Probably the smartest, bestest, most encouraging thing Trump v2.0 has done so far is to at last make good on his flamboyantly unfulfilled first-term pledge to hire “only the best people” for his administration. This, in turn, has yielded some unanticipated but nonetheless salutary results.
Trump shares the spotlight in his second term
President Donald Trump did a remarkable thing earlier this week: He let Elon Musk take reporters’ questions about the Department of Government Efficiency live from the Oval Office.While Musk’s son ultimately stole the show, Trump sat at the Resolute Desk while his tech billionaire ally defended DOGE, a government-cutting project currently dominating the headlines, from media criticism. Though White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt subsequently said she would be happy to have Musk in the briefing room, he didn’t sound like he was ready to compete for her job anytime soon.
It’s long been conventional wisdom that there is only one star of the Donald Trump Show and the only rule in his freewheeling political world is “don’t upstage the boss.” Yet the constant complaints that Musk is the shadow president or the unelected power behind the throne have not created a rift with Trump.
In the sequel to his first term, Trump has been perfectly willing to share the spotlight. Musk is a unique case. The richest man in the world and recent convert to conservatism — Musk is fond of posting videos of Milton Friedman, the Nobel laureate economist who was many a young conservative and libertarian’s entry point to the free-market gospel — was especially helpful to Trump in last year’s presidential election. Musk and conservative activist Charlie Kirk were up against an experienced Democratic field operation and, based on the results in all seven battleground states, at least held their own.
But it isn’t just Musk. Vice President JD Vance has kept up a brisk pace of interviews since taking office. At one point during the campaign, he made more than seven times as many such appearances as both members of the Democratic ticket combined. On the night they were elected, Trump singled out Vance to praise for his performance on cable networks Republicans generally deem hostile.
Trump’s Cabinet is stocked with proven television communicators, from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to Attorney General Pam Bondi to newly confirmed Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. When Gabbard was sworn in, Trump asked the group of reporters if they had any questions. As they shouted them out, Trump said, “You know what, I’d like to have Tulsi say a few words first, and then we could answer a couple of questions.”
With a capable staff and Executive Branch appointees backing him up, all of whom he not only trusts but actually seems to like and respect personally, Trump v2.0 obviously learned all the right lessons from his first term in office—and boy, does it ever show. Small wonder, then, that the man should be more unflappable, less temperamental, and more at ease with sharing the limelight, responsibility, and credit with them, in fairly sharp contrast with his first time in the Presidential pressure-cooker. I repeat: MOST encouraging.
Steady as she goes, Mr President sir, steady as she goes. In addition to the aforementioned crew members (sober men and true/and attentive to their duty, to paraphrase WS Gilbert), maintain the heading you’re currently on and you’ll soon have nearly all Real Americans—be they lowly swabbies on their Middie cruise or salty old seadogs with more Bluewater-spray coursing through their veins than blood—solidly aboard the USS MAGA to boot.
- Entries
Most of us didn’t realize how Deep and Wide was the Swamp.
For instance, had just Sessions and Mattis lived up to their billing, and Pence and the FBI didn’t railroad Flynn, we would have been talking about a very different 2017 than the one we got.
And STILL Trump did more conservative good than anyone since Reagan and before him Ike.
Now he’s trying to outdo Coolidge.
Perhaps his plan all along was to outdo Coolidge. As Mike Tyson noted, everyone has a Plan until they get punched in the face.
Trump came out punching people in the face this time and hasn’t let up.
Note also that very few of his picks this time have decades long ties with DC. Turns out you don’t need DC Dwellers to guide you and you’re better off without Insiders.
“And STILL Trump did more conservative good than anyone…”
Could probably stop there 🙂 Although I often say since Ike myself. Trump definitely surpasses Reagan on the effective conservative scale.
Reagan faced similar push back from his own Party. Ike had the advantage of being a World War Winning General.
Also Reagan had to get thing legislated. The pen and phone hasn’t become a weapon back then.
Also, he had no Twitter. Three networks and three National Newspapers, all Leftist, controlled the Narrative. No internet.
What Reagan got done is similarly amazing given what he faced.
I don’t believe Reagan faced anything remotely like what Trump has faced, not even close. Reagan was called names, but they didn’t try to jail him, they didn’t impeach him twice.
“Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.”
I always thought that summed up Reagan far more than anything else, and is exactly why he failed at advancing conservatism in any meaningful and lasting way.
“Trump v2.0 obviously learned all the right lessons from his first term in office…”
This is true, however –
Had Trump hired exactly the same people in his first term, all these outsiders, it would have been a dismal failure. The problem in Trump’s first term was the republican party, not Donald Trump. Trump has captured the party this time and that is the real difference.
Bingo.
He broke Turtle’s hold on the Senate, and he broke the RNC hold on the Party in general.