Mirsky: Interview With A Trump Supporter

EXETER, NH — I spoke this weekend with a very important friend of mine who lives in my town, Exeter, NH. This person is a businessman and has been open in communicating his support for Donald Trump as a political candidate since the pre-New Hampshire Primary days of 2015 and 2016.

I wanted to know whether my friend had any particular impression of how President Trump has been doing here in the middle of his first 100 days as the President of the United States. You should note that I am not expressing my own views here, only the views of the person I have interviewed.

ALSO READ:

• Mirsky: To 'Live Free or Die' Requires Freedom of the Press
• Mirsky: New Hampshire Wants Answers on the Michael Flynn Matter
• Mirsky: Wishing America a Happy New Year

My friend was drawn to Trump because to him, Trump seemed like a man of action, like he had an idea of what he was going to get done, and especially because to him, Trump seemed like a person who would get the job done “come hell or high water.”

My friend also appreciated the fact that he saw Donald Trump as having a “bad attitude.”

According to this Trump supporter, regular politicians always drag their feet and do not get anything done. My friend likes Trump because “He’s not really a Republican” and he’s “not a Democrat.”

I asked my friend to give an assessment of how Donald Trump has been doing.

My friend sees Donald Trump as “doing pretty well.” This Trump supporter sees Donald Trump as doing a “Great job as a rookie in politics.” However, my friend cautioned that Mr. Trump still has “a lot to learn.” This Trump supporter is particularly concerned that Donald Trump needs to be careful about the people around him and said that Trump better “watch out for people who don’t have his best interests in mind.”

As far as any criticisms of President Trump, my friend said that Trump “needs to know when to get his foot off the gas,” stating that Trump sometimes gets into things that he is not ready for, such as when Trump was first elected and took a call from the Taiwanese President and said our “One China” policy is not set in stone. My friend thought it would have been better for Trump to have spoken with China about that first, since China is a very powerful nation.

My friend also said that he believes Donald Trump should spend more time on domestic policies before getting involved too much in international affairs.

Generally speaking, my friend voiced the belief that Trump has the ability to learn quickly.

Regarding the issue of whether or not Russia and Russian President Vladimir Putin interfered improperly with the U.S. presidential election in 2016, my friend said he believes that a lot of that is “a lot of nonsense.” My friend stated, “They don’t have any actual evidence.”

Furthermore, my friend, who is, as I’ve said a strong Trump supporter, believes that Russia did not necessarily want Donald Trump to win the Presidential Election in 2016, because Trump’s victory doesn’t benefit them because, “He is kind of a tough guy.” My friend believes that Russia is an issue because the media has to have something to obstruct Trump.

As far as the accusations that have been made against Donald Trump that he may be anti-Semitic, my friend said that such accusations are “not real” as Trump’s son-in-law (Jared Kushner) is an Orthodox Jew and Trump himself is a strong supporter of Israel. My friend also pointed out that Donald Trump has had a lot of Jewish friends in business, people who are genuine close friends of his.

My friend pointed out that the main thing about Trump is “He doesn’t care what you are if you’re with him.” He also pointed out that Trump is from New York where you can’t survive if you hate particular groups as all groups are in full force in New York.

My friend also stated the same views regarding accusations that Donald Trump doesn’t like African-American people. According to my friend, “I don’t think it’s true at all. If it were true it would come out.”

I asked my friend if he had any personal message he would like to send to President Trump, and this is what he said:

“I want to see him keep that economy going strong, keep that Dow going up. Keep prices down of durable goods and basic necessities.”

Most of all, my friend said he would tell Donald Trump, “Stick to your plan. Watch out for the people around you. Not everyone is there to help you. Some are only there for themselves.”

So that’s my report to you for this weekend.