Last night, Donald Trump won a historic victory by all accounts. America’s silent, dispossessed majority has spoken and it should serve as a warning to anyone discounting the anger of the CITIZENS the government has failed to serve. His victory was more about defeating Hillary and the overwhelming corruption and arrogance of the elites she represents than a referendum on his policies. With their support, Trump took on what amounts to the entire establishment and stunned the elites. The magnitude of this victory can’t be understated and we should have immense respect for what he has accomplished. The “Donald” went head-to-head with the media complex, fended off judicial attacks, and even successfully overcame his own party sabotaging him all while essentially saying exactly what the pundits said he couldn’t say…the truth. Donald Trump lived up to “his” own hype and proved he does have what it takes to outsmart even the dirtiest of career political elites. However, once the celebrations are over, the real work begins. Trump will have one of the most challenging jobs as President of anyone in our time and it is far from certain he will turn out to be what the people that voted for him believe he will be. Trump won by capturing populist anger, but when it comes to the nuts and bolts of healthy policies, it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows if you now analyze what the American voter just elected. Here is a list of what we can look forward to, be worried about, and outright fear from President Trump.
The good:
- Let’s all celebrate the end of the Bush-Clinton Establishment. Effective November 9, 2016, Hillary Clinton is a has been and her political reign of terror is over. We are a constitutional republic, not a monarchy. Dynastic succession is abhorrent to Americans. We have over 330 million people that we can draw from to find a great president. We do not need a political class that has removed itself so far from the average American; smug elites like Hillary haven’t driven a car in 30 years. We also shouldn’t forget how the Bush family tried to sabotage Trump and the will of America.
- Trump doesn’t owe special interests anything but contempt for his victory. We may actually see a president truly put American citizens first. I do believe Trump believes in America and is honest when he says he loves this country. That is the polar opposite of the hate and vitriol toward America that continuously emanated from the Obama White House. Obama’s self-loathing crusade against America ends with Trump’s election.
- We “may” finally see real accountability for corrupt politicians and their cronies that believed they were above the law. A Trump Justice Department that makes its number one mission rooting out high level political corruption instead of investigating honest cops and police departments will go far to returning the rule of law to the US. Hillary and the pay-to-play Clinton Foundation may indeed finally have their day in court.
- Contrary to the fear mongering and scare tactics of the elite, the Republicans not only won the presidency with a resounding majority, but held control of Congress. Unlike with former establishment “Republicrats,” there is honestly a real chance of effective, positive change now occurring.
- The Supreme Court has a chance to be returned to justices that are strongly convicted to the fundamentals of the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We can’t undo the damage of the Obama appointments, but we can at least mitigate them. The long term implications of this can’t be understated. If Hillary had been elected, the choice of justices would have ensure the total destruction of the rule of law, checks and balances, and the Bill of Rights.
- Trump’s victory destroys the myth that only establishment candidates can win and in the process eviscerates the establishment.
- With Republican control of the White House and Congress, much of the most abhorrent aspects of the Obama Administration can be undone. Top on that list is the disastrous “Affordable” Care Act we know as Obamacare.
- There are high hopes of reigning in executive organizations that have been used as weapons under Obama such as the IRS and the Environmental Protection Agency. We want a sensible environmental policy that isn’t written by extremists and special interests. We also are done with our tax dollars subsidizing political cronies in the “green” industry.
- We will see taxes and regulations reduced that will allow businesses and jobs to return to the US. This is the one area where Trump gets it. Unlike liberals that live off the government dime; Trump knows first-hand how high taxes and heavy regulation destroy businesses and have been used as weapons by global corporations to stifle competition.
- We will have the chance to reset relations with world leaders. Under Obama’s Administration, not only were America’s political relations unhealthy and lopsided, but they were at all-time lows. President Trump has the chance to avert World War III with Russia, regain our allies in the Pacific, reign in China, and repair relations with Israel for starters. The world knows we are once again negotiating from a position of strength and the world is already realigning to that reality in support of the US.
- We can expect American immigration laws to be enforced and the disastrous immigration and refugee polices to be modified to put American interests first. This will not only save lives of innocent Americans, but save billions of dollars a year.
- We will hold our NATO allies to their financial obligations or dispense with the archaic alliance.
- Trump has made comments about the Federal Reserve. Under Trump, the US has the best chance yet to hold the financial elite accountable and expose many of their corrupt parasitic practices that have wreaked havoc on the US economy.
- Trump will legitimately take veterans’ issues seriously and make concrete improvements for their care.
- Virginia may be saved from the control of leftists once the Democrat political hacks and their cronies are run out of DC and by default Northern Virginia. I know many of my readers in Virginia can’t wait to see this demographic pendulum shift back to sanity.
- Finally, on a lighter note, we can look forward to saying bye-bye to the Hollywood elite that trashed America and promised to leave the country if Trump was elected. I certainly hope Cher, Samuel L. Jackson, and George Stephanopoulos make good on their promises. I can only hope they take their buddies with them.
Worry:
- Donald Trump is not a moral or ethical man in the Christian sense. Donald Trump does not recognize God in his life and paid no respects to God in his victory speech last night, which is telling. Character is one of the most critical aspects of a leader. Character is underpinned by principles that in tough times are so easy to betray. Principles are formed by a moral foundation rooted in faith. Without strong moral and ethical convictions, Trump is vulnerable to being easily led astray and could become very dangerous.
- We should be concerned that Trump has not demonstrated a knowledge of or respect for the Constitution. Trump already has draconian tendencies of top down executive control in the business world and it is the Constitution that reigns in this power. We must be on guard that the office is not allowed to go beyond its authorities no matter how strong the pressure. Unlike in business, expediency and efficiency are not always complementary to the operation of a free state with checks and balances. Men close to Trump like Rudy Giuliani have a great track record for security, but an abysmal record when it comes to respecting civil liberties. These men scare me. Remember, security always comes at a price to freedom. North Korea has some of the safest cities in the world, but ask yourself if you would want to live in such a police state.
- Trump has an unhealthy temperament that is easy to manipulate. Even a blind man could pick up on how easy it was to wind Trump up and get him to make stupid statements during the election. Now that he has won the election, I have little expectation that Trump is suddenly going to moderate his comments. Further, his ego driven temperament could become a major detriment. Trump must internalize the gravity of the office and temper his thoughts, statements, and actions accordingly.
- Trump has made comments on trade agreements and tariffs that are honestly stupid if you have even a basic education in economics. There is a big difference between running a business and running an economy. However, he has since gotten some better advice and walked back his policy comments on tariffs in particular, which is a relief. Trump will be walking a fine line between renegotiating healthy trade agreements and sabotaging the global economy by starting a trade or currency war, which will blow back and destroy the US economy. Trump needs to be held to the basic principles of capitalism and free trade, which are the cornerstones of a healthy economy. If the US becomes insular, we will suffer and be left behind by the rest of the world.
- Most people would view Trump taking a hard line to Iran and destroying the Iran Nuclear Agreement as a positive. However, that is because they are not familiar with a lot of the details. In fact, Trump is not very familiar with the Middle East at all. Let’s make no mistake, the nuclear agreement is a disaster, but it doesn’t mean that a peace deal isn’t the solution we need. We neither want nor can afford a war with Iran. We need a treaty that is negotiated from a position of strength that does hold them accountable.
- As a nation, war should be a final option. The US under neocon rule has lost its way and has embarked upon endless wars that benefit only special interests. These interventionist wars are bankrupting our nation and must end. Make no mistake, Trump was a draft dodger. How this plays out is unknown. It may mean he wants to play soldier now, which is extremely dangerous. However, it could also mean he has a natural, healthy aversion to unnecessary wars, which is long overdue in a president.
- I have not seen Trump’s military plans, but I do see that he has kept General Flynn close by his side. General Flynn is not the general that the US military needs. This is a man that helped create the Islamic State even though he knew it was wrong. This is a man that failed as the JSOC commander to decisively defeat our enemies. This is a man that only after retiring grew a spine and spoke out against what he knew was wrong. This is also a man that has completely failed to distance himself from the completely failed false strategy of training and advising that our Special Forces are raised on. I worry that Donald Trump, a man that didn’t know what the nuclear triad is, is not getting the best military advice and could fall victim to the derelict commanders that have failed our nation by failing to decisively win a single war. We need a winnable strategy against IS and Flynn is not the man for the job.
- Donald Trump’s “wall” is ridiculous, but his intent is good. We need to enforce our immigration policies and borders. However, as anyone in the military knows, an obstacle left undefended is not an obstacle. A wall left unguarded is useless and extremely costly. A defense in depth of our border would be far more effective as a barrier. Good work has been done on border security and it is effective, but Trump doesn’t seem to have gotten the right points. More importantly, Trump needs to realize that immigration is not our problem, socialism is. The people flowing across our borders daily are coming for social benefits offered by this nation, which this nation can’t afford. Trump needs to realize that a far better, cheaper, and more sensible plan is to simply de-incentivize coming here illegally by enforcing tough policies that prohibit tax dollars being used to support non-citizens.
- Trump will face the collapse of Obamacare. He must work with Congress to replace the failed system with a functional system quickly or face a complete collapse of the US healthcare system. My recommendation is to get the government out of the business nearly entirely. It is the easiest and most effective means of quickly correcting our health care system. However, Trump has socialist tendencies that suggest he may try to “replace” it rather than scrap it. Government run healthcare simply will not work in the US.
- Trump spoke to some length about rebuilding America’s infrastructure. He sounded dangerously close to the leftist ideologue in the White House right now. That massive hundred billion dollar shovel ready project of Obama’s completely failed and so will all government run infrastructure projects because they are hugely inefficient. This again is socialism and socialism doesn’t work. That isn’t to say federal, state, and local governments don’t have a role to play in the maintenance of things like highways, but our infrastructure writ large is a private endeavor. Trump needs to recognize that the government can’t fix these things and didn’t build them. Private industry was the engine of America’s growth. If Trump confuses the two, our nation will be bankrupt like his building projects in no time flat.
- The Republicans will have no one but themselves to blame if they squander this once in a century opportunity to advance a true “little r” republican, conservative agenda. Make no mistake, all of the indiscretions and immense problems created by the Obama Administration will be blamed on Trump. How Trump handles it will be telling. What I do know is that the Republican Party is dead if the Democrats succeed in hanging the failures of Obama around Trumps neck.
- Democrat Senator Chuck Schumer already has been tasked with obstructing Congress after these hypocrites have derided the Republicans so long for not working with Democrats and Obama. The Democrats are not good losers. Expect them to be far more obstructionist than any Republican Congress dreamed of being and the media to protect them. Trump will have to display the true art of the deal to mitigate this reality in Congress.
- Finally, I worry that Obama will spike the ball on the way out the door much like the Clintons did as Bush entered office. Although, Obama is effectively a lame duck president, he does have the regulatory authority to make things worse as he walks out the door. I think he will maintain pretenses, but behind the scenes do everything he can to forward his radical leftist agenda. This will look like a mountain of regulations being passed at the 11th hour.
The Ugly:
- Collectively, the nation is still voting for the lesser of two evils. Trump was the lesser of the two in the minds of the American voters yesterday, but that is a far cry from someone that we as a nation can fully back with good conscience. Further, Trump’s win means the Republican establishment lives to see another day. Only when we completely dispense with our support to the establishment will we see real, lasting, positive change. As long as we let the establishment political parties call the shots, our nation will continue to be polarized and it will inevitably lead to a Balkanization of our country. This will be violent and costly and must be avoided. Trump last night embraced the Republican establishment. It is still to be determined whether or not that was just show or if he really has joined them. If Trump’s legacy is to endure, he must either eviscerate the Republican establishment and replace it or establish a new and independent political organization that moves America beyond the bipartisan death grip.
- Let’s be clear, neither Trump nor any elected leader has a plan to get the out of control national debt under control. I believe Trump’s economic policies will jump start our economy, but probably not before another major economic crash. Further, even if the American economy comes roaring back, we are mathematically looking at a situation that is too little too late. We have over twenty trillion dollars in debt and quickly accumulating more, astronomically more debt in unfunded liabilities to include soon to be insolvent Medicare and Social Security Systems, and interest rates that must go up. Trump’s expertise in negotiating bankruptcies may become extremely valuable for America because that is exactly the scenario facing the US. Trump will not only face a growing debt crisis, but a currency crisis if this national emergency isn’t dealt with immediately by concrete initiatives.
- Not to beat a dead horse, but Trump also has a major obstacle to overcome with the US budget deficit. Here, a strong American economy can make a big impact, but unless Trump massively cuts entitlement spending, we simply will not be able to get this under control. Two thirds of the budget now goes to entitlements spending and interest on debt. In short, we are not getting anything for what we spend in taxes now. To put this in perspective, Trump could cut the entire executive branch of government from the Department of Defense to the CIA and still run a quarter to half trillion dollar deficit annually because of entitlements spending. Therefore, the conundrum Trump faces is that entitlements must be cut, but that will lead to massive angst and unrest in the population.
- I hate to say it, but Trump has more bad economic news. Not only is the US economy on life support, but the global economy is on the edge of implosion. Trump WILL have to deal with an economic collapse far bigger than 2008 on his watch. How we rebuild will be a test of character of Trump as a leader and our people as a nation.
- Trump is inheriting two wars that to date, we have effectively lost. The good news is Afghanistan is still winnable if he gets the right advisors and an actual strategy to decisively win. A copy of the book “#Fail: Why the US Lost the War in Afghanistan” https://www.amazon.es/Fail-Why-Lost-Afghanistan-English-ebook/dp/B016NWB8TK should be placed in front of him and he should be forced to read it before a single military decision is made. This may be one of the single most important books on modern warfare written and has had little play because of the group think in Washington. He can draw a lot from this for our war against the Islamic State too. However, Trump will fall victim to the military-industrial complex and allow himself to be sucked into bigger and longer wars if he doesn’t depart from the institutionalized military group think. He must get fresh blood in the White House or we really risk massive, costly wars that even if won, will destroy the US economically.
- Trump will also face a war at home. I mean this quite literally. The insurgent organization has already been established across the nation by the Left. It has been unleashed to help Hillary’s campaign in the form of intercity violence and police assassinations. The Left will use this to foment a full on insurgency in our nation in hopes of destabilizing the nation and discrediting Trump’s leadership.
- The establishment is pissed. They burn the game board when they lose. Leftists also are prone to assassination attempts. I fear that Trump may be in far greater danger than any president in a generation.
- Finally, on a lighter note, Hillary Clinton may actually have to drive herself for the first time in thirty years. This will be a huge danger to everyone on the road so watch out.
In summary, Trump’s win is a victory over the immediate threat of a Hillary presidency. However, the battle with the Leftists is far from over. In fact, it is just beginning. Nonetheless, know that America has Trump’s back. Contrary to the lies on the left, it wasn’t just angry white people that elected Trump, it was a cross section of all Americans. The “deplorables” turned out to be Americans from every race, ethnicity, gender, religion, and socio-economic class. If not, it would not have been possible for Trump to sweep the election. Trump is our champion today, but remember that no one is perfect. Trump has much to prove and we must be on guard.
By Guiles Hendrik
