Trump says America's success will be his 'retribution.' Let's hope he means that. | Opinion
The reelected president has a chance to make good on his promise to rebuild the U.S. economy for the benefit of working-class Americans. That achievement would be Donald Trump's best revenge.
President-elect Donald Trump sat down with NBC News’ Kristen Welker over the weekend. Kudos to him for not only doing a lengthy sit-down interview so soon after the election but also for doing it with a news outlet that wouldn’t shy away from tough questions.
That already is a breath of fresh air in comparison with the Biden administration. President Joe Biden has given historically few formal interviews and press conferences in the past four years.
And as the country discovered in June during the disastrous presidential debate that ended his candidacy for reelection, there was a good reason Biden was hiding from the news media. Biden and his team’s attempt to deceive the American people about his physical and mental health will now mark his presidency – and mar his legacy.
Even once Vice President Kamala Harris stepped in as Biden’s replacement on the ticket, she also proved reluctant to make her case to voters through formal interviews. And when she did, they were heavily edited.
So if Trump can commit to being more accessible to the people through regular media appearances and news briefings, he will do much better than the current administration in regard to accountability and transparency.
I also was pleased to hear what Trump had to say in his conversation with Welker.
Trump: 'Retribution will be through success'
No doubt, those who already despise Trump probably didn’t like anything he had to say in this interview. Yet, at least with him, you get the idea that he’s telling you what he actually thinks.
That transparency is refreshing after Harris’ “word salads” and Biden’s incoherent mumblings.
And Trump didn’t shy away from the questions that Welker had for him. At one point, she asked him whether he intended to follow through on a threat he had made on social media last year to “appoint a real special prosecutor” to go after Biden.
Trump’s answer surprised me: “I’m really looking to make our country successful. I’m not looking to go back into the past. I’m looking to make our country successful. Retribution will be through success. If we can make our success ‒ this country successful, that would be my greatest, that would be such a great achievement. Bring it back.”
This sounds very different from the Trump on the campaign trail who sought revenge for what he believed to be targeted, political prosecution. And he’s not wrong about a lot of that. Democrats have gone after Trump with a vengeance since before he even took office in 2016.
Perhaps his reelection is revenge enough for him. For the country’s sake, I hope so.
He also acknowledged his mandate from voters.
“I won on the border, and I won on groceries,” Trump said. “I won an election based on that. We’re going to bring those prices way down.”
Years of out-of-control illegal border crossings and stubborn inflation spurred many voters to support his reelection, and he’s right to say he’ll follow through on those priorities.
Will Democrats help or stand in the way?
Biden, who remains completely out to lunch about why he lost the election, gave a speech Tuesday marking his economic “legacy.”
He’d be better off just leaving it alone at this point, given that the economy was the No. 1 reason Trump beat him.
Biden’s pro-Big Labor, big spending, inflationary agenda fueled the high cost of living during his tenure. And Americans rejected that.
Trump has said that he intended to extend his 2017 tax cuts, reduce corporate taxes and regulations, and slash government spending. He wants to use tariffs to a greater degree, which many economists warn is a mistake, but his other plans could make a difference in boosting the economy.
Trump has tasked Tesla CEO Elon Musk and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy to head an effort to reduce the size of government, and even some Democrats seem willing to work with them.
For instance, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, a progressive Democrat, recently said he "admires” Musk even though their politics are different.
“He’s made our economy and our nation better, and our politics are different, and I don’t agree with some of the things that he might say, but that doesn’t make him, like I said, an enemy,” Fetterman said.
I’m not naive. I don’t think our political climate will suddenly become less divisive or corrosive. Yet, as this crazy election year comes to a close, I’m encouraged by what Trump has said.
We would all benefit from Republicans and Democrats coming together to put the country first.
Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at Paste BN. Contact her at ijacques@usatoday.com or on X: @Ingrid_Jacques