It’s Time to Board The Trump Train

By: Michael Busler, Ph.D. 

As members of both political parties remind us almost daily, the coming elections are very important. Indeed the future direction of the country will be greatly affected. Both the Dems and the GOP are predicting victory as many Americans are trying to decide which way to go.

The Dems are very insistent that the country is going in the wrong direction, mostly because the president is not capable of doing the job. Relationships with formerly strong allies have become strained, the Iran Treaty has been cancelled and the president fails to fully confront Russia. The Dems say Trump may be colluding with Russia.

The tax cuts went almost entirely to the wealthy. And Trump has started a trade war which is likely to bring on a worldwide recession.

The EPA has stopped trying to keep the air and water clean. Helpless immigrants are treated like prisoners and are separated from their children. In addition, Trump is trying to break the unions and push millions of Americans off of the health insurance rolls.

This is not the America that we know. And besides, the president is simply repulsive, crude and not fit to represent the country. If the Dems control the House and/or the Senate they can stop the Trump agenda.

The GOP sees things much differently. They say it’s time for everyone to board the Trump train to help drive the US to prosperity, which is something Americans have not felt in nearly two decades.

Virtually all of the economic problems and many of the social problems are due to the economic stagnation that began in 2006 and was pushed to 2016 by the prior Democratic administration. During that time period economic growth averaged just above 2%, which was referred to as the new normal.

The Obama administration’s top policy goal was to cure perceived social injustices, which occurred in the areas of health care, income taxes, wealth distribution, regulation of corporations and income maintenance programs like food stamp and welfare. Each action taken to cure the injustice served to slow economic growth.

The Affordable Care Act raised the cost of labor to business which slows economic growth. In 2011, income taxes were increased by 10% for the highest income earners only. This reduced the amount of capital the wealthy had to invest, which slows economic growth, especially considering the capital intensive economy we have.

Regulations, especially the ones that are not needed and are actually counter-productive, tend to slow economic growth. Giving low income earners more food stamps, more welfare and free health care reduces the incentive to seek employment. That reduces the input from labor and slows economic growth.

The GOP will further note that since Trump reduced thousands of regulation in February and March of last year, the economy has been growing at about a 3% rate. He cut taxes this year. The cuts were felt starting in January. By April the economy was growing at more than a 4% rate.

It is likely that the third quarter GDP growth number will be more than 4.5%. This will be announced ten days before the election. The growth will bring higher incomes, more opportunity and a higher standard of living. It will also eliminate much of the anger now felt by Americans.

This is the right direction for the country.

Our foreign policy is now following the well proven “peace through strength” philosophy. Trump is rebuilding the military which was decimated by the Obama era sequester. And our allies are going to have to chip in at least something to have the US defend them.

Our allies have been taking advantage of us in every trade agreement. Trump wants to change that quickly. He does so by creating a sense of urgency to bring our partners to the negotiating table. Already its working and within the next few months it will yield positive results by opening foreign markets to US companies.

The GOP is concerned with clean air and water. They are just not so overly concerned that the policies strangle business and slow growth.

The GOP President has offered a compromise to come up with a solution to the immigration problem, but the Dems won’t compromise.

The GOP also recognizes that there is a health care problem. They recognize that market based solutions tend to provide higher quality produces and lower prices. They want to fix the health care law but all the Dems want to do is resist. With more Republican in Congress, this can be fixed.

By November the country should see that the president did not collude with Russia and he did not obstruct justice. Payments made by a candidate to pay for a nondisclosure agreement are legal. He has broken no laws and any talk of removing him from office is just plain poppycock.

With the economy booming, unemployment at record lows, incomes rising, foreign conflicts being confronted from a position of strength, foreign markets opening up to US manufacturers and a willingness to comprise on many key issues, it’s time for everyone the board the Trump train.

Trump’s style is that of a businessperson from Queens and not a politician who vacations at the Hamptons. Instead of being manipulated by the Dems and the mainstream media who don’t appear to understand the value of freedom, the GOP says that Americans should take a more objective view.

Even if you believe that Trump is a bad person, he is a good president. As noted economist Walter Williams points out, bad men can be good presidents. Look at Bill Clinton. He was a bad man but a good president.

When voters are in the booth and ready to vote, what is mostly on their mind is the economy. If that is the case, the GOP does well in November as more people truly do decide to board the Trump train.

Michael Busler, Ph.D. is a public policy analyst and a Professor of Finance at Stockton University where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Finance and Economics.