Definitions of the term vary, but arbiters through the ages — from the 13th-century theologian Thomas Aquinas to the editors of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary — have seen the common good as something that benefits all of us, or at least as many of us as possible, rather than just a select group.
Examples of the common good in the United States include our civil liberties, including freedom of speech; other provisions in our Constitution’s Bill of Rights, such as the right to a fair trial; laws that mandate clean air and water; public schools, transportation systems, safety officers, roads and parks; and many other benefits that can everyone who lives in the U.S. can access and experience.
Some common-good programs widely known in the Upper Valley are town food pantries; fire, EMT and wilderness rescue volunteers; organizations like Willing Hands and the Haven; town public service groups; even the Valley News’s free and open Forum for letters to the editor.
Common goods beyond our corner of the country include federal, state and municipal laws and regulations that support a code of conduct for all citizens, as well as between our government and “we the people.” When new legislation is proposed, its terms get a close examination by lawmakers and in public hearings to determine whether it will serve the common good.
Furthermore, laws and regulations that any seriously affected community considers unjust, unfair, or benefitting only a minority may be changed, amended or repealed—again, after more public hearings and majority approvals by Congress.
A clear example of important and effective change via legislation is the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which came about after massive demonstrations in the U.S. convinced our House and Senate that a very large majority of Americans were demanding more protective civil rights laws.
It seems quite simple to tell the difference between the common good (who benefits?) and public harm (who will be hurt?). By the same measure, it’s difficult to identify any initiatives supported by President Trump and his appointees that benefit non-wealthy, “regular folks” in this country.
Some examples: Clawing back humanitarian funds approved by Congress; cutting or even ending government fiscal support for women’s and children’s health programs and Planned Parenthood; tougher immigration and asylum rules; stricter work requirements for both Medicaid and food stamps; reducing U.S. support for foreign aid, Voice of America, and key United Nations agencies; eliminating the Head Start program for poor children, as well as child welfare, juvenile justice and youth care systems; and 50% staff cuts in the Education Department’s civil rights division. All of these cuts target the have-nots among us.
On the other hand, Trump and the GOP consistently direct new wealth to those who hardly need it. Both rounds of his tax cuts have reduced the tax burden on the rich and increased it on you and me. Trump and his bare majority in Congress, plus his Supreme Court supermajority, are implementing many of the Heritage Foundation’s radical “Project 2025” proposals. All these new executive fiats go against the common good and in fact are already causing wide harm within the U.S. public.
For example, Trump’s executive orders have slashed the staffs and Congressionally approved budgets for the National Weather Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that, predictably, increased the devastation of property and loss of human life from the catastrophic flooding in Texas.
Huge layoffs at the IRS, on the other hand, directly benefit the tiny number of wealthiest Americans who should pay their fair share of taxes — including President Trump. The harm is to tens of thousands of government employees and to the honest and small taxpayers among us, while large numbers of underpayers escape examination.
The recent Rescission Act’s decimation of funding for public radio and television, FEMA’s rejection of Maryland’s request for flood relief, and many, many more actions are harming to the well-being of huge numbers of the public here and abroad.
If the measure of a country is how it treats its vulnerable residents who need our help, then the U.S. is clearly failing our humanitarian responsibilities.
What we as a country say is not nearly as important as what we do. Our Statue of Liberty’s poem in the New York harbor says our country welcomes all, but supporting all—including the tired, poor, huddled, homeless masses—is what honoring the common good is really all about.
The GOP needs to wake up, stop saying “Yes” to everything Trump, and start working for America’s common good.