I am no MAGA zealot. I voted for Trump three times.

Since he announced his candidacy on the steps of Trump Tower, I had no doubt he would win the first election.

Even during the last week before the election, when the pundits and Europeans had Clinton as a sure winner.

It was about economics. I am, among other things, an economist. Trump has both education and experience from running large business enterprises. I believed he would make good use of all this, and he did not disappoint me in that.

It is unfortunate that the customary nasty political warfare is conducted in this country without any actual knowledge, and merely based on political bias, assuming the opponents are subhuman. Both sides nefariously do it, but it is such weak reasoning.

So what did Trump do?

When my BMW was imported to the U.S. with a tariff of only 2.5 percent, Chevrolet was taxed 10 percent in Germany and 19 percent VAT, just to be allowed into Germany.

Trump changed that. What was wrong here?

We were supporting foreign economies, foreign manufacturers and foreign labor at the expense of domestic manufacturers, the domestic economy and domestic labor.

That gave the president the money to eliminate income tax on Social Security and overtime, and promised a “tariff dividend check” to every American.

Inflation is low and incomes are rising above the rate of inflation.

Caveat: we need a low but positive inflation to protect us against the dreaded deflation.

The economy is in good shape and booming.

But pundits discounted this and concentrated on criticizing the president, because some nobody pundit such as Carlson said something they perceived as a fissure in MAGA.

But this is merely a distraction used to criticize the president instead of letting him do what he has to do. And this is at variance with the best interests of all Americans.

I will discount those economic neophytes who “know” Trump's tariffs are just added to the price of imported goods and thus raise the price for Americans.

I am fully aware of President Trump’s faults. He is blustering, sometimes exaggerating and talking without precise knowledge of facts, and is given to a populist language while he could act more presidential, whatever that means.

I would compare Trump to the best American general of WW II George Patton who also had many personal and even professional faults too extensive to discuss here in detail.

But both of these great American leaders were perhaps more suitable for war and that is where we needed their assistance. They were and are not the type of a guy with whom you woukd like to have a beer. (Though Trump is said to be a charming host.)

Von Mises is an occasional opinion column on economics, written by Ivan Orisek of Forestburgh, NY. It’ll look at money and the way money works in America, and show you the numbers behind the headlines.