I have read and reread Patrick Taylor's article in the June 5 NSS. It is well written, carefully thought out, and makes the points Mr. Taylor wishes to convey. Unfortunately, I disagree with most of them. He says that President Trump has broken two basic promises he made on the campaign trail: affordability and no new wars. Let's look at his arguments, taking the Iran war first.
What did President Biden say about it? "We will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. Period. Period. End of discussion." Not too much ambiguity there! In all fairness most previous Presidents, both Democrat and Republican made similar promises. However, without action those are just meaningless words. As the years rolled by Iran became stronger and the cost of opposing them escalated. They were within two weeks of developing sufficient enriched uranium to build several nukes. So, Trump took action. In June 2023 he initiated Operation Midnight Hammer whereby a B-2 bomber flew all the way from Whitman AFB, refueling along the way, to Fordow, Iran which had a deep mine containing the nuke developing activities. Using precision bombing the deep mine was destroyed.
Iran had developed ballistic missiles capable of delivering nukes to most European capitals. Can anyone put a price tag on their gratitude? No wonder that Trump is putting pressure on NATO to share in the cost of their defense.
Regarding affordability, Mr. Taylor says that Trump's tariffs are driving Inflation along with the war (hence fuel). In March 2025 Trump imposed a 25% tariff on the non-US content of goods. It was said that this action would create an initiative for consumers to buy US-made products. Former Biden Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen commented that the American consumer "would not see any meaningful increase in the price they have to pay." Further Mr. Taylor says that the WH ballroom will cost the taxpayer. In fact, it is supported by private donors such as Google, and by Trump himself. As an aside, it is worth noting that the job growth in May this year was over twice the expected level.
Finally, Mr. Taylor has a grab bag of complaints against Trump He says that the WH Ballroom is "all paid for by taxpayers." Pardon my French but that's not true. The estimated cost is about $250 million. There are significant contributions from various corporations such as Google. Most has been paid for by private donors including Trump himself. The alternative to the ballroom is the Washington Hilton where Trump was almost assassinated recently. Mr. Taylor calls this a "vanity project." In reality it is a "security project." Mr. Taylor goes on to say that Trump's "most egregious damage is to the fabric of society." Has he ever considered that the Democrats are supporting their candidate in Maine who has a nazi symbol tattooed on his chest and has multiple accusations by female companions who claim they were assaulted. Is that damage to the fabric of society?
Peter Gilderson, Madison.
