Making America Great Again: Donald Trump’s 100 Days’ Success

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Ben Kew

Making his bid to be the 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump promised to “Make America Great Again.” But has he delivered on his pledge?

Having proposed a huge reform agenda, some have been left disappointed by Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. Nevertheless, recent polling data suggests that a majority of Americans believe Trump is making good on his words.

Here are Donald Trump’s successes since he took office in January:

Supreme Court Nominee

Donald Trump kept his promise to nominate a conservative judge to the supreme court, following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia last year.

Despite opposition from Democrats, on April 7th Neil Gorsuch was confirmed as the 113th justice of the U.S Supreme Court, which could help cement a conservative majority on the SCOTUS for decades.

Immigration

Trump’s executive order guiding immigration enforcement agencies to apprehend illegal aliens as well as hire thousands of new staff has undoubtedly helped stem the tide of illegal immigration from Mexico into the United States. In the months of January and February alone, illegal border crossings dropped by 40 percent.

Furthermore, the Trump administration is cracking down on sanctuary cities that protect illegal immigrants. Attorney General Jeff Sessions this week sent a letter to 10 cities failing to comply with federal immigration law, warning that they risk losing federal funding if they continue to do so.

As part of the crackdown, the Department of Homeland Security is also publishing a weekly list of localities refusing to cooperate, as well as the crimes committed by illegal aliens within them.

However, significant progress on Trump’s key promise to build a wall on the southern border has yet to be made.

National Security

Due to federal courts blocking Trump’s executive orders suspending Obama’s refugee program and introducing a temporary travel ban from a number of terror-prone countries, making progress on securing America’s borders from potential terror threats has been difficult.

However, Trump appears to be making good on his promise to “destroy ISIS,” with a significant increase in the number of airstrikes targeting terrorists in the Middle East, North Africa, and Afghanistan. This has been made easier by Trump expanding commanders’ targeting authorities and rolling back restrictions on military strikes put into place by the Obama administration.

The Trump administration has also signaled that it is ready to take action against the impending threat of North Korea. As tensions between both countries rise, Trump has positioned “an armada” in the Korean peninsula, while this week military officials began the installment of controversial Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea, designed to protect South Korea from incoming missiles.

Trump also appears to have secured greater support from China in tackling the North Korean problem. Last week, China positioned 150,000 troops along their the North Korean border, as well as sending a fleet of fully-loaded cargo ships destined for North Korea back home. This week, China warned North Korea not to “cross the point of no return” by conducting another nuclear test.

Click here to read Kristina Wong’s ‘Trump Takes on Terrorism in His First 100 Days.’

Jobs and the economy

During his election campaign, Trump promised to bring jobs back to America, especially those from companies planning to outsource overseas. Having met with a range of business leaders, he has received assurances from companies such as Ford and Carrier Corporations to cancel their overseas plans and instead invest in America. Leading technology firms such as Apple, Amazon, Samsung, and Intel have also pledged to create thousands of new jobs in America over the coming years.

Furthermore, recent economic indicators have been overwhelmingly positive. The economy added nearly 300,000 private sector jobs in the first full month of Trump’s presidency, with the U.S. unemployment rate at 4.5 percent. In March, the Dow Jones industrial average also rose above 21,000 points for the first time in its history.

Energy and climate change

Trump has taken steps to roll back environmental regulations and revitalize the coal industry. In late March, Trump signed an executive order ending some of Barack Obama’s regulations, declaring that his administration was “putting an end to the war on coal,” a promise made to Americans reliant on the coal industry in rustbelt states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania.

In his first White House budget, Trump proposes cutting the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by 31 percent, as well as approving the Keystone XL pipeline previously blocked by Barack Obama.

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt, also confirmed that America should “exit” the Paris Climate Agreement signed by Barack Obama last November, although no decisive action has yet been taken.

Draining the swamp

Trump has made steady inroads in his attempt to “drain the Washington swamp,” introducing a number of policies making it increasingly difficult for lobbyists and bureaucrats to leech off their proximity to power.

Some of those policies include Trump signing an executive order cutting two regulations for every new regulation proposed, as well as introducing regulatory watchdogs that dissolve federal agencies’ power as rule makers.

Furthermore, Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney has warned federal agencies to prepare for massive cuts as part of Trump’s effort to streamline government. They include a 31 percent cut to the Environmental Protection Agency, a 28 percent cut to the State Department, and a 17.9 percent cut to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Click here to read Sean Moran’s ’20 Ways Trump Unraveled the Administrative State.

War on the media

Since assuming the presidency, Trump has escalated his already hostile relationship with the mainstream media. Regularly referring to them as the “fake news media,” he has targeted networks such as ABC, NBC, and CNN for biased reporting, even describing them as the “enemy of the American people.”

These assertions are backed up by data. A recent analysis found that 88 percent of mainstream media coverage is anti-Trump. Amid the rising tensions, Trump has confirmed he will not be attending this year’s White House Correspondents Dinner, becoming the first president to do so in 30 years.

Diplomacy

While in the Oval Office, Trump has held successful meetings with a range of foreign leaders, all of which appear to have been successful.

  • Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — Trump said that although U.S and Canada’s strong trading relationship would continue, both countries need to “tweak” the current trade settlement.
  • Japenese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe — Abe promised that future trade relations between American and Asia must be both “free and fair.”
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — Trump scrapped decades of U.S. policy urging a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while Netanyahu argued there is “no greater supporter of the Jewish people” than Trump.
  • German Chancellor Angela Merkel — Despite Trump previously describing Merkel’s migrant policy as “catastrophic,” the German Chancellor said that both leaders would “work together hand in hand” to solve global crises. Trump also reminded Merkel that “Nato allies [must] pay their fair share for the cost of defense.”
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping — Trump claimed the pair made “tremendous progress” in improving the relationship between the two countries, adding that he had received assurances China would do more to solve the issue of North Korea.

Abortion and Planned Parenthood

On the whole, Donald Trump has kept his promise to govern as a pro-life president.

Within days of his inauguration, Trump signed an executive order that reinstated the Mexico City Policy, a rule that bans non-governmental organizations (NGOs) receiving U.S. funds – including International Planned Parenthood – from providing or promoting abortions overseas.

Trump’s nomination of a pro-life justice to the Supreme Court, as well as tweeting his support for the March for Life, are also positive signs for those protecting the lives of the unborn.

Click here to read Dr. Susan Berry’s ‘Trump and Pence Keeping Pro-Life Promises in First 100 Days’

You can follow Ben Kew on Facebook, on Twitter at @ben_kew, or email him at bkew@breitbart.com

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