Trump and the art of dealing with Democrats

WHEN Donald Trump was elected president, even his harshest critics didn't reject out of hand his most appealing selling points - that the real estate magnate who would become America's first billionaire president could prove to be effective in doing what he has been doing during most of his professional career - making deals and getting things done, which is the only way to win whether it's in the cut-throat business environment of New York or the ruthless milieu in Washington.

No one has ever accused the unpredictable New Yorker - who donated money to both Democrats and Republicans and seemed to be all over the place when it came to policy issues - of being attached to any ideological dogma or political party. There was no reason the amateur politician who basically hijacked the Republican Party to get elected as president, wouldn't be able to work with the Democratic opposition on Capitol Hill after he entered office in order to help him advance his legislative and policy agenda.

Indeed, the notion of President Trump working with Democrats, many of whom shared his protectionist positions on trade and agreed with him on the need to spend money on rebuilding America's infrastructure, made sense. The Democrats could do business with him on some issues, while at the same time opposing him on others, allowing the White House occupant to form legislative coalitions across party lines. In Washington they call that "triangulating". You make deals with the opposition party while ensuring that your own party continues to support you.