Major Campaign Promises President Trump Kept in 2017


Part of the cynicism of voters has to do with politicians saying one thing in the heat of a campaign and then forgetting it the moment they are elected. Trump said he would and he did.

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Tax cuts
Before election: Trump promised to lower the corporate tax rate and huge tax cuts for working Americans.

After: The Republican tax plan finally passed in December, and it largely ticks the box for the president although its merits are hotly disputed. He has had to compromise on his pledge to bring corporation tax down from 35% to 15% (it will be 21% instead). And the tax cuts for individuals will expire, although Republicans say future governments will simply renew them. But wealthy Americans are expected to benefit more than poorer ones.

Paris climate deal
Before: As a candidate, Mr Trump derided climate change as a hoax concocted by China, and the regulations of Paris as stifling to American growth.

After: After three months of prevarications behind the closed doors of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the president came down decisively on the side near the exits. Quitting the Paris deal, signed by nearly 200 countries, will take a few years but this is unequivocally a promise kept.

Supreme Court nominee
Before: “I am looking for judges and have actually picked 20 of them. They’ll respect the Second Amendment and what it stands for and what it represents.”

After: He vowed to appoint a conservative justice and he has – Neil Gorsuch. It took a procedural change to Senate rules, but it’s a victory nonetheless.

Bombing ISIS
Before: During a speech in Iowa in November 2015, Mr Trump warned that he would, using an expletive, bomb so-called Islamic State into obliteration.

After: The president dropped the biggest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal on an IS-stronghold in Afghanistan. He also takes credit for accelerating progress in driving IS out of parts of Iraq and Syria.

Iraq declares war with IS is over

Trade deals
Before: Mr Trump called Nafta “a disaster” and warned that the TPP “is going to be worse, so we will stop it.”

After: Mr Trump pledged to withdraw from the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). He did in his first few days.

He also vowed to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Association (Nafta) and, after threatening to pull out, the White House has said that Canada and the US have agreed to talks.

Ban on Muslims

Before: Mr Trump initially promised to ban all Muslims entering the US – a “total and complete” shutdown should remain until the US authorities “can figure out what’s going on”.

But he switched to “extreme vetting” after he became the party’s presidential candidate.

After: As president, he introduced two travel bans which become ensnarled in the courts but the third had more luck. The US Supreme Court ruled President Trump’s ban on six mainly Muslim countries can go into full effect, pending legal challenges.

The decision is a boost for Mr Trump’s policy against travellers from Chad, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen.

Cuba thaw no more
Before: Mr Trump said in September 2016 that he would reverse the deal President Barack Obama had struck to reopen diplomatic relations and improve trade.

After: As president, he told an audience in Miami that he was “cancelling the Obama administration’s one-sided deal.” But in reality, he has only rolled back certain parts, placing restrictions on travel and business.

Obamacare
Before: One of Mr Trump’s trademark rally pledges was to repeal and replace Obamacare – his predecessor’s attempt to extend healthcare to the estimated 15% of the country who are not covered.

It is widely hated by Republicans, who say the law imposes too many costs on business, with many describing it as a “job killer” and decrying the reforms – officially the Affordable Care Act – as an unwarranted intrusion into the affairs of private businesses and individuals.

After: The Republican healthcare plan has been unable to pass the Senate, and has been mauled by doctors’ groups, hospitals and other parts of the medical industry, mainly because of its deep cuts to Medicaid, the health programme for the poor, and fears that millions would lose insurance.

But Mr Trump has been able to dismantle parts of the law – the fine for people who did not get health insurance has been eliminated as part of the tax plan. Some fear that may have a spiralling effect on premiums as healthy people choose not to get insured.

Moving Israel embassy
Before: Mr Trump pledged during his campaign to move the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a divided city which both Israelis and Palestinians claim.

After: In December, he said he formally recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and approved moving the US embassy although that would not happen for several years.

Troops in Afghanistan
Before: Long before he ran for president, Mr Trump posted a number of tweets calling for an end to US involvement in Afghanistan. They were similar in tone to this one from 2013: “Our troops are being killed by the Afghanis we train and we waste billions there. Nonsense! Rebuild the USA.”

But his stance changed during last year’s presidential election, when he said US troops would probably have to stay in order to avoid the total collapse of the Afghan government, and to keep a check on neighbouring nuclear-armed Pakistan.

After: He has committed the US Army to the open-ended conflict, saying his approach will be based on conditions on the ground and will not have time limits. He also said he would get tough on Pakistan, who he criticised for offering “safe havens” to extremists – claims rejected by Pakistan.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis confirmed Mr Trump’s strategy in an announcement that the US would send 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan.

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