# Conservative Dopers...Trump's accomplishments so far **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [August 2, 2017, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653 "2017-08-02T21:42:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/21 "2017-08-03T08:03:54Z")
In fact, _none_ of it has come via legislation. His one and only legislative ‘victory’ was cancelled indefinitely by the Senate. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/22 "2017-08-03T09:48:11Z")
Not started a Global Thermonuclear War? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/23 "2017-08-03T10:30:20Z")
I’ve seen this topic play out on reddit a number of times. There are many more Trump supporters over there. One common theme is that Trump has achieved great success in infuriating liberals and that this is an important goal. I don’t know that our local conservatives would think that way (with one or two exceptions) but that seemed to be common sentiment on reddit. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/24 "2017-08-03T12:44:15Z")
He signed the Russia sanctions bill. Give him that. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/25 "2017-08-03T12:52:48Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > He signed the Russia sanctions bill. Give him that. Winning! Sad! ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/26 "2017-08-03T13:04:40Z")
He looks tired. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/27 "2017-08-03T13:12:19Z")
He soundly defeated his arch-enemy Saturday Night Live by getting rid of the Mooch before they could come up with a recurring parody of him. That’s got to count for something! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/28 "2017-08-03T15:30:35Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > He signed the Russia sanctions bill. Only because he forgot he can veto. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/29 "2017-08-03T17:51:51Z")
> [@XT](#): > > … what, in your opinions, has Trump accomplished thus far in his presidency. > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > There have been several threads like this seriously asking Conservatives to come forward and say good things about DJT. I realize there are more liberals on the SDMB, but even so, our few resident Conservatives usually don’t bother to reply. Some of them seem to prefer to drone on in multi-page pissing matches with liberals in other threads rather than make coherent statements in non-combative threads like this one. If we’re going to try to have a non-combative thread about it, I’ll throw out these: - Gorsuch (it won’t surprise me if at the end of his term, I still consider this the best thing he’s done) - liberating Mosul ([and soon Raqqa](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-raqqa-us-backed-forces-syria-mosul-islamic-state-fighters-jihadis-islamists-a7873631.html)) from ISIS - handling the Syrian chemical weapons attack with an appropriate response that didn’t trigger a wider war with Russia (nod to **AK84** ) - rolling back massive National Monuments that gobbled up huge chunks of my state (still in process, but things seem to be progressing on that front) - [stock market is singing along](https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/01/apple-tech-stocks-soar-after-hours-set-to-lead-dow-to-22000-record-wednesday.html), [unemployment is down](https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000), and [economic growth appears to be accelerating](https://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/glance.htm) (admittedly, two quarters is a very short time frame to measure these things, but so far, the trends seem positive) - rolling back Obama-era regulations (see below) That’s probably only a partial list; as I think of others I’ll mention them too. > [@CairoCarol](#): > > Er, poor use of language there - I should have said “measures” rather than “legislation.” A lot of this has been via Executive Orders, rather than showing enough leadership to get bipartisan support for actual bills passed by the House and Senate. > [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > In fact, _none_ of it has come via legislation. His one and only legislative ‘victory’ was cancelled indefinitely by the Senate. You guys should learn about the Congressional Review Act: [NPR: Republicans Are Using An Obscure Law To Repeal Some Obama-Era Regulations](http://www.npr.org/2017/04/09/523064408/republicans-are-using-an-obscure-law-to-repeal-some-obama-era-regulations) [National Review: Trump is quietly succeeding in chipping away at Obama-era regulations.](http://www.nationalreview.com/article/447291/gop-regulatory-repeal-congress-reducing-red-tape) [Politico: Congress repeals Obama’s regulations](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/05/barack-obama-end-regulations-congress-trump-238060) ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/30 "2017-08-03T18:43:59Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > You guys should learn about the Congressional Review Act: I think we’re talking about different things. I don’t mean using the tools provided by existing legislation to get things done (though that’s a perfectly legitimate approach). I thought that my original wording made it sound as if I were referring to creating/showing leadership for _new_ laws. The actions explained in your links accurately sum up what I was attempting to describe. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/31 "2017-08-03T18:57:25Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > …Gorsuch (it won’t surprise me if at the end of his term, I still consider this the best thing he’s done)… That it wouldn’t surprise you would not surprise me either. > [@](#): > > …liberating Mosul ([and soon Raqqa](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-raqqa-us-backed-forces-syria-mosul-islamic-state-fighters-jihadis-islamists-a7873631.html)) from ISIS… Did he indeed? Well, that’s certainly a feather in his cap! This guy? > [@](#): > > …The attack on Mosul is turning out to be a total disaster. We gave them months of notice. U.S. is looking so dumb. VOTE TRUMP and WIN AGAIN!.. October 23rd, 2016 > It might bolster your argument if you could outline the massive changes the he created to allow such a disaster to turn around! Was it simply being elected, was that enough to send ISIS into a tailspin? Did the Iraqi troops have a yuge upturn in morale and capability when the glad news was shared? I wait with bated breath. > [@](#): > > …rolling back massive National Monuments that gobbled up huge chunks of my state (still in process, but things seem to be progressing on that front)… I don’t even…what?..huh? > [@](#): > > …[stock market is singing along](https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/01/apple-tech-stocks-soar-after-hours-set-to-lead-dow-to-22000-record-wednesday.html), [unemployment is down](https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000), and [economic growth appears to be accelerating](https://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/glance.htm) (admittedly, two quarters is a very short time frame to measure these things, but so far, the trends seem positive)… So, first you admit that these things don’t mean much of anything, but then try to imply that, yeah, they really do. Maybe. > [@](#): > > …rolling back Obama-era regulations … Regulations bad, m’kay? Excuse me, but says who? So far, it seems that muffling if not dismantling the EPA seems to be the point of the spear. Heaven forfend that our nation’s businesses would not have access to our God-given toxic waste disposal sites, _aka_ rivers. Or that we surrender in our struggle against competing species, i.e., honeybees. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/32 "2017-08-03T19:04:16Z")
Upon reflection, that can’t be all of it, there must be something in there to loosen the stranglehold that union thugs have on business. My bad. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/33 "2017-08-03T19:07:36Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > It might bolster your argument if you could outline the massive changes the he created to allow such a disaster to turn around! Was it simply being elected, was that enough to send ISIS into a tailspin? Did the Iraqi troops have a yuge upturn in morale and capability when the glad news was shared? > > I wait with bated breath. You don’t seem interested in adhering to the allegedly non-combative nature of this thread, so this will probably be my final reply to you here: [Mattis: US shifting to ‘annihilation tactics’ in ISIS fight](http://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/335477-mattis-us-shifting-from-attrition-to-annihilation-tactics-in-isis) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/34 "2017-08-03T19:11:53Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > You don’t seem interested in adhering to the allegedly non-combative nature of this thread, so this will probably be my final reply to you here: > > [Mattis: US shifting to ‘annihilation tactics’ in ISIS fight](http://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/335477-mattis-us-shifting-from-attrition-to-annihilation-tactics-in-isis) Now that ISIS is confined to a much smaller area. [This is how much territory ISIS has lost in 2 years](https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/05/this-is-how-much-territory-isis-has-lost-in-2-years/) > [@](#): > > US officials announced this week that ISIS has lost more territory in Iraq and Syria as the international effort to take back land the terrorist group seized continues. > > Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren said during a Pentagon briefing on Wednesday that ISIS (also known as the Islamic State, ISIL, or Daesh) has lost 45% of the territory it once controlled in Iraq and 30-35% of the populated areas it once held across its “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/35 "2017-08-03T19:17:32Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Gorsuch isn’t even really anything Trump did. That’s all McConnell, for managing to stymie any possibility of the proper president at the time naming any one to that seat. If it weren’t for Yertle, Gorsuch would have had to show up and sit on Garland’s lap. This rule seems to apply to every single thing Congress might pass. If proposing X and getting Congress to pass X is not fairly called a Presidential accomplishment, then I think no President can point to many successes. And coincidentally, my answer: Gorsuch, and some cabinet appointees. Really, I cannot recall a single President who’s done LESS six months into his term. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/36 "2017-08-03T19:28:03Z")
> [@](#): > > You don’t seem interested in adhering to the allegedly non-combative nature of this thread, so this will probably be my final reply to you here: > > Mattis: US shifting to ‘annihilation tactics’ in ISIS fight Historically, putting the enemy in a situation where they can choose between death and death is a sure way to bolster the intensity of their resistance. _Très_ duh, _mais non_? And, it wasn’t our guys who were going house to house for a thousand separate firefights, it was the Iraqi soldiers. Did we offer thousands of our own to take their fair share of the hand-to-hand fighting? With fanatical resistance guaranteed? I hazard a guess, that would not have gone over big league with our own people, as the casualty lists swell and burst like a corpse in the burning sun of the Godforsaken Desert. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/37 "2017-08-03T19:37:53Z")
Apparently Trump’s hissy fit over Boeing charging too much for a new airforce1 motivated someone to find a cheaper alternative: [Air Force Finds Cheap 747s That Were Owned by Russian Airline for Air Force One](http://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/news/a27589/trump-air-force-one-cheap-747s-russian-airline/) I haven’t seen a tweet about it, but I’m sure he’ll take credit when he notices. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/38 "2017-08-03T19:40:01Z")
Trump could have locked himself in Trump Tower and never uttered a word or signed a thing and the stock market would still be singing, unemployment would still be down and the economy would still be growing. He inherited quite a robust economy from Obama, you know. Job growth for a record number of months in a row. I could have kept that streak running. All Trump had to do was to not fuck that up. And now he’s taking all the credit for it, per typical. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/39 "2017-08-03T19:47:22Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > Apparently Trump’s hissy fit over Boeing charging too much for a new airforce1 motivated someone to find a cheaper alternative: [Air Force Finds Cheap 747s That Were Owned by Russian Airline for Air Force One](http://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/news/a27589/trump-air-force-one-cheap-747s-russian-airline/) > I haven’t seen a tweet about it, but I’m sure he’ll take credit when he notices. The stupid part is that the cost of 2 AF1s is about 774 million (in the link) the rest of the 4 billion+ is the insane amount of retrofitting and additional equipment to make it a Presidential plane. So the cost of the original planes is about 20% of the total cost. So even a discounted pair isn’t really saving much. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2017, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653/40 "2017-08-03T20:00:31Z")
Boy, talk about people viewing questions through their own lens. Trump is now in charge, so he should get whatever credit or blame on how the fight against ISIS is going right now. But to be clear, there was no recognizable change in the U.S. strategy against ISIS until [May 19th](https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/1188225/department-of-defense-press-briefing-by-secretary-mattis-general-dunford-and-sp/), so I think it’s fair to point out that it seems like Obama’s military strategy against ISIS has been more or less in place from the summer of 2014, when everything went to hell, to roughly May or so of this year. And the battle for Mosul began in November 2016 and appears to be mostly over as of July 2017, so I’m not so sure if anything at all changed in the last few months in terms of U.S. policy that resulted in Mosul being wrested from ISIS – but at the very least Trump can claim credit for seeing things through. And on the Air Force One replacement, yes, it will probably cost $4 billion or so when it is all said and done, but Trump did put his foot down and it is fair to claim he cut something like a couple hundred million out of the program. He should get credit for that, as opposed to his claiming credit for taking $700 million out of the F-35 program, which were savings that had been planned for years. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conservative-dopers-trumps-accomplishments-so-far/792653.md?page=3)