Carlo Barbieri
Even before Donald Trump was elected president in November of 2016, many election watchers, visceral TV and print media commentators, liberal talking heads and lots of people on the street predicted dire consequences if the billionaire businessman from New York were to become the nation’s 45th chief executive.
As we kick off 2018, we can look back at 2017 with a certain sense of smugness and say: “It didn’t happen.” The nation is far better off today than it was on Jan. 19, 2017 – the day when the eight-year presidency of Barack Obama concluded.
Much, perhaps most, of those good vibes came directly from Trump, his decisive manner, his take-no-prisoners attitude and willingness to negotiate with friend and foe.
We’re not saying Trump did everything right, nor did he accomplish everything he promised during the campaign. But, folks, this was only year 1 of what will be at least a four-year tenure – perhaps eight years. He racked up more good stuff in a single year than previous chief executives did in their first 12 months toiling in the Oval Office.
With the recent passage of the GOP tax reform bill, the Trump administration has scored 81 major achievements in its first year, according to figures compiled and released by the White House.
In truth, Trump made good on many of his campaign vows – such as providing significant tax cuts, boosting U.S. energy production and restoring respect for the United States. He continues to call for bipartisan support to hammer out a viable immigration plan and erect a wall along the southern border of the United States to keep illegals out.
Along the way, Trump even popped the air out of Obamacare by ending the mandate that everyone have health insurance or face a tax – or a fine, call it what you will.
This unofficial White House list of completed tasks helps to counter the impression in the mainstream media and among congressional Democrats that other than the approval of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and passage of the tax reform bill, Trump did practically nothing in office.
Let’s consider some of his accomplishments in the area of the economy and elimination of job-stomping regulations. Trump was responsible for the following:
- Passage of the tax reform bill providing $5.5 billion in cuts and repealing the Obamacare insurance mandate.
- Increase of the GDP above 3 percent.
- Creation of 1.7 million new jobs, cutting unemployment to 4.1 percent.
- Boost in the Dow Jones to record highs.
- A rebound in economic confidence to a 17-year high.
- A new executive order to boost apprenticeships.
- A move to boost computer sciences in Education Department programs.
- Prioritizing women-owned businesses for some $500 million in SBA loans.
Trump also:
- Signed an executive order demanding that two regulations be eliminated for every new one created. He beat that, big-time, and cut 16 rules and regulations for every one created, saving $8.1 billion.
- Signed 15 congressional regulatory cuts.
- Withdrew from the Obama-era Paris Climate Agreement, ending the threat of environmental regulations.
- Signed an executive order cutting the time for infrastructure permit approvals.
- Eliminated an Obama rule on streams that Trump felt unfairly targeted the coal industry.
In the area of fair trade, Trump:
- Made good on his campaign promise to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
- Opened up the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for talks to better the deal for the U.S.
- Worked to bring companies back to the U.S., and companies like Toyota, Mazda, Broadcom Limited and Foxconn announced plans to open U.S. plants.
- Worked to promote the sale of U.S products abroad.
- Made enforcement of U.S. trade laws, especially those that involve national security, a priority.
- Ended Obama’s deal with Cuba.
By now, you should have noticed that media such as NBC, CBS, ABC, MSNBC and CNN never mention all the things Trump has accomplished, making him look like he’s not doing anything. But if you do some research or tune in to Fox News, you can see that he has completed more successful tasks than any other president in the shortest period of time.
Next week, in his column, I’ll discuss some of Trump’s other deeds in areas such as energy dominance, homeland and community protection and help for veterans.
Part 1 of 2