I think President Donald Trump has gotten off to a great start in his second term. He and his staff arrived in Washington ready to hit the ground running with a slew of executive orders overturning Joe Biden administration policies.

These included: restoring freedom of speech and ending federal censorship; designating cartels and other organizations as foreign terrorist organizations; declaring a national energy emergency, establishing and Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency,” keeping men out of women’s sports; restoring America’s Fighting Force; protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation; and ending procurement and forced use of paper straws. These are but a small but impressive sample of the executive orders Trump has signed.

As smart and savvy as he is in business, at the beginning of his first term he and most of his administration were unfamiliar with the byzantine ways of official Washington. This time he came ready for action.

In the month since his inauguration, his administration has brought about the release of American prisoners in Russia, Venezuela and instigated the freeing of American and Israeli hostages from Hamas. Further he seems to be in the early stages of bringing peace in the war between Russia and the Ukraine. Paraphrasing the words of Theodore Roosevelt by “talking loudly and carrying a big stick.”

Democrats are upset by the President’s talk of taking back the Panama Canal, invading Greenland, taking over Gaza, or threatening high tariffs against both friends and foes alike because they either fail or don’t want to understand what he is doing. For Trump, his tough talk is to get friends and foes alike to start thinking outside of the box in seeking new solutions to old problems. All of this is part of the process of making a deal that he learned in the ultra-tough world of New York City real estate.

Because of his talk the president of Panama has seen the light and pledged to end that nation’s dependence on China running the canal. Denmark still has its back up over Greenland, but I bet it will soon allow us to have a greater presence there. In Gaza, it’s clear that the U.S. will not buy it or even station troops there but will lead the way in the restoration of what is now nothing more than a rubble strewn piece of land. The effort could even be financed by Arab nations like Saudi Arabia and the Emirates.

After his tough talk on tariffs we now know that Canada and Mexico are now playing a greater role in border security focusing on controlling the smuggling of Fentanyl and have agreed to a thirty day delay while talks are held on tariffs. China has imposed counter measures, but experts see a deal as still possible. Trump has also promised reciprocal tariffs against other nations by charging them the same amount they charge us. The goal of this is, of course, to redress the trade imbalance that has led to lost American jobs and the loss of whole American industries.

For Democrats the more controversial part of the Trump administration is the Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE headed by Elon Musk. Following the inauguration, Democrats acted like DOGE was a complete surprise despite the fact that Trump had been talking about it with Musk being in charge of it for months. Now Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) have introduced the “Nobody Elected Elon Musk Act.” It sort of makes you wonder if they think there is something that could come out they don’t want us to know about.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) , caught in a rising tide of hyperbole, accused Musk of creating a “Constitutional Crises” and that we had only days to stop the destruction of our democracy. Senator, I hasten to remind you that Biden by ignoring the Supreme Court decision barring student loan forgiveness created a true constitutional crisis.

Our very own Sen. Charles “Chuck” Schumer whined that Musk was not just taking away our money and privacy but “everything we have.” Not to be outdone, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said of Musk, in remarks that illustrate her total lack of self-awareness, that “This dude is probably one of the most unintelligent billionaires I have ever seen or witnessed.”

No matter what Democrats say or think about the Department of Government Efficiency, it was originally created by President Barack Obama in 2014 as the United States Digital Service (USDA) after the failure of Healthcare.com during the Obama Care rollout and was staffed by top Silicon Valley talent on limited tours of duty. Working within the Office of the President it helped government agencies modernize their tech infrastructure and continued this mission through the Biden administration.

Trump’s executive order changed its name to the Department of Government Efficiency and directed all agency heads to consult with DOGE about hiring DOGE team members in each agency. These teams acting under the direction of a Senate confirmed agency head who has full legal authority to carry out the President’s agenda. It should be noted that while these team members are recruited by Musk they do not work for him but report directly to the agency head. Musk is serving as a “special government employee (SGE), a designation created in 1962 to make it easier for private sector talent to assist the federal government.

Finally, a memory that for me puts in focus the early days of the second Trump term was of Maxine Waters standing outside the locked doors of the Education Department demanding to be let in “Because you work for us!” Rep. Waters, it made me realize that you and so much of Washington have the feeling that we Americans work for you.

Thomas Kirkpatrick Sr. is a Silver Creek resident. Send comments to editorial@observertoday.com