Trump goes too far, but he's delivering a prosperous America | Opinion

Even when he delivers a decisive win ‒ and he has done that surprisingly often in the first year of his second term ‒ the president has the agonizing habit of pushing too far, saying too much, being too much for the moment and for the high office he holds.

Take, for example, illegal immigration. Among his first actions after returning to the Oval Office in January 2025 ‒ can it have been only a year? ‒ was to successfully end the chaos at the U.S. border with Mexico. 

Closing off unchecked entry to the United States for millions of people has been good for national security, good for law and order, and good even for desperate migrants and refugees who were targeted for exploitation by cartels and traffickers. Win one for the Don – and the U.S.

But Trump didn’t stop there, unfortunately. He also has cut off legal channels for refugees and others to come to America, including drastically slashing the number of people the U.S. welcomes from war-ravaged and economically failing countries like Haiti, Sudan and Syria.

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That’s not how the U.S. – the richest, most powerful and, until now, most generous nation in the history of the world – should operate. We can and should still welcome huddled masses yearning to be free. It has proven for 250 years to be good not only for our ancestors but also for our country, our economy and our role in the world.

Trump racks up foreign policy wins, but Greenland is a bridge too far

One of the great and welcome surprises of Trump’s second term is how well he has handled foreign policy. His leadership was instrumental in negotiating a peace deal in Gaza, setting back Iran’s nuclear ambitions and compelling NATO allies to invest more in making Western Europe more secure against Russian attack.

Your Turn: I voted for exactly what President Trump is doing | Opinion Forum

On foreign relations, Trump has been the bully in the bully pulpit, and overall, his hardline approach has worked to make our nation and the world safer.

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But he just can’t stop himself from pushing too far. The ongoing furor over control of Greenlandis another ugly example of the too-much presidency. Trump and his team are correct in noting that Greenland is of high strategic importance given China’s growing ambitions and Russia’s continued aggression. The U.S., the rest of North America and a good chunk of Europe would benefit if the U.S. military had a bigger footprint on Greenland. 

But threatening to take an ally’s land by force? Slapping tariffs on friendly nations because they won’t support coercion by America’s erratic commander in chief? It’s much too much.

Trump's harshest critics serve as unintended allies

Speaking of too much, one of the best things Trump has going for him is his most rabid critics in the Democratic Party and the news media. They are so unrelentingly over the top in their attacks on the president and the 77.3 million Americans who voted for him in 2024 that they discredit themselves.

As a result, the president gets more benefit of the doubt from fair-minded Americans ‒ including Trump skeptics like me ‒ than perhaps he should.

Nowhere is the disconnect between Trump critics and reality more pronounced than in the U.S. economy. To hear Democrats and many journalists describe economic conditions, the American standard of living has been in free fall since Jan. 20, 2025.

Yet, gross domestic product growth is strong, unemployment remains low, interest rates on home loans are falling, stock markets have soared, the inflation rate is largely under control and average net income increased (pay raises minus inflation) in 2025. For most Americans, the past year was one of stronger financial health.

Your Turn: What readers think about Trump's first year back | Opinion Forum

Does that mean all is well in the world’s most massive and complex economy? Of course not. Millions of our neighbors continue to struggle, and there’s essential work to be done to make economic and educational opportunities more accessible.

To understand how both things can be true at the same time is to accept that nuance still reigns in the real world, if not in our current political conversations.

As aggravating as Bad Don so often is, I have more confidence in Not So Bad Don than in his progressive opponents to deliver a safer and more prosperous America. Is that putting too much faith in Trump? Could be. The next three years will likely be as unsettling and uncertain a ride as the past one.

Bottom line: It’s been a messy, at times ugly, often frustrating year. At the same time, America is stronger, safer and more prosperous than a year ago.

Trump is like those drugs advertised on late-night TV: Side effects may include mood swings, irritability, loss of appetite and hair loss.

But he still beats the alternative.