The strange greatness of Donald Trump

[Leroy N. Soetoro]

https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/442209-the-strange-greatness-of-
donald-trump

With the Democrats still trying to throw a Hail-Mueller Pass with time out
on the scoreboard and with the economy humming, it’s time to confront the
central issue: “Has Donald Trump been an awful, OK, or great president?”

The president, unquestionably, is often appalling in his style. His self-
aggrandizing, dreadful treatment of opponents and subordinates, public
embrace of homicidal dictators, and rambling speaking style draw a
portrait of a leader embarrassing to many Americans. He has been vexing to
all sides in Washington. Special counsel Robert Mueller added to this
picture in his report on the Russia investigation.

And yet, over his first two years, he has enjoyed remarkable political,
diplomatic, policy and leadership success. I personally don’t care for his
style of management and governance, but I think there is a case to be made
that he has been a great president.

When making the case for Trump, you must start in a defensive hole.

For example, “immoral” often is a tag hung on him. But his proclivities,
especially in regard to women, pale in comparison to Jack Kennedy and Bill
Clinton, who reportedly turned the White House into a virtual bordello.
There is little hint at all of that with the Trump presidency. Similarly,
his “immoral” treatment of undocumented immigrants differs little from his
predecessors. Finally, he hasn’t blundered into an unnecessary shooting
war, which many would find immoral.

In the field of “corruption,” he has been thoroughly investigated and
there is nothing to match the smarmy signs of pay-to-play kickbacks
alleged in the Clinton State Department.

In the field of “dictatorship,” it’s hard to argue that he has suppressed
the free press or public criticism, which has been running wild. He
certainly couldn’t match the apparent political weaponization of the IRS,
the FBI, the CIA and the Justice Department under Barack Obama or match
the numerous contempt of Congress charges against many of those officials.
To the contrary, Trump has exerted far less of a direct influence over his
agency leaders, who often publicly defy him.

“White nationalist”? Nope. There is every indication that he is trying to
be president for all the people. His trade policies are designed to
benefit middle class, predominantly union, workers. If anything, they
undercut big business off-shoring strategies. In addition, the economic
and employment data suggest that he has provided more jobs and income
opportunity to African Americans, Hispanics and women than any president
over the past 40 years. (The argument that the economic trends are an
extension of Obama policies is specious — Obama “bought” his results by
eroding the financial stability of the country with a Fed-driven, free
money, Ponzi scheme. Trump’s results are real and lasting, based on
realistic interest rates, investment and private-sector jobs, the real
bases for sustained growth.)

Trump’s awkward attempt to equate the behavior of the white nationalist
thugs who precipitated the Charlottesville carnage with the Antifa thugs
who came prepared to inflict violence of their own was off the mark, but
it is certainly not a strong case for hanging a “racist” or “white
nationalist” label on him — “clumsy” is far more accurate. The left’s
attempt to conflate his “nationalism” in his protectionist trade policies
with racist “white nationalism” is dishonest and twisted logic.

He is divisive. But so is the unprecedented rejection of the 2016 election
by the congressional Democrats and the Rise and Resist movement and the
endless criticism from the media. Trump has shown remarkable personal
strength in standing up to relentless attacks.

Moving from the defensive to the positive side of the balance sheet,
despite all of the attacks and resistance, Trump has accomplished more in
two years than his four immediate predecessors accomplished in four to
eight years.

The economy is in the best shape in modern history. New and better trade
agreements have been developed with the major economies. Our defense is
much stronger, including a stronger and better funded NATO. Our principal
adversaries — Russia, China, Iran, North Korea — are more off-balance than
they have been in decades. Each of them is tough and ruthless, but they
see in Trump someone who understands them and is equally tough in
defending his country. And, with the collapse of ObamaCare, Trump has a
huge opportunity to advance an effective, market-based approach to
American health care coverage and cost control to help everyone.

Belying the hysteria of the left, all Americans are moving forward; these
are not “sad times,” and there is no “crisis.”

This raises the central question to be framed in the next election: What
should we demand of our president? If we’re looking for dignity, manners,
grace and orderliness, Trump is vulnerable. If we’re looking for strong
leadership to provide real opportunity for economic advancement for all
Americans and a strong defense of America and its interests, then Trump
has a claim to greatness over his current opponents and his predecessors.

The weak field of Democrats presents voters with a virtual Hobson’s
choice. It will be interesting to see how they choose.

Grady Means is a writer and former corporate strategy consultant. He
served in the White House as a policy assistant to Nelson Rockefeller and
as a staff economist for Secretary Elliott Richardson of the U.S.
Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Follow him on Twitter
@GradyMeans.



--
No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.

Donald J. Trump, 304 electoral votes to 227, defeated compulsive liar in
denial Hillary Rodham Clinton on December 19th, 2016. The clown car
parade of the democrat party ran out of gas and got run over by a Trump
truck.

Congratulations President Trump. Thank you for cleaning up the disaster
of the Obama presidency.

The Obama-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)
approved Uranium One in fall 2010. With a little luck, we'll see
compulsive liar Hillary Clinton in jail before she dies.

Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp.

Obama increased total debt from $10 trillion to $20 trillion in the eight
years he was in office, and sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood queer
liberal democrat donors.