People are congratulating Trump on "successes" he probably doesn't want praise for

After taking credit for the lack of aviation deaths on airlines, Trump is reminded of other "successes" he's had

Published January 3, 2018 12:22PM (EST)

 (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

After President Donald Trump seized the opportunity to take credit for the lack of commercial aviation deaths in 2017, many sought to point out other issues the president can take credit for but has otherwise not attempted to acknowledge.

Since at least the birth of his presidential campaign in June 2015, it's been quite clear that Trump only cares to acknowledge moments that bolster himself and those among his inner circle. He neglects all variations of dissent and undermines any negative spotlight on himself by challenging their legitimacy, largely in the form of Twitter insults.

So in lieu of the president soaking up the sun for positive achievements he had little to do with, Twitter users reminded Trump of all the things he must have just forgotten to claim responsibility for.

As an unconditional supporter of the National Rifle Association, and with his refusal to budge on any form of gun regulation, the most prominent statistic Trump hasn't basked in is, of course, gun deaths. That didn't go unnoticed.

Trump also took plenty of credit for his perceived response efforts during the recent hurricane season after several states were battered by storms in August and September. The president said his response to Hurricane Maria, which utterly destroyed the island of Puerto Rico, was "A-plus" but hasn't said anything about the death toll that leaped from 64 to over 1,000 in recent weeks.

Throughout his rise to the Oval Office, Trump has relished the idea that coal mining is getting a second lease on life. He has promised to revitalize the coal industry and put miners back to work. On several occasions, he has tweeted cherry-picked statistics on coal, but he hasn't taken credit for the amount of coal-related deaths doubling between 2016-2017.

These are all instances Trump would never claim credit for, no matter what share of responsibility he may realistically hold.

One last important thing the president has failed to take responsibility for are the ramifications and fatal consequences caused by the global war on terror he inherited and has since only sought to expand.

Trump has proudly touted his military accomplishments against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, despite the fact that he took office while in the middle of the liberation of Mosul. Civilian deaths should have long been a more prominent concern for the U.S., but under Trump, they immediately skyrocketed. While he's been quick to scold some other nations on human rights records, he has had nothing to say about his own mishaps.


By Charlie May

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