To the editor:

Isn’t it great to see our president rolling up his sleeves and attacking the major issue that got him elected — the high cost of living? What’s that? He’s actually busy attacking Harvard University and Big Law, disappearing immigrants and implementing tariffs that will raise prices! Who could have possibly foreseen that?

The answer is basically anyone who was paying attention.

Trump 1.0 was marked by constant chaos and policy turns with nothing getting done legislatively other than tax cuts for the wealthy. The only crises he faced — other than COVID — were those he created. And on COVID, he failed miserably with his actions, causing over 180,000 additional deaths, according to credible analyses.

For those who thought “we survived the first term, we can survive a second one,” I say, “don’t be so sure.” Trump 2.0 is Trump 1.0 without the guardrails and without any adult in the room. He is surrounded by incompetents and sycophants who will do nothing to restrain his worst and dumbest impulses.

For this administration, the cruelty is the point. For the rest of us, resistance is the only option.

Marty Bregman,

Lawrence