Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/757641
VOICES 10 | Overdrive | December 2016 When Democrat Hillary Clinton was believed to be headed for a close but comfortable win in the Nov. 8 presidential election, the sentiment of Overdrive readers was pointing in the other direction. Her opponent, Donald Trump, was the consistent favorite of about three in four Over- drive readers in pre-election polling. Reactions to the win by the real-estate busi- ness mogul and television personality came swiftly, with early notes of hope sounded by many. "Please, Trump, don't let us down," noted William Stamper in comments under the news on Overdrive's Facebook page. "In a country that seemed to have gone soft, we the people showed up big for her." Other commenters were quick to call for regulatory moves long underway to be scrapped under a Trump presidency and a Repub- lican Congress. These in- clude the electronic logging device mandate and pursuit of a speed limiter mandate. "Now, Mr. Trump, get rid of the unnecessary regulations put up on truck- ers," wrote Naveed Ahmed Kahloon. "Stop the electronic logs!" exclaimed Trish Beatty Tedrow. While rolling back an overabundance of regula- tory burdens on business was in fact part of Trump's message in stump speeches around the nation, some readers threw cold water on Tedrow and others' hopes for the FMCSA's electronic logging device mandate's scrapping. A Republican-controlled Congress included the e-log mandate in legislation originally, one anonymous commenter wrote. "And since it is now Republi- can-controlled again, it will be business as usual." The need for repairing and expanding the nation's highway infrastructure and other roads and bridges also was highlighted by Trump during his cam- paign. Close advisors to the President-elect have urged increased privatization, which means more toll roads and bridges. "Just remember he wants to privatize roads," Nathan Smith warned. Fears of economic uncertainty worried others. "Get ready for another recession, America," noted one commenter. But Ladd Scavnicky better refl ected the cautious optimism of most: "Maybe, just maybe, the economy and trade will benefi t Americans. And just maybe our wages will go up, and manufactur- ing will come back to the U.S. And maybe we can ship that Korean steel and lumber back where it came from." Jason Taney struck a conciliatory note. "Now it's up to all of us to stick together and make this country what it should be," he said. "It's not just up to Trump. We all have a hand in it." Many of my listeners think the majority of this room are lying, cheating scumbag parasites sitting with a phone and an internet connection sucking all the profit out of the load. — Trucking radio host Kevin Rutherford, speaking to brokers about cementing relationships with owner-operators. Both sides need to sit down face to face to build mutually beneficial relationships, he said. Scan the code to hear Kevin Rutherford's November address at Truckstop.com's Connected 2016 user conference in Dallas. Otherwise, hear it via OverdriveOnline.com/ OverdriveRadio. 'Please, Trump, don't let us down'