E. Faye Williams

It’s human nature to develop methods of personal survival or providing for self-protection. They’re not the same for everyone, but many are common. One predictable survival standard is that one should believe that a person will attempt to do that which she or he promises to do.

One positive in politics is that we can counteract promises we don’t like with a simple tool — the vote.

Recently, we’ve heard that Republican candidate Donald Trump has moved to “Presumptive Nominee.” Barring unforeseen circumstance, Mr. Trump will be the standard bearer for the Republican effort to regain the White House. Given the unpredictable nature of people and circumstance, Mr. Trump has a “theoretical possibility” of becoming president.

The shock of that possibility should be followed with the requirement for all Americans to explore the goals of a President Trump. We should want to know his most important policy initiatives and what they would mean for our country. Mr. Trump has promised to pursue four goals in his first 100 days in office which provide insight into what to expect. They are:

1. Completing the design of his wall on the U.S.-Mexican border.

2. Stopping Muslim immigration.

3. Auditing the Federal Reserve.

4. Repealing the Affordable Care Act.

One can only wonder about the completion of Trump’s “Great Wall.” His cost estimate of $10 billion for construction is far exceeded by the $25 billion construction estimate, not including maintenance, by many experts. The question is who will pay for it?

Mexican officials already have negated any possibility of payment, but Mr. Trump has offered options as varied as forced recompense from the $58 billion trade deficit to increasing fees on travel costs from Mexico to the United States or impounding remittance payments, monies sent home by undocumented Mexicans working in the United States. These monetary remedies seem as realistic as Mr. Trump’s objective to deport 12 million undocumented persons currently residing in the United States.

Mr. Trump has doubled-down on his promise to stop Muslim immigration. Our nation has never used religion as a criteria for entry or immigration — temporary or permanent — but Mr. Trump proposes both. The obvious historical comparison is in the Nazi treatment of the Jews.

While some critics of the Federal Reserve state that audits will bring that body more in line with the principles of democracy, Mr. Trump’s motivation seems clear. According to Libertarian Alex Jones, Mr. Trump wants a Fed audit to prove that interest rates are being held artificially low to stabilize the economy during the final months of the Obama presidency.

How much more can be said about the proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare? Mr. Trump’s goals and Republican efforts to do so border on the ridiculous and demonstrate their desire to put Americans back “under the thumb” of insurance companies. It’s that simple.

More than promises, these are threats to many. If you agree with these First 100 Day objectives, you should vote for Mr. Trump or sit twiddling your thumbs on Nov. 8. If you don’t agree, then it’s time to commit to using the voting tool mentioned earlier and to inspire like-minded friends and neighbors to commit to using theirs to votes for different principles.

The writer is national president of the National Congress of Black Women.