Believe us now?

Since the moment Donald Trump declared his candidacy for president, we at the CN&R have taken nothing he’s stated at face value. His utterances—whether serious or scandalous, policy or profanity—defy credulity and often rise to the level of outright delusion.

Never mind that the GOP has proven consistently not to act in the best interest of anyone other than the richest Americans; Trump said he would “drain the swamp” in the nation’s capital and clamp down on Wall Street because bankers and financiers were “getting away with murder.” He got elected, bolstered by supporters in rural regions such as the North State.

Despite a mountain of setbacks that would have crippled or toppled other administrations, he retains support. The CN&R gets letters defending him; our congressman, Doug LaMalfa, follows him fervently, like other Republican lemmings. “Fake news!” “Alternative facts!” The power of belief is strong.

But now, with so-called tax reform from the GOP, might some of his followers finally see through the ruse?

This is the bill that Republican senators couldn’t push through fast enough—voting literally in the wee morning hours last Saturday (Dec. 2). Many of the same legislators who lambasted Obamacare as a lengthy bill they didn’t have time to read before voting on have no problem with this bill that passed with last-minute, handwritten addenda.

The Congressional Budget Office, which is nonpartisan, determined that the Senate plan would hit people with annual incomes under $30,000 the hardest and first, then those at $40,000 or less, then those under $75,000. Best off: those making six and seven figures.

Stumping for the bill, Trump told a rally: “This is going to cost me a fortune, this thing, believe me, believe me.”

Believe him? Believe us: This is going to cost you—big time.