Unlike many billionaires, to say nothing of many presidents, Donald Trump has the common touch. It’s not a matter of a member of the self-imagined elite pretending to care about the little people, the Deplorables of Hillary Clinton’s formulation. With Trump it’s a matter of upbringing, experience and character.

To be sure, he’s had every advantage a man could have, but he has always worked. During his years as a real estate developer in New York’s cutthroat world, he daily worked with people at every level of the social ladder. Like children and dogs, people who work for a living know who really likes them, and they saw in Trump if not exactly one of their own a guy they’d be glad to have a beer with.

He's gone bankrupt several times and built back better. That's a humbling experience.

He's grown in office too. The counter puncher prone to fire off unguided mean tweets has, with the benefit of age and experience, remained a counter puncher, but a more restrained tweeter. Having survived multiple assassination attempts has doubtless reminded him of his mortality, God’s apparent plan for him, and has noticeably humbled him. Those with defective character would have seen that as a sign of their invulnerability. Trump seems to have understood the opposite.

Many don’t know how many acts of kindness Trump and his family regularly do. They don’t publicize them, nor do they have to do them. 

When National Guardsmen Sarah Beckstrom was killed in what appears to be an Islamist ambush attack, Trump did no less for her parents: 

President Donald Trump on Sunday said he's invited the family of a National Guard member fatally shot last week to the White House, saying he spoke to her parents and they were “devastated.”

U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom died after the Wednesday shooting in Washington, D.C., while her seriously injured colleague, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, remained in critical condition.

The president said he's discussed a White House visit for the parents of both members of the West Virginia National Guard.

“I said, ‘When you’re ready, because that's a tough thing, come to the White House. We're going to honor Sarah,” Trump told reporters. “And likewise with Andrew, recover or not.”

Trump and Melania also met at the White House with the parents of Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, grievously wounded in the same attack:

On Friday morning, the president shared on Truth Social a photo of himself with Wolfe’s parents and brother from the meeting. The meeting took place eight days after a gunman, whom authorities have identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, allegedly shot Wolfe and fatally shot National Guardswoman Sarah Beckstrom just blocks from the White House.

Graphic: Truth Social Post

Trump also ordered Thursday that United States flags around the country and world be flown at half-staff in honor of Beckstrom. Beckstrom and Wolfe both hail from West Virginia.

Graphic: Truth Social Post

Trump said at Tuesday’s cabinet meeting that Wolfe is “fighting for his life” after the Thanksgiving eve shooting near Farragut West Metro Station in D.C.

“He’s fighting very hard. I think he’s probably doing better than anybody … they said he didn’t have a chance,” Trump said.

“I’ll tell you, the one who said he’s going to live is his mother,” Trump added, recalling that she told him shortly after the shooting, “Sir, he’s going to live.”

“He was hit in bad places, and she was like, so positive. It was incredible,” Trump shared.

Some will surely be tempted to argue Trump is using the families of Sarah and Andrew for PR purposes, to burnish his image, perhaps even to raise his favorability ratings. Far more likely is he takes seriously his role as Commander in Chief to fully support our troops and to honor their service and sacrifice. That’s particularly important after the Biden years where America’s young patriots didn’t enlist because they knew Biden and his government didn’t support them. It’s also important every American knows that.

In Donald Trump, America has a true leader. That Democrats hate that--and him--says it all.

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Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.