Trump's first 100 days: President's top accomplishments
Author of 'The Trump Factor' Brad Thomas weighs in
Here’s how arbitrary and meaningless the media-imposed deadline of “The first 100 days” is:
On President George W. Bush’s 100th day in office, pundits were talking tax cuts, health care, trade and nursing home reform. Surely his success on these would define his presidency. His 234th day in office was 9/11.
All presidents start out with a host of well-laid plans, but there’s a big difference between running for office and assuming the boss’s chair.
Trump has faced numerous pop-up storms, from unhinged obstructionism to an unhinged Kim Jong Un.
Presidents are judged by history largely by how they deal with such curveballs: did they meet them or duck and “lead from behind”? Judging a presidency by its first 100 days is like trying to predict your child’s future success from his or her first 100 days.
Trump didn’t get the usual honeymoon. Opponents cried “impeachment” before he even took office. Democrats and the media (but I repeat myself) and even some Republicans launched a 24/7 onslaught of attacks, filibusters, denials of legitimacy, lawsuits and other blocking tactics (they’re the ones who’ve erected a wall) while mocking him for not accomplishing more. But despite an unprecedented refusal by some to accept the election results – a “direct threat to democracy,” as Hillary put it – Trump can claim some impressive wins.
A number of manufacturers have announced expansions in the US. Confidence in the economy is sharply up. As I write this, the Dow is near 21,000 and the NASDAQ topped 6,000 for the first time. CNBC reports that spring housing reflects the “strongest seller’s market ever.”
The antics of the left since November have shown us the massive cannonball we dodged. Simply by occupying the office, refusing to be intimidated, and advancing the agenda he promised, he caused the "other side" to show itself for what it is: irrational, arrogant, hysterical, hateful, sometimes even violent, and unable to relinquish control over the most basic American liberties.
Illegal border crossings have plummeted just because would-be violators know that our laws will be enforced.
Allies trust us again, enemies fear us, and ISIS understands that, as Mike Pence put it so well, the era of “strategic patience” (i.e., fiddling as our enemies grow stronger and more aggressive) is over.
It may even prove fortunate that Obama ruled by executive orders because Trump can repair much of that damage without Congress, like rolling back tens of billions of dollars in regulations. To quote one-time Bill Clinton aide Paul Begala: “Stroke of the pen, law of the land. Kinda cool.” But what a Democrat did that way, a Republican can undo. Even cooler.
Most of us Trump voters saw this as our last chance to stop the march of “progressivism” before the America we love became unrecognizable. We knew with Hillary appointing judges who’d legislate from the bench without regard for the Constitution or the will of the people, we could kiss our rights and freedoms goodbye. The first 100 days of Trump's presidency have made it crystal clear that, yes, we were right to stand up and prevent that. Thank God in heaven we did!
And it’s not just because Trump picked Justice Gorsuch, though for many of us, that alone justifies our vote.
The antics of the left since November have shown us the massive cannonball we dodged. Simply by occupying the office, refusing to be intimidated, and advancing the agenda he promised, he caused the "other side" to show itself for what it is: irrational, arrogant, hysterical, hateful, sometimes even violent, and unable to relinquish control over the most basic American liberties. Who better to stand up to that and for the interests of America than a master negotiator with the hide of a rhinoceros?
Perhaps Trump came along at this moment in history because he HAD to, before we lost it all.
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