Sir Trump takes aim at exorbitant credit cards

In between kidnapping dictators, pardoning drug kingpins, rioters, and white-collar criminals, plus threatening ayatollahs and Greenlanders, President Donald J. Trump found time to float a proposal against banks and credit card companies that would benefit consumers bigly. I haven’t been this excited since he brought back high-pressure shower heads and toilets.

As his custom, Sir Trump. floated a balloon on so-called Truth Social that would cap credit card interest rates at 10% for one year, which would save consumers an estimated $100 billion. His proposal lacked details, but there is something that makes this more than the usual political blather (in a year when midterm elections arrive in 10 months.)

What makes this more than the usual political blather is that it was a campaign promise, and also that Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, representing the Marxist wing of the Democratic Party, and Rep. Sen. Josh Hawley, representing the Prussian wing of the Republican Party, released a plan last year to do the same thing — except they called for a five-year cap on interest rates.

In the House, Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined hands with Republican Anna Paulina Luna to introduce a bill very much like the two senators.

We rarely see such bipartisan displays these days, most especially when it is going to cost major donors — banks and credit card companies — billions of dollars (although they will remain profitable). Current credit card interest rates range from 19.65% to 21.5%, according to the Associated Press.

Honestly, this will do me no good, because I am among the estimated half of Americans who pay off their credit-card balances each month. We don’t pay the exorbitant interest rates.

The other half of America gets hammered, either because they are unwilling or unable to pay off the balance, which generates interest so high it competes with loan sharks, who call interest the vig.

Why just a one-year cap, or a five-year cap? I don’t know.

Let’s not look too closely into the gift horse’s mouth.

I was surprised to see Hawley on board, but he also joined Dems in opposing an end to Obamacare subsidies. Why? I don’t know for sure, but he is from Missouri and many of his constituents were going to be clobbered by skyrocketing medical bills. Ditto credit card bills.

So I credit Dear Leader for a good idea, as I criticize him for bad ones.

“We will no longer let the American Public be ripped off by Credit Card Companies that are charging Interest Rates of 20 to 30%,” Trump wrote on Truth Social with his inimical penchant for capitalizing odd words.  

AP says the White House did not yet respond to questions about how the President would cap the rate. 

Details, details. 😄