I live in the heart of Progressive America, where the populace has become unhinged at the prospect of another four years of the Trump administration. Just yesterday, a friend described the President as “an existential threat to the US”. And earlier this month a neighbor’s mass email ended on this cheerful note: “If we don't change our leaders and enact progressive policies, we are doomed.”
To which I say: People, get a grip!
Granted, Trump is a narcissistic, impulsive, vindictive, and mean-spirited jerk with autocratic tendencies, who appears to regard the Constitution as an obstacle to doing whatever he wants. Then again, I don’t see him declaring emergency powers anytime soon. We will still have elections and the three branches of government. And if Trump wins the next election, he probably won’t be all that interested in getting foreign leaders to do him political favors, because his political life will be over in just a few more years. What’s the point?
The Republican’s tax reforms were not particularly radical or outrageous. Corporate tax rates are now close to the Nordic norm. Income taxes are now simpler. Businesses are less burdened by regulations. Lots of good things are happening in the economy. Consumer confidence is high at all income levels. Housing has actually gotten more affordable across much of the country, except the big coastal cities - but that is not Trump’s doing. Low-wage earners and the middle-class are doing better than during the Obama years.
None of this is to say I’m happy with the prospect of four more years. I especially deplore Trump’s indifference to environmental issues. That said…
America will survive.