Sleep well mr. President
So sleeps Donald – here’s the thing –
His words no-one relies on;
He rarely does a foolish thing
But never says a wise one.
I paraphrase from the famous doggerel written by Lord Wilmot, a friend of King Charles II of England. The opposite of Trump, Charles was known for his wise words but foolish actions. Lord Wilmot posted his verse on the Monarch’s bedroom door. It seems appropriate for this robust support of Donald Trump by author Yuan Xiaohui. I have translated the article and abbreviated it. First are the words and views of Yuan. I have no information about the author’s background or credentials – except this link.
I have waited for someone like Trump for a long time
I have been writing articles since the 1990s, criticizing the Western media and liberal cultural circles. They have pulled the Western world to the left to an unreasonable extent. I wrote a biography of Kennedy, studied the Watergate case, and wrote a biography of Hollywood Superstars. Because of these, I have a good understanding of the background of the political situation in the United States since the 1950s and 1960s.
Another author and academic from Taiwan, seriously challenges Yuan’s views and replies publicly to them in the press.
The earliest example is Nixon. I have always said that Nixon’s resignation was a coup launched by the American media. They could not use votes to knock him down, so they used a very small burglary to transfer blame to Nixon. They were writing every day and tired everyone out day and night in the news. They finally found the problem in Nixon’s response. They invented a concept: “The important thing is not the crime, but the cover up.”
After they succeeded, they wrote this method into the journalism textbook. To this day, Western journalists in every country are proud of this incident. Professors even teach “investigative journalism.” Since then, using the media to destroy conservative politicians has become a noble task for Western media.
This is not directly related to Trump. However, in the Watergate case, Nixon instructed the Democratic camp to install a wiretap, and then blocked the Congress from investigating. In the end, the court ruled that the information must be handed over. This scandal is just a fact. Nixon himself admitted that he was wrong. He resigned and stepped down before being impeached.
Trump is the first person who is willing and has dared to confront the media. He is the first person to challenge the media’s bad behaviour. If Trump fails, perhaps conservatives will never have a chance again.
Perhaps this is a statement of fact, but this is not a good thing. Freedom of speech is the first article of the US Constitution and one of the most important values in democratic countries. If we choose to make the media an enemy, this is what dictators do most often. Attacking the media and calling out the media is not something we are happy to see leaders of democratic countries do.
Economics
What exactly has Trump done to be worth supporting? Let’s talk about economics first.
Trump introduced comprehensive tax cuts as soon as he took office at the end of 2017. Among them, corporation tax was the most important. One of the most obvious consequences is that many companies moved their factories into or back to the United States, greatly increasing employment in the United States and even raising government taxes.
I once had the opportunity to talk to front-line officials, asking them how many companies have returned and how many jobs have been added. In fact, the overall effect is limited. The reason is very simple, because the industrial chain reorganization takes time. Trump can take no credit – yet.
The overall tax revenue in the United States has also increased since the 2009 financial crisis. However, the average annual increase rate between 2010-16 was 6.6%, and 2017-20 was 3.2% (the 2020 epidemic will affect the 2021 tax, so it is no longer included Within the value). Therefore, it may be a little questionable to say that Trump is increasing government taxes.
Trump signed a very large tax cut plan at the end of 2017. However, according to calculations by some independent research institutions, the “growth rate” of foreign investment in the first two years of Trump’s administration did not increase. After signing the tax reduction plan, there was a short-term increase in 2018, but then it slowed down again, and the growth rate even turned negative in 2019.
In addition, he reached new trade agreements with Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and the European Union.
The United States did negotiate trade agreements with Japan and South Korea, but the United States and Vietnam have no new trade agreements. The United States and the European Union have indeed been discussing trade. However, the current agreements are over very small items, such as the increase in the tax exemption for beef exports in 2019, and the tariff-free lobster exports announced a few days ago. These are not significant things that affect the economy. In contrast, the Trump administration’s taxation of iron, aluminum and other goods has caused tension among many allies.
Energy production
There is a greater achievement in the economy. Trump made the United States self-sufficient in energy for the first time in 67 years, becoming the world’s largest energy producer.
Energy production in the United States has been increasing in recent years. One of the main factors is the discovery of shale oil, which is not directly related to Trump, right? (Supplement: Chesapeake, the largest shale oil company in the United States, filed for bankruptcy protection in June this year. )
The above are some of the main measures, not including many of Trump’s executive orders. Many people think he loves to brag, but in fact, he does not do anything. He has done all the ideas he has in his head over the past few decades. It’s not like other officials, who confuse themselves as soon as they sit in that seat and don’t remember what they said in the past.
And remember, he did all this under the continuous impeachment actions of the Democratic Party and the continuous daily blow of the media. Otherwise, his achievements will be greater. Otherwise, his last campaign promised that “infrastructure” could be launched.
No matter which politician or party you support, worshipping politicians as gods is a very dangerous thing. It is certainly possible to support Trump, but there is no need to support him in a way that does not conform to the facts.
So, whose ‘facts’ do you believe? You have your own views, I am sure. These are likely to remain the same whatever anyone else may argue!
Worked on the article:
Wanlikhang
