If a business were losing money fast, sinking into debt, suffering from inefficiency, and engaging in some dubious financial practices, nobody would question the need for new leadership to step in and implement fundamental reforms. Some people would lose their jobs, some units of the business might be shuttered, and money going out the door would be reevaluated and, perhaps, trimmed here and cut there. As long as it appears fair and open—no cronyism or favoritism, no golden parachutes for the people who created the mess in the first place—outside observers wouldn’t complain or criticize.
This is how President Trump’s efforts to reform and rein in the Executive Branch appear to ordinary Americans. They look at the current debt, a figure that deserves the adjective “grotesque,” and insist that shrinkage must happen. They learn of how much money has gone to foreign countries and grumble, “What about us?” They hear of how many Federal workers and offices are devoted to DEI measures and practices that have meager support with the general public, and they’re disgusted. The illegal immigrant crisis infuriates them when they realize that the federal government has manufactured it.
New stories and speeches by Democrats that accuse President Trump and Elon Musk’s DOGE team of heedless destruction cause little change in their opinions. The plain facts strike them too deeply. Last year, a friend took a flight from the Midwest, settling in nicely with an empty seat beside her. At the last minute, however, the flight attendants held the door so a crowd of people could enter and take all the unoccupied places. They were from Central America, she guessed, but she didn’t want to inquire because the woman who sat next to her was coughing and sniffling the whole trip. Others in the group seemed the same. The regular passengers probably felt charitable toward the newcomers, but couldn’t help wondering: What’s going on? Where are these people from and where are they going? Who’s paying for this?
It’s the kind of immediate experience that cancels idealistic visions of “global citizenship” and the (presumed) obligation to welcome all migrants. They have practical questions that the previous administration didn’t answer: “How many people? How many dollars?” Americans are generous, and they want a strong federal government, but (they think), “This is crazy.”
The Trump Administration is going to continue the reforms in spite of Democrat resistance and judges ruling against the president. He is confident of popular support, which does appear the way of common sense. A smart Democrat would, on this issue, start speaking once again like Clinton/Gore.
