Trumps 1st hundred days
The challenge is evident on the walls of Steve Bannon's West Wing office. But his biggest success so far on Capitol Hill has been the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court – a feat that required a historic change to Senate rules.
#TRUMPS 1ST HUNDRED DAYS FREE#
Trump has followed through on some campaign promises, such as executive orders rolling back regulations and eyeing changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement. Bill Clinton stumbled at first but ultimately pushed a budget through Congress. Bush was on his way to securing House passage of the No Child Left Behind education overhaul. By this point in 2009, Barack Obama had won congressional approval of a $787 billion economic stimulus package. Roosevelt as he fought the Great Depression – is a legendary Washington barometer for presidential success. The 100 days threshold – popularized by Franklin D. John McCain, another Trump skeptic in the GOP, in the White House residence Monday night. And the President had dinner with Graham and Sen. But Trump was on the phone with Graham just hours after the Syria strike, the senator said.
One of the Senate's leading hawks, Graham represents the foreign policy establishment that Trump pilloried on the campaign trail last year. Graham's relationship with Trump is a sign of potential changes at the White House. Authorizing the strikes, even though they were limited, was Donald Trump accepting the responsibility of being commander in chief and letting campaign rhetoric be washed away by the reality of the job. "But now that he's commander in chief and leader of the free world, it's a different world. There are no boundaries," South Carolina GOP Sen.
You know, when you're running for president, you say anything. For instance, his approval earlier this month of targeted airstrikes on a Syrian airfield in retaliation for chemical attacks that killed civilians was out of step from the "America First" campaign rhetoric that ushered him into the White House. The interviews depict a White House struggling to overcome an onslaught of crises ranging from investigations about Russia's involvement in last year's election to the failed push to repeal and replace Obamacare.Īfter a rough introduction to Washington, there are signs that Trump and his team are beginning to adapt to the realities and demands of the job. This account of the President's tumultuous first 100 days is based on interviews with roughly five dozen White House officials, lawmakers, congressional staff and former campaign officials along with Trump friends and associates, many of whom spoke on background to protect their relationship with Trump. That vulnerability is underscored by the willingness of even Trump's closest GOP allies – those who desperately want to turn his unlikely administration into a noble cause – to critique his shortcomings. A CNN/ORC poll released this week found that 44% of respondents approved of Trump's handling of the presidency while 54% disapproved. Trump concludes his first 100 days in office Saturday with the lowest approval rating of any president at this juncture, according to polls dating back to the Eisenhower administration. Now that he's in the White House, the problem, many sources said, is that Trump is so concerned about an image he can't control and staffers are so anxious about their standing with him that the administration easily slides into dysfunction. The presidency poses profound challenges for the 70-year-old Trump, who owes much of his success in business and last year's campaign to a savvy ability to cultivate a favorable persona. He didn't want to do this," this person said, referring to the task of governing.Īnother person close to Trump portrayed a tight inner circle of top aides gripped by paranoia to the point that “if one of them goes into that office alone, the other one is there within two minutes” to make sure their voice is heard. Someone else who regularly speaks with the President described him during a particularly low point in March as a "caged animal" in the White House.