When President Obama famously told incoming President Trump the largest foreign policy concern was the potential for near-term military conflict with North Korea, Trump curiously asked Obama, “Well, have you talked to Kim Jong-un?”
President Trump has never revealed how Obama responded to that question; however, given the nature of the circumstances, what we know about DC and the background involved, we can assume the Obama reply was akin to the lightbringer telling Trump, “Things just are not done that way.”
We know what happened next; President Trump engaged directly with Chairman Kim, met with him several times and even crossed into the demilitarized zone as a physical expression of a new approach.
This was only one example of President Trump’s policy doctrine, which ran completely counter to the traditions of the professional administrative state. This was/is part of the reason why DC hated Trump.
The bureaucracy of DC exists to sustain the career influence and affluence of a group of people who would never survive in the private sector. Their weak work ethic, selfish worldview, insufferably annoying character traits, flawed logic, silly outlooks and disconnected opinions, created in a bubble that has no relationship to reality, are only useful within their echo-chambered system.
President Trump has a skillset of commonsense accomplishment that runs completely counter to the mindset of the administrative state. President Trump thinks like you and me; Trump finds optimal solutions. Washington DC simply cannot fathom successful policy outcomes that do not come from their creation. Trump succeeded with a doctrine that was entirely unfamiliar to the DC bureaucracy. {GO DEEP} It is absolutely critical that we never forget this.
It is important to remind ourselves of what is possible in a positive way, because everything discussed about our challenges is framed from the perspective of a flawed and corrupt DC system. From the traditional perspective, the challenge seems overwhelming, but that’s really a misnomer.
Here’s the key – The DC challenges are not overwhelming when you take a non-traditional approach toward finding solutions.
Consider the issue of SSI supplemental benefits and budgets. Yes, from the traditional perspective the financial drain on the system can collapse the federal budget. However, if we double the size of the economy and/or modify import tariffs, we can increase tax revenue and resolve the SSI budget problem. The problem for DC is that no one knows how to double the economy or leverage tariffs to expand the domestic pie. President Trump does.
Again, we mistakenly view our problems through the prism of how they were created.
This paralysis by analysis is emphasized by tradition, by DC punditry and by the media complex who exist to talk about the problems. But thankfully, President Trump views our problems through the prism of how to solve them. President Trump doesn’t look backward, he looks forward; it is a very unique and effective approach.
We look at the problem as if we individually are given an elephant to eat. President Trump looks at the problem as if there needs to be more of us with forks. It is, essentially, the feed a man a fish or teach a man to fish conversation. Which one creates the larger economic pie?
Despite the naysayers, backbiters and backseat drivers, we must continually remind ourselves that Trump’s optimal solution approach works. We have the history of the Trump Doctrine (2017 through 2020) to review as a reminder. It just works.
So, with that in mind…. here’s a little back-and-forth that might help break the funk and remind us to smile.
[Via Unseen] – “If Trump wins, he will be handed a country in basically a depression for a majority of its people, on the brink or actually in ww3, a wide open border and a 5th column of millions of anti-American military aged men within that border, a deteriorating military, a nation so in debt it will struggle to raise capital, a country with fragile supply lines for most of the goods it needs, a divided population with half brainwashed by the media to hate the concepts the country was founded on, and a government staffed with people who will be actively fighting everything he does. Pray for our country because regardless of who wins, it’s going to be a long, hard fight to keep this country together, let alone make it great again.” (link)
My quick ‘elevator‘ reply – “Which is exactly why Donald J Trump is the best man for the hardest job of this era. Trump will end the wars in Ukraine and Gaza within a week. Restart U.S. energy independence. Tariff China and EU, pull out of NATO, eliminate Green New Deal and then…. (2+2) along with the immediate closure of the southern border, Trump will collapse the infrastructure of Chinese EV’s in Mexico…. Then he’ll call MbS, have a Big Mac and Diet Coke and plan for day two.” (link)
Now, granted I am being a little brief and big picture in retort, but the substance of what I am sharing is completely doable. All is not lost. It is entirely possible to reverse course and Make America Great Again.
[Anne Hyatt] – “While I like that plan, fingers crossed, I don’t see how he can end the War in Gaza.” (link)
Again, THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX – “Did you follow the Trump doctrine in ’17 through ’20?
After talking to MbS, Trump will call Egypt’s President al-Sisi, and tell all regional players that fighting immediately stops and Sisi is now leading the reconciliation effort. Likely Hamas will balk. POTUS Trump will then tell Qatar to kick out the Hamas/MB leaders (“Drive them out” 2.0) or they will face economic sanctions. Erdogan will be told to stick a sock in it, and he’d better not give a home base to Hamas again. Trump will tell Hamas leadership they need to live in Gaza; like actually live in the region they presumably lead. Trump will tell Sisi to make part of the deal a regional rule that all Gaza political leadership must live in Gaza. Syria, Jordan and Kuwait will think Trump is nuts but keep quiet because Trump might be willing to prove he’s nuts,…. and eventually everyone will call Fattah Abel al-Sisi to find out the date for the peace summit.
After lunch, Trump calls Putin because that one is easier. (link)
♦President Trump’s foreign policy approach brought North and South Korea together away from the table of conflict. ♦President Trump’s foreign policy approach brought Serbia and Kosovo together away from the table of conflict. ♦President Trump’s foreign policy rallied the Gulf Cooperation Council to stop Qatar’s support for Islamic extremists via the Muslim Brotherhood. ♦President Trump’s foreign policy brought Turkey and the Kurdish forces together away from war and conflict. ♦President Trump’s foreign policy created a ceasefire to stop the bloodshed in Syria. President Trump mediated a cessation of hostilities between India & Pakistan in the Kashmir region. ♦President Trump’s foreign policy brought Israel and the UAE together… and then Bahrain… and then Sudan in the Abraham Accords.
President Trump executes a clear foreign policy, a unique doctrine of sorts, where national security is achieved by leveraging U.S. economic power. It is a fundamental shift in approaching both allies and adversaries – summarized within the oft repeated phrase: “economic security is national security.”
The Trump Doctrine, using economics to achieve national security objectives, was/is a fundamental paradigm shift. Modern U.S. history provided no easy reference for the effective outcome, and fearing irrelevance, Washington DC was furious at how effective he was.
President Trump is the one guy who can do it again.
