"TRUMP'S 100 DAYS: AN EXECUTIVE SUCCESS" - by Byron York | Apr 23, 2017, http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/byron-york-trumps-100-days-an-executive-success/article/2621041 [AS I SEE IT: This is a good look at some of the successes as well as failures of the President's first 100 days. When you consider that its been just over 3 months, he has done a lot to be encouraged by. - Stan]
Of course Donald Trump over-promised for his first 100 days. What presidential candidate hasn't?
During last year's campaign, Trump spoke frequently of all the things he would do almost immediately upon entering the Oval Office. He'd repeal Obamacare, reform the tax code, destroy ISIS, build a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border, fix the nation's roads and bridges, take care of veterans, deport criminal illegal immigrants, and much, much more. By the last weeks of the campaign, Trump actually dialed back some of his promises...Now, three months into the Trump administration,... Trump has kept a significant number of his promises:
Candidate Trump promised to "begin the process" of selecting a Supreme Court Justice to replace Antonin Scalia. As president, Trump did just that, and Neil Gorsuch is now on the Court.
Candidate Trump promised to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to require that "for every new federal regulation, two existing regulations must be eliminated." As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to "lift the Obama-Clinton roadblocks" on the Keystone Pipeline and other infrastructure projects. As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to "begin removing the more than two million criminal illegal immigrants" in the U.S. As president, he did it.
On other issues, Trump has kept front-page promises, but with decidedly mixed results. The most significant of those is his pledge to "suspend immigration from terror-prone regions." Trump has done it — twice — only to see his executive orders tied up in the courts. His first try was botched, while the second try will likely survive judicial scrutiny.
Trump also promised to "cancel all federal funding" for so-called sanctuary cities. He has begun to do so — the Justice Department is beginning to threaten to withdraw some grant money — but the promise was over-broad and will likely never be fully kept.
In addition, Trump promised to impose a "five-year ban on White House and Congressional officials becoming lobbyists after they leave government service." He kept the pledge for White House officials but does not have the authority to tell Congress what to do — so again, a partially kept, but originally over-broad promise.
Some promises Trump has openly chosen to break. He promised to "direct the Secretary of the Treasury to label China a currency manipulator." Now, he says he will not do so if China is helping the U.S. solve the so-far-intractable North Korea problem.
The net result of Trump's promises involving executive authority is that he has done well... Indeed, the two biggest successes of Trump's first 100 days are... the Gorsuch nomination and Trump's immigration executive order tightening controls at the Mexico border. "We've seen a dramatic reduction in illegal migration across the southwest border," Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Friday. "In fact, March apprehensions were 30 percent lower than February apprehensions — and 64 percent lower than the same time next year."
That is a solid success by any measure.
But ...Unlike many of his speeches, Trump was careful not to promise legislative success...But Trump has not even introduced promised legislation like the American Energy and Infrastructure Act, or the School Choice and Education Opportunity Act, or the Affordable Childcare and Eldercare Act, or others...
The president, mostly following the lead of House Republicans, has taken a shot — and failed — at repealing and replacing Obamacare. To the extent that that work continues — a vote in the House could be just a few weeks away — he can be said to be working on keeping that promise. And Trump has pledged to bring out some sort of tax proposal this week — not an actual tax reform bill, but movement closer to the goal of reforming the tax code. So on the two biggest items on the back page of the Contract, by the time the actual 100 day mark arrives next Saturday, Trump will be able to say he's making progress.
... the president has been a crucial part of a determined effort by Capitol Hill Republicans to use the Congressional Review Act to abolish rules put in place by the Obama administration. Trump has signed 12 such bills into law voiding Obama rules on energy, firearms, federal labor contracts, local control of education, and other topics. The CRA bills have sometimes been left out of assessments of Trump's record on Capitol Hill. But undoing the damage done by a predecessor is an entirely legitimate use of presidential power, and Republicans certainly give Trump credit for enabling their rollback of the Obama rules. [see yesterday's post #1929]
Beyond the CRA, there is obviously more to Trump's 100 day performance...What about his missile attack on Syria? His stance toward North Korea? Iran? Trump has received mixed-to-good notices on a number of foreign policy responses to unforeseen fast-moving events — all responses based on executive authority.
The bottom line is that Trump has been a 100 day success when it comes to exercising the executive powers of the presidency. He has done a great deal of what he said he would do, and promises to do more. (The White House is planning a new set of executive orders this week to beat the 100 day deadline.)
On the legislative front, while Trump has been part of a successful Republican effort to turn back parts of the Obama legacy, the president has failed to pass an Obamacare repeal and replace bill, failed to pass tax reform, and for that matter failed to pass any other significant piece of legislation. If Trump wanted to have a signature legislative achievement in his pocket by the 100 day mark, he certainly didn't act like it.
But it is precisely in the legislative area that the 100 day mark is such an unrealistic measure. Congress acts on its own schedule. Truth be told, next January, on the occasion of Trump's first year in office, if he has passed either a full-scale Obamacare repeal and replace measure or a major tax reform measure, that would be a reasonably good legislative record for a first year. This is not the New Deal or the Great Society, when there are huge filibuster-proof majorities in Congress and giant bills coming one after another. In today's atmosphere and party alignments, Trump will do well to get one big thing passed.
So on the 100 days, call the president an executive success.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
"100 Days of Our Lives..." - Tony Perkins, Washington Update, April 24, 2017;http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WA17D43&f=WU17D14
The Left may not like the job President Trump is doing, but the people who hired him for it are sure happy! Despite all the hype about Trump's unpopularity, even the latest Washington Post/ABC poll shows what a convenient soundbite that is. The reality is, the White House's new occupant couldn't be more popular with the people who voted for him -- sporting a 94 percent approval rating heading into his first big milestone: 100 days in office.
To his base, President Trump hasn't just met expectations -- he's exceeded them. Pro-lifers, in particular, have a lot to cheer after two terms of the most ruthless abortion ally in history. From reinstating the ban on overseas abortion promotion and funding to giving states the right to sever ties with Planned Parenthood, President Trump is keeping faith with his base -- not just with his commitment to fulfill his promises, but the incredible speed at which he's doing it. Mick Mulvaney, who directs the Office of Management and Budget, pushed back on the Left's criticism. "What I think folks don't realize is that we've signed more legislation into law in the first 100 days than anybody in the last 50 years. We put up more executive orders than any previous administration in the last 50 years." He's inked his name on 28 bills (the most since President Roosevelt), 24 executive orders, 22 presidential memorandums, and 20 proclamations.
But, as the president himself pointed out on Twitter, "No matter how much I accomplish during the ridiculous standard of the first 100 days, & it has been a lot (including the Supreme Court), media will kill!" Of course, the best way to judge Trump should be his judge -- Neil Gorsuch, a proud originalist who now sits on America's highest court for life. In that single appointment, President Trump has done more for the country -- and constitutional governance -- than some presidents will do in their entire term.
But as appreciative as conservatives are for the missile strikes, health care negotiations, and a powerful roll back of Obama's transgender bathroom and shower mandate, there's still work to be done. At the top of the list? An executive order protecting what the First Amendment already gave us: religious liberty. Conservative leaders want it. Almost 20 U.S. senators have called for it. And the attack on so many innocent Christians demands it. As we celebrate the accomplishments of the first 100 days, we'll keep encouraging the administration to push forward on another one: protecting and upholding Americans' freedom to live according to their faith, and as the Constitution provides.
"The First 100 Days to Securing America" - Ken Blackwell · Apr. 24, 2017; https://patriotpost.us/opinion/48687
During last year's campaign, Trump spoke frequently of all the things he would do almost immediately upon entering the Oval Office. He'd repeal Obamacare, reform the tax code, destroy ISIS, build a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border, fix the nation's roads and bridges, take care of veterans, deport criminal illegal immigrants, and much, much more. By the last weeks of the campaign, Trump actually dialed back some of his promises...Now, three months into the Trump administration,... Trump has kept a significant number of his promises:
Candidate Trump promised to "begin the process" of selecting a Supreme Court Justice to replace Antonin Scalia. As president, Trump did just that, and Neil Gorsuch is now on the Court.
Candidate Trump promised to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to require that "for every new federal regulation, two existing regulations must be eliminated." As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to "lift the Obama-Clinton roadblocks" on the Keystone Pipeline and other infrastructure projects. As president, he did it.
Candidate Trump promised to "begin removing the more than two million criminal illegal immigrants" in the U.S. As president, he did it.
On other issues, Trump has kept front-page promises, but with decidedly mixed results. The most significant of those is his pledge to "suspend immigration from terror-prone regions." Trump has done it — twice — only to see his executive orders tied up in the courts. His first try was botched, while the second try will likely survive judicial scrutiny.
Trump also promised to "cancel all federal funding" for so-called sanctuary cities. He has begun to do so — the Justice Department is beginning to threaten to withdraw some grant money — but the promise was over-broad and will likely never be fully kept.
In addition, Trump promised to impose a "five-year ban on White House and Congressional officials becoming lobbyists after they leave government service." He kept the pledge for White House officials but does not have the authority to tell Congress what to do — so again, a partially kept, but originally over-broad promise.
Some promises Trump has openly chosen to break. He promised to "direct the Secretary of the Treasury to label China a currency manipulator." Now, he says he will not do so if China is helping the U.S. solve the so-far-intractable North Korea problem.
The net result of Trump's promises involving executive authority is that he has done well... Indeed, the two biggest successes of Trump's first 100 days are... the Gorsuch nomination and Trump's immigration executive order tightening controls at the Mexico border. "We've seen a dramatic reduction in illegal migration across the southwest border," Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Friday. "In fact, March apprehensions were 30 percent lower than February apprehensions — and 64 percent lower than the same time next year."
That is a solid success by any measure.
But ...Unlike many of his speeches, Trump was careful not to promise legislative success...But Trump has not even introduced promised legislation like the American Energy and Infrastructure Act, or the School Choice and Education Opportunity Act, or the Affordable Childcare and Eldercare Act, or others...
The president, mostly following the lead of House Republicans, has taken a shot — and failed — at repealing and replacing Obamacare. To the extent that that work continues — a vote in the House could be just a few weeks away — he can be said to be working on keeping that promise. And Trump has pledged to bring out some sort of tax proposal this week — not an actual tax reform bill, but movement closer to the goal of reforming the tax code. So on the two biggest items on the back page of the Contract, by the time the actual 100 day mark arrives next Saturday, Trump will be able to say he's making progress.
... the president has been a crucial part of a determined effort by Capitol Hill Republicans to use the Congressional Review Act to abolish rules put in place by the Obama administration. Trump has signed 12 such bills into law voiding Obama rules on energy, firearms, federal labor contracts, local control of education, and other topics. The CRA bills have sometimes been left out of assessments of Trump's record on Capitol Hill. But undoing the damage done by a predecessor is an entirely legitimate use of presidential power, and Republicans certainly give Trump credit for enabling their rollback of the Obama rules. [see yesterday's post #1929]
Beyond the CRA, there is obviously more to Trump's 100 day performance...What about his missile attack on Syria? His stance toward North Korea? Iran? Trump has received mixed-to-good notices on a number of foreign policy responses to unforeseen fast-moving events — all responses based on executive authority.
The bottom line is that Trump has been a 100 day success when it comes to exercising the executive powers of the presidency. He has done a great deal of what he said he would do, and promises to do more. (The White House is planning a new set of executive orders this week to beat the 100 day deadline.)
On the legislative front, while Trump has been part of a successful Republican effort to turn back parts of the Obama legacy, the president has failed to pass an Obamacare repeal and replace bill, failed to pass tax reform, and for that matter failed to pass any other significant piece of legislation. If Trump wanted to have a signature legislative achievement in his pocket by the 100 day mark, he certainly didn't act like it.
But it is precisely in the legislative area that the 100 day mark is such an unrealistic measure. Congress acts on its own schedule. Truth be told, next January, on the occasion of Trump's first year in office, if he has passed either a full-scale Obamacare repeal and replace measure or a major tax reform measure, that would be a reasonably good legislative record for a first year. This is not the New Deal or the Great Society, when there are huge filibuster-proof majorities in Congress and giant bills coming one after another. In today's atmosphere and party alignments, Trump will do well to get one big thing passed.
So on the 100 days, call the president an executive success.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
"100 Days of Our Lives..." - Tony Perkins, Washington Update, April 24, 2017;http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WA17D43&f=WU17D14
The Left may not like the job President Trump is doing, but the people who hired him for it are sure happy! Despite all the hype about Trump's unpopularity, even the latest Washington Post/ABC poll shows what a convenient soundbite that is. The reality is, the White House's new occupant couldn't be more popular with the people who voted for him -- sporting a 94 percent approval rating heading into his first big milestone: 100 days in office.
To his base, President Trump hasn't just met expectations -- he's exceeded them. Pro-lifers, in particular, have a lot to cheer after two terms of the most ruthless abortion ally in history. From reinstating the ban on overseas abortion promotion and funding to giving states the right to sever ties with Planned Parenthood, President Trump is keeping faith with his base -- not just with his commitment to fulfill his promises, but the incredible speed at which he's doing it. Mick Mulvaney, who directs the Office of Management and Budget, pushed back on the Left's criticism. "What I think folks don't realize is that we've signed more legislation into law in the first 100 days than anybody in the last 50 years. We put up more executive orders than any previous administration in the last 50 years." He's inked his name on 28 bills (the most since President Roosevelt), 24 executive orders, 22 presidential memorandums, and 20 proclamations.
But, as the president himself pointed out on Twitter, "No matter how much I accomplish during the ridiculous standard of the first 100 days, & it has been a lot (including the Supreme Court), media will kill!" Of course, the best way to judge Trump should be his judge -- Neil Gorsuch, a proud originalist who now sits on America's highest court for life. In that single appointment, President Trump has done more for the country -- and constitutional governance -- than some presidents will do in their entire term.
But as appreciative as conservatives are for the missile strikes, health care negotiations, and a powerful roll back of Obama's transgender bathroom and shower mandate, there's still work to be done. At the top of the list? An executive order protecting what the First Amendment already gave us: religious liberty. Conservative leaders want it. Almost 20 U.S. senators have called for it. And the attack on so many innocent Christians demands it. As we celebrate the accomplishments of the first 100 days, we'll keep encouraging the administration to push forward on another one: protecting and upholding Americans' freedom to live according to their faith, and as the Constitution provides.
"The First 100 Days to Securing America" - Ken Blackwell · Apr. 24, 2017; https://patriotpost.us/opinion/48687
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