Four years after sweeping into the White House as a political outsider riding a wave of resentment, Donald Trump is now an incumbent with a record to defend.
Many of his promises in 2016 seemed like outlandish bluster. And while the administration has been a victim of its own dysfunction, and the president’s hyperbole, there’s a lot from that campaign that Trump has, to an extent, achieved.
Build a wall
One of Trump’s signature promises was to build a southern border wall, paid for by Mexico. That has not happened. Trump promised more than 500 miles (800 kilometres) by next year, but as of February just 110 miles had been constructed. Most of that replaced outdated fencing and it’s been bankrolled entirely by US companies and the Trump administration. Mexico hasn’t paid a cent.
Muslim ban
Trump repeatedly called for a total ban on Muslims entering the US. A week into his presidency he signed an executive order banning foreign nationals, refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries. After more than a year of legal challenges, the Supreme Court upheld a third version of that order.
And early this year Trump quietly expanded the number of countries whose nationals are restricted. Still the administration hasn’t come close to banning all Muslims.
Manufacturing jobs
Key to Trump’s shock win in the rustbelt was a promise to revitalise American manufacturing. But even before the pandemic whacked the economy, manufacturing was in a technical recession, thanks in part to Trump’s trade war with China. Manufacturing jobs across the country are down by 720,000 from February, eliminating the slender gains made in Trump’s first three years.
Tax cuts
Trump promised massive tax cuts. In 2017, he delivered, cutting corporate tax rates from 35% to 21%, with a bunch of other concessions for billionaires, who now pay a lower tax rate than the working class.
Drain the swamp
That campaign slogan came to symbolise Trump’s pledge to purge American politics of the consultants, lobbyists and other grifters who haunt Washington. Instead he has delivered none of his promises to restrict lobbying, and continues to hold lucrative closed-door fundraisers with interest groups. And for Trumpworld’s favoured lobbyists business is booming.
Repeal Obamacare
Trump entered office obsessed with dismantling his predecessor’s signature healthcare law. But after Congress blocked a repeal in 2017, the administration has been forced to adopt a “piecemeal approach” to stripping bits of the law away.
Much of Obamacare’s architecture remains intact days out from the election. But on November 10 the Supreme Court will hear arguments in another legal challenge to Obamacare, and there’s a good chance Trump could get his wish even if it’s from beyond the political grave, because …
The courts
In a sign of America’s utter political brokenness, Trump could be a widely despised one-term president and still shape the country for decades. That’s because after Amy Coney Barrett was nominated to the bench yesterday with barely a whimper from Senate Democrats, there’s now a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court.
In 2016 Trump promised to promote pro-life, pro-second amendment judges, and Barrett in particular — who’s a member of a secretive cult-like Christian group — fits that bill. The Trump administration, aided by GOP Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, has also appointed more than 200 conservative judges to the federal judiciary, which could shape the country for a generation.
Foreign policy
On foreign policy it’s a mixed bag — although Trump’s unilateral “America first” approach seems to be showing. He has followed through on promises to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Paris Agreement. But within months of taking office, he’d wound back his claims that NATO was obsolete.
He also promised to bomb the shit out of Islamic State, and has more or less done so. He promised to get tough on China, and has since escalated a trade war and continued to talk tough at Beijing.
I’m looking forward to another four years of Trump kaos* in the US.
Technically the pull out from the Paris agreement won’t happen until the day after the election.
Another point – there is no particular number of Supreme Court Justices, so the Democrats could increase the number (this has happened in the past). Of course this would then be a current tool in a future Republican government as well.
I reject the ideas that there could for new justices be a mandatory retirement age (say 70 like in Australia), or a ten year term (renewable once) – it’s just not going to happen.
I like the anti-fulfillments – the trade war with China has resulted in higher prices for his base consumers and lower prices for his base farmers.
Dont let the facts get in the way Kishor.
When are we getting the exposé on the Biden Corruption Crikey?
Are there any actual journalists at Crikey…
From the Crikey website. “Crikey has been Australia’s best, independent digital news and commentary publication for more than twenty years.
The word independent needs to be removed Crikey.
I expect much better than this garbage journalism.
Relax Jimbo. The Guardian and a few others ran this line four years ago. Even the NYT is a lot more partisan this time about. I agree that the one-dimensional content of such articles is irritating but the other side (Biden in this case) is conspicuous by its absence.
There is no sense of detachment and N-R is ‘useful’ inasmuch as he does proxy for the “little knowledge is dangerous group” in topics such as C-19 to research in universities or statistical modeling or a ‘slab’ such as has been written here.
N-R ought to possess to skills to illustrate that, in large measure, the victor is of no material significance because the respective perspectives of the candidates differ only in details of a degree.
Thanks Erasmus – The blinkers that Crikey, and it seems most if not all if the Journalists, wears, when it comes to US Politics, at the present moment, is bewildering and very disappointing. It is as though Crikey is doing the bidding of, and deliberately promoting, one side of politics.
I’ll have to look elsewhere for “ïndependant” analysis.
Good luck to me!
I’m unsure but it was either Galbraith or J.P. who said “given the option of conspiracy or incompetence the culprit is, more often than not, incompetence”.
Why don’t you give Fox News a go. The quality there is to be marveled at. Sounds right up your alley.
I just had to bathe for a few moments in the sheer mellifluousness of “respective perspectives” before considering its perspicacity.
Only Trump can defeat Trump – the nature of his appeal is Protean, no certainty nor thing of substance, he is only of the moment and his people bask & wallow in that transcendence, unknown in their own wretched lives of lost privilege & desperation.
“I saved your damned suburbs! Please Like me?” then on to on to “vaccine before Election Day, troops standing by to deliver it.” but that doesn’t matter as “.. it’s all a hoax!”.
Not long to go.
Any verifiable information on Biden Corruption?
Sure is. Just have a look.
Hi Perkin,
Do a search on Tony Bobulinski, who was one of the Bidens business Partners. He did a press conference last week, and handed in 3 phones to police in order to show that Joe Biden not only knew about, but was involved in the business decision making, and that emails show that Joe Biden received a cut of the deals. Boubulinski was mainly involved in a Chinese deal, however there are other emails on Hunters laptop discussing deals being done in many countries, and who is to get what equity etc.
Link to press conference.. this one is fox news. There are others if you have a dislike of fox.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiiSq7toqlQ
Looks like he has done some interviews today as well.
How does Trump’s score card compare to O-bomber’s (of either term) or to NZ (from 2017) or Canada over the last five years. All that the UK has is Brexit (and that was after years of dithering from May). Modern politics would you not say Kishor?