BloggeRhythms

Michal Goodwin, political writer @nypost com, is often quoted here because he’s one of a very, very few in his field actually capable of understanding the subject matter he expounds upon. However, although he’s been a quite strong Trump supporter all along, even he lacks the level of managerial acumen and sophistication required to grasp the methodology behind Trump's technique.    

In today’s piece, Mr. Goodwin presents the grades he’s given to the new POTUS’s first 50 days in office, which across three subjects result in an average of a “solid” B. However, while the POTUS clearly deserves an “A” for his overall performance, on today’s subject Mr. Goodwin himself merits an “F.” 

At the outset, Mr. Goodwin awards Trump an “A” on Subject 1, whereas he’s keeping his campaign promises, “and his focus on doing what he said he would do is the best part of his young presidency because faithfulness is the key to restoring Americans’ trust in government.” 

Noting that Trump was elected largely because he was an outsider untainted with the baggage of political corruption  and he’s keeping promises made “on that score, he is proving that voters made the right choice.”   

From there Mr. Goodwin opines that Trump’s focus on “fixing immigration, creating jobs and replacing ObamaCare is consistent with his main campaign themes," with “two others, tax reform and rebuilding the military, next in line.” Thus: “Even those who disagree with Trump must concede he is serious about his pledge to put Americans first.” 

On Subject No. 2, "delivering results," Trump gets a “B” because Mr. Goodwin believes that “from the moment of the election, he eyed low-hanging fruit he could pick through executive orders,” and “those changes already show impressive gains.” 

To support his point, Mr. Goodwin produced the following three paragraphs: “Economic confidence is rising among businesses, entrepreneurs and consumers, thanks in part to the president’s push to keep companies from moving plants and jobs to Mexico. He meets regularly with corporate titans, small business owners and unions, all of whom have ideas on getting the economy roaring. 

“Trump’s order that federal agencies reduce two regulations for each new one is boosting animal spirits, and the stock market surge has added more than $2 trillion to national wealth. To top it off, Friday’s strong jobs report and firm wage growth for February add to the happy sense that growth is accelerating. 

“Something positive also is happening on immigration, with officials saying the number of people caught trying to enter illegally from Mexico in February was the lowest in five years. Even the New York Times grudgingly concedes the Trump effect, saying interviews in America, Mexico and Central America turned up few people who “quibbled with the idea that President Trump had altered the climate for immigration.” 

And then, Mr. Goodwin gets to what he perceives as negatives, writing: “Alas, not everything went as Trump planned. His first order on immigration and refugees had a clumsy rollout and was blocked by the courts, while his second, though more tailored, is drawing suits from states trying to stop it. It is also mystifying that the White House can’t say what, if anything, officials are doing to tighten security vetting in the meantime. 

“Regarding ObamaCare, the complexity of health care guarantees results will not be immediate, but Trump is not ducking the fight.” 

Yet, the fact that the executive order would have been blocked by the Ninth Circuit court even had the rollout been perfect is overlooked by Mr. Goodwin. While so is the fact that, in the meantime illegal entry has fallen off dramatically simply because the threat of capture has risen significantly.  
   
Leaving the remaining negative the delayed healthcare restructure actually written in a quite complimentary fashion regarding Trump’s willingness to pursue the subject until his mission’s accomplished. 

So, in all, if Trump's performance in this area to date rates only a “B” from Mr. Goodwin, most prior president’s would likely have been given “Z’ minuses. 

Then there’s Subject No. 3, “working with others” where by determining that, it’s the “least impressive part of the president’s start and earns him a mediocre C,” Mr. Goodwin exposes himself as missing Trump’s objective altogether. It’s also where Mr. Goodwin places himself among all the other journalists who simply do not understand how a major deal-making entrepreneurial builder intellectualizes. Nor do they have the acumen to assess the performance of one who is unique in the many ways he adapts his manner to his advantage when working or competing with others.         

Mr. Goodwin writes: “His lack of political experience shows in his slow, uneven actions in forming a government. On one hand, his cabinet is generally first-rate, with Secretary of Defense James Mattis, Homeland chief John Kelly and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson looking like stalwart pillars. 

 “Still other leaks are coming from Trump’s own team. Unflattering reports about him cite sources “close to the president” or “people around him,” which signals inner-circle discontent. That is troubling so early in an administration.” 

After setting the preceding framework, Mr. Goodwin goes on to relay his concern that: “Most worrisome, Trump often seems like a lone ranger fighting the world. Even Superman needed help, and governing is a team sport. 

“His explosive tweets accusing Obama of wiretapping him caught Trump’s aides off guard, and reportedly resulted in him having furious arguments with Steve Bannon and Reince Priebus.”

And in that assessment of Trump’s style which Mr. Goodwin finds disturbing is one of the keys to Trump’s success. Whereas by keeping his adversaries off guard there certainly will be times when even those closest to him might be surprised by his actions too. However, that’s what “surprise” is all about in the first place.   

Next, Mr. Goodwin expresses hedged agreement, writing: “While Trump is right to suspect he is the victim of dirty tricks started by the last administration, his accusing Obama personally was a combustible way of making the point and probably ended any possibility of a constructive relationship.” 

Yet, if Mr. Goodwin thought his commentary through, he would also have to consider why Trump would even want to form any kind of “constructive relationship” with one who is currently building a national operation intended to bring his administration down in any way possible.      

Along the same lines, Mr. Goodwin relates another two-edged sword in text that says: “Some critics blame Trump’s use of Twitter, but he has no intention of giving it up and I don’t blame him. Twitter gives him a fast way of speaking without the filter of a press corps that is biased and hostile, and conveys a personal touch that official statements don’t. 

“Yet the advantages disappear when he uses it to pick a fight nobody on his team is ready for. The all-hands-on-deck alarm pulls everybody into an emergency and locks him into an agenda that hasn’t been discussed and may be a mistake.” 

Meaning that on this one, the same logic applies as in the previous case where Trump uses surprise as a tactic to keep his rivals hesitant although those around him might be caught somewhat flat-footed. However, those on his team will surely recover with his help, while those that are true targets may or may not. Which is also why another president, Harry S. Truman, said long ago: " If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen."
 
All of which brings us to Mr. Goodwin’s final assessment: “The domestic report card then shows an A, a B and a C, giving the president a solid B average for the first 50 days. That’s a very good start and there is opportunity for big improvement when he gets more experience and has his full team in place.” 

In retrospect then, we have a quite astute political observer who is generally precisely on target broaching a subject he should have given some more thought before presenting. Because, for all the reasons listed above, it seems apparent that Trump deserves an “A” across the board. And perhaps, even Mr. Goodwin realizes his own nitpicking tendencies whereas he’s closed his column as follows:   

“Here’s the best news: We have a president determined to succeed and willing to work tirelessly to make America great. That’s why I remain optimistic.” And Mr. Goodwin certainly got that one right. 

 That’s it for today folks. 

Adios