Al D'Amato: Here's why I'm voting for Donald Trump

Donald J. Trump. The name evokes strong passion from those who love him and those who don’t. Living in New York, those feelings are particularly acute. I’m not telling you to love him or hate him, but I am recommending that for the future of our nation you vote for him.

When it comes to presidential campaigns, it is often difficult to discern how a candidate would govern. This time around, with hundreds of millions of dollars of campaign ads bombarding us each day, it might be impossible to separate the rhetoric from the reality of how the candidate would perform in office. Thankfully, we have a rare opportunity to tune out those ads, clear our heads, and rely instead on past performance. In this election, we have something we have never had in any modern presidential election — the records of two candidates who seek to return to the White House.

Unlike those investment ads that state, “Past performance in not indicative of future results,” the records of the two candidates may well inform the voting public of what to expect from former President Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris on those issues most important to voters.

First, let’s look at the records of both Harris and Trump when it comes to what every poll tells us is the most important issue to our citizens — the economy. This issue resonates particularly with those of us who live on Long Island where the cost of living is out of sight. High food, energy and home prices are forcing our people to either sacrifice to make ends meet or move. And with high interest rates, chances are dwindling that young families will be able to afford their own homes.

You can also see the struggle when you fill up your car with gas. During Trump’s four-year term, the average price of gas was $2.57 per gallon. The average gas price for the first three years of the Biden/Harris administration was $3.54 per gallon, a 38% increase. At one point, gas prices spiked to $5 per gallon under Biden/Harris. Today’s average gas price has gone down some to $3.16 per gallon, but this still represents a 23% increase from the Trump days.

Gas price increases have far outstripped income increases, imposing a real tax on the average Long Island resident. Long Islanders are struggling just to make long work commutes, with discretionary trips often being sacrificed.

During the Biden/Harris administration, inflation is up roughly 20%. Under Trump, inflation was up 8%. The reality of inflation has hit Long Island families hard; many work two or three jobs to make ends meet. The American dream of home ownership has evaporated under the Biden/Harris administration. The average mortgage interest rate was 2.9% when Trump left office. The mortgage rate now exceeds 6.5%. The high price of housing on Long Island coupled with these high interest rates are forcing young people to flee the region.

Immigration has been a hot-button issue during the campaign. The fact is that the Biden/Harris administration undid many Trump-era executive orders that had led to less illegal immigration into the United States. The Biden-Harris moves have translated to some 10 million immigrants illegally entering our country, quadruple the number under Trump. The influx of immigrants here illegally has put a significant strain on the resources of our local governments and school districts. With the federal and New York State governments compelling school districts to educate the children of illegal immigrants, school budgets are at the brink, with increased school taxes or programmatic reductions the only two options.

In a sleight of hand deceiving no one, Vice President Harris is trying to convince the American public that it is the Biden/Harris administration that has tried to fix the problem with Trump getting in the way. Numbers don’t lie. For years, Biden/Harris either actively encouraged or turned a blind eye to illegal immigration. Their claim now that defective legislation proposed years after the immigration gate was opened would fix the problem fools no one. Moreover, the claim that new legislation must occur to control immigration is belied by the fact that Trump did so under existing law. As is the case with so many of these issues, whether it be immigration, fracking, or inflation, Vice President Harris is simply many days late and many dollars short.

Nowhere is the distinction between Trump and Harris more evident than in the arena of foreign policy. I served in the U.S. Senate when Ronald Reagan was our president. His peace-through-strength policy calmed the world’s tensions and took down the Soviet Empire. Our adversaries respected and feared Reagan, who doggedly defended America’s interests abroad. Trump’s approach in office reminds me of that Reagan doctrine. The Trump years were by and large peaceful ones, with our enemies respecting and fearing the Trump administration’s hard-nosed approach to foreign policy. The Abraham Accords ushered in a new opportunity for a lasting peace in the Middle East. And Russia was at bay; I firmly believe it would not have entered Ukraine had Trump been president.

Trump isn’t perfect. But this year, America has a critical choice — an imperfect man with good policies, or an imperfect woman with bad ones. To borrow from the title of the legendary Tina Turner’s song “What’s Love Got to Do with It?”, you don’t have to love Trump, but for the future of our country, you surely have to vote for him.

This guest essay reflects the views of former U.S. Sen. Alfonse D’Amato.