Trump's using racist Supreme Court precedent to justify neglecting Puerto Rico
In 1978, the “rational basis” arguments for discriminating against Puerto Rico were that its residents didn’t contribute enough to the Treasury, that it
was too expensive to include Puerto Rico in federal programs, and that
“inclusion … might seriously disrupt the Puerto Rican economy.”
Re-read that last reason. Then consider the 1980 clarification:
“[G]reater benefits could disrupt the Puerto Rican economy.”
The Supreme Court of the United States accepted a racist generalization about the propensity of Puerto Ricans to work and provide for their families as a rational basis for denying them the same federal benefits as stateside Americans.
The Trump administration—specifically,
Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar—is now attempting to use that same reasoning
to defend against a new version of this challenge to a status quo that never should have been established.
Filed April 13, the complaint—brought by Sixta Glays Peña Martínez—
challenges Puerto Rico’s exclusion from SSI and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits
as well as Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidies under the Equal Protection Clause.
The Department of Justice’s motion to dismiss, filed June 25,
leans explicitly, and heavily, on the explicitly racist precedent set by the court 40 years ago.
They’re not as explicit in adopting racist reasoning, but they’ve incorporated it by citing these cases—and
quoting the portions that specifically uphold that rationale for discrimination against Puerto Rico.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/1775598
The Repug kakistrocracy: a corrupt, venal BigPharma asshole Azar running HHS and a famous RACIST JeBo running DoJ