Guest column: Love him or hate him, Trump has been impactful

When Donald Trump took office three and a half years ago, the left shuddered, the media wailed, and the rest of us held our breath to see what he was going to do with our country. It didn't take long to find out.

When Trump called the North Korean dictator "Little Rocket Man," and other names, the media screamed of impending nuclear war. We held our breath again, but the unexplainable happened; North Korea became willing to negotiate with the U.S.!

What? Really?

Not in 60 years and nine presidents had that happened! We'd become used to caving to Kim Jong II, paying millions to calm him down, until his next tantrum. Trump had my attention after that, his successes coming fast and without fanfare, the media ignored the defeat of ISIS, tax cuts, economic growth and jobs.

Trump said he'd "Drain the Swamp," so the swamp creatures impeached him; using theatrics and evidence that would never stand up in a court of law. And it didn't.

Confidence rose, jobs were created, black and Hispanic unemployment dipped to record lows, folks on unemployment dropped to a 44 year low. Then, COVID-19 hit us.

The President tackled that quickly; creating PPE suppliers from abandoned factories, prioritizing hospitals and vaccine research. The "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act" gave taxpayers $1,354 tax credits and $600 million was directed to Navajo Nation. The U.S. Embassy was moved to Jerusalem, and peace accords were brokered between Israel, Bahrain and UAE.

Donald Trump is the most under-promising yet over achieving president in history, but the only president more hated than Donald Trump was Abraham Lincoln, putting Trump in some pretty good company.

As WWII bomber pilot, and Air Force General Curtis Lemay remarked, "If you're taking flak, it just means you're over the target".

Jim Parks Coconino County Supervisor, District 4