Progressive Thinking

Wake up, America. Before there’s nothing left to bounce back to.

LAKE GENEVA, WI - You know what’s heartbreaking?

Watching good people—decent, hardworking people—cling to the lie that “everything’s gonna bounce back.” That all we have to do is just hang on a little longer, trust in Trump’s plan (whatever that is this week), and America will come roaring back to life. Like one of those cheesy underdog sports movies where the team pulls off a win in the final five seconds.

But this isn’t a movie. And this isn’t some routine surgery.
This is a terminal diagnosis, and they’re pretending it's just a mild infection.

Trump and his sidekick J.D. Vance have been peddling this idea that the economy is just “under the weather.” That sometimes people get sick, need an operation, and then they’re good as new. They’ve been tossing that analogy around like it’s gospel. But here’s what they don’t say out loud:

Sometimes the surgery doesn’t work. Sometimes people don’t get better. Sometimes they die.

And right now, the middle class is on life support. Small towns are dying. Wages haven’t kept up with the cost of living in decades. People are maxing out credit cards just to afford groceries. Parents are skipping meals so their kids can eat. Seniors are splitting their prescriptions in half to make them last.

But the Trump crowd? They’ve been told that this is normal. That all of this is just part of a cycle. A temporary dip. Just a little economic turbulence before we soar again.

It’s a lie. A cruel one.

And what’s sad—truly sad—is that millions of Americans believe it. They believe that if they just vote the “right way,” if they show loyalty, if they keep holding on, then things will go back to how they used to be. As if we can rewind the clock to a time when life felt more affordable, more stable, more American.

But that time is gone. And Trump’s not bringing it back—he’s part of why it’s gone in the first place.

Remember when he promised jobs would return, that coal would come back, that we’d be winning so much we’d get tired of it? Remember how none of that happened?

Instead, billionaires got tax cuts, the national debt exploded, and ordinary people were left to figure it out alone. And now those same people are being told, once again, to just hold on.

I look around and see exhausted people still believing that someone who wouldn’t cross the street to help them up is somehow their savior. And it breaks my heart. Because these are folks who deserve better. Who have worked hard their entire lives. Who need real help—not hollow analogies and empty slogans.

This isn’t about politics anymore. It’s about people. And we are watching a slow, painful unraveling while too many are still sitting in the waiting room, trusting the surgeon who already left the building.

Trump thinks yelling “America First” while nuking the global supply chain is somehow going to bring back the golden age of American manufacturing. That age is long gone.

LAKE GENEVA, WI - Today, Donald Trump stood at a podium, flapping his gums again about how everything is going to “boom.” The markets are going to boom. The economy is going to boom. The country? Oh, that’s going to boom too. And you know what? I actually agree with him—for once. Things are going to boom. Just not in the way he wants you to think.

I’m talking about the kind of boom that leaves a smoking crater where your savings used to be. The kind of boom that knocks you off your feet and leaves your ears ringing while you try to figure out what the hell just happened. The kind of boom where, when the dust settles, we’re all stuck sweeping up the shattered pieces of our bank accounts and wondering how we got conned into this mess. That’s the “boom” we’re in for.

What kicked it off? Trump’s bright idea to slap a 10% tariff on all imports, with even higher rates on countries like China, Mexico, and our European allies. You know, the people we actually rely on for trade. The very next thing that happened? The stock market tanked. Over 1,600 points dropped from the Dow like it got pushed off a cliff. That’s not booming—it’s detonating.

Tariffs are taxes. That’s Econ 101. But Trump either doesn’t know that or just doesn’t care. He thinks yelling “America First” while nuking the global supply chain is somehow going to bring back the golden age of American manufacturing. Meanwhile, the rest of us are stuck watching prices climb on everything from groceries to gadgets.

Experts are already warning that the average American household could see prices jump by nearly $4,000 a year. And when you factor in inflation creeping back up and potential job losses in industries that rely on imported goods? Buckle up. This isn’t just an economic misstep—it’s a full-scale policy explosion.

International response? You guessed it. Countries around the world are preparing to hit us right back. Trade wars don’t just pop up overnight, but Trump’s reckless, chest-thumping bravado is lighting the fuse. And guess who’s standing closest when it goes off? Yep. We are.

This isn’t leadership. It’s sabotage dressed up as strength. And Trump, with his gold-plated ego and zero grasp of economic reality, is grinning through it all like he just made a brilliant move on a game board he doesn’t even understand.

So yes, Donald. We’re going to boom. Like a bomb in the living room. Like an engine blowing out at 80 miles per hour. Like the bad decision it is.

And we’ll be the ones left crawling out of the rubble.

Summary:
Donald Trump says the economy is going to “boom”—and for once, he’s not wrong. But this isn’t the boom of prosperity he’s promising. It’s the kind of boom that leaves everyday Americans buried under debt, inflation, and economic wreckage. In this scathing opinion piece, Laura Kiefert dismantles Trump’s reckless tariff plan, exposing the real cost of his clueless economic bravado: soaring prices, crashing markets, and a trade war we can't afford. If this is his version of winning, we’re all screwed.

Why He’s Handing You an Anvil and Calling It a Life Vest.

LAKE GENEVA, WI - Donald Trump wants you to believe he’s saving America. He’ll shout it from his rallies, smirk into the cameras, and his diehard fans will eat it up like gospel. But let’s be honest—what he’s really doing is handing working Americans an anvil and telling them it’ll help them float.

Let’s talk about the facts.

Tariffs: The Hidden Tax You’re Already Paying

This week, Trump announced a sweeping 10% tariff on every import coming into the country, with an added 34% tariff on Chinese goods and 20% on imports from the European Union. The sales pitch is that it will protect American jobs and manufacturing. The reality? It’s a direct hit to American consumers, raising the price of almost everything we buy.

Groceries? Up.
The cost of a new smartphone? Rising by at least $150.
Auto prices? Dealers are warning of increases up to $5,000 this year because of higher costs for imported parts.
Medical supplies? Prices for essentials like insulin pens are expected to jump another 10 to 15 percent.

These tariffs aren’t punishing foreign governments. They’re punishing the American people. This is a hidden tax on the middle and working class, and Trump is hoping you don’t notice.

Tax Cuts: A Giveaway to the Wealthy, A Bill for the Rest of Us

As if the tariffs weren’t enough, Trump is now fighting to make his 2017 tax cuts permanent. If you’re one of the wealthiest five percent of Americans, this is great news—you’ll get half the benefits. For the rest of us, it’s crumbs.

These cuts aren’t free. They will add an estimated $4.6 trillion to the national deficit over the next decade. That’s a bill your children and grandchildren will be paying long after Trump has cashed in.

Labor Shortages: The Cost of Cruelty

While prices climb and debt balloons, Trump’s immigration crackdown is gutting the workforce. Farmers across the Midwest can’t find enough workers to harvest crops. Construction projects are stalling because there aren’t enough laborers to finish them. Small businesses that rely on immigrant workers are struggling to keep their doors open.

And when there aren’t enough workers, prices rise even higher. Housing costs, groceries, and basic services are all going up, not because of immigrants, but because of Trump’s deportation crusade.

The Stock Market: Investors Are Jumping Ship

Wall Street isn’t blind to this chaos. The S&P 500 is down 4.6 percent this quarter. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 1,100 points this week alone. Retirement accounts are shrinking. Small business owners are pulling back investments. Market analysts are using words like "recession" and "crisis."

People who spent decades saving for retirement are watching their nest eggs disappear because of one man’s reckless economic game.

Real People, Real Pain

This isn’t abstract policy—it’s real pain felt by real people. My neighbor’s son was laid off last week because his company can’t afford the higher costs of materials. A friend’s son just told me his rent went up by $200 a month. A close friend lost over $12,000 in her retirement account in the last month. I paid $6.49 for eggs yesterday and the price is still climbing.

Meanwhile, Trump is out there telling Americans they’ve been “liberated.”

Liberated from what? Their paychecks? Their savings? Their economic security?

The Bottom Line

Trump’s economic “strategy” is a masterclass in con artistry. He promised prosperity, but what he’s delivering is higher prices, massive debt, worker shortages, and a stock market in decline. Every policy, every announcement, every speech is designed to benefit the wealthy and powerful while the rest of us foot the bill.

It’s not leadership. It’s sabotage. And it’s time to stop pretending otherwise.

Trump used Musk as the face of brutal budget cuts and will gladly throw him under the bus.

LAKE GENEVA, WI - It’s not a question of if Elon Musk will step down from his so-called “government role” — it’s a question of when. And if you’re paying attention, you already know why.

Musk is expected to resign by the end of May because the law requires that, after 130 days, a special government employee like him has to disclose his personal finances. And there is no way Elon Musk is going to let the American people get a peek behind that curtain. He’s not about to reveal how much he’s profiting while fronting Trump’s so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) and its brutal, sweeping budget cuts.

But here’s the part that should make everyone furious: this was Trump’s plan from day one.

Bringing in Musk was never about “efficiency” or “innovation” — it was about putting a billionaire tech celebrity in front of the cameras to make the gutting of vital federal programs look like some kind of Silicon Valley makeover. Musk was the shiny object Trump dangled in front of the public while slashing services and selling off our government piece by piece.

And now that the cuts are in motion and the damage is done, Trump will do what he always does: turn on his own guy and deny responsibility. As soon as Musk walks away — conveniently before he’s forced to disclose any financial conflicts — the Trump administration will toss him aside like yesterday’s trash. Every blunder, every failure, every outrage will get pinned on Musk. It’s the same playbook Trump has used over and over again: use people, let them take the fall, and walk away clean.

Elon Musk was nothing but a decoy. And when he’s gone, the Trump machine will happily throw him under the bus, blame him for every mess, and pretend they had nothing to do with it.

The truth is, we were all played. And we’re the ones left holding the bag.

Summary

Elon Musk’s upcoming exit from Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) isn’t surprising — it’s part of the plan. In this scathing op-ed, Laura Kiefert exposes how Musk was used as a political pawn to front devastating budget cuts, only to be thrown under the bus when the heat turned up.

That money could have changed lives — instead, it was wasted buying power.

LAKE GENEVA, WI - In 2025, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court election wasn’t just ugly — it was obscene. A jaw-dropping $92.1 million was spent fighting over one seat on our state’s highest court. Not to improve justice. Not to serve the people. But to weaponize the court and turn it into a political pawn.

This election wasn’t really about Wisconsin at all. It became a national proxy war, a playground for billionaires, political machines, and out-of-state interests looking to buy influence. And they did it on our backs.

Who Paid to Control Wisconsin’s Court

The money poured in from every corner of the country:

On Brad Schimel’s side:

• Elon Musk’s political network: $12.5 million, including a shameful $1 million “voter lottery” scheme meant to bribe voters.
• Richard & Elizabeth Uihlein: $8 million — Illinois billionaires bankrolling far-right causes.
• Judicial Fairness Network & Wisconsin Liberty Alliance: $16.4 million from corporate PACs.
• Schimel’s campaign fund: $8.2 million.

Total pro-Schimel spending: $45.1 million

On Susan Crawford’s side:

• George Soros-backed PACs: $9.3 million — more out-of-state billionaire influence.
• Governor J.B. Pritzker’s network: $6.5 million — more Illinois money meddling in our court.
• AFSCME & NEA unions: $10.7 million — unions buying their seat at the table.
• National Democratic PACs: $11.9 million from Washington, D.C. Super PACs.
• Crawford’s campaign fund: $6.5 million.

Total pro-Crawford spending: $44.9 million

When you tally it all up, it’s clear this wasn’t a Wisconsin race. It was an all-out bidding war — and Wisconsin voters were caught in the crossfire.

How the Money Was Wasted

Here’s where that $92 million really went:

• $14.7 million in official campaign funds.
• $36.2 million from conservative PACs & billionaires.
• $25.9 million from liberal PACs, unions, and mega-donors.
• $3 million on Musk’s unethical voter lottery scheme.
• $52.4 million on ugly, mudslinging attack ads.
• $8.6 million on voter outreach.
• $1.3 million on legal fees and compliance.

The money was almost evenly split, but that’s not the outrage. The outrage is that it was spent at all.

What Wisconsin Could Have Done With $92 Million

Just imagine if that money hadn’t been torched in a political arms race. It could’ve:

• Paid full tuition for 9,200 in-state college students.
• Replaced every lead water pipe in Milwaukee’s poorest neighborhoods.
• Fully funded free school lunches across Wisconsin for two years.
• Opened five new mental health clinics in rural Wisconsin.
• Expanded Medicaid to cover 40,000 uninsured Wisconsinites.
• Or simply refunded $16 to every person in Wisconsin.

But instead, it was vaporized — spent on ads, attack pieces, and dirty tricks.

Why Every American Should Be Furious

This isn’t just a Wisconsin problem. When nearly $100 million floods into a judicial race, democracy doesn’t stand a chance. The courts become a marketplace, and justice is sold to the highest bidder.

This isn’t free speech. It’s legalized corruption.

There Should Be a Law

I don’t care if you’re a Democrat, Republican, or Independent — every American should be outraged. There should be strict laws banning this level of political spending in judicial elections. No billionaire, no union, no corporate PAC should have the power to buy judges.

Because when justice is for sale, democracy dies a little more every day.