By Shane Seekamp ’21
Contributor
The Trump Presidency will go down in American history as one that stands all by itself when compared to those of previous and future administrations.
For President Trump, this is a success in and of itself because he proudly differentiated himself from his more calculated and traditional political opponents. The trend continues as he occupies the Oval Office.
One year in, this is much to the disapproval of the modern day political establishment and many Democrats; who seem far more interested in halting the “Make America Great Again” agenda than working for the benefit of their constituents when it comes to issues such as immigration, national security, unemployment, and more.
To be very upfront, this country desperately needs an impenetrable border, a lethal military and nuclear arsenal, an economy that is not stagnated by useless regulations and burdens, and an immediate halt to political correctness (PC).
The PC culture in this country has done nothing to make anything actually correct and has contributed to our youth becoming oblivious and delusional.
On the policy front, I believe President Trump has largely succeeded in trying to accomplish the goals described above. On the domestic front, President Trump was very efficient in putting an effective, constitutional originalist on the bench of the Supreme Court. The less activists on the Supreme Court, the better.
Economically, the current unemployment rate is 4.1%, the lowest it has been in seventeen years.
According to Forbes, the number of manufacturing jobs has increased significantly compared to their numbers in 2015 and 2016.
Forbes also reported, a 2.96% increase in the prices of homes largely due to low interest rates and rising employment. GDP growth is 2.3% and the S&P 500 has increased more than 20% in the last year. Put together, this paints a picture of a very stable economic situation.
On a different note, border arrests of illegal immigrants are at a forty-six year low.
NPR reported that acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Tom Homan, has cited this reversal as the result of the border being “…under better control than it has been in 45 years.”
In the perilous security atmosphere of the modern era, this is definately to the benefit of US citizens.
On the foreign policy front, there have also been many successes. The Israeli embassy has been moved to its rightful place in Jerusalem, a sign of deepening ties with our democratic ally, Israel, in the vulnerable region of the Middle East.
The administration has also correctly worked to destabilize and delegitimize the radical and dangerous regime emanating out of Tehran, which breeds instability like a mass contagion, all the way from Iran to Iraq to Lebanon to Latin America.
One of Trump’s first major military orders was against Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, who used sarin gas, a weapon of mass destruction, against his own citizens.
President Trump showed the world what he thought of that, to the tune of 59 beautiful Tomahawk missiles against the regime.
Furthermore, President Trump successfully oversaw the installation of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in South Korea as a deterrent force against the rogue government of Kim Jong-Un in North Korea.
The United States has also worked with regional allies in South Korea and Japan to conduct military exercises and B-2 stealth bomber missions over the Korean Peninsula as a way to warn the North Korean government of their own demise should they try to launch a nuclear war against the United States.
It is also important to mention that Defense Secretary James Mattis, a widely respected four star Marine general, has outlined in a new national security strategy that China and Russia will be the centerpiece of a new strategic posture that aims to check each countries growing influence in their spheres of the world.
This is a critical step to checking two great puppet masters of conflict, like China in North Korea and the South China Sea, Russia in Ukraine, Syria, and Afghanistan, that seem bent on damaging Western influence.
At the end of the day, Donald Trump has many flaws, as do we all. One area where he certainly has room for improvement is when it comes to uniting the country and acting as a role model for our young people.
But when speaking of his governmental accomplishes, it is only fair that we give credit where credit is due. As his presidency continues, we should all be rooting for him to succeed as the chief executive, commander, and diplomat of these wonderful United States of America.
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