The cartoon on the cover of The New Yorker (May 5, 2025) by Barry Blitt captures how many Americans are feeling after Donald Trump’s return to the White House: exhausted and anxious. As Blitt noted, it’s hard to get through even the first hundred days without thinking about the long road ahead — more than 1,300 days still to come.
What a cover. First 100 days. pic.twitter.com/zwbqmzabfX
— Victor Shi (@Victorshi2020) April 29, 2025
To understand the significance of this moment, we must look back at his first term. Eight years ago, after Trump’s first hundred days in office, people were already feeling hopeless. His actions demonstrated that he did not value democracy. He undermined the rule of law, disregarded science, and conflated facts with lies. Other presidents, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Barack Obama, used their first hundred days to help the country. But Trump, full of ego and lies, destroyed trust in his office instead.
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Trump was always clear about who he was. When he became president in 2017, he praised past leaders who were known for bad ideas. During his first inauguration, he instructed his team to exaggerate the size of the crowd. He quickly banned travelers from primarily Muslim countries and tried to end the Affordable Care Act. He spent a lot of time on Twitter, attacking people like Hillary Clinton and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and watched TV news like it was a sport. He chose individuals like Michael Flynn for significant roles, only to fire them shortly after. He insulted allies and called NATO “obsolete.”
Those first four years were messy and harmful, but they also served as a warm-up. Trump didn’t fully understand how to utilize his power at the time. His win against Hillary Clinton shocked even him, so he hired a random mix of loyal family members, far-right figures, and establishment types who looked serious but didn’t believe in him. Even his own Secretary of State called him a “moron,” and top military leaders thought he was a “fascist.”
Still, Trump caused real damage. But protests, court rulings, and even some members of Congress blocked his worst ideas. He lost the 2020 election, and his attempt to overturn it failed.
After four years out of power, Trump returned with more anger and fewer limits. He believed President Biden was too weak to win again, and sadly, he was right. Trump came back worse than before. He now follows the idea of “revenge.” He pretends he doesn’t know about Project 2025 — a plan from the Heritage Foundation to give the president more power — but everyone knows he will use it. His team is full of people who only say yes to him. Some, like Pete Hegseth from Fox News, are completely unqualified. Others, like Peter Navarro, are known for spreading bad ideas.
After just 100 days, Trump has already made many mistakes. He has upset allies like Europe, Japan, Mexico, and Canada. He continues to support Vladimir Putin and lets Elon Musk destroy useful government programs. He deported over 200 people to El Salvador, most of whom had done nothing wrong. His tariff plans quickly and severely harmed the economy. He is also using threats to intimidate schools, businesses, and law firms. Some groups, like Columbia University and Amazon, gave in to him.
Trump’s meetings show what he thinks. He was rude to Ukraine’s leader, Zelensky but friendly to El Salvador’s leader, Bukele, who is known for being harsh. Trump even smiled and told him to build more prisons, saying, “the homegrowns are next.” It was a scary moment.
Featured image via X screengrabÂ
