Some may think I am being presumptuous by evaluating the Trump Presidency. However, I beg to differ. As an American I have a perfect to judge my President.
By the same token, others have a right to question my judgement. In fact, I encourage it.
Trump is falsely given high marks on the economy. Why? Because Americans give high marks to the President if the economy is doing well. Conversely, Americans are ruthless in their judgement if the economy is doing badly. Actually, Presidents have little control over the economy. To blame them or credit them is a mistake. As an example, Herbert Hoover had nothing to do with the causation of the Great Depression. It just happened on his watch.
That factor notwithstanding, Trump has done nothing for our economy except threaten it with his high protective tariffs -- a liberal concept -- and his trade wars. The stock market treaded water from January 2017 to September 2019 because of Trump's trade war with China.
Recently, Trump has fired four inspector generals. Trump has, by far, the highest turnover rate of any President in American history.
With his interference in our Presidential election in 2016, which included a four-month barrage of info that battered the Clinton campaign, it was clear that Vladimir Putin wanted Trump to be our next President. Putin knew his man. On the foreign front, the Trump administration has been a disaster at home, but a boon to Putin..
By his own admission, Trump admired Putin. "I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his statement today," Trump said in July 2018 at a conference in Helsinki.
Trump has weakened NATO, an alliance formed as a bulwark to Russian aggression. The allied leaders of Britain, France, and Germany no longer trust him.
Trump camp finds no appeasement at Munich - POLITICO
Trump's Iranian policy has caused Iran to resume her nuclear research, and America's menacing enemy is closer to a nuke than ever.
The U.S. has been tossed out of Middle East talks because of Trump's pro-active, pro-Israeli policy, and replaced by Russia. The Arab republicans and our European allies cannot trust the U.S. as long as Trump is President.
As U.S. Exits Syria, Mideast Faces a Post-American Era - The New York Times
If you are Vladimir Putin, what is not to like?
The
Times has reported, "Intelligence officials warned House lawmakers last week that Russia was interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get President Trump re-elected." Trump got hostile with the report. Trump does not want the American people and its representatives to know that Putin wants to help him get reelected, 2016 redux.
Then there is the supposition that Trump is merely a figurehead. Someone else or, more likely, an unknown cabal is running our government? There is conjecture along those lines because of one overriding factor.
To be quite frank, Trump simply lacks the intelligence to be the leader of the most powerful country in the world with the largest economy in the world. It is being suggested that he was elected as a figurehead and he remains one today. That would explain why Trump has such overwhelming support within the GOP, in spite of his moronic and erratic behavior. It is not Trump they are cheering --indeed, his fans largely ignore what he says and does -- it is the agenda they are supporting.
Trump's leadership in the Covid-19 pandemic is questionable at best, and tends to be extremely optimistic to the point of distorting or misrepresenting reality. However, any conclusion as to his leadership in this crisis is premature.
In conclusion, a matter of concern for many Americans is that, with each passing day, it is becoming evident that Trump's support comes from the extreme right. Also, because those who support him pay little attention to what Trump actually does and says, his support is almost cult-like.
