“It’s one thing to shoot yourself in the foot. Just don’t reload the gun.” – Lindsey Graham
Days after Donald Trump stunned America with his election victory in 2016 over the left’s queen bee Hillary Clinton, America entered a period of unprecedented social and political upheaval. Shocked businesses and tech corporations began marching to the far left. They adopted policies, programs and agendas to negate Trump’s influence on Americans, especially Blacks and Hispanics. No intuition or American tradition was spared by the big tech wrecking machine.
Liberal media who predicted a landslide victory for Hillary Clinton could not believe Trump beat their favorite daughter. They pledged to be ruthless and un-intimidated with their coverage of the Trump administration. They promised to birddog his every move while in office.
Democrats from coast to coast aligned with grassroots resistance groups, and were talking about impeachment before Inauguration Day. Daytime network talk show hosts were crying foul and spreading falsehoods about Trump’s past. There was nary a positive word spoken about Trump.
“I don’t think Donald Trump understands how basic economics works.” -Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Now the worm has turned for Trump after four years of radical progressive engineering and “Bidenomics.” He defied two brutal assassination attempts, two impeachments, a bogus criminal conviction and countless efforts to discredit his character in his winning comeback in 2024.
Today, executives are bending policies and taking a proverbial knee in his direction, reworking their social and environmental protocols in ways that will gain grace with Trump. Major media appears to be trying to tone down the rhetoric and be less antagonistic with their coverage. The Democrats, with a less active place at the table, are waiting to see what plays out before they make their move.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg cited his political shift rightward and said it is important to start off on the right foot with the Trump administration. Yes, this is the same person who censored posts concerning Trump last election. Meta announced it was terminating their fact-checking program and replacing it with a community-driven system similar to the one Trump ally Elon Musk X uses. And Zuckerberg boasted his company was relocating his moderators from liberal California to Texas.
At a recent news conference, Trump said, “The first term everybody was fighting me. This term everybody wants to be my friend.” This is not an overstatement, but the contrast between the way his first presidential term began and ended and the current transition to his second term.
President Trump’s inaugural committee has smashed fundraising records, racking up more than $200 million in pledges. Donations have come from some of the world’s biggest companies, and top tech CEOs will be front and center at the festivities: Amazon: $1 million; Meta: $1 million; Uber: $1 million; Google: $1 million; Microsoft: $1 million; Ripple Cryptocurrency: $5 million; Toyota: $1 million; Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi: $1 million; Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg: $1 million; AI CEO Sam Altman: $1 million; and Apple CEO Tim Cook, $1 million; a record high for any Republican.
“Today, it is not big business that we have to fear. It is big government.” – Wendell Phillips
Trump broadened his appeal with many groups of voters since his 2020 defeat. The left’s four years of bashing and public scorning of him just kept him in the news, which vastly increased his popularity. He has made significant gains in support from independents and moderate Democrats.
“The most fundamental fact about the ideas of the political left is they do not work.” – Thomas Sowell
Trump’s most remarkable gain has come from Blacks and Hispanics. Latino and Black voters took a right turn in an election dominated by voter outrage over the high cost of food and housing. Juan Proaño, CEO of LULAC, the nation’s oldest civil rights organization for Hispanic Americans, said, “The election results make it clear Trump’s messaging on the economy resonated with Latinos.”
Black voters have played follow the leader for decades and voted for Democrats, but that has been trending differently the past few years and peeked this election. According to Edison Research, with the economy in limbo, Black men opted for Trump by 21%, while Black women backed him at 7%, with 12% of Black supporters voting for him overall. That is up from 8% from his 2020 presidential bid.
DaSean Gallishaw, a voter consultant in Fairfax, Virginia, said “It’s been a very long time since the Democrats ever really kept their promises on what they’re going to do for the minority groups.”
The Black men who shifted to Trump did so due to years of frustration over the Democrats’ attitude toward them, and a rebellion against being politically pigeon-holed by the left due to their race.
One Republican operative close to Trump’s circle said it’s clear that this time around Democratic response is “100% different” from what it was after Trump’s 2016 win. “The resistance is dead, there is no resistance right now. After four long years of progressive leadership, many of Trump’s former foes welcome Donald Trump as the right person to lead our nation back into prosperity.”
Even Democrats who were working in Washington during Trump’s last transition say something very different is happening now. They believe Democrats will be more likely to work with Trump and his allies on important legislation such as the the Laken Riley Act serving as an early example.
“I think it is time that we treat Donald Trump like a regular president.” – Chuck Schumer
With a Republican majority Senate and House, Trump will be able to make some major legislative changes, especially when it comes to taxes and regulations. And as head of the executive branch, he will be in a position to act unilaterally on a host of other issues using the limits of his presidential powers.
Analyzing the polling, Americans overwhelmingly agreed with Trump’s hard-line immigration stand, his views on national security, safety in our communities and most importantly the economy.
After four years of progressive leadership that brought us record high inflation, high prices at the pump and raised the cost of living for each American an average of 20%, voters wanted “change they could believe in.: They feared a vote for Harris would bring them another four long years of “Bidenomics,” and turned right. Considering Trump’s record before the pandemic during his first term in office, voting to bring him back for another four years was a “no-brainer” for most voters.
With a popular president, we have a chance to end the great political divide and accomplish great things for America. “It is time to remember that old wisdom our soldiers will never forget: that whether we are Black or brown or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots, we all enjoy the same glorious freedoms, and we all salute the same great American Flag.” – Donald Trump.
