Why Trump 2.0 Looks Unstoppable

Victor Joecks on Feb 11, 2025

If they don't already, Democrats will soon wish that President Donald Trump had won reelection in 2020.

It's staggering what Trump has already accomplished. Border crossings have plummeted. Trump ended DEI in the federal government. He reversed a 1965 executive order that required companies with federal contracts to put affirmative-action-style quotas in place. He stopped federal funding of transgender surgeries and treatments for minors.

There isn't enough room to mention all his accomplishments in areas like energy, foreign policy and the military.

Trump's second term is off to a much better start than his first. It's worth looking at the factors that have made Trump 2.0 so dominant.

The first is that he has a much better understanding of how he can use his power to accomplish his goals. His executive orders contain specific instructions to dismantle the regulatory state and withdraw the woke tentacles the left has used to influence American society. That's partly because his supporters spent their years in exile crafting detailed plans for his eventual return.

Second, his staffing choices have been superb and aligned with his vision. That wasn't the case in his first term, which was hampered by leaks, internal drama and staff upheaval. In his first term, "many of his Cabinet picks quietly or openly worked to stop his ideas," the Associated Press recently wrote. That isn't happening now, and the improvement is obvious.

The third change is how quickly he's moving. In his first term, Trump signed one executive order on Jan. 20, 2017. This year, Trump signed more than two dozen on his first day in office. And he's kept up a rapid pace.

As a result, Democrats are struggling to isolate which issue to attack. Imagine their thought process: "OK, Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Accord, so we'll play the 'we're all going to die' card. Hang on: Trump just ended racial discrimination. Time to play the race card. But now, he's protecting women's sports. Ahhhhh."

This speed has led to tactical errors from the left. Democrats and their allies in the propaganda press are furious that Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency have targeted the USAID. That's the U.S. Agency for International Development. It's supposed to help the U.S. counter influence from foreign adversaries, like China. But it has morphed into a giant slush fund for left-wing causes.

Democrats have decided this is where they want to make their stand. That's an odd choice, since the agency is little known. The Trump administration has an easy rebuttal, too. It can simply tell the American people how USAID spent their money. That included $1.5 million to push DEI in Serbia and $2 million for LGBT issues in Guatemala, including sex changes.

Fourth, the Trump administration has provided alternative visuals. A month ago, the left had a clear playbook to attack Trump's mass deportations. Find and publicize the plights of the most sympathetic illegal immigrants.

But ICE is widely broadcasting its removals and welcoming media on its raids. Dr. Phil embedded with an ICE team in Chicago. Fox News showed one Haitian illegal immigrant screaming, "F--- Trump" and "Yo, Biden forever, bro," after ICE arrested him. ICE said he had 17 criminal convictions.

An informed public isn't falling for Democrats' scare tactics.

Leadership starts at the top. The fifth and most important factor is that Trump is a changed man. It could be experience, nearly being assassinated or having Democrats trying to imprison him. Trump is more disciplined and focused now than he was eight years ago. If something doesn't work, he moves on, instead of playing the blame game. He's not competing with his appointees for attention or power. He knows their accomplishments add to his legacy.

If he keeps this up, that legacy will include one of the greatest second presidential terms in American history.

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Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Email him at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or follow @victorjoecks on X. To find out more about Victor Joecks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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