Sir Afilonius Rex with Martyn Rhisiart Jones

Madrid, 8th November 2025

Key Positive Achievements of Donald Trump as U.S. President (2017–2021)

Donald Trump’s single term as the 45th President of the United States focused on economic deregulation, foreign policy deals, and judicial reforms, among other areas. While his presidency was highly polarising, several initiatives garnered bipartisan support or measurable outcomes. Below, we outline significant positive achievements based on verified policy impacts, economic data, and international agreements. These are drawn from official records, government reports, and nonpartisan analyses.

Economic and Domestic Policy

• Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (2017): Signed into law, this reduced corporate tax rates from 35% to 21% and provided individual tax cuts for most Americans. It contributed to record-low unemployment rates (3.5% as of 2019, pre-COVID) and wage growth, particularly for low-income workers. The Congressional Budget Office noted it boosted short-term GDP growth by about 0.7%.
• Criminal Justice Reform (First Step Act, 2018): Bipartisan legislation that reduced mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offences, leading to the early release of over 3,000 federal inmates by 2020. Supported by figures such as Van Jones and the ACLU, it addressed issues of prison overcrowding and recidivism.
• Veterans Affairs Improvements (VA MISSION Act, 2018): Expanded community care options for veterans, reducing wait times by 30% in some regions. The VA reported over 2 million veterans accessed new services, improving satisfaction scores to historic highs.

Foreign Policy and National Security

• Abraham Accords (2020): Brokered normalisation agreements between Israel and four Arab nations (UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco), marking the first major Middle East peace deals in decades without direct Palestinian involvement. This reduced regional tensions and opened economic ties worth billions.
• ISIS Territorial Defeat (2019): Oversaw the military campaign that eliminated ISIS’s caliphate in Iraq and Syria, reclaiming 100,000 square kilometres of territory. U.S. Central Command confirmed the territorial defeat, though the group persists in insurgent form.
• No New Wars: Maintained U.S. troop levels without initiating new conflicts, a first in decades, while authorising targeted strikes against threats like Iranian General Qasem Soleimani (2020), which disrupted terror networks.

Health and Environment

• Operation Warp Speed (2020): Accelerated COVID-19 vaccine development through public-private partnerships, delivering over 300 million doses by early 2021. This framework enabled vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna to reach emergency authorisation in record time (under a year vs. typical 10+ years).
• Opportunity Zones (2017): Designated 8,700 low-income areas for tax incentives on investments, attracting $75 billion in private capital by 2020. The Treasury Department reported job creation in underserved communities, though long-term impacts vary.

Judicial and Regulatory Reforms

• Judicial Appointments: Confirmed 234 federal judges, including three Supreme Court justices (Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett), shifting the judiciary toward originalist interpretations. This has influenced rulings on issues like religious liberty and gun rights, with the Federalist Society praising the merit-based selections.
• Deregulation Efforts: Rolled back over 20,000 pages of federal regulations, saving businesses an estimated $220 billion annually per the Council of Economic Advisers. This spurred small business growth, with new formations hitting record highs in 2019.

Category	Achievement	Key Metric/Impact
Economy	Tax Cuts and Jobs Act	Unemployment at 3.5% (2019); +$1.5T GDP boost (CBO est.)
Justice	First Step Act	3,000+ early releases; bipartisan praise
Foreign Policy	Abraham Accords	4 new Israel-Arab ties; $3B+ in trade deals
Health	Operation Warp Speed	300M+ vaccine doses by 2021
Veterans	VA MISSION Act	2M+ veterans served; wait times ↓30%

Accomplishments Summary

These accomplishments are substantiated by sources like the White House archives and Congressional Research Service reports. There are also analyses from the Brookings Institution and Heritage Foundation. These sources represent diverse viewpoints. Critics argue that some measures (e.g., tax cuts) increased deficits or favoured the wealthy, but the question focuses on the positives.