How President Trump’s ‘Advancing American Kidney Health’ Order Saved a Life (and Thousands More)

I’m so proud of it, Bill, we did a lot of good.

—President Trump in a January 2023 interview.

When I want to write about something that no one else is or has, I have to think about it for quite some time. The subject must be something I know well. On this occasion, I chose President Donald John Trump’s big, compassionate heart.

To be certain, his heart is far from invisible, unlike those residing in the chests of almost every other politician in D.C. and elsewhere.

As this writer interviewed him extensively in 2023, I gathered that what is most important to him is his legacy—the thing he will leave behind and how he will be best remembered.

An example of his concern for humankind is found in his magnificent, directly life-saving but still virtually unknown, “Right to Try” executive order signed in May 2018. As a result of this presidential act, many terminal patients’ lives were saved. This writer has spoken with those and their families whose lives were saved.

On the occasion I interviewed Trump, I knew he was most happy when he could save the lives of terminally-ill Americans. It was a big, heart-felt hug from Trump right to the people he loves most: his fellow Americans.

And the most personal way I know about what is in President Trump’s heart comes from how he saved my life. On July 10, 2019, President Trump signed his crucial “Advancing American Kidney Health” executive order.

“Big deal!” you might say, but it was a very big deal.

More than 30 million Americans have chronic kidney disease (CKD)—about one in ten. Those numbers are exploding, so CKD is now threatening cancer and heart disease as the most prevalent illness-killers among Americans.

But the real way I know personally and firsthand about Trump’s heart is because of what his executive order actually did for me.

I interviewed the President extensively about that order because, in December 2019—six months after his signing of the executive order—I received my rare and priceless kidney to save my life.

However, you would be showing ignorance if you thought otherwise. Trump’s order made thousands upon thousands of kidneys available to death-sentenced patients on dialysis like me, thereby doing what Trump loves best: saving lives.

Trump has a big heart, I know this well.

And it’s not just Americans’ lives he likes to save—it’s the lives of people globally.

This is evidenced by his focused strategies in Venezuela, Iran, and potentially Cuba.

Perhaps the best way to really feel how big Trump’s heart is is to see how he feels about our U.S. military personnel.

His recognition of and presence for our military is legendary. Many active service members love him.

So you may disagree if you don’t know the man or care about his heart.

But I, and countless people he has saved with his enormous generosity, would let you know in no uncertain terms that “Trump has a big heart—we know well.”

“These people were suffering and dying when there was no reason to die . . .”

—President Trump in a February 2023 interview.