I must admit that I was rather late in getting
onboard the ‘Trump Train’. Frankly, I
was one of those who were quite confident that he would come to flame out long
before the final decision would be made regarding who would ultimately become our
Republican presidential nominee. But as
members of his competition slowly began to fall by the wayside I was
essentially forced to mover ever closer to becoming a Trump supporter. And when he came to be the last man standing I
was left with little choice but to support him.
While I was never a “Never Trumper”, I was a “Trump Doubter.” But once it was clear that Mr. Trump was
gonna be our guy, even though I still had my doubts, I, somewhat reluctantly,
jumped aboard the ‘Trump Train.’
But over time I’ve come to believe that Donald Trump
has the potential to become a truly great president. But in order for that to happen, two things
must occur: He must follow through on
key campaign commitments, and the Republican Congress must ‘act’ on them. After 8 long years that have resulted in
nothing more than the doubling of our national debt, the decimating of our
healthcare system, more Americans than ever before now living in poverty and on
some form of government assistance and the fewest number of Americans in the
nation’s workforce since the days of Jimmy Carter, the American people, by
electing Donald Trump, showed, very clearly, that they wanted something
different. Something better.
So here are nine commitments Trump made during the
campaign, that the incoming Congress should, and very much need to, assist in
making a reality:
1.
Completely repeal Obamacare. Trump's position paper on health care said:
"Our elected representatives in the House and Senate must: Completely
repeal Obamacare. Our elected representatives must eliminate the individual
mandate. No person should be required to buy insurance unless he or she wants
to." It further stated that reforms put in place after the repeal should
"follow free market principles that will restore economic freedom and
certainty to everyone in this country."
Congress must immediately repeal Obamacare — and enact only reforms that
"follow free market principles."
2.
Confirm pro-life constitutionalists to the Supreme Court. "The freedoms we cherish and the
constitutional values and principles our country was founded on are in
jeopardy," Trump stated in September. "The responsibility is greater
than ever to protect and uphold these freedoms and I will appoint justices,
who, like Justice Scalia, will protect our liberty with the highest regard for
the Constitution." In a letter to
pro-life leaders, Trump added: "I am committed to ... (n)ominating
pro-life justices to the U.S. Supreme Court." The Senate should confirm only nominees who
fit the model Trump advocated.
3.
Build the wall and enforce the immigration laws. In his immigration plan, Trump promised to:
"Begin working on an impenetrable physical wall on the southern border, on
Day One." "All immigration
laws will be enforced — we will triple the number of ICE agents," said the
plan. "Anyone who enters the U.S. illegally is subject to
deportation." Trump's plan also
would "turn off the jobs and benefits magnet" for illegal immigrants.
"Many immigrants come to the U.S. illegally in search of jobs," it
said, "even though federal law prohibits the employment of illegal
immigrants." Congress should enact
all legislation needed to build Trump's wall and fully enforce the immigration
laws.
And any city that insists upon identifying itself as
being a ‘sanctuary’ for those in this country illegally, must be made to
forfeit ALL federal funding they currently receive.
4.
Pass the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. "I am committed to
... (s)igning into law the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which
would end painful late-term abortions nationwide," Trump said in his
letter to pro-life leaders. Congress
should place that bill on Trump's desk by Jan. 27, the day of the 2017 March
for Life.
5.
Defund Planned Parenthood. "I am committed to ... (d)efunding
Planned Parenthood as long as they continue to perform abortions," Trump
said in his letter. Congress should defund Planned Parenthood in the first
spending bill it sends Trump.
6.
Cut income tax rates and end the "death tax." "The Trump Plan will collapse the
current seven tax brackets to three brackets," says Trump's tax plan. It
would cut the top rate from 39.6 percent to 33 percent. Additionally, Trump's plan would "repeal
the death tax," which can be a confiscatory tax on family owned
businesses. It also drops the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 15
percent. A great Congress would go
further than Trump's plan. It would enact the "Fair Tax Act" that
would eliminate the income tax, replace it with a sales tax and set the stage
for repeal of the 16th Amendment, which made direct federal taxation of
individual incomes plausible. But
enacting Trump's plan to cut tax rates and abolish the death tax is a good
start to reining in federal tax collections.
7.
Make better trade deals.
In 2015, the U.S. had a merchandise trade deficit of $745.66 billion,
according to the Census Bureau. Since 1979, according to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, the nation has lost more than 7 million manufacturing jobs. Trump's trade plan calls for negotiating
"fair trade deals that create American jobs, increase American wages, and
reduce America's trade deficit." That includes withdrawing from the
not-yet-approved Trans-Pacific Partnership and renegotiating NAFTA. The Senate should ratify better trade deals
when they are negotiated.
8.
End our nation-building foreign policy. Trump's foreign policy plan says he will end
"the current strategy of nation-building and regime change." Congress
should support this, including by reasserting its constitutional authority over
the use of military force. That means the president may not use force — except
to repel a sudden attack on the United States — unless Congress authorizes it.
9.
Enact a balanced budget.
Sean Hannity asked Trump on Fox News on June 17, 2015: "Would you
insist on a balanced budget as president?" Trump responded: "I would
insist on it relatively soon." When
President Barack Obama took office, the federal debt was about 10.6 Trillion.
Now it is about $19.9 Trillion. Barry “Almighty”
and the last Republican Congress kept America on the road to bankruptcy.
President Trump and the new Republican Congress must lead us back the other way
— and they cannot do it too soon.
And finally there’s one other issue that our new
President and our congressional leaders must come together on, and on the very
first day of the new administration. And
that would the total and complete defunding of the United Nations when it comes
to any and all money furnished to this very corrupt organization that has as
its source the American taxpayer. As far
as the other items listed above are concerned, Trump, and our congressional
Republicans, will have only a very brief window of opportunity to prove that
they are up to the challenge of governing.
And all eyes will be on them, we will be waiting and watching. They will have less than two years to make
progress in getting this country back on the right track. Time is of the essence.
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