Hugh Hewitt: American Leadership Is Back

Friday, January 23, 2026

The first year of the second term of President Trump concluded on Tuesday this week—and only the most extreme of partisans will deny that 45-47 hung a lot of wins on the wall:

• A closed border,
• "eight-and-a-quarter" peace negotiations,
• the "one big beautiful bill,"
• Operation Midnight Hammer in Iran,
• Operation Absolute Resolve in Venezuela,
• Rising domestic oil and gas production, and:
• The wonderful combination of falling inflation and rising wages.

Most important to the world of his achievements in his first year back: President Trump is not only the commander in chief of the mightiest military in history, he’s demonstrated that knows how to use it.

Trump has restored America’s deterrence—a power that that had been forfeited by Biden and our collapse in Afghanistan.

Iran, Islamist terrorists across Africa, from Somalia to Nigeria and Nicholas Maduro have all suffered devastating blows that punished them for behavior outside the guardrails that President Trump set.

American  leadership is back.

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