President Donald Trump is turning up the heat on the Senate to pass the Sunshine Protection Act "ASAP," arguing that Americans are tired of fiddling with their clocks twice a year and that permanent daylight saving time would be a win for safety, health, and the economy.
Trump Pushes Senate to Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent, But Sleep Experts Say He's Got It Backwards
MarketDash
President Trump urges the Senate to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, citing safety and economic benefits, while sleep experts argue for permanent standard time instead.
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Trump's Push to End the Clock Shuffle
"People are sick and tired of having to change their clocks twice a year," Trump wrote Tuesday on Truth Social. "It is foolish, inconvenient and, in some cases, very costly." He urged Republican senators to drop their holds and added, "Leave it as it is now, and never change again."
The push comes after the House passed the bill on July 14 with a solid 308-117 vote. The measure would keep daylight saving time year-round for most Americans, scrapping the November switch back to standard time. But despite the bipartisan support in the House, the Senate is a different beast, and the bill's fate there is far from certain.
Trump's argument is that an extra hour of evening sunlight could cut down on robberies, murders, and traffic crashes, make kids' trips home safer, and give a boost to restaurants, retail, tourism, and sports. He also tied the clock changes to anxiety, cardiac problems, strokes, and seasonal depression.
The Health Debate: Daylight Saving vs. Standard Time
There's no denying that the spring-forward transition is rough. Research links the abrupt shift to sleep disruption and a spike in health and traffic risks. But here's the twist: the American Academy of Sleep Medicine is all for permanent standard time, not permanent daylight saving time. Why? Because morning light is what keeps our circadian rhythms in check, and standard time delivers that better.
That's the crux of the debate. Supporters of daylight saving time love the later sunsets and the commercial perks. Critics, though, warn about darker winter mornings, especially in northern states and the western edges of time zones. This isn't uncharted territory either. The U.S. tried year-round daylight saving time back in the 1970s during the energy crisis, but Congress pulled the plug early after people complained about those gloomy mornings.
States Aren't Waiting, and Opposition Is Growing
While Washington dithers, state legislatures have been busy. Nineteen states have already passed measures to support permanent daylight saving time if Congress gives the green light, and others are mulling permanent standard time. Hawaii and most of Arizona don't even bother with the seasonal clock change.
Public sentiment seems to back the idea of ending the switch, but not necessarily in the direction Trump wants. An AP-NORC survey found that only 12% of Americans want to keep the current twice-yearly system. Forty-seven percent are against it, and 40% don't have an opinion either way.
Trump has previously called the proposal a "popular, common-sense reform." Whether the Senate agrees remains to be seen.
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