Friday, January 27, 2017
4
THE VIEW FROM HERE
Trump begins BY BOB MORGAN, JR.
It has been quite a week for our newly inaugurated President, Donald Trump, and for our country. A few thoughts. The actual inauguration ceremony and the lead up to the ceremony were well done. Mr. Trump and his team did just fine without the A list celebrities who mostly backed his opponent. Mr. Trump's relatively brief, 16 minute speech, certainly did not hit rhetorical high notes and was, as critics claimed, somewhat dark. Certainly a reference to "American carnage" is not a commonplace remark in an inaugural address, but that is what his supporters wanted. On the other hand, the speech was not without uplifting moments, as the new President promised to take back the country from entrenched interests and, yes, to make America great again. Of course, as seems to be the case with everything surrounding Mr. Trump, there was much controversy associated with his inaugural weekend. On Inauguration Day, a fairly small group of protestors did not disrupt the ceremony but blocked a key checkpoint and inflicted a considerable amount of violence and property damage. Over 200 people were arrested. Much more significant was the Women’s March in Washington and other cities here and abroad on the day after the inauguration. The District of Columbia march drew hundreds of thousands of protestors, the vast majority peaceful, who were aggrieved about many of the new president’s policies, but particularly those relating to women. Obviously, the demonstrators seized on Mr. Trump’s genuinely offensive remarks about women that came to light during the campaign. The marches were a strong showing of the widespread opposition to Mr. Trump’s presidency, particularly among women. On the other hand, there were many women who voted for Mr. Trump in the 2016 election who were not at all represented by these demonstrators. Then Mr. Trump’s team got into a spitting match with the press over coverage of the size of the crowds attending his inauguration. Having
seen a number of crowd shot pictures taken at the event and not featured on television, I think the president’s team had a point that the media were lowballing the attendance in comparison to prior inaugurations. On the other hand, Mr. Trump’s team could have disposed of this issue (such as it was) by pointing out that most other inaugurations were not beset with threats of major demonstrations. I also think that the phrase “alternative facts” is unhelpful in describing conflicting information. Perhaps Mr. Trump’s opponents will be able to realize their apparent hope of making his presidency seem illegitimate from the beginning, and in effect destabilizing his administration. It is certainly true that Mr. Trump has few friends in the media (indeed, even a fair portion of the right leaning media remains skeptical), the entertainment industry or the academic community, and only limited support in the business community. On the other hand, as Richard Nixon, another president confronting virulent opposition, demonstrated early in his presidency, it is possible to take advantage of residual support among rank and file voters by appeals to the “silent majority”, people who may not fill the streets but nevertheless support the current administration. The other reason that Mr. Trump may be able to get past some of the loud early opposition is that he is committed to a blizzard of action. For example, he signed orders undoing much of the coercive provisions of Obamacare (including the individual mandate), pulling out of the Trans Pacific Partnership and paving the way for completion of the Keystone and North Dakota pipelines. He also has spent time meeting with industry and labor leaders. He is meeting this week with British Prime Minister Theresa May. It may be hard for the opposition to focus on Mr. Trump’s personal failings or label him as out of the mainstream when he seems to making so much progress toward his jobs based agenda. In any event, Mr. Trump’s opponents won’t be going away any time soon, but neither will Mr. Trump.
Are you a professional?
Our Professional Guide is sure to bring results. Call 294-8900 for rates and information.
THE POLICE BLOTTER
Incidents that have occurred recently in the local area include: n
A 20-year-old man from Little Neck was arrested at 6:50 p.m. on December 30 and charged with Shoplifting from a location on Old Country Road in East Garden City. n
At 12:45 p.m. on December 31, a 22-year-old woman from Sunnyside was arrested and charged with Shoplifting from Target in Westbury. n
At the Home Depot in Jericho, a 33-year-old woman from Bethpage was arrested and charged with Shoplifting at 2 p.m. on December 31. n
An unattended cell phone was stolen from the restroom at a location on Old Country Road in East Garden city. The phone was taken at 8 p.m. on January 2. n
At 3:35 p.m. on January 3, a 19-yearold from East Meadow was arrested and charged with Shoplifting from a location on Old Country Road in East GC. n
A 28-year-old man from Patchogue was arrested at 5 p.m. on January 4 and charged with Shoplifting from the Home Depot in Jericho. n
A 22-year-old woman from Fresh Meadows was arrested and charged with Shoplifting from a location on Old Country Road in East Garden City at 2:10 p.m. on January 5. n
A 4:20 p.m. on January 5, a 20-yearold woman from Syosset as arrested and charged with Shoplifting from a location on Old Country Road in East Garden City. n
At Macy’s in East Garden City, a 67-year-old woman from Springfield Gardens was arrested and charged with Shoplifting at 3 p.m. on January 5. n
Sometime between 5 p.m. on January 5 and 7 a.m. on January 6, unknown subjects spray-painted various images on the rear wall of the Honeywell Security building on Eileen Way in Syosset. n
A 36-year-old man from Roslyn Heights was arrested at 12:25 a.m. on January 6 and was charged with Driving While Intoxicated on East Broadway in Roslyn. n
On Jefferson St. in Westbury, unknown subjects threw a brick through a victim’s kitchen window, causing damage, at 8:15 a.m. on January 6.
Avenue in Mineola. The subjects included a 20-year-old man from Hempstead, an 18-year-old man from Mineola and a 19-year-old man from Hempstead. All were charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana. n
On Astor Place South in Westbury, a 20-year-old man from that town was arrested and was charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana at 12:05 a.m. on January 7. n
While driving on the Long Island Expressway at Exit 39 in East Hills, a 26-year-old woman from Wyandanch was arrested and was charged with Driving While Intoxicated at 4:35 a.m. on January 7. n
On January 7 at 7 p.m., two subjects were arrested at the Orange Parking Garage of the Roosevelt Field Mall in East Garden City. Charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana were an 18-year-old man from Elmont and a 23-year-old man from Baldwin. n
A 26-year-old man from Freeport was arrested on Great Neck Road in Great Neck Plaza at 1:35 p.m. on January 8. He was charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana. n
On Westbury Avenue in Carle Place, a 25-year-old man from Manorville was arrested at 9 p.m. on January 9. He was charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana. n
At 9:55 p.m. on January 9, two subjects were arrested and were charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana at the Orange Parking Garage in the Roosevelt Field Mall on Old Country Road in East Garden City. Arrested were a 28-year-old man from Laurelton and a 20-year-old man from West Hempstead. n
Two 21-year-old subjects, a man from Oneonta and a man from Buffalo, were arrested at the Applebees’ parking lot located on Corporate Drive in Westbury at 10:10 p.m. on January 9. Both were charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana. n
Two 20-year-old men from Port Washington were arrested on Old Country Road in East Garden City at 10:55 p.m. on January 10. Both subjects were charged with Criminal Possession of Marijuana. n
At the intersection of Sea Cliff Avenue and Glen Cove Avenue in Sea Cliff, a 44-year-old man from Glenwood Landing was arrested and was charged with Driving While Intoxicated at 12:20 a.m. on January 11.
n
At 4:40 p.m. on January 6, three individuals were arrested on Liberty
Compiled by Kate and Meg Meyer