could almost believe the Republicans cared about the deficit if this bill as written would not increase the federal deficit by $3.8 trillion. Which it would. (Again, see that CBO analysis.)
Trump invited Elon Musk to ransack our country under the fiction that he was looking for ways to cut waste and save taxpayer money. Oddly, federal spending has increased by $340 BILLION compared to the same period last year. We haven’t saved a penny. We’ve spent an extra $340 BILLION!
That’s $340 BILLION. Extra. While claiming we’re cutting spending.
The bill would drastically cut Medicaid, SNAP and all sorts of other spending that the poorest Americans depend on while shifting resources to the wealthiest Americans.
It’s almost like they don’t care about the deficit at all and just want to funnel as much money as possible to their richest supporters.
The GOP is that deadbeat dad who says there’s no money for diapers and has enough money for a new set of golf clubs. And then he blames his wife for having blown the budget on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
But what about the dirtbags?
Maybe you have a cousin named Curt who is a dirtbag who takes advantage of every possible loophole. Jeff Maurer in I Might Be Wrong has a brilliant take on why the Curts of this world should not deter us from helping the more deserving poor. (It’s one of the better things I’ve read on Substack recently so don’t miss it.)
Personally, I am mindful that any one of us could become disabled at any time. A car wreck or a catastrophic medical diagnosis could affect you – yes, you with the CrossFit routine and the cabinet full of supplements.
I have never accepted food stamps, subsidized housing or government healthcare but also I have never in my life earned the median income and I am aware of my vulnerability.
Unless you are Musk (and if you are, fuck you), you probably are more vulnerable than you think.
Let’s do a story problem: Take a look at your 401(k) or whatever you’ve got. Divide your total number by $10,000. How many months could you pay for a nursing home? We are pretending that will be the only expense you have in your old age, which is obviously not true, so you’ll actually have much less to work with.
For even more fun, ask your parents to do the same story problem, and then your grandparents if they’re still alive. Again, how interested and able are you to perform elder care for any and all of them?
This bill is not about cutting the deficit
It is not about growth. It’s about the economy. It’s not about the well-being of Americans.
It’s about one thing and one thing only: Putting more money into the pockets of our wealthiest citizens.
Don’t just sit there!
Your state has two senators. They need to know you’re outraged and you’ll base your next vote on what they do about this bill. Tell them now.
About Michelle Teheux
I’m a writer in central Illinois. If you like my work, subscribe to me here and on Medium. I also have a new Substack aimed at authors who want to self-publish books, called The Indie Author. My most recent book is Strapped: Fighting for the soul of the American working class. My most recent novel is The Trailer Park Rules. If you prefer to give a one-time tip, I accept Ko-fi.
All wealthy families are alike; each poor family is poor in its own way.
— Leo Tolstoy, if he had written about a trailer park
For residents of the Loire Mobile Home Park, surviving means understanding which rules to follow and which to break. Each has landed in the trailer park for wildly different reasons.
Jonesy is a failed journalist with one dream left. Angel is the kind of irresponsible single mother society just shakes its head about, and her daughter Maya is the kid everybody overlooks. Jimmy and Janiece Jackson wanted to be the first in their families to achieve the American dream, but all the positive attitude in the world can’t solve their predicament. Darren is a disabled man trying to enjoy his life despite a dark past. Kaitlin is a former stripper with a sugar daddy, while Shirley is an older lady who has come down in the world and lives in denial. Nancy runs the park like a tyrant but finds out when a larger corporation takes over that she’s not different from the residents.
When the new owners jack up the lot rent, the lives of everyone in the park shift dramatically and in some cases tragically.
Welcome to the Loire Mobile Home Park! Please observe all rules.
Amazing how cheap souls are going for these days.
This bill is sickening and heartbreaking. I remind myself every day that so many people voted for this. They chose… this: cruelty, indifference, suffering.