Donald Trump stormed back into office with characteristic force, issuing an astonishing 139 executive orders in just 100 days—nearly eclipsing Biden’s total over four years. He slashed federal jobs, reversed dozens of his predecessor’s policies, and flooded the media with daily policy declarations.

But beneath the headlines and spectacle lies a telling truth: Trump has little to show in terms of legislation, and the issues he’s prioritised, namely immigration, bureaucracy, and personal retribution, are wildly out of step with what voters say they care about.

That disconnect may explain why Trump’s approval rating is already sliding, and why his second term, though turbocharged in speed, is struggling to gain meaningful traction.

The 100-day mark, long used as a benchmark for presidential performance, is when presidents typically enjoy the most political capital—high popularity, party unity, and a chance to push through ambitious policy. Trump seems to have absorbed that lesson, but his furious pace masks a presidency running more on instinct and revenge than on public mandate or policy clarity.

However, understanding the need for a fast start and executing one are two different things. The way he has chosen to act on that insight reveals as much about his priorities as it does about his presidency.

Trump’s approach 

Trump appears to have learned this lesson from the missteps of his first term and is now moving much more rapidly and on more policy fronts than he did last time. A more compliant team of advisors has emboldened him, as has last year’s Supreme Court decision that granted a broad presumption of immunity for presidential actions.

His accelerated pace is no accident. Blueprints were drafted by the America First Policy Institute and a group led by the Heritage Foundation, culminating in their plan called “Project 2025.” Individuals associated with these organisations became close advisors to the president and even cabinet members.

Trump is also motivated by revenge against those whom he believes wronged him over the past eight years. He insists that he has a public mandate for his agenda, even though this claim is patently false since most voters did not vote for him. Trump’s assertion of a mandate coincides with his prior statements regarding his elections in 2016 and 2020, but it also reflects a broader pattern among presidents seeking to assert legitimacy in the face of polarisation and institutional doubt.  

Given Trump’s narrow margins in Congress, and prior presidential experience, it is understandable that Trump has moved so quickly. He has issued 139 executive orders in the first 100 days, nearly matching Biden’s 162 during his entire four-year term. But while executive orders orient the government to the new president’s agenda, they are inherently unstable and can be easily overturned by the president’s successor.

One early Trump order, for instance, nullified 78 of Biden’s. To achieve enduring impact, Trump needs to sign bills passed by Congress, but to date, only two meaningful bills, the Laken Riley Act and a government funding extension, have been passed. Trump has held off on introducing his core legislative agenda, promising it will all be included in one “big, beautiful bill.” But the longer he waits, the more momentum he loses.  

The administration’s early focus has been almost entirely on cultural grievances and immigration, leaving the economic issues that affect voters' day-to-day lives unaddressed.

Data from the GW Politics Poll, which I co-direct at George Washington University, provides some insights. Shortly after Trump’s inauguration, we asked voters about the importance of key issues.

The top issue, unsurprisingly, was strengthening the nation’s economy (74.9 percent said it was very important). Relatedly, the third most important was reducing the cost of groceries (70.6 percent). Surprisingly, since it was rarely addressed during the 2024 campaign, the second most important issue was reducing health care costs (72.4 percent)

Healthcare, in particular, represents a major missed opportunity for the president’s fast start. While Trump has made some minor moves in broadening negotiations to lower prescription drug prices, other aspects of healthcare affordability remain untouched. Not even the vaguely promised concepts of a plan have been offered. 

During his campaign, Trump repeatedly pledged to dismantle the so-called “deep state,” especially in retaliation for the investigations and oversight he faced. He told voters, “I am your retribution.” Late in the campaign, he even brought Elon Musk into rallies, where Musk promised he would help trim nearly $2 trillion from the federal budget. But the details were vague then, and the implementation has been chaotic.

Deep cuts to federal programs and employment have come fast and furious, and often seemingly without much forethought..Unsurprisingly, backlash is building—because cutting services and eliminating jobs is rarely a political winner.

Trump's domestic cuts and disregard for economic warning signs have already created unease. But it is in his broader economic policies, especially tariffs, that the potential for real damage is becoming most visible.

Tariffs and trade

Certainly, inflation remains a key concern for voters, particularly the rising prices of groceries and housing. The president has not advanced any meaningful policies to address inflation, and in fact, his actions on tariffs and immigration may well make it worse.

During Trump’s previous term, American farmers were especially hard hit by retaliatory tariffs, forcing the administration to authorise billions of dollars in federal bailouts to offset the losses.

Now, stricter immigration enforcement threatens to shrink the labor force responsible for picking and processing much of the nation's food supply, potentially driving grocery prices even higher.

Trump has had a singular focus on tariffs as a solution to all problems -- from trade imbalances to drug trafficking to immigration.

But his go-to tariff solution has created tremendous upheaval in the financial markets and has soured US relations with allies and trading partners.

Worse still, Trump’s erratic approach, lurching between threats and retreats, has injected uncertainty into the global economy. Businesses are delaying decisions, allies are rethinking partnerships, and prices at home are ticking upward.

The domestic economic turbulence is mirrored by an erosion of America’s global standing. Nowhere is this clearer than in Trump's early foreign policy moves.

International affairs

Trump’s claims to be able to stop the war in Ukraine seem laughable now.

He began floating ideas for a potential solution before he took office, believing his relationship with Vladimir Putin would help broker peace. But the Russian president rebuffed his efforts and is still intent on claiming territory seized during the war.

Trump’s relationship with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy has gradually started to improve after a meeting in Rome at the Pope’s funeral, but there are still difficulties stemming from the berating Zelenskyy took from Vice President J.D. Vance and Trump during a visit to the White House.  A deal still looks a long way off.

In the conflict in Gaza, Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, worked with Biden-era negotiators to secure a ceasefire shortly before Trump’s inauguration. However, the agreement collapsed before its second phase could take effect, and the Trump administration has since struggled to bring both sides back to the negotiating table.

Making matters worse, Trump has sidelined key regional actors essential for rebuilding Gaza and sustaining peace. His widely criticised proposal to develop a luxury resort on Gaza has been seen as tone-deaf, further damaging US credibility in the region.

Diplomatic efforts have also been complicated by Trump’s pursuit of a new nuclear weapons deal with Iran and by the fallout from a mishandled US intelligence operation involving an air strike on Houthis in Yemen.

The verdict

Donald Trump has always been more comfortable promising than governing.

He campaigned—again—on big, simple slogans such as “Trump will fix it” and “Mass deportations now!” stating what he would do but not how he would get things done.

The devil is indeed in the details, and as Trump’s plans get implemented and the negative consequences become apparent, he is seeing his popularity decline. America's economic outlook is worsening, and Trump's 40 percent job approval rating at the 100-day mark is the lowest on record for a modern US president. 

Other indicators of Trump’s performance are also damning. 

Trump’s brashness in levying tariffs, coupled with bizarre suggestions like making Canada the 51st US state, has deeply damaged US relations abroad.

Allies are turning away from the US for strategic leadership. Trading partners are finding different markets and different suppliers of goods and services. Even weapons sales, once a cornerstone of US global influence, are being lost to competitors. 

Trump may have returned to office promising to make “America Great Again” and put “America First,” but so far, he’s delivering an America that’s economically anxious, diplomatically diminished, and increasingly alone on the world stage.