In my previous articles, I have talked about why people vote the way they do, and how political polling works and Trump's fiscal policy but this week I will discuss what history says about a Trump presidency.
A political election speaks as much about the feelings of a nation and its current events as it does about the president elected. Many people are unsure about what Donald Trump’s presidency will look due to his lack of time in office. However, in the 226 years of our country we have had several presidents elected in a similarly divided nation, or with similar goals. Of the 43 people to hold the office of president, two have had no previous elected office experience, President Taft and President Hoover. President Hoover also ran on his business experience. President Trump was not even the only entertainer, Reagan and Nixon both were actors.
President Hoover was elected on a Republican ticket during the period of rapid modernization in the 1920s similar to the current digital revolution. He ran on a platform of peace and prosperity and conservative values of individualism, hard work and limited government. Seven months into his presidency after a rapid drop in the stock market the great depression began. His began several measures to try and stimulate the economy. Many view him as being calloused and having his conservative values constraining his abilities to intervene more broadly, but his programs provided the framework FDRs programs.
This election hasn’t even been close to the most contested or filled with the most mudslinging. After the Lincoln election the South succeeded, while campaigning for president, Teddy Roosevelt was shot, between Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland both sides resorted to vote-buying. The election between Hayes and Tilden was so corrupt and filled with so much fraud, violence against voters, and swapping of electors that congress had to form a commission to figure out who won. The history of mudslinging has such a storied history in the US the modern candidates wouldn’t even be in the top ten.
In the past, the US has been heavily divided after many US elections, such as Presidents Jackson, Monroe, Lincoln and Hayes. Much of what decided the legacy of these Presidents was what they did about the divided nation. If President Trump wants to be remembered as a top president then he should pursue a policy similar to President Monroe. Monroe went on a speaking tour to ease tensions. This led to what is known as an “Era of Good Feelings” and after his presidency the fighting between Democratic-Republicans and Federalist began to decrease. This could easily be accomplished with something similar to FDR’s fireside chats updated to the digital age. President Trump could easily do this with his skills as speaker which charged many people to vote for him.
Chester A. Arthur was another president from New York who prided himself on wearing the finest suits from Brooks Brothers, and refused to move into the white house until it was renovated. He made much of his money through the New York Customs House which used the money it earned to help get politicians elected. Upon his inauguration he used his inside knowledge to dismantle these type of organizations and change the systems of both parties. This type of behavior is in line with Trump's plan for the first 100 days. It also is in line with the policies of the reform party which he joined in 1999 and almost ran in the 2000 election. He would definitely have plenty of knowledge on campaign finance, as he has contributed to the campaign of many politicians. He also could do something about the revolving door of lobbyists and elected officials sense he has no strong ties to a political party. He also has knowledge of the loop holes in the tax code. Depreciation which he has claimed on his current taxes. He also could take on carried interest, second home interest decoctions, and other loopholes used to avoid taxes.
Many of his policies are also similar to Ronald Reagans on the fiscal side. It focused reducing taxes and deregulation to spur growth. Many criticize that this only benefits the wealthy and criticize the policy. or as I have stated the growth could have been caused by the dependency ratio.
Much of what happens while a president is office is beyond their control, for example the financial crisis, 9/11, and Desert Strom. It is what the president does in reaction to this that define how they are remembered. Much is not known about what President-Elect Donald Trump will do while in office, or what he wants his legacy to be, but remember we have been more divided, been hit by countless tragedies,but we always come out the other side stronger. If you are excited your candidate won or saddened by your candidate loosing that’s good. That means you care about our country, and where we are headed, and a casual indifference would be worrying. I task you to not go into your own echo chamber that repeats your views and stigmatizes the other side by showing you the few doing something that you find abhorrent. Instead I plead with you to seek out the other side. We are a nation that is filled with good honest people, though we may differ on issues, we are strongest when we are united as one people working towards the problems we may face. It is then that we as Americans are powerful beyond measure.
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