In His Own Words: Child Care

I defy you to make sense of Donald Trump’s response to this question during his appearance on Thursday in front of the Economic Club of New York. As you’re reading this or listening to this, recall that this is the guy who said President Biden was too old to serve as President.

Here’s the transcript. Res ipsa loquitur:

Reshma Saujani (Membership Committee Co-Chair, ECNY Founder):  President Trump, you talked about how the increase in the price of food, gas, and rent is hurting families.   But the real cost that’s breaking families’ backs and preventing women from participating in the work force is child care.  Child care is now more expensive than rent for working families and is costing the economy more than $122 billion a year, making it one of the most urgent economic issues that is facing our country.  

In fact, the cost of child care is outpacing the cost of inflation, with the majority of American families with young children spending more that 20% of their income on child care.  One thing that Democrats and Republicans have in common is that both parties talk a lot about what they’re going to do to address the child care crisis but neither party has delivered meaningful change.  

If you win in November, can you commit to prioritizing legislation to make childcare affordable, and, if so, what specific piece of legislation will you advance?

Donald J. Trump:  Well, I would do that.  And we’re sitting down …you know, I was … somebody.  We had Senator Marco Rubio and my daughter Ivanka was so, uh, impactful on that issue.  It’s a very important issue.  But I think when you talk about the kind of numbers that I’m talking about … that … because … child care is child care.  It’s … couldn’t … you know … it’s something … You have to have it — in this country you have to have it.

But when you talk about those numbers compared to the kind of numbers that I’m talking about by taxing foreign nations at levels that they’re not used to — but they’ll get used to it very quickly — and it’s not going to stop them from doing business with us, but they’ll have a very substantial tax when they send product into our country.  Those numbers are so much bigger than any numbers that we’re talking about, including child care, that it’s going to take care.

We’re gonna have … I look forward to having no deficits within a fairly short period of time, coupled with, uh, the reductions that I told you about on waste and fraud and all of the other things that are going on in our country, because I have to stay with child care.  I want to stay with child care, but those numbers are small relative to the kind of economic numbers that I’m talking about, including growth, but growth also headed up by what the plan is that I just, uh … that I just told you about.

We’re going to be taking in trillions of dollars, and as much as child care, uh, is talked about as being expensive, it’s relatively speaking not very expensive compared to the kind of numbers we’ll be taking in.   We’re going to make this into an incredible country that can afford to take care off its people, and then we’ll worry about the rest of the world.  Let’s help other people, but we’re going to take care of our country first.  This is about America first.  It’s about Make America Great Again, we have to do it because right now we’re a failing nation, so we’ll take care of it.  Thank you.  Very good question.  Thank you.

This is a textbook example of Trump having no idea what he’s talking about, but he continues to tie disparate thoughts together — or, as he puts it, “weaving” — without ever saying anything.

The question is framed very clearly and precisely. The questioner is asking for a “specific piece of legislation” that Trump and his administration will champion. You can tell from his mumbling and stammering at the start that he has no idea what is being asked, but he’s heard a few words that are familiar. So he falls back on his years of experience bullshitting and he goes into autopilot. His inner monologue:

Oh, yeah, my daughter once said something about child care, so I’ll talk about her. Hmmmm. I’d better deflect. I know. I’ll talk about numbers. This is supposed to be about the economy, isn’t it? Those numbers are one thing, but my numbers are better. Right? That always gets ’em.

I wonder how my hair looks. Is that sweat running down my cheek?’

I’d better act casual. Pump up the old pasted-on confidence. Promise ’em all the promises they want to hear. Yeah, no deficits! They’ll love that one. Growth! That sounds good. Trillions of dollars! Even better!

And on and on and on for two solid minutes of empty blather. As for that “specific piece of legislation”? Not a word about it.