Ewin James: Stupid and brilliant
Many people are allowing themselves to be convinced by the mainstream media in America that President Donald Trump, is stupid and is pathologically unfit to govern, especially when compared to the reputed brilliant President Barack Obama.Is that so so? Is Trump too stupid to govern? Is Obama brilliant as some in the media insist?Many people believe so. “Eight years ago the world was on the brink of a grand celebration: the inauguration of a brilliant and charismatic black president of the United States of America”, said Professor Cornel West noted Black Activist and commentator, in the US Edition of the UK Guardian newspaper just before the inauguration of Donald Trump.
Obama may well be brilliant but I haven’t seen it; for a mark of a brilliant person is the ability to make things clear to those for whom they are intended; yet I found it hard to understand Barack Obama. One of the most mentally torturous exercises for me was watching or listening or to him at Press conferences. It was a display of pure circumlocution. He would go around the world trying to answer a question and when-he was done you were no clearer than when he had begun. Once he took 7 minutes to answer a question and at the end he still hadn’t clarified things.
Contrast him with the stupid Trump who answers a question in under two minutes and leaves you in no doubt what he meant however tersely or crudely he said it.
But let me go on to more fundamental matters that indicate stupidity or brilliance. When the brilliant Obama came into office he apologized to the Muslim world for America using its might and influence around the world; he gave speeches in the middle East doing so . We all know how that turned out: they still hate us and in that period there arose the most terrifying terrorist group this world has seen- ISIS. The brilliant Obama fettered the military so it couldn’t deal with ISIS as it should and in a short time ISIS became a threat to the world.
On the domestic front, when Obama took office in 2008, 30 million Americans were on Food Stamps because they were unable to feed themselves. When he left after 8 years the number had risen to 46 million.
Perhaps the best indicator of Obama’s mental prowess is his health plan , called Obama care under which government was supposed to provide healthcare for Americans. Is it a success? More people may have insurance than before, simply because they are required to and if they don’t they are penalized. One woman I know had her entire tax return for 2016 withheld by the IRS as penalty for not getting Obamacare. Premiums are going through the roof as they say. In many states people only have one choice of health insurance company; for many insurance providers have withdrawn from Obamacare.
As the first black President, Obama was expected to improve things for blacks in America. It hasn’t happened. In an article in the Los Angeles Times, titled Obama’s Legacy in January 2017 , the writers Jahweed Kaleem and Kurtis Lee said “Black employment grew in 2015, hitting its highest numbers since before the recession. Poverty is decreasing; life expectancy is going up. Gaps between blacks and other racial groups in education are gradually closing. But unemployment among African Americans is still nearly twice that of whites, and blacks continue to make up a disproportionate number of prisoners. More than a quarter of the country’s 37 million African Americans still live in poverty.”
According to the National Review in March 2016: “During Obama’s tenure, the percentage of black Americans struggling below the poverty line has advanced, according to the most recent Census Bureau data, from 25.8 in 2009 to 26.2 in 2014 — up 1.6 percent.”
The decreased fortunes of blacks in America was part of the poor economic performanceunder Obama for the 8 years he was in office, when the GDP grew by an average of under 3%.
Now lets look at things under the stupid Trump after only a year in office. Unlike the brilliant Obama Trump hasn’t apologized to Muslims or sought to mollify them ; he has bluntly told them that they must drive out terrorists from among them. He has begun driving them out himself; and the result is encouraging. In less than a year, ISIS has been reduced to a ghost of its former self, because Trump has taken the fetters off the mightiest militaryforce. It is no longer a threat.
Since Trump took office the economy has begun to grow and the number of persons receiving food stamps are decreasing. According to Newsweek Magazine : “ TheDepartment of Agriculture “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation dropped to 41,203,721 as of July 2017, the most recent data available from the USDA, from 42,691,363 in January 2017 when Trump took office.”; a decrease by 1.5 million in under a year.
For the last three quarters of Trumps first year the GDP has recorded growth of an average of 3 % ; this is greater than the average for the 8 years that Obama was in office. He has alsosucceeded in having law passed to discontinue the government requiring Americans to buyhealth insurance and punishing them if they don’t.
Unemployment has fallen to 4.3 percent, the lowest since 2001, due in part to businesshaving confidence from a decrease in regulations, a buoyant stock market and the mostcomprehensive tax reform plan in the last thirty years. The plan will cut the corporate taxrate from 35 to 20 percent and drastically decrease regulations for businesses, making it more profitable to operate in America. Already companies are increasing the number of persons they are hiring; and American companies abroad are pledging to return to do business.
Now from what I have told you you who is stupid and who is brilliant? The man who hasachieved little in over 8 years or the man who has achieved much in mere months in office?You be the judge. For me I will take stupid, over brilliant any day.
Ewin James is a freelance journalist living in Longwood.
Now I know why you said the things you did about Edward Seaga. You are a damn fool