This was the week in which GOP lawmakers suffered a beating at the ballot box, the government shutdown became the most extended in US history, and countless individuals throughout the nation, including three million residents in the Sunshine State, experienced their nutrition assistance slashed.
Yet, in the contrasting world of Miami, where admission passes to an overwhelmingly conservative business conference fronted by Donald Trump cost up to $1,990, and billionaires from the Gulf kingdom rubbed shoulders with similarly wealthy US magnates such as Jeff Bezos and the hedge fund manager, those events created barely a ripple.
Conversely, in a gesture that seemed almost to highlight the widening divide between the city’s affluent and have-nots, organizers of the corporate summit prepared a small perk for participants: a $50 gift card to use on meals to support themselves while they paid attention to their leader praise himself for a era of prosperity he said his “economic miracle” had delivered.
Advocates say the move, along with the lavish extravagance of the conference itself, was an ill-timed insult to more than a 500,000 Miami-Dade county inhabitants who just saw their own ability to buy basic food items for their families kiboshed by the gutting of the federal food stamp program.
“There’s just a massive cognitive dissonance between what ordinary citizens are experiencing, and the elite,” stated Larry Hannan, spokesperson of a civic coalition, a alliance of over a hundred non-aligned, democracy-focused and community involvement organizations.
“Jeff Bezos hardly requires a $50 food card. But we observed that with the 1920s-inspired gala last week. They just can’t seem to stop doing things that are strikingly disconnected.
“We’ve been through government closures before, and while clearly the White House bubble is always fairly insane, leaders are usually astute enough, they generally know not to flaunt this type of stuff. But this government does not appear concerned.”
The president’s hour-long address on the event's second day had the tone of a political rally, with familiar criticisms for old political foes such as the Senate minority leader and the West Coast leader, and a fresh target: the recently voted-in democratic socialist mayor of New York.
The former president discussed his financial policies, and praised a array of presenters from the realms of government, athletics and commerce that populated the multi-day agenda, created largely by the local official to highlight south Florida and its investment opportunities.
Lionel Messi, the Argentina football icon and World Cup winner, provided celebrity glitz from the athletic world, along with tennis champions Rafael Nadal and the American athlete. A discussion between the city leader and the Venezuelan opposition leader, the political figure who last month won the prestigious award, was well received on day one.
Yet in general it was a notable and unmistakably partisan event with a field of Trump sycophants on the stage, enthusiastically applauded by a crowd of predominantly younger and affluent supporters of the leader in the audience, some blending business suits with his signature red Make America Great Again (Maga) caps.
How else to explain the attendance of the conservative South American leader, the nation whose shaky economy the US helped shore up last month with a $20bn lifeline? Or that of Kingdom representatives the fund chief, head of its massive sovereign wealth fund, and the ambassador, Riyadh’s diplomatic envoy, promoting their nation as ripe for investment while the Trump family’s business connections and influence there face greater scrutiny?
Then there was the leader of world soccer’s governing body, suggesting that Trump is in line for the group's inaugural award, a controversial honor that commentators see created specifically for the president as compensation for his prize rejection.
Other speakers, such as the chief executive of JP Morgan; the founder of the co-working firm; and the hedge-fund manager, have all previously praised, worked with or voted for the former president, offering more than a suggestion of a politically skewed roster.
The Miami mayor, unsurprisingly, saw it differently.
“Our aim was it to be a sort of a diverse representation from various sectors, right?” he explained to reporters.
“We convened. We said, ‘Hey, what are the prominent figures?’ Individuals from varied origins, different ethnicities, all genders … athletics, business, government, technology, things that touch everyone’s lives.”
He highlighted conversations of upcoming, money-spinning major occasions in Miami, including the F1 race, next year’s G20 economic summit at a leisure property, and matches during the soccer tournament, which he called “a historic moment”.
“The intention is that Miamians are transformed by the event,” the mayor said. “We want them to leave believing, ‘I can be on that stage.’”
The advocates of the civic group, however, contend numerous locals are concentrating right now on other issues, especially soaring real estate and grocery prices. The state's Republican governor declined a call from the group and others to declare an emergency over food assistance and tap state reserves to fund immediate food distribution.
“Any social studies instructor would tell you it’s his responsibility to look after the people of Florida, and he’s doing the exact opposite,” the advocate said, noting the juxtaposition of a conference of ultra-wealthy individuals taking place in the identical region in which nearly 25% of households depend on Snap benefits to get by.
“There just seems to be this disconnection at the top. I don’t think the answer is choosing a Democrat or electing a Republican, I just think we have to have greater compassion for individuals who are facing difficulties in this state.”
Compassion was in limited quantity in Miami from Trump, a president not known for ever taking responsibility during a crisis.
“Opposition lawmakers are resulting in countless of citizens who depend on nutritional aid to go without benefits,” he said, attributing fault to the out-of-office political group for the government shutdown.
“I just want to have a nation that’s prosperous once more. Is that acceptable?”
