OPINION:
The mainstream media’s current canard is that the first 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency have been without any accomplishment. They may not like what he has done, but they are peddling propaganda when they say he has done nothing.
What about those 28 laws passed by the Republican Congress and signed by President Trump — more than any president in the first 100 days? Then there are those record-setting 25 executive orders. Mr. Trump is dismantling the regulation nation, and just this week stripped the Department of Education of much of its power over local school districts. He has banned government workers from becoming lobbyists for five years. He demands that for every new regulation two other regulations be terminated.
Mr. Trump’s get-tough policy has already reduced the number of illegal border crossers by 60 percent. Business confidence has increased hiring, with the once-lagging stock market now soaring. Mr. Trump took dramatic action in bombing Syria. He has taken direct action against a major Islamic State center in Afghanistan — along with almost 100 terrorist fighters and leaders. Those actions have won the praise of allies in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
And after some 20 years of seeking a diplomatic solution in North Korea, Mr. Trump has put meaning into the threat that we will not allow a nuclear Pyongyang, and has, through face-to-face negotiation, gotten China to take a harder line against its client state.
Yes, his health-care plan suffered a setback, but not a defeat. Yes, his efforts to impose a short-term ban on immigration from nations with ineffective vetting procedures was blocked by the liberal Ninth District federal court — as was his attempt to deny taxpayer money to sanctuary cities. But for many, these rulings have done less damage to Trump than they have to the reputation of the federal courts.
Mr. Trump put an outstanding jurist on the Supreme Court, and rumors suggest that there may be a high-court retirement in a few months. That would give the court a clear five-vote conservative majority for years to come — an accomplishment of enormous proportions.
As a one-time critic of candidate Trump, I can honestly say his first 100 days in office have far exceeded my expectations.
LARRY HORIST
Boca Raton, Fla.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.