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Jerry E. Clark

What To Expect In The Coming Months
Thinking Things Over....
By Jerry E. Clark
 
(Nov. 9, 2016) - I'm embarrassed by many of my colleagues in the press. Anybody paying attention to the news these days has seen the unprecedented bias that was shown to the Hillary Clinton for President Campaign, from basic coverage to unseen things like giving her debate questions via intermediaries. This kind of lower class behavior isn't just bad, it actually threatens democracy.

But I guess in the pursuit of one's political goals, anything goes is OK? That is precisely why the American people do not trust the media. It stains everybody in our business. The people involved need to be immediately fired, but they won't be.

And in the case of Democratic National Committee chair, Donna Brazille, there are no apologies for actions that would embarrass even the greatest ego amongst us. No apologies for outright trying to subvert our democracy? Really? It just goes to show you how far out of whack our process has gone. Here's the reality: screwing your opponent is the right thing to do and when caught, well, that's just the way it is!

But right now, we have a new president-elect and I hope that public pressure will be strong enough to force a change in the outlook of many of our best journalists.

Am I REALLY hopeful that this will be the case? Yes. But don't hold your breath. For the past couple of days, big city newspapers have printed articles denouncing the Trump transition team for a) not telling them where the president-elect was going to dinner b) criticizing him for wanting his very smart son-in-law to occupy a key advisory role in his administration and c) criticizing the transition team for not naming many to key posltions, despite the fact that most modern presidents have taken far longer to get their full teams in place. Sheesh.

In short, our press core has taken a large leap to the left, despite the fact that many of these same organizations are losing employees left and right, have severely declining circulations and worse, drastically declining public support. This isn't good at all. Our press corps is a key factor in our democracy; it guards our freedoms. That is lacks focus and serious leadership is yet one more sign in the decline of the seriousness of our media. Not good.

Things To Look For...

I am among the many millions of average Americans who do not like the coarse nature that Mr. Trump seems to have all too often. Locker room talk can be rough and chest-beating bravado isn't unusual. But ultra crass trash talk went out in the 1960s and he's shown from time to time a low class speech level that is disturbing.

All that shouldn't keep us from closely examining his major policy proposals. The "Make America Great Again" slogan has real implications for millions of Americans and we must take this concept seriously.

• wage levels should rise due to a vastly expanded private economy. This should happen if even a small portion of Trump proposals is approved by Congress. Major infrastructural developments will mean widespread demand for both labor and machinery. The multiplier effect on the economy should be huge.

• Trump enforcement of border controls also will result in changes to our labor market and should eventually have a significant effect on crime levels. While Mr. Obama wanted to appear to be the "good guy" for allowing thousands of illegal immigrant criminals roam the nation's streets, I have no doubt that these same troublemakers are going to be either deported soon or incarcerated. That's good.

• Trump's position on the state of NATO also is not irresponsible. He may not have elucidated it properly, but those who want protection and who also made financial commitments to help assure this, need to keep their word and pay up. We are not the world's "free bank," and American consumers should not have to spend our cash and blood protecting those who refuse to protect themselves.

• While Trump has indicated he won't touch many entitlement programs - and the budget implications of this attitude are serious indeed - look for his administration to quickly go after those who are collecting public benefits improperly. Fake disability claimants, fake unemployment claims, and false workmen's compensation claimers are in REAL trouble, make no mistake about it. They drain the treasury and are financial criminals who need to face the long arm of the law.

• Trump and the GOP-led Congress are going to repeal and replace ObamaCare and rightly so. Look for some of the concepts to remain, however. What is needed is a system which emphasizes competition and has the ability to hold down costs at the same time.

• The U.S. military has suffered as a result of the "sequestering" of funds due to Obama's social over-spending and monumental deficits. He's doubled the national debt during his two profligate terms. Think about that for a moment: Obama's two terms have amassed more debt than ALL of the previous 43 presidents COMBINED.

• On trade, probably one of the most serious of all topics mentioned so far, Mr. Trump is going to be tough. While American consumers are very used to getting all that cheap crap at Walmart these past few years, hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars have flown into the coffers of the Chinese and others who aren't necessarily our friends.

China and others have dumped steel, aluminum, automobiles, billions of goods and services in our market, all the while getting government subsidies to continue. Not dealing with the key reasons for the U. S. manufacturing base decline has been awful and this will change too.

It's not just a question of taxes, but of regulation, the need for tort reform and much more.

So, hold on, folks, we're all in for real change, not circus talk with Greek columns and fancy lighting in the rear. We're in for an opportunity to see the American economy achieve substantial growth again. Real prosperity doesn't come from speeches, but from the grit of hard work and massive private and public investments.



 
 
 

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