Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa September 2018 | Page 52

UNITED STATES
Thoughts from R.J. Palano
The Trump Factor, US real estate and
the future
M
y friends I’m excited to be speaking at the RE-
IMAG’s event in Cape Town and Johannesburg. I
will be doing a private presentation the day after
each event and scheduling meetings for personal “face time”
so read on to learn how to get time with me while I am in
town.… Here’s more of what’s going on in the U.S. and how
you can profit.
The only time I was really concerned about politics in
the U.S. was the last election for President. So many people
get caught up watching or reading the news that it almost
becomes an excuse not to work in their business. It’s been
written by me before: “Turn off the news, throw out the
newspapers and create business.” That being said, the last
U.S. Presidential election had too much at stake for my
Country and for me; it was a vote for capitalism or social-
ism.
I’m really not a political person but I really enjoy the
freedom to do what I want to do. There are so many reasons
why I would never vote for Hillary Clinton or the socialist
Bernie Sanders, but that’s not for this article. This article
is about the economic health of the U.S. with a glimpse of
what we might expect in the future.
It’s impossible to write about our economic situation
without bringing Trump into the equation. So, for my
friends in South Africa, here is the point of view that is
shared by many Capitalist in the U.S.
Trump is a disrupter. He’s brash, arrogant and above all
else a businessman that wants to win. Even with the media
in the U.S., which in a large part is brought and paid for
by the Democrats - they can’t seem to counter him. It’s
pitiful at times because our political parties care more about
protecting the power they have instead of protecting the
citizens. Instead of working together for the common good
of the people, most politicians want a power grab to keep
them in office. Not so with Trump! He’s not a politician and
he’s proven that over and over again with his tweets and
some of his remarks when he’s caught off guard.
Trump invokes such deep emotions in his critics and
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SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine
RJ sitting with George Ross Donald Trump’s ex lawyer
supporters that many have struggled to objectively assess
his presidency. Some are so blinded by their hatred for
Trump that they refuse to acknowledge the good he has
done, while others are so blinded by devotion they overlook
almost any transgression.
Let’s be honest; every Country would probably be better
off if a businessman ran it, not a power-hungry politician.
With Trump, we got exactly what we elected, and he is re-
ally doing what he promised. Don’t confuse his negotiation
style with a lack of unintended consequences. I recently
met with George Ross, (Trump’s personal attorney until he
ran for President since The Donald was 27 years old) and
he also co-hosted the Apprentice TV show with Trump. We
discussed Trumps negotiation style and it confirmed what I
thought; he pushes and hits his adversaries to the wall with
outlandish demands and expectations - and then he walks it
back to what his hoped for intended result was.
Here’s just a few highlights from my perspective of his
1.5 years in office.
• His impact on the Supreme Court: there will be a 2nd
Judge to be appointed soon to preserve the laws here
in the U.S.