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Today marks six months since Donald Trump’s inauguration as US President. Having been swept to power on the back of one of the most controversial political campaigns in the history of electoral politics, Trump set the bar of expectations extraordinarily high for himself. His revolutionary agenda laid out a set of radical policies, including sweeping immigration reforms, the biggest tax cuts in American history, and an unprecedented foreign policy shift away from globalisation towards an America First approach. Trump made a promise that if elected US President he would make America great again. So, 6 months on, has Donald Trump made America great again?

The Trump Administration didn’t waste any time getting the ball rolling, issuing an executive order within a week of being sworn in, which instituted a travel ban on immigrants from seven different countries. The ban, which targeted nations with high rates of terrorist activity, was originally blocked by the Supreme Court, before being given the green light for partial implementation, with exceptions allowed for individuals with strong family ties in the United States. This action set a symbolic precedent early on — Trump was a president who was prepared to get things done.

Trump’s signature policy — constructing a wall along the Mexican border, was, for many voters, the issue which got him elected. With illegal immigration from Mexico bringing with it a surge of crime, an undermining of industrial relations laws, and an accompanied shift in voter demographics and cultural norms, Trump’s willingness to introduce this particular issue into the national discourse was what made him such a worthy candidate in the eyes of so many. So far, the wall is yet to be constructed. However, the policy still remains part of his agenda, with the president announcing last month a plan to have solar panels attached to the wall.

His promise to introduce the biggest tax cuts in American history also remain on track, with the unveiling in April of an ambitious plan to reduce corporate and individual taxes across the board. Similarly, Trump’s America First foreign policy approach was reaffirmed in June, with his decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord sending shock-waves through the globalist establishment.

However, with these achievements in mind, Trump’s decision to launch air strikes against Syria in April did in fact marginalise many of his supporters. These events indicated an unwillingness to abandon America’s long held interventionist foreign policy approach — a decision which caused many voters to disavow the president. Given more time, the Trump Presidency may yet ultimately reposition America’s role in global politics, however, his misjudgment in regards Syria is a mistake which must be learned from.

Despite Trump’s decision to intervene in Syria, his ongoing success in other areas have ultimately proven him to be, for the most part, a president who has fulfilled the expectations of those who voted for him. Six months into his presidency may be too soon to definitively claim whether Donald Trump will make America great again, but the early signs are, on the most part, largely quite positive. The president is already proving his many detractors wrong, fulfilling his pre-election promises, and continuing to expose the hypocrisy and negligence of the media. Having now laid the foundations for what is set to be one of the defining presidencies of recent history, President Trump now has 3 and a half more years until the next election to prove to the American people that he is worth electing for another term. Will Donald Trump make America great again? Only time will tell.

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