Trump talked a tough game. His backers expect similar actions.
WASHINGTON - Kathryn Stellmack expects the world from Donald Trump.
After listening to his speeches and casting her vote for him, she expects Trump to toughen immigration laws, restore lost jobs, upend a corrupt political system, build a wall on the border, and be, as the millionaire put it, the “greatest jobs president that God has ever created.”
“We expect him to move forward on all the items he has promised to move forward on,” said Stellmack, 69, a retiree in West Palm Beach, Florida.
“And if he doesn’t, we will hold his feet to the fire.”
After a presidential race fueled by brash but constantly shifting policy proposals, Trump’s millions of followers ― from social conservative activists to struggling blue-collar workers to hardline militant groups ― say if he does anything less than take a wrecking ball to business-as-usual Washington, they will be disappointed.
“We’ll be watching, Mr. Trump,” said Stellmack.
Trump’s promises have been hard to pin down, with many policy details left elusive and vague. NBC News identified 141 “distinct shifts” on 23 major issues since Trump announced his candidacy on June 16, 2015.
Still, his fiery rhetoric had an unmistakable message of ending big government and the entrenched power of establishment elites in both parties.
That inspired hope that Trump can break through Washington’s gridlock to make progress on plans to invigorate the economy, eliminate terrorist threats, rip up trade agreements and repeal President Barack Obama’s healthcare plan known as Obamacare.
“I totally trust him,” said Laura Czarniak, 56, of Manistee, Michigan, a Rust Belt state that leans Democrat in presidential elections but which flipped to Trump on Tuesday.
“I know he’ll build the wall. I know he’ll take care of the Syrian refugee problem. I know he’ll get rid of Obamacare. There is not a chance in hell he won’t do those things,” she said.
But even with Republicans retaining control of Congress, Trump will have to accept limits and compromises on some of his plans. Many Republicans, for example, are wary of his proposals to scrap trade deals and boost spending on infrastructure improvements.
Some of his plans have already been rolled back.
More: Supporters To Trump: Break Campaign Promises At Your Peril
It's both sad and funny to listen to some of these Trump supporters. We'll soon know if Trump is their Messiah.