In youth, we waterskied slalom, and the most exhilarating start was standing on a dock, coil of rope in hand, boat full throttle. As the rope disappeared, we timed our jump! Suddenly, we were flying! Trump … just did that!
Trump took so many executive actions last week, that we are flying! In the first week of his second term, he has done more to help revive and renew America than most imagined possible.
His cabinet is getting confirmed, bam, bam, bam, out of the box. Foreign adversaries are backing off, and allies leaning forward into the “New Golden Age” of American leadership.
What has he done? A better question might be, what has he not done? Here is a short list. Trump’s “jump start” includes dozens of actions to get America back on track, restore public safety, accountable government, respect for the Bill of Rights, free speech, markets, faith, and culture.
He is kicking up rooster tails, spotter’s eyes popping. From immigration to the environment, he is flying. He has green-lighted drilling for oil, maximizing America’s fossil fuel advantage, recreating energy independence, and reversing Biden. No more sanctuary for illegal felons.
Asylum programs will resume former norms, third countries holding those who are not facing immediate threats, no more “catch, and release,” and no more open doors for illegals. No more taxpayer excesses to private prisons, or taxpayer-funded sex change operations.
Bringing the federal workforce to attention, no more post-COVID work from home for fun, no more excess hiring, no more protected dead wood. As Reagan did, Trump imposed an immediate federal hiring freeze, except for military, public safety, and immigration enforcement.
He stopped excesses baked into the Civil Service Protection Act, restoring Schedule F. Federal workers can be removed for cause, not letting them sue the government with years of pay.
He empowered federal lawyers to investigate “past misconduct by the federal government related to the weaponization of law enforcement and the weaponization of the intelligence community.”
He will grant clearances to White House personnel who pass a threshold test, not force them to become pawns of political bureaucrats. He withdrew security clearances from past bad actors.
He pushed an end to anchor babies, someone illegally sneaking into the US to have a citizen child, and then stay, a misuse of “birthright citizenship.” He redoubled law enforcement at the southern border, calling the flood of illegals a “national emergency,” and restarted wall construction.
He designated drug trafficking organizations, Mexican, Colombian, Central American, Chinese, and Mideast, “Foreign Terrorist Organizations.” He rescinded the Biden’s Marxist, race-based victimhood and class warfare. Gone are CRT, DEI, ESG, and the misinformation police.
He declared the Bible, Constitution, Title IX, science, and family rights: Only two sexes, male and female. He initiated investigations into manipulative trade practices, and drug trafficking from Mexico, China, and Canada, kicking into gear the renegotiation of trade accords.
He set up an “External Revenue Service” to get tariffs and duties from foreign sources while authorizing a deep dive into protecting national security-related U.S. manufacturing.
On energy, he withdrew from the discredited Paris Agreement, declared a national energy emergency, expedited fossil fuel permits, and reversed the offshore drilling ban. He started rolling back Biden’s anti-market, anti-consumer, anti-energy regulations, no more mandates of electric cars, trucks, plows, mowers, blowers, stoves, dishwashers, and no federal inspection of showerheads.
He opened the Alaska wilderness to oil and gas with respect for the wild and resumed exploration of export terminals for liquefied natural gas, a huge boon for Americans.
He ended leasing federal waters for offshore “wind farms,” began restoring free markets, and reviewed national security risks posed by Tik Tok while aiming for “a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans.”
He reclaimed US sovereignty by withdrawing from the China-heavy World Health Organization, returned Mount McKinley – named after our 25th president – to its original name, renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, and set up the Government Efficiency Department.
In short, hang on, because jump starts are a rock and roll thing, and usually mean a long, strong run. Looks like, thanks to President Trump, we are on one!
Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, attorney, and naval intelligence officer (USNR). He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (2018), and is National Spokesman for AMAC. Robert Charles has also just released an uplifting new book, “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024).
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