Trump’s First 100 Days
Eight takeaways from Trump’s first 100 days in office, both nationally and globally, from our resident political reporter.
1. The dismantling of democracy is concerning. This is because Trump is trying to do away with federal agencies and expand executive power. This is concerning because our system of checks and balances relies on separate, equally powerful branches of government.. If this continues to happen, Trump could be more like a dictator, and our political system more like an oligarchy, like the Russian government.
2. Trump has threatened Iran in an attempt to reach a nuclear deal with the United States. He has moved warships in the region. They have had three rounds of talks, but Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said that the United States will decide the consequences that will face Iran, due to their support of the Houthis. If this isn’t solved, it could lead to a joint Israeli-US bombing campaign against Iran and potentially lead to a regional war.
3. Kashmir is a region that borders India, China, and Pakistan. On the Indian side of the region, there was a terrorist attack that killed 23 tourists. India blamed Pakistan for funding the terrorists. Pakistan has denied it, and said they would conduct an investigation. Now, Pakistan is claiming that India will attack them. Both countries have cut off the other’s airlines, and India has ordered Pakistani citizens to leave the country immediately, which has led to huge border crossings. The United States and China are trying to de-escalate the conflict. Regional and potential nuclear conflict is at stake if this conflict is not resolved.
4. The relationship with Ukraine has grown more complicated in Trump’s presidency. On one hand, Trump wants to end the war with Ukraine quickly. He does seem to want to bolster Europe’s capacity to defend itself, but he has also done this through demonizing people like Zelensky. He has been slightly critical of the Russian government, but he has not put a lot of pressure on them to end the Russian involvement in the war. There has been a recent mineral deal between Ukraine and the United States, which seems like it will increase economic ties between the two countries, which might put more pressure on Russia. It might help Ukraine rebuild, too.
5. Trump has ramped up deportations in the United States. According to him, it is in an effort to secure the United States’ borders. Many migrants who have been deported have been sent to in an infamous prison complex in El Salvador known as CECOT. However, there has been little to no due process for these migrants, and some deportations have been based on assumptions, with a lack of evidence. For example, Kilmar Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported; he had been living in Maryland for thirteen years and had sought asylum. All of this has been both messy and concerning; even the government admitted he was deported by mistake, and yet he was still sent abroad. Trump has also advocated for even American citizens who commit crimes to be deported abroad. It sets a dangerous precedent.
6. Trump has cracked down on what he calls biased propaganda that goes against American values by issuing an executive order that ends federal funding for PBS and NPR. This is concerning because it makes it seem as if only certain views of America are allowed. This can disproportionally affect marginalized groups, because, while this has happened, people like Pete Hegseth have removed images of actual instances of marginalized groups taking part in American history (such as a web page that honored the military service of Jackie Robinson). This continues a trend of Trump attacking certain media outlets, such as the Associated Press, for not using terminology that Trump approved of.
7. There have been multiple instances of what has been called SignalGate. This refers to the situation that started when Mike Waltz, then the National Security Advisor, added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic to a Signal group chat where Pete Hegseth talked about classified information about pending military strikes in Yemen. Something similar happened again when Hegseth shared classified information on a Signal chat with his wife and brother. Even his advisors told him it was not secure to share or use Signal. This is concerning because Hegseth has not been fired, even though his actions are deeply irresponsible, as his sharing of information could endanger lives domestically and abroad.
8. Under the Trump administration, due to Trump’s relationship with Netanyahu, Israel has felt emboldened to take more drastic measures in their pursuit to eliminate Hamas (which is classified by the US Government as a terrorist organization) from the region. As such, Gaza is currently experiencing a humanitarian crisis due to Israel’s heavy bombardment and siege, while the remaining hostages are still being held by Hamas. Tensions are still increasing across the Middle East.