Gordon “Butch” Stewart, Jamaican hotel mogul, wrote a letter to the Jamaica Observer newspaper stating why he believes that the United States presidency of Donald Trump “will be great for all of us.” Some Jamaicans have expressed concerns about what Trump, whose election campaign attracted many extreme right-wing groups and took a hard line on immigration, will mean for the island. According to Stewart, who has known Trump for some 20 years, there is no reason to fear a Trump presidency. Stewart said that Trump is “by no means crazy, prejudiced, or a bigot” and that 2017 will offer “extraordinary opportunities and possibilities for those who dare to dream big” in Jamaica and the Caribbean. In his letter, Stewart wrote that he is aware that many people are apprehensive about the new US president, and that while Trump has his faults like anyone, “a great many of the things the mainstream media say about him are just not true.” He said that Trump is “probably the most patriotic, nationalistic American” he has ever met and that he is always ‘engaging and respectful.” Stewart also noted that Trump is not a politician “and so he does not polish his words as well as a seasoned politician would. Instead, he shoots from the hip and says it like it is.” Stewart went on to say that he believes Jamaica’s economy will benefit from the Trump Administration and that “people are going to be surprised at the results he will achieve.”

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