In the movie, The Post, Meryl Streep’s character shares a sobering thought, “Newspapers are the first draft of history.” Their mission is critical to our republic; newspapers are to serve the public, not those who govern. They have a responsibility to be truth tellers no matter who is in office, but it’s easier to report negative news about a president you do not support. In the movie, Nixon was in the crosshairs, but the Pentagon Papers focused on actions and lies by Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson before Nixon was president.
Is it the media’s responsibility to also cover the accomplishments of presidents they do not like? The Pew Research Center report, "17 Striking Findings From 2017," quantified Trump’s harsh media coverage. They analyzed the first 60 days of coverage in printed newspapers, Newsweek, and on network TV coverage.
Pew’s report stated, “About six-in-ten stories on Trump’s early days in office had a negative assessment, about three times more than in early coverage for Obama and roughly twice that of Bush and Clinton.” The media story found that Trump’s coverage was 62% negative and just 5% was “positive.” By comparison, Obama’s coverage in the first 60 days was 42 percent positive and only 20% negative.
President Trump certainly contributes to his negative coverage with his controversial tweets. When you add the Democratic party’s commitment to resist and reject any of his policy initiatives, it’s amazing how much he’s been able get done. Let me stress the positive by sharing my Top Ten Trump Positive Accomplishments from his first year in office:
- He appointed Judge Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court to maintain the conservative majority in the court. He’s also the first president to have 12 judicial appellate appointments confirmed by the Senate in his first year.
- Instead of ushering in a stock market crash, the Dow has plowed through the 26,000 mark for the first time ever. The US has seen a 40 percent and $6 trillion gain in financial asset wealth since Election Day.
- He has worked with the Senate and Congress to pass the largest tax cut in decades, cutting the corporate tax rate from 35 to 21 percent, cutting individual rates for all income tax levels, doubling the child tax credit to $2,000, and dramatically increasing the standard deduction. It’s already stimulating economic growth, generating jobs, providing needed tax relief.
- With the prime minister of Iraq declaring victory over ISIS, Trump has been effective in working with allies to end the ISIS dream of a caliphate in Syria.
- According to the Washington Examiner, the Trump administration has "canceled or delayed more than 1,500 regulations in the first 11 months" and "ultimately cut 22 regulations for each new one enacted (last) year, saving taxpayers billions of dollars over the coming years."
- Stating inefficiencies and the unfair burden of supplying 20% of the UN’s budget, Trump’s reduced America’s $3.3 billion per year contribution to the UN by $285 million with more cutbacks to come.
- He’s withdrawn from the Paris Climate Agreement which would have increased the cost of energy to the most vulnerable in America and required America to pay out trillions over this century to pay for mandatory energy changes required in other developing countries.
- In support, more than 125 companies have already announced bonuses and/or pay hikes for their workers as a result of the tax cut.
- He’s solidified our support for Israel, our primary democratic ally in the Middle East, by approving the eventual move of our embassy to Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, ending Palestinian delusions of Israel ever returning to pre-1967 borders.
- While less than 30% of Obama Cabinet appointments had ever worked in the private sector, 90% of Trump appointees have actually worked for other than government agencies. Committed to doing more with less, his administration cut 11,000 federal employees in the first six months.
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With results like these, supporters can put up with some of his controversial tweets and comments. As with President Reagan, the media and Democrats keep underestimating this president while he continues to make things happen. Tweets or not, we finally have a president who takes his campaign promises seriously.
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