Day 294: The Cruelty is the Point
There’s been a popular mantra about Trump and his toxic MAGA agenda for some time now: The cruelty is the point. It refers to how many—perhaps all—of Trump’s policies aren’t engineered for results, but for pain. Pain directed at those he and his ilk deem undesirable: non-MAGA voters, the vulnerable, the inconvenient. The recent political and legal wrangling over SNAP benefits is a perfect example. When the SNAP fund began running dry due to the government shutdown, Vice President JD Vance—whom Trump once called “JP Mandell”—claimed the administration would like to release emergency funds, but couldn’t: “We can’t just tap emergency funds for SNAP without congressional authorization. That’s not how budgeting works—even in a shutdown.” — JD Vance, interview with Fox Business, October 30, 2025 Needless to say, this was an absurd idea because the SNAP emergency fund was created precisely to mitigate situations such as the current government shutdown. Without SNAP benefits, millions o...