Jan 19, 2017 3 min read

Ever since Donald Trump shocked the world by winning the presidency two months ago, pundits and historians have been struggling to come up with an analog to Trump from the country’s past.

Is he the second coming of Andrew Jackson, the soldier thought by many of his contemporaries to be a backwoods vulgarian, but who turned out to be a champion of the common man and a consequential president? Or will Trump prove to be more akin to Warren Harding, a malleable lightweight who oversaw an administration awash in corruption?

It might be more helpful, however, to think of Trump as being part of a tradition of Southern governors from days gone by. Gov. Huey Long of Louisiana mixed charisma with an aggressively populist agenda, as did one of his successors, Jimmie Davis. Like Trump, Davis was an entertainer – he wrote the song “You Are My Sunshine” and scores of others, acted in B Westerns, strummed his guitar at rallies and performed in Las Vegas. But in two, non-consecutive terms as Louisiana’s governor, Davis raised teacher salaries, built hospitals and roads, and shepherded legislation through the statehouse that led to the licensing of Louisiana drivers.

Davis played to the crowds, yes. It must be noted that he also opposed integration, as other Southern governors did decades ago. However, he took his job seriously, left behind a lasting legacy and was fondly remembered when he died in 2000 at age 101.

On the day that Trump becomes president and assumes the responsibilities of the world’s most important post, we hope that he takes a note from Davis, and becomes a public servant who ultimately improves the lives of his constituents.

As we have noted before, Trump’s demeanor during his successful campaign left us, and many others, cold. And some of his proposals, such as banning the entry of Muslims into the United States, fly in the face of the nation’s Constitution and its most cherished ideals.

But Trump has also said he would like to invest in the country’s infrastructure. If he is able to get a substantial proposal through Congress – President Obama was not successful on this score – it would be long overdue. The nation’s civil engineers have long given failing grades to our bridges, roads, ports and dams. If Trump can help make our drives to work less bumpy and reduce congestion at our airports, then he will deserve loud and sustained applause.

He has also said he would like to see the federal government have the power to negotiate drug prices directly with pharmaceutical companies. That might not make the shareholders in these companies click their heels, but it would save money for thousands of Medicare recipients. Trump has also said that the Affordable Care Act should be replaced by a measure that lowers costs and makes health care coverage universal. If he is able to pull this off, more power to him.

As President Obama said a few weeks ago, “If you can in fact put a plan together that is demonstrably better than what Obamacare is doing, I will publicly support repealing Obamacare and replacing it with your plan.”

We are heading into uncharted territory with a Trump presidency. We wish him well. If he succeeds, then so do we all.