President Donald Trump was vilified by the media and the left as a would-be fascist, and a divisive leader. Yet he did things that the left claimed it had wanted for years, and that Democratic presidents had never done.
He did these things because he thought they were in the best interests of the country, but also because he wanted to reach out across party lines. The media never gave him credit — and the left, eager for power above all, refused to acknowledge what he did.
Five major examples:
1. Ending the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and replacing NAFTA. “No TPP” was the rallying cry among supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. They were skeptical of free trade in general, but also — like many conservatives — objected to the secrecy of the negotiations. Trump ended it in his first week in office. He also delivered on promises to replace the hated NAFTA agreement with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
2. Criminal Justice Reform. President Trump signed the First Step Act in 2018, expanding opportunities for rehabilitation and ending the “three strikes” provision. Though the legislation was bipartisan, it was spearheaded by the White House. (When Trump won an award for his efforts from a bipartisan black group, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) vowed to boycott it.) Trump also pardoned the late heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson, who had been convicted for violating a racist law.
3. Ending wars in the Middle East. President Trump defeated the so-called “Islamic State” (ISIS) and killed terrorist leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. He killed terrorist General Qasem Soleimani in Iraq. He launched air strikes against Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad for using chemical weapons. But he called off air strikes that would have led to war with Iran, and brought U.S. troops home. Ironically, the left campaigned again the first president in 40 years not to launch a war in the Middle East.
4. Lowest black poverty and unemployment rates ever. Trump achieved the lowest black poverty and unemployment rates ever recorded. He did it with targeted policies like Opportunity Zones, and also broader policies such as focusing on rapid economic growth. He also helped black Americans by enforcing immigration laws, which cut unfair competition for entry-level jobs. Other minority groups saw similar benefits. Trump took pride in these achievements, yet the left called him racist.
5. Elevating women and minorities. Trump’s media team was led entirely by women. He named the first openly gay Cabinet member, in Richard Grenell. He named the first black chief of a military service branch, appointing Gen. Charles Q. Brown to lead the Air Force. And he also nominated Lorna M. Mahlock as the first black female brigadier general in the Marines. As the media praises Joe Biden for his diverse appointees, Trump’s “firsts” have been almost completely ignored.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His newest e-book is Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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