donald-trump

’24’s Leftover Mysteries

Dave Davis Commentary, Policy, Uncategorized , , , ,

As we enter 2025, some ’24 mysteries remain unresolved. Donald Trump ran his successful campaign with a variety of seemingly contradictory positions. I was reminded of these when the Cafe Hayek blog pointed to economist Mark Perry’s illustration:

This contradiction made me think of other Trump contradictions. Peace and safety while withdrawing our troops from the Middle East. Without our support, the Kurds overseeing tens of thousands of ISSIS followers may face an attack by Turkish forces, rendering them unable to prevent a resurgence of the deadly group. Remember, Turkish leader Erdogan has territorial ambitions of his own. This possibility doesn’t sound peaceful to me.

We all know that politicians make all sorts of claims that step on each other, but now it’s time to introduce legislation, and conflicts remain unresolved. The idea is to write one or two big reconciliation bills containing the whole Trump program.

Inflation is a paramount issue that accounts for Trump’s victory, yet many of the president-elect’s promises are likely to raise prices. Besides tariffs that, like sales taxes, increase what you’re paying, lower taxes for favored groups, such as those working for tips or retirees, will likely result in higher interest rates or printing money. As I’ve pointed out, either will raise prices.

Unquestionably, the Biden Administration’s wild spending on the Green New Deal, infrastructure, and chips led to the highest inflation in forty years, but will Trump attempt to repeal all of this legislation? Taken together, these acts are an enormous industrial policy. Repeal all since state-directed economies have no record of success.

The question is whether Trump will tackle the problems wholeheartedly or simply piecemeal. The latter will be conflict on conflict. For instance, will Trump’s buddy, Elon Musk, stand still for eliminating his electric vehicle incentives and green tax credit sales? Will members of Congress allow the scrapping of big projects scheduled for their districts? Many businesses have sunk big money based on the Biden-era legislation. Can they continue without the promised subsidies and credits, or must they swallow significant losses on sunk costs? Even major oil companies put big bucks into green projects.

Continue reading →

All We Want Are The Facts

Dave Davis Commentary, Uncategorized , , , ,

The reaction to Joe Biden’s super broad pardon of his son Hunter provoked a reaction exposing how each half of the country views things from different perspectives. Do we have any common sources of information, or do we exist in two distinct bubbles?

On one side, the president did what any father would: protect his offspring. The Justice Department prosecuted his son, Hunter, because of who he is. Nobody else goes to prison on similar charges. In any case, Hunter was on drugs when he committed the crimes, and now he’s clean and sober. Isn’t this the country of second chances?

With the holiday season upon us, forgiveness seems the right course. Other presidents have pardoned family members, so why pick on an old retiring man who spent his entire adult life in public service simply for being a loving father? A Wall Street Journal letter writer made this case, speaking for many, seeing the pardon in terms of kindness, not flouting the law.

Rather than owning up to being grinches, others see the pardon in entirely different terms. A flawed politician took action to protect family members, including himself, from exposure to his corrupt family influence peddling business. Joe Biden represents the worst of the political class. Serial lying while lining their pockets. An earlier presidential run was killed by being caught plagiarizing others’ work, but a wide array of character flaws never stopped him for long.

The volume of lies surrounding Hunter’s laptop is enough to illuminate who Joe Biden is. The computer isn’t Hunter’s; it’s Russian disinformation. The support for his contention is a letter from 51 former intelligence “experts” instigated by his campaign leader. He has yet to meet with Hunter’s clients. He never discussed business with his son. All lies. Biden built his career on a mountain of lies. Why believe him now?

Continue reading →

A Look On The Bright Side

Dave Davis Commentary, Policy, Uncategorized , , , ,

As we approach the white house return of Donald Trump, there seem to be two distinct views of what it portends. On the left, it means a mass roundup of illegals and their placement in concentration camps awaiting export—the economy in shreds without adequate labor. Inflation is roaring upward, fed by tariffs and rising prices. Tax cuts add to the flames by producing huge deficits. The resulting high interest rates put homes and much else out of reach.

Inequity will rise, with Trump’s billionaire friends growing richer while the rest of us fall further behind. Efforts to make businesses and institutions more diverse and inclusive are stalled or reversed. According to Washington Post columnist David Ignatius, instead of a progressive, forward-looking society, we’ll be in the hands of the backward-looking “regressivists.”

Ukraine turned over to Russia’s tender mercies while our former friends and allies abandoned us. Belittled by Trump and harmed by his high tariffs, they retaliate, plunging the world into a deeper recession and raising the danger of World War III. Trump claims dictator powers.

While Gaetz withdrew from consideration as Attorney General, others nominated, such as Pete Hegseth for Defense, Robert Kennedy Jr. at Health and Human Services, and Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence, confirm the left’s fears that inexperienced extremists will run the government.

In fear of these horrible outcomes, blue states are checking their resistance options. The governor of California has even called for a special session of the state legislature to raise funds for legal action. Others are seeking ways not to cooperate with or impede the federal government.

For those looking at it from this progressive point of view, the future looks bleak. However, the landscape might be more favorable for success from a right-of-center perspective.

Continue reading →

Mirror Mirror

Dave Davis Commentary, Policy, Uncategorized , , , ,

We’ve seen this movie before, or at least something similar. Trump uses his gut feeling to pick those he would support in certain situations. Top of the list of qualifications is loyalty to him. Whether they are up to the job is quite secondary. Gazing at the fawning chosen is like looking in the mirror; the more they ape him, the more he sees himself. The reflection, of course, pleases him. A narcissist likes nothing better than himself.

I’ve pointed all this out before. Who can forget those Trump-backed candidates who used his blessing to edge out people who could win in the primaries only to flame out in the general elections? Herschel Walker, Dr. Oz, Blake Masters, Karri Lake, Doug Maestriano, etc.

Losing winnable contests had dire consequences. Trump put himself first, rather than his party and, if he thought about it, the country, resulting in legislation and actions that brought us inflation and an open border. Control of the Senate in the Biden administration could’ve blunted his leftward lurch.

Continue reading →

And So It Begins

Dave Davis Commentary, Policy, Uncategorized , , , ,

Like many others, I’m still in a quandary after the election. While the media gushed over how Kamala Harris is a great candidate, her history said the opposite. The election confirmed what most already knew: she was awful.  

Of the seven battleground states, six also had high-profile senate races. Democrats won five out of the six, even though Trump swept those states. This outcome shows people were willing to split their ticket to vote for a Senate Democrat. Maybe some didn’t vote for Harris or Trump. It shows it wasn’t Democrats per se that people didn’t like; it was Kamala Harris. The question remains: why trade the declining Biden for the dead weight of the vice president?

It may surprise some, but Trump plans to fulfill his campaign promises. All the people he has appointed are loyal to him and his agenda. This realization inspires fear and joy, depending on where you stand on the issues. I’m experiencing one and the other.

Continue reading →