Trumps Rettungspaket für Argentinien stellt die Amerikaner erneut in den Hintergrund

**From Rep. Nydia Velázquez, New York’s 7th Congressional District:**

In January, Donald Trump opened his inaugural address by promising to “put America first” daily and usher in a new golden age for American families. Ten months in, Americans are still waiting for the golden age to arrive and reeling from Trump administration policies that have actively made their lives worse.

His administration’s signature legislation delivers the largest Medicaid cuts in U.S. history, threatening to strip coverage from 15 million people while taking food assistance from children, seniors, and people with disabilities. His erratic trade policy has worsened the cost-of-living crisis, amounting to an average $1,300 tax increase per household this year. And as the Republican shutdown drags on, essential services are halted and paychecks paused for hundreds of thousands of federal workers.

Now, with government operations paralyzed and Americans’ pocketbooks reeling, the White House has made the extraordinary decision to move forward with a $20 billion bailout for Argentina. Republicans and Democrats alike are asking what, exactly, is “America First” about sending billions of U.S. dollars abroad while Americans are suffering at home. The irony is especially sharp for U.S. farmers, who have been shut out of China’s soybean market because of Trump’s trade war — just as Argentina moves in to fill that gap. While Washington props up Buenos Aires, small-farm bankruptcies here have climbed to a five-year high.