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It’s Tuesday, the traditional day for elections and for our pause-and-consider newsletter on politics and policy. We think of it as a mini-magazine in your inbox.

WHAT HAS TRUMP DONE IN HIS FIRST 100 DAYS?
By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews ([link removed])
Correspondent

Neither the Constitution nor U.S. law see a president’s first 100 days as particularly special.

But in modern politics, it is critical.

A president’s power is generally strongest in the first year. And the first 100 days set the tone for an administration. Cabinets are born and presidents project how they intend to work with — or not work with — the other branches of government.

In these past 100 days, Trump worked feverishly to rewrite American policy on immigration ([link removed]) , dismantle ([link removed]) and restructure ([link removed]) many government institutions and exert an amount of executive power that is unprecedented ([link removed]) in recent times.

It has been a blur of activity on nearly every major front in American government.

Let’s clear up the haze. Here is a look at what Trump has done in three key areas.

THE ECONOMY
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Watch the segment in the player above.
Trump promised to end inflation ([link removed]) and “make America affordable again” by making groceries cheaper, passing tax cuts for workers and levying tariffs that his administration says will boost American manufacturing.

Inflation
* Core inflation last month saw its lowest increase in nearly four years. That is a big deal — economists see that as a key predictor on where inflation may be headed.
* But food prices are still steadily rising. Grocery prices were notably up last month ([link removed]) , and spiking in some places. ([link removed]) Moreover, the Agriculture Department predicts food costs will rise faster ([link removed]) than the historical average this year.
* Voters have noticed. Although the president repeatedly promised ([link removed]) to lower prices on Day 1, the higher grocery bills are eating into people’s household budgets.
* A key poll finding: 64 percent of Americans say they think grocery prices will rise in the next six months ([link removed]) , including 64 percent of independents and 89 percent of Democrats.
* Spending cuts: Government spending cuts initially eased pressures in the bond market and led to February drops in mortgage rates. But his tariff policy wiped those out ([link removed]) and now mortgage rates are up and down. ([link removed])


Tax cuts
* Trump’s tax cut plan is moving in Congress, where it is not yet clear which Americans will benefit and how.
* Republicans have an everyone-wins vision. They want to extend current cuts they say will benefit low- and middle-income households ([link removed]) and add new tax cuts, especially for workers, too. (This includes Trump’s “no taxes on tips” promise.)
* Opponents say this vision will add to the debt, could lead to program cuts in Medicaid ([link removed]) and could disproportionately benefit some groups more than others.


Tariffs
* Trump launched sweeping tariffs on his own, without Congress, contrary to a past stump speech where the idea was to pass legislation to do this.
* Yet: There is debate ([link removed]) over whether his cuts are in fact “reciprocal.” It’s too early to tell the full scope of the president’s actions on tariffs, but the initial results have been economically jarring.
* The tariffs currently include steep 145 percent tariffs on China, in place now, and 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods that are not covered under the North American trade pact currently in effect.
* Meanwhile, other initial results have included: retaliatory tariffs ([link removed]) , stock market turmoil, ([link removed]) warnings of empty shelves ahead ([link removed]) , a massive drop ([link removed]) in consumer confidence and turbulence ([link removed]) in relationships with America’s greatest allies. The White House says it is negotiating new trade deals with scores of countries.
* Some Americans have changed their habits already. Nearly half of the U.S. adults in our poll — 49 percent — said they have either delayed or sped up purchases ([link removed]) as a result. Those figures are far higher for Black (70 percent) and Latino (71 percent) adults.

BORDER
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Watch the segment in the player above.
On immigration, Trump has promised to “seal the border,” ([link removed]) undo every Biden-era border policy, and execute the largest deportation operation ([link removed]) in U.S. history.

Border security
* This is arguably Trump’s greatest success so far. Crossings at the U.S. southern border have plunged, per multiple independent ([link removed]) news reports. ([link removed])
* Trump’s border czar Tom Homan told reporters Monday that border crossings in the previous 24 hours were down to 178. The Wall Street Journal wrote that illegal crossings at the southern border are at a near standstill, a big drop, but also part of a downward trend that started before the election. ([link removed])
* Added difficulties for asylum seekers: Families waiting for the asylum process have been divided in some cases ([link removed]) and cut off from options in others. Trump rolled back some Biden-era border policies ([link removed]) , ending the use of the CBP One App for asylum seekers and reinstating some of his previous policies, including “Remain in Mexico.” ([link removed])
* A “national emergency.” Trump, who has repeatedly described an “invasion” at the U.S.-Mexico border ([link removed]) , deployed military troops to the border to aid in immigration enforcement. ([link removed])

Mass deportations
* On Day 1, Trump signed an executive order ([link removed]) directing increased removal and detention of undocumented immigrants.
* About 139,000 people have been deported so far under this Trump administration, Homan told reporters Monday. ([link removed]) The New York Times in March reported that deportations have not surged. ([link removed])
* Yet: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and its allies ([link removed]) have said they need more money ([link removed]) to truly launch “mass deportations.”
* Meanwhile, Trump officials have strongly emphasized that people in the U.S. illegally should “self-deport.”
* The immigration crackdown has also faced court scrutiny. The Trump administration turned to the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act, used in times of war, to deport a group of people the administration described as members of a Venezuelan gang. The Supreme Court temporarily blocked this move ([link removed]) , stopping some of these deportations.
* A high-profile case. The deportation of Marylander Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia ([link removed]) to an El Salvador prison has raised questions ([link removed]) about the administration’s moves to forego due process. Courts have ruled the White House must take steps to return him to the U.S., but they refuse.
* A key poll finding: In our poll, just 35 percent approved of how the Trump administration has handled the deportation of Abrego Garcia, with a clear divide along partisan lines. ([link removed])

Refugees admissions
* Trump has shut down access to asylum, refugee and other status programs for those fleeing threatening situations. He has indicated he wants a wider travel ban on some yet-to-be named countries. (A draft list of recommendations ([link removed]) was reported in March.)
* On Day 1, Trump signed an executive order laying out a ban on travelers from nations where proper vetting is difficult. This could be more broad ([link removed]) than the bans he attempted in his first term in office, The New York Times reported.
* Also: Trump suspended asylum indefinitely ([link removed]) , virtually ended all new refugee settlements ([link removed]) and revoked the temporary legal status ([link removed]) of migrants from Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Cuba who were granted humanitarian parole. All of those cases are working through the courts.

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
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Watch the segment in the player above.
Trump has sought to aggressively remove “rogue bureaucrats” by shrinking a federal workforce he says is “bloated.”

Firing federal workers
* Trump has taken unprecedented action, far exceeding any specific campaign pledge, to shrink the federal workforce.
* Tens of thousands of employees across the federal government have been fired, placed on leave or taken voluntary buyouts, led by the Department of Government Efficiency and its efforts to eliminate waste, fraud and inefficiency. Many more could be fired in the coming months. ([link removed])
* Trump is also reclassifying large groups of workers as “Schedule F,” making them far more easy to dismiss. ([link removed]) This is beingchallenged in court. ([link removed])
* Targeting worker protections. Trump has also targeted the structures that protect federal employees. He fired the chair of the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, ([link removed]) a politically appointed position. When the three-member board lacks a quorum, it prevents the group from issuing decisions on appeals.

Funding cuts
* Trump has frozen funding for a wide variety of programs across the government.
* Savings from these cuts are disputed. Elon Musk’s DOGE claims it has cut approximately $160 billion, though its figures have been hard to verify. PBS News and others found some claims of savings to be baseless. ([link removed])
* At the same time, these funding freezes have led to instability for programs in and out of government, including Head Start ([link removed]) , foreign food aid ([link removed]) and many others.
* Congressional Democrats are attempting to track this ([link removed]) , estimating cuts or freezes on at least $430 billion in appropriated funds.

Reshaping federal agencies
* Trump has moved to eliminate a few regional, outside-Washington offices for several agencies.
* Those include: Half of the regional offices for the Department of Health and Human Services ([link removed]) , five Head Start ([link removed]) regional offices, and the State Department ([link removed]) is looking to close 10 embassies and 17 consulates.
* Also: Weeks afterDOGE indicated ([link removed]) that dozens of Social Security offices could close or end their leases, the agency put out a memo saying no offices ([link removed]) are now slated to close permanently.
* The move by DOGE to end federal leases across the country has raised questions about scores of other offices potentially closing. ([link removed])

These are just three areas. There are more sweeping ways Trump’s first 100 days have sent waves across systems ([link removed]) in this country.

Among them: The president’s aim at legal structures and repeated refusal to comply with judicial rulings, and his reworking of foreign policy and (unfulfilled) work to end the Ukraine War.

We’ll have more Trump 100-days takeaways and analysis on air and online. We’ll continue to closely watch the steps the administration is making.
More on Trump’s first 100 days from our coverage:
* Read: Trump gets an “F” ([link removed]) on his first 100 days from plurality of Americans, our poll finds.
* One Big Question: Given Trump’s latest polling results, is there an opening for Democrats to channel the public’s frustration? NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter discuss. ([link removed])
* A Closer Look: Breaking down the first 100 days of Trump’s second term and the effects of his agenda. ([link removed])
* Perspectives: People with disabilities explain how Medicaid cuts could impact their lives. ([link removed])

THIS WEEK’S TRIVIA QUESTION
By Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital

Why is 100 days a barometer for a president’s early success — or failure?

For much of U.S. presidential history, this seemingly arbitrary standard didn’t garner headlines like today.

Our question: Which president’s achievements created this informal measuring stick for later U.S. leaders?

Send your answers to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.

Last week, we asked: How did Nixon and first lady Pat Nixon commemorate the first Earth Day?

The answer: The Nixons planted a tree. ([link removed]) On April 22, 1970, the Nixons planted a tree on the White House South Lawn to recognize the growing public support for environmental protections.

Congratulations to our winners: Kim Williams and Michelle Young!

Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.
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