Trump’s skewed world view revealed once again, this time on US currency

In 2016, a poll was conducted to find out which American the US wanted to replace Andrew Jackson on the US$20 bill. The person who was chosen was the great abolitionist Harriet Tubman.

As with every other Barack Obama initiative, US President Donald Trump has made it a point to delay or stop this from happening. He has called it an act of political correctness and suggested that her image should be on a US$2 bill instead. (The US$2 bill has not been removed from circulation, but the Federal Reserve System does not request the printing of that denomination as often as it does the others.)

Now, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has announced that he is focused solely on the security features of the currency revamp and that what the currency would look like would be left for a successor. In his words: “It’s not a decision that is likely to come until way past my term”. By that, he meant 2026 or even as late as 2028.

I am not surprised. Not only is Trump an avid fan of Jackson, but he has also shown on numerous occasions that he knows close to nothing about African-American history – remember his embarrassing remarks about Frederick Douglass?

Surprising or not, I still think the president’s attitude towards one of the most courageous and influential freedom fighters in our country’s history should be called out for what it is. Trump is not pushing back against political correctness, defending the reputation of a US war hero, or safeguarding our nation’s currency. The president is, put simply, expressing and enacting an overtly racist agenda.

I cannot help but recall Michael Cohen’s testimony before Congress, where he labelled Trump a “racist, a con man and a cheat”. In his testimony, Cohen claimed that the president made riffs on his infamous “shit-hole countries” remark, used bigoted language about black people living in Chicago and said that black voters were “too stupid” to vote for him.

All of that being said, so what if Trump is a racist? But it would be one thing if Trump was just another racist. He is not. He is also the current architect of our nation’s immigration system. His words mean something to those who have to suffer the consequences. Trump is also the commander of the world’s most powerful military. When his racist views are converted – often haphazardly and maliciously – into national policies, people suffer.

George Cassidy Payne, Rochester, NY

Trump more at home with world view of colonial Britain

If one undertook a guided tour of Shanghai today, one would hear that in the 1920s the height of the tallest building in Shanghai was practically decided in London. A sign on the bridge to the British enclave said “no dogs, no Chinese”.

But 2020 is not 1920. No Chinese-US trade agreements which echo and repeat previous Chinese humiliation will or should occur. The US is not colonial Britain and China is not a third-rate country but a world power.

Everyone in the world knows this but Donald Trump. He is more at home with the world view of colonial Britain than the world of the 21st century.

Dr Sidney Weissman, Chicago