Trump’s December, A Week To Remember

This has been a rough month for the Trump presidency, especially the week of December 17th, 2018… certainly a week to remember…  

The government shutdown, although a partial shutdown, it’s still significant considering Trump requested $5 billion for border wall funding and failed to get the votes needed from Congress. It’s important to note that Republicans currently control the three branches of government, yet have failed to deliver on the Trump’s campaign promise. The Dems won the House in the November midterms, so expect this fight to continue with Trump and Republicans losing leverage as he prepares for the second half of his first term.

Pulling troops from Syria and Afghanistan, an announcement that came from left field has everyone including our allies shaking their heads and trying to prepare for the aftermath of such a decision. It’s rumored that Turkey President Erdoğan informed Trump of his plan to move in on the Kurds and Trump made the decision to pull our troops shortly thereafter. It’s the ultimate betrayal to our allies and the news certainly shook members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans.

James Mattis, Secretary of Defense, immediately resigned following Trump’s announcement to pull troops. Mattis, a highly respected military official, leaving the White House is a historic resignation. His resignation letter didn’t even include the generic salutation most cabinet resignations mention. Scheduled to officially leave his post in February, Trump has decided to replace him much sooner… on January 1st, former Boeing Executive Patrick Shannahan will assume the position as acting Secretary of Defense. Shannahan’s authority will be extremely limited until he’s confirmed by the Senate. 

The markets are down… a lot. In fact, the markets are having their worst year since the Great Recession. Trump often brags about the markets regarding the success of his Presidency and policy decisions, but he’s avoided the topic as of late. Many fear that the run might be over. On Sunday (12/23/18), Steven Mcuchin, Secretary of Treasury, called the Chief Executives of the United States 6 largest banks (Goldman, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, BOA, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley). He reported that they have “ample liquidity” to continue lending to consumers and businesses, unlike times during the 2008 financial crisis. But why is such a confirmation needed? 

Trump signed First Step into law, aka the Criminal Justice Reform Act. While it only impacts the criminal justice system at the federal level, which is roughly 10% (181,000) of the total US prison population (2.1 million), it’s certainly a historic piece of legislation; yet, failed to get the news coverage it deserved. So what exactly does the bill do…

• It further reduces the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences at the federal level, which partially addresses the mass incarceration of Black and Brown people in this country.
• It takes several meaningful steps to ease mandatory minimum sentences under federal law.
• Inmates can now get “earned time credits” by participating in more vocational and rehabilitative programs. Such credits would grant them early release to halfway houses, which would increase their opportunities to participate in educational programs and likely reduce the recidivism rate.

All of this news is amidst Mueller’s Russia investigation which continues to be a staple in the daily news. Rumors have surfaced that Mueller will release his report as early as February, but who knows. Either way, this has been a rocky December, especially the week of December 17th. And with Dems taking over the House, it won’t get any easier for Trump and top Republicans to govern.