VIEW from behind the plow

An old axiom goes: “It’s lonely at the top.” Having the final word would be the worst part of being president. The head guy (or gal) is responsible for the whole shebang, including pulling the trigger on a truly bad man. We have no way of knowing if President Trump had qualms about giving the order to smoke the Iranian QUDS leader recently. No matter how badly the terrorist leader needed killing, ordering his death would cause most people misgivings. It would be worse than a soldier killing an enemy fi ghter in a war; the soldier would be following orders. But a president has to give those kind of orders. It was widely reported President Harry Truman had a sign on his desk reading: “The buck stops here.” That’s why the president draws the big bucks (even if he gives his salary to charity as President Trump is reported to do). President Trump obviously doesn’t like war. He has committed to withdrawing U.S. forces from the unending Middle East fighting, thereby saving no telling how many American lives. He has already followed through on many more of his campaign pledges than any president in our memory. President’s Promises Fulfi lled What campaign pledges has he followed through on?

• Tax cuts: Delivered. They were approved in December 2017 and have resulted in a major economic boom, caused at least partially by Americans getting to keep more of the money they earn. Employment is up sharply resulting in lowest unemployment numbers ever, especially for black Americans.

• Ending Paris Accord: Promise kept. The BBC explained it this way: Before: As a candidate, Mr Trump derided climate change as a hoax concocted by China, and the regulations of Paris as stifling to American growth. After: The president quit the Paris deal. It will take a few years but this is unequivocally a promise kept.

• Supreme Court nominees: Delivered. Before: “I am looking for judges and have actually picked 20 of them. They’ll respect the Second Amendment and what it stands for and what it represents.” After: He vowed to appoint a conservative justice and he has appointed two – Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

• Bombing ISIS. Promise kept. Before: During a speech in Iowa in November 2015, Trump warned that he would... bomb the Islamic State group into obliteration. After: The president dropped the biggest non-nuclear bomb in the U.S. arsenal on an IS-stronghold in Afghanistan. He also takes credit for driving IS out of parts of Iraq and Syria, saying the group has been “largely defeated.” (And this was before the drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani)

• Bringing troops home; check. BBC puts it this way: In September 2017, the Trump administration announced the deployment of 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. Trump said his approach would be based on conditions on the ground. In Syria, the U.S. had led a coalition against IS along with Syrian Kurdish and Arab fighters, with around 2,000 troops on the ground. By December 2018, Mr Trump ordered the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Syria. Days later, U.S. media reported the president planned to halve US forces in Afghanistan from 14,000 to 7,000. The plans prompted warnings from senior Republicans and foreign powers that it could help the resurgence of IS. In Afghanistan, experts cautioned a US withdrawal would be a propaganda victory for the Taliban. After Mr Trump’s decision, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and special envoy to the coalition against IS Brett McGurk both resigned.

• Trade deals. Partially delivered. Trump followed through in his first few days on his pledge to withdraw from the Trans Pacifi c Partnership (TPP). He later said he would consider re-joining the TPP if he got a better deal. On 30 November, after protracted negotiations, the U.S., Canada and Mexico signed the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement which was designed to replace Nafta, although it still requires congressional approval. Additionally, he signed a partial trade deal with China a week ago. Oklahoma Sen Jim Inhofe had this to say about the China trade deal: “President Trump is the first modern president to take China seriously — he has made this clear yet again with the signing of today’s trade deal. He understands that for too long, our trade relationship with China has been fl awed and that we need real and permanent change in order to have any long-term stability. “His signing of this phase one deal today will result in a $200 billion increase of U.S. exports to China over the next two years. This is nearly double our 2017 exports to China – a win not only for our farmers and ranchers, but also for our manufacturing, energy and financial services industries. President Trump’s negotiating style brings real results to Oklahoma.”

• Ban on Muslims; partially delivered

As president, he introduced two travel bans which become ensnarled in the courts but the third had more luck. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled President Trump’s ban on six mainly Muslim countries can go into full effect, pending legal challenges.

Before: President Trump said in September 2016 that he would reverse the deal President Barack Obama had struck to reopen diplomatic relations and improve trade.

After: As president, he told an audience in Miami that he was “cancelling the Obama administration’s one-sided deal.” But in reality, he has only rolled back certain parts, placing restrictions on travel and business.

• Obamacare repeal; partially delivered

Before: One of President Trump’s trademark rally pledges was to repeal and replace Obamacare – his predecessor’s attempt to extend healthcare to the estimated 15 percent of the country who are not covered.

It is widely hated by Republicans, who say the law imposes too many costs on business, with many describing it as a “job killer” and decrying the reforms – officially the Affordable Care Act – as an unwarranted intrusion into the affairs of private businesses and individuals.

After: While Republicans have been unable to pass a repeal or reform bill, the Trump administration has managed to dismantle parts of the law - enrollment periods have been shortened, some subsidies have been axed, and the fine for people who did not purchase health insurance has been eliminated as part of the tax plan.

And in December 2018, a federal judge in Texas ruled that repealing this penalty, an “essential” part of the law, meant the entirety of Obamacare is therefore unconstitutional.

The law, however, remains in place as an appeal heads to the U.S. Supreme Court.

President Trump has achieved a great deal in his push to drain the swamp despite constant opposition from the ruling class in the nation’s capital.

His achievements are amazing considering the opposition from committed leftists and their proxies in the what is now often seen as the corporate (fake) media.