President Trump Must Be One-Term, Voluntarily!

Written by Frank Li

To be a great President, Trump must fundamentally reform our failed political system, as I have suggested (American Democracy), which, among other things, requires that the American Presidency be strictly limited to one-term (e.g. six years). Moreover, President Trump must set a good example with one term (i.e. four years), just like President Washington did with two terms more than 200 years ago!

In this article, I will make the case in three points:

1. Why must the American Presidency be limited to one-term?
2. Why can it happen with President Trump?
3. Will it happen with President Trump?

Let me elaborate on each …

1. Why must the American Presidency be limited to one-term?

The image below highlights the biggest problem with our failed political system.

The American Presidents are no exceptions, with the worst [recent] examples being JFK, GWB, and BHO! For more, read: American Presidency: Why is One-Term a Must?

2. Why can it happen with President Trump?

President Trump wants to be great (Donald Trump 2.0)! Two examples:

1. Trump wants to avoid conflicts of interest (Trump announces he will leave business ‘in total’). Unfortunately, the greatest conflict of interest for an American President throughout the first term is to choose between working for the country and working for himself in the form of “getting re-elected ad nauseam“.
2. Trump has repeatedly pledged that, as President, he would pursue term-limits for Congress (Trump calls for congressional term limits). It is absolutely the right thing to do for the country. But it is impossibly difficult, given the fact that Congress has to pass the law to sacrifice itself, unless President Trump will sacrifice himself at the same time!

One possible excuse: one term of four years is too short for President Trump to do what he wants to do.

Total BS!

A lot can be, and has been, achieved within four years! Two examples:

1. The American Civil War lasted for less than 49 months (4/12/1861 – 5/9/1865).
2. For America, WWII was won in less than four years (12/7/1941 – 9/2/1945).

A great leader is not measured by how many years he (or she) is in office, but by how much he achieves during his [short] years in office, leaving his country better off for generations to come. One excellent recent example: China’s Deng! For more, read: Donald Trump vs. Deng Xiaoping.

3. Will it happen with President Trump?

Hopefully yes!

We will have some good indications very soon. For example, on his first day in office, President Trump should undo JFK’s Executive Order 10988, thus dissolving all public-section unions and banning them forever!

He must do it to stop America’s continuous massive bleeding, if he truly cares about America. On the other hand, he will not do it, if he wants popularity for re-election through 2020. Hopefully, anti-establishment Trump will rise above personal aggrandizement and do what’s best for America (vs. himself) all the time.

4. A stern warning for President Trump

President Trump, please do not be carried away by your campaign success! Two main reasons:

1. Your campaign success was actually a result of the total failure of our political system!
2. A community organizer with a paper-thin resume had the same success eight years ago as you did this year! Has he governed well? For more, read: American Presidency: Is It a Joke (III)?

Now, you have a chance to fundamentally reform our failed political system. But will you?

Drain the swamp or be drained by the swamp? The odds are highly against you. For example, I’m deeply concerned about your pick of the Secretary of Defense: James Mattis. How could you possibly entrust a military man for that [civilian] job?

A good example against the MIC (Military-Industrial Complex) for you to emulate is JFK. For more, read: Correctly Assessing President John F. Kennedy.

5. Closing

President Trump, be truly great! The path to greatness has already been shown to you (Donald Trump vs. Deng Xiaoping). For all our sakes, please listen and just do it! For more, read my new book: American Democracy.