Yesterday was the first anniversary of the inauguration of
Donald J. Trump as President of the United States. His performance has been mixed, with some
significant accomplishments and mostly minor ones, together with several harmful,
non-conservative policies, as well as misbehavior with words and deeds that far
outweigh the benefits of his administration and cause major damage to America, the
Republican Party and the conservative movement.
Trump’s
major accomplishments have been the appointment of conservative judges and tax
reform, the only major legislation he has signed into law, but even it was
modest in its scope and of mixed benefit and harm. He has continued the War on Terrorism
policies of his predecessors, which have contributed to the prevention of any
September 11-scale attack, among other standard foreign policies. Overall, Trump’s beneficial policies are the
sort any other Republican president might have accomplished, without all of his
harmful policies and actions. Some of
his actions have been uniquely negative, both for a GOP president or any
American president. They include abuses of the office, some of which are
transforming the presidency into something constitutionally unrecognizable or
are policies that are causing possibly irreparable harm both in terms of US
standing in the world and its role as the leader of the free world. Scandal, profiting from the presidency, white
nationalism, authoritarianism and hostile foreign influence have been the
hallmarks of the Trump Administration.
On the positive side of Trump’s
defense and foreign policy, in addition to continuing the War on Terrorism,
Trump launched a missile strike on Syria’s Bashar Assad regime for its
use of chemical weapons. The Trump
Administration has continued the defense of freedom of the seas in South China Sea and prohibited federal use of a certain
Russian anti-virus software that was a portal for espionage. Economic sanctions or travel restrictions have
been imposed on the rogue regimes of Iran,
Venezuela, Cuba, Russia
and North Korea and military
aid cut off to Burma.
On the
positive side of Trump’s domestic policies, in addition to the judicial
appointments, are some minor pro-life regulations, deregulation, the extension
of a program for private health care for veterans and the management reform of
the Veterans Administration. The tax
reform legislation eliminated the individual mandate for health insurance of
the federalization of health insurance known as “Obamacare,” cut business taxes
and lowered many individual taxes by increasing the standard deduction in place
of itemized deductions, thus simplifying the tax code, although some
individuals’ taxes will be increased. But
it did not simplify the tax code in terms of reducing the number of brackets,
nor did it achieve fairness in regard to the disparity between the lack of
taxation of income in the form of employer-provided health insurance versus the
purchase of health insurance with after-tax dollars for those whose employers
do not provide health insurance. The tax
reform came at a price of a large increase in the federal debt.
On the negative side of the Trump
Administration, in terms of defense and foreign policy, there has been a
pattern of poor security, in terms of the lack of proper clearances for staff
and even the hiring of a foreign agent as National Security Advisor, as well as
the poor security at Trump’s Florida resort where he conducts official
business, as well as intelligence leaks, including by Trump himself, including
to the Russians. Trump’s pro-Russian
policies are evident in his withdrawal of support for non-Islamist Syrian rebels
fighting Russia’s ally, his refusal to criticize or punish the Russian
Federation for election interference and his failure to defend against further
Russian election interference, his lack of criticism of other Russian
transgressions around the world, his repetition of Russian propaganda and disinformation
and his delay of congressional passage of the aforementioned additional sanctions
on Russia, which he signed only in the face of near-unanimous support in
Congress, and of their implementation.
Trump had attempted to lift other Russian sanctions. His support of Russia’s authoritarian leader
Vladimir Putin, the ex-Soviet intelligence officer, occurs in the context of
Russian overt and covert support on behalf of Trump’s election, and is part of
a pattern of anti-American rhetoric, such as making a false moral equivalence
between the US and despotic regimes that commit atrocities, and support for
foreign authoritarians generally, as well as un-American authoritarian rhetoric
and domestic policies, such as his undermining of judicial independence, the
rule of law and the freedom of the press.
Disturbing examples of Trump’s support for foreign authoritarians were
his congratulation of the Turkish president for his victory in a constitutional
referendum, not conducted in the context of freedom, which granted the “Sultan”
even more authoritarian powers, and supposedly “pro-life” Trump’s praise of the
Filipino President’s open policy of encouraging murder. Between the pro-Russian and authoritarian
rhetoric and policies, Trump has ceded American leadership of the free world by
undermining the confidence of US allies, while dispiriting freedom-lovers
around the world who look to America as a beacon of liberty.
On the negative side on trade,
Trump withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, thereby missing
the opportunity to lower tariffs (taxes), and thereby increase freedom, which
ceded economic leadership in the region to Communist China. He has also launched a trade war by
increasing tariffs on imports from friendly foreign states. These policies make foreign states less
likely to engage in trade negotiations with the US, which they now regard as an
unreliable partner.
On the negative side on travel and
immigration, the Trump Administration’s expansive travel bans, abuses of the
rights of refugees, asylum seekers, and even valid visa-holders, permanent
residents and US citizens have led to a decrease in travel by foreigners to the
US. His mass deportations, which include
non-criminals, are causing the breakup of families. These policies are constitutionally suspect
and are reflective of the influence of white nationalism on the Trump
Administration, as they are directed particularly at non-Europeans. Examples include Trump’s referral of white
nationalists as “very fine people,” his praise of French presidential candidate
Marine Le Pen’s nationalist policies, his promotion of a violent British white
nationalist organization, pardon of white nationalist supporter Joseph Arpaio
for contempt of court and funding cuts to an anti-nationalist hate program.
On the lack of constitutional
fealty, in addition to Trump’s undermining of the rule of law, with his
criticism that violates the independence of the judiciary and of law
enforcement, and of the freedom of the press, with his threats of litigation
and other rhetoric and practices, he has violated the foreign and domestic Emoluments
Clauses of the Constitution because of his conflicts of interest, which he
refused to reveal, as part of a pattern of a lack of transparency, which have
allowed him to profit off the presidency and to receive patronage of his
businesses foreign states in exchange for favorable policies. These violations, which also are a practice
of unfair competition with private enterprises, are violations also of the
constitutional requirement to take care the laws be faithfully executed. Trump’s businesses also profit from his
charging of rent to his security detail.
He uses the presidency to advertise his businesses with his frequent and
costly visits to his facilities and his staff has also engaged in this
unethical practice. On a related note,
Trump unethically praises and denigrates other private enterprises, which is
interference in the market.
On the negative side of other
domestic matters, Trump lies or misleads to an unprecedented degree, has made
numerous unbecoming statements that coarsen public discourse and degrade
culture, and promulgates conspiracy theories.
He has continued federal funding of Planned Parenthood, the largest
provider of abortions in the world, while increasing the debt. Trump has also continued Obamacare. He delayed the waiver of the Jones Act, a
costly mercantilist regulation, for Hurricane Maria relief to Puerto
Rico and then allowed the waiver to expire after one week.
Trump’s deception,
nepotism, profiting off his office, lack of transparency, praise and denigration of private enterprises, and undermining of the independence of the judiciary, the rule of law and the freedom of the press are typical of authoritarian
regimes and kleptocracies and are unprecedented to this degree in American
presidential history. Although some
checks and balances and popular political pressure have prevented even worse
abuses and harmful policies, these safeguards have not yet been adequately
used.
Trump’s presidency, whatever its positive
accomplishments, is a threat to the Republic and to liberty in America and
around the world because of his manifest unfitness, corruption, and lack of
patriotism or respect for the Constitution, regardless of the question of the illegitimacy
of his election through deception, intimidation and foreign influence. His Administration is not conservative, but
populist, protectionist, nativist, white nationalist, in favor of big
government and authoritarian. It is thus
a mortal danger to the Republican Party and a cancer on the conservative movement,
lest it be conflated with Trumpism, especially if most leading conservatives continue
to acquiesce to Trumpism to the extent they already have. It is time that Republicans and conservatives
come to the aid of the United
States of America and protect the Republic,
their party and ideological movement by using constitutional safeguards and by beginning the process of legally ending the Trump presidency.
