Trump: the First Six Months

 

I do not like to know about the private lives of movie stars whose films I so admire. Nor am I interested in the private lives of great athletes and entertainers no matter how talented they are at their chosen professions. I like to watch them perform, and marvel at what they achieve, but that's it. 

 

I have come to believe that it is the same with politicians and other leaders. They should be judged not on their private lives or past behavior but on what they actually achieve or fail to achieve in office. Perhaps a good person can be a better President than a bad one, but it is debatable, and I will put that discussion off for another day. For now, I would just like to consider what President Trump has achieved in in the first six months of his current term.

 

In foreign affairs his administration has had one success after another. After the bombing of the Iranian nuclear facilities, the President brokered a cease fire in the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. Later, he brokered a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. About the same time, he brokered a cease-fire between Rwanda and Congo, two warring African nations. Leaders of both countries signed the deal in the Oval office. Earlier, President Trump intervened to prevent a war between India and Pakistan, two nuclear powers.

 

Critics may claim that these deals will not last, or that they are flawed, but no one can deny that for now the killing has largely stopped in these troubled areas. Nevertheless, Trump haters cannot give him credit for anything. It is as if they would have preferred these negotiations to have failed and the killing to have gone on rather than give Trump an ounce of credit.

 

It is true that the President has so far failed to achieve his stated goal of peace in Ukraine where the killing continues on both sides. But no one can accuse him of not trying to end the conflict. 

 

At home the President’s achievements have been almost as remarkable. The passage of the Big Beautiful Budget bill through Congress, despite unanimous Democratic opposition, allowed for the continuance of the very successful tax reforms of his first administration. The Tax reform act of 2017 proved to be a model of common sense and simplicity. It bolstered the economy and made the tax code fairer especially for those with incomes below $100,000, the great majority of the population. 

 

Even the lowering of tax rates on corporations was a matter of fairness. Why should American corporations be taxed at higher rates than corporations in other countries? Why were American corporations put at such a disadvantage that they had to build factories and transfer jobs overseas to compete? In addition, higher corporate rates forced these companies to keep their profits overseas to avoid excessive double taxation. 

 

As mentioned in a previous post, the 2017 tax reform did not mean that Federal revenues declined. On the contrary, lowering tax rates increased Federal revenues dramatically, something that allowed the Biden administration to break spending records. 

 

It remains to be seen if the Budget bill will have the same effects as the reforms of the first Trump administration. Back then, salaries and real wages for all people were at record highs, and there was virtually no inflation to cruelly wipe away these gains. So far in his second administration, the border has been effectively closed, inflation is down despite tariff fears, and the country is on the road to energy independence. Remember how low gas prices were at the pump during the first Trump administration. We seem to be there again.

 

Nothing will stop “no Trumpers” from hating the President. They have seemingly been inoculated from giving the President one iota of credit for anything. Even retired baby boomers at my local Senior center cannot give him any credit for an increase in the standard deduction that effectively makes their Social Security benefit tax free.

 

 ###