In the first six months of his second term, President Donald Trump has achieved tremendous results for Americans. His predecessor, President Joe Biden, purposely allowed the southern border to remain open as millions of illegal immigrants streamed into the country. President Trump has addressed the problem and secured the border.
While the massive influx has stopped, the President has directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to remove violent criminals from the country. From the beginning of the year until June 24, it is estimated that 100,000 illegal immigrants have been deported. Of that total, approximately 70% have had criminal records.
With untold millions of illegal immigrants living in the country, the deportation numbers must increase, but the results are impressive considering the constant legal challenges and the opposition from far-left activists and Democrat politicians in sanctuary cities.
Border security will receive an even bigger boost with the passage of the โOne Big Beautiful Billโ (OBBB) that will allow 10,000 more ICE agents to be hired, along with 3,000 new Border Patrol officers. The bill also includes $46.5 billion to complete the border wall and $23.8 billion to bolster the U.S. Coast Guard. Overall, $165 billion in funding for the Department of Homeland Security was secured.
In passing the (OBBB), the President guaranteed the extension of the โTrump tax cuts,โ which was essential for future economic growth in the country. While many conservatives were understandably concerned with the spending in the OBBB, President Trump and congressional Republicans were successful in passing a $9 billion recission package, which cut funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development, among other agencies.
The cuts were โthe first that will codify the spending cuts identified by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) into law.โ Despite the breakup with former DOGE leader, Elon Musk, these important efforts were the first serious attempt to rein in government spending since the Grace Commission during the administration of President Ronald Reagan.
In another history-making move, President Trump negotiated massive trade deals with the United Kingdom, Japan, and many other countries. However, the biggest deal was announced on Sunday with the European Union (EU).
Last year, trade between the EU and the United States totaled $1.97 trillion. Unfortunately, it was a very unequal relationship as the United States faced a trade deficit of $235 billion per year.
Fortunately, Trump addressed this unfairness in the new trade deal, which will allow the United States to impose a 15% tariff on EU goods sold in our country, while โtariffs on many American exports will drop to zero.โ
The EU also agreed to purchase $750 billion in American energy, make $600 billion in new investments in the United States, as well as purchasing additional military equipment.
Congratulations to President Trump and his team for reaching a deal favorable to the United States, while averting a trade war with the twenty-seven nation EU.
Many skeptics claimed that the Presidentโs aggressive โreciprocalโ trade policies would unleash inflation. Instead, inflation has remained low and job growth has been strong.
For more robust economic success, President Trump knows that interest rates must drop. Consequently, he has been putting extreme pressure on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to lower interest rates. Undoubtedly, this will lead to a reduction soon.
The Presidentโs success is not just limited to domestic and trade policies; he has achieved great progress in promoting world peace. His intervention prevented war from erupting between India and Pakistan. In addition, Trump created a historic peace agreement between Congo and Rwanda. Last weekend, he used trade as a bargaining chip to encourage Cambodia and Thailand to agree to start ceasefire talks.
These deals are a result of President Trumpโs โPeace Through Strengthโ philosophy. Trump knows our military must be strong to attain peace. The OBBB included a $150 billion increase in military spending and the overall spending for defense will reach $1 trillion in the next fiscal year.
Fortunately, Trump does not want to use this military power to start wars, but to achieve peace. The successful military strike on the Iranian nuclear facilities was followed by a ceasefire ending the โ12 Day Warโ between Israel and Iran.
Trumpโs leadership style and projection of American strength is a major reason recruitment is soaring, surpassing goals for all branches of the military.
Despite these amazing successes, the media refuse to give credit to President Trump and are continuing to focus on the โEpstein files.โ The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times are working overtime to create a sinister impression about the Presidentโs relationship with the disgraced child sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein.
The President ended his friendship with Epstein several years before he was prosecuted for his horrific crimes. Most significantly, Trump never visited Epsteinโs Island, unlike others, such as former President Bill Clinton.
Of course, the media do not want to discuss Clinton, their complete focus is on President Trump. The media are convinced that the Epstein issue can politically damage Trump.
Happily, their efforts are failing. According to the latest Rasmussen poll, the Presidentโs approval rating is 48%, not stellar, but in line with his historic average.
While some Independents have been persuaded to blame President Trump in the Epstein matter, among his core supporters, Republicans, his approval rating is an astounding 90%.
These impressive results are due to the popularity of President Trumpโs policies. In a new survey, 75% of Americans support the deportation of criminal illegal aliens and 60% favor closing the southern border. Among young men, 18-29 years old, 52% lean Republican, which should give the GOP hope for future election victories.
Conversely, Democrats are doing poorly. The Epstein mania is not helping Democrats improve their poor standing with the American people. A new poll shows that 63% of respondents view the Democratic Party poorly, their lowest rating in 35 years.
Thankfully, Americans understand liberal media spin and are not buying it.
Jeff Crouere is a native New Orleanian and his award-winning program, โRingside Politics,โ airs Saturdays from Noon until 1 p.m. CT nationally on Real America’s Voice TV Network & AmericasVoice.News and weekdays from 7-9 a.m. & 6-7 p.m. CT on WGSO 990-AM & Wgso.com. He is a political columnist, the author of America’s Last Chance, and provides regular commentaries on the Jeff Crouere YouTube channel and at Crouere.net. For more information, email him at jcrouere@gmail.com