By Susan Dollar
For the “Progressive Views” column, Boerne Star, July 4, 2026
In his recent column (“Midterm Strategy,” May 31), Scott Kramer presented his approach for taking the offensive regarding the midterm elections. In order to win, he suggests that Republicans must remind voters of all the accomplishments under their leadership. I’ll challenge some of his points.
Yes, the Democrats will most likely attempt to impeach the president again. Trump was impeached twice during his first term in office, although he was acquitted on all counts by the Senate. This won’t be the case when the Senate is controlled by Democrats. Trump continues to abuse his power, obstruct justice, violate the emoluments clause, usurp the powers of Congress, restrict freedom of speech, and commit illegal war and humanitarian crimes.
I take exception to Kramer’s claim that “Republicans know how to eliminate fraud and waste” and have worked to eliminate inflation. Trump recently said “I love the inflation.” Following his return to the White House, Trump’s economic policies, including the introduction of broad import tariffs, have introduced upward pressure on consumer prices. The annual inflation rate is now at 4.2%, primarily driven by rising energy costs.
Regarding the “drill, baby, drill” mantra that is so popular among Republicans…in reality, there is no such thing as energy independence. The amount of oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve plunged in June to the lowest level since 1983 because the Trump administration continues to deploy emergency oil to minimize the damage from the war with Iran. Because of the U.S. infrastructure and the types of oil produced versus what domestic refineries require, we continue to rely on foreign imports for optimal efficiency. The United States now imports roughly 5.8 to 6m barrels per day of crude oil, and about 7.9m barrels per day of total petroleum products.
Perhaps the Republicans should rethink our energy policies in Texas. While natural gas accounts for roughly 40% to 50% of the state’s total electricity output, Texas is the national leader in wind energy, generating over a quarter of all U.S. wind-powered electricity. Wind typically provides between 20% and 23% of the state’s electricity. Solar capacity has also experienced explosive growth across the state, accounting for nearly 14% of the power generation mix in the ERCOT region.
The tax cuts that Kramer referred to were designed to provide sweeping corporate and individual tax relief. The primary beneficiaries include corporations and high-income households. Although millions of working-class tax filers used the permanently doubled standard deduction and many may have benefited from the permanently doubled Child Tax Credit, it was the wealthy households that benefited significantly from lowered top individual income tax rates and raised thresholds for the estate tax.
I want to make it clear that undocumented immigrants do not receive taxpayer funded benefits. Federal law prohibits them from enrolling in or receiving federal public benefits. This includes Medicaid, Medicare, the Affordable Care Act subsidies, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Supplemental Security Income. They also do not receive refundable tax credits, including the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit. There are limited exceptions to federal restrictions, particularly for emergency medical care and education. Undocumented children are guaranteed access to free public K-12 education and supplemental nutrition programs like Women, Infants, and Children or the National School Lunch Program, which do not verify immigration status for children.
It should also be noted that immigrants come to the U.S. for freedom to work for us and with us and they play critical roles in America’s economic vitality. Immigrants work at higher rates and are nearly twice as likely to start businesses. The Cato Institute’s research has shown that immigrants have reduced federal, state, and local government budget deficits by a combined $14.5 trillion, including $1.7 trillion from undocumented immigrants, over the last 30 years.
For years, the Republican party has claimed they are the “law-and-order party”, yet despite Trump’s claim that “the previous administration allowed lawlessness to permeate our country,” the crime decline long predated his second term. After three decades of mostly continuous decline, crime spiked in 2020 amid COVID-19, but crime rates began subsiding rapidly in 2023. Looking at crime rates across the country and across categories of crime, it is clear that the decline in 2025 is a continuation of a downward trend that began in 2023.
I take exception to Kramer’s use of the term “scourge” to describe DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion). While DEI aims to provide opportunities for underrepresented populations, these programs are broad and support various groups, including veterans, individuals with disabilities, and women looking to advance in male-dominated fields. DEI programs expanded on the Civil Rights Act, signed in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson, outlawing employment discrimination based on race, religion, sex, color and national origin. Corporate America has long leveraged DEI programs to expand its customer base, increase profits, prevent discrimination lawsuits, and improve employee retention by fostering a more inclusive workplace.
And finally, it is laughable that Kramer states the Republicans want a limited role for government in our lives. Republicans identify federal entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, unemployment insurance, Medicaid and food stamps, as “handouts” and argue that government should maintain a hands-off policy.
Republicans champion policies that restrict abortion access and related reproductive healthcare; support regulations on public school curricula (including limitations on discussions regarding American history, race, and gender identity); and promotes robust policing, mandatory minimum sentencing, and enhanced powers for law enforcement and border agencies.
There is nothing “limited” about regulating women’s bodies, controlling reproductive freedom, dictating family roles, interfering with the freedom to choose one’s marital partner, legislating the bathrooms we use, dictating the books we can read or the history we can learn. These are unmistakable instances of government intervention in our lives and restrictions on our freedoms. When we recognize the intrusiveness of these restrictive conservative policies the hypocrisy of Republicans’ “limited government” mantra becomes all too apparent.
There is one thing that I would agree on with Kramer regarding the Republican government: “get the heck out of our lives.” Visit our website at www.kcdems.us or subscribe to our newsletter to learn how you can get involved. Call our office at 830-331-1243 to learn more about our activities and activism. Happy 250th, America! See you at the polls in November.
Susan Dollar is a local Democrat.
