President Donald Trump’s economic policies have failed so badly that even a former AT&T CEO is trashing them all while explaining to Midwest states that they got screwed, especially Iowa.

From his tax-cut law in 2017 to the farm bailout last year to his global trade war, Trump’s economic policies have only benefited corporations and the wealthy. Companies that received tax cuts have not created jobs as Trump insisted they would do. Instead, they have laid off thousands of workers. Farmers also did not benefit from a massive bailout because the funds went mostly to corporate agriculture, not the small family farms that are struggling to survive. And the reason why farmers are struggling in the first place is because of Trump’s trade war, which only killed jobs and caused prices to soar.

But for some reason, red states still support him even though his policies have hurt them the most. On Tuesday, former AT&T CEO Leo Hindery Jr. wrote an op-ed slamming Trump’s policies. And because he published the piece in an Iowa newspaper, he was able to tell Iowans just how badly Trump has betrayed them.

“The dirty secret of the economy under Trump is that while major corporations have had reasons to celebrate, rural communities in the heartlands have gotten stiffed,” Hindery wrote. “Case in point: Iowa. Research shows that in the state the bulk of the economy’s benefits are being enjoyed by the richest one percent of Iowans, and much less so by the state’s small businesses and farmers who are fighting for scraps.”

“A recent analysis conducted by the Iowa Policy Project found that the wealthiest Iowans have benefitted most from the Trump administration’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” the former AT&T head honcho continued. “These findings indicate that the richest one percent – those Iowans with an average income of more than $1 million per year – captured 24 percent of all tax cut gains. The poorest 20 percent of Iowans – those making less than $13,700 per year – saw only about one percent of the total.”

Trump won Iowa in 2016, but it could flip back to blue in 2020. After all, former President Barack Obama won the state twice.

Hindery even reminded Iowa farmers that they lost big.

“Even Trump’s $16 billion emergency aid package for farmers who’ve been hung out to dry by the misguided trade war with China has proven to be just another goody bag for the wealthy,” he wrote. “According to analysis by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), most of the $8.4 billion given out as a part of the aid package has gone to wealthy farmers. The top one percent of recipients received on average roughly $183,000 while the bottom 80 percent of farmers received less than $5,000.”

Many farmers foolishly voted for Trump in 2016, but all Trump has done since taking office is hurt them economically as bankruptcies rise because farmers have lost most of the markets they used to rely on.

Trump’s propensity for giving taxpayer money away to the wealthy and corporations instead of those who really need it makes it pretty clear that he doesn’t care about the American people.

“This pattern could not be starker,” Hindery concluded. “The President and his supporters in Congress continually promise a lifeboat to those struggling to stay afloat but then they barely throw them a line.”

Indeed, Iowa voters should understand this most. Sadly, too many don’t understand who their real enemy is and continue blaming whomever Trump wants them to blame. But Trump is the one who is hurting them, and they will continue to be hurt for years to come if they don’t recognize that Trump is to blame for the current economic plight and vote him out of office in November. That’s the only way to stop the bleeding.

 

Featured Image: YouTube screenshot