Former President Donald Trump celebrates his 100th day in office with a rally in Warren, Michigan, on Saturday, April 28, 2017. He celebrated the milestone with equal parts nostalgia and his trademark cockiness. The scene felt functionally like a classic campaign rally, minus the campaign platform, with plenty of applause lines and jabs at his political rivals. A throng of admirers surrounded Trump as he spoke respectably. He touted the successes of his administration and set his sights on attacking the man he succeeded, President Joe Biden.
Trump referred to Biden several times throughout his speech, even polling the audience on their preferred nickname for the current president. He even tried to solicit ratings from the crowd on what would be a better name for us to call him—‘Sleepy Joe’ or ‘Crooked Joe.’ Roars of laughter and applause followed her.
The rally occurred at the same time that Trump’s approval ratings were deeply polarized. In fact, they went back and forth between 42 percent and 45 percent in multiple polls just as they crossed this interesting threshold. As he spoke, Trump emphasized several key points regarding his administration’s policies and actions that he believes have positively impacted America.
Key Achievements and Assertions
In his speech, Trump pointed to the reinstatement of Columbus Day as a national holiday as one of his accomplishments. He positioned this decision as key to respecting American history. He took the time to brag about what he claimed were historic accomplishments in the auto industry. He doth boast, in turn, that they have set all-time records for the fewest illegal border crossers. This success, he claims, comes from his smart immigration policies and great deportation, uh, deportationing.
At least one of Trump’s claims stretched credulity. He had the audacity to brag that his administration had been establishing new car manufacturing plants at historic speeds. Yet, critics pointed out that a majority of these announcements were simply expansions at current facilities, not the creation of new manufacturing plants.
Along with comments on economic issues, Trump addressed social issues. He went so far as to proclaim that he had single-handedly banned all forms of government censorship and reclaimed free speech for the nation. Critics were quick to misconstrue that statement, claiming his administration had, in fact, suppressed dissenting voices.
“I banned all government censorship and restored free speech in America. We have free speech.” – Trump
Nico Perrino, the director of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, took issue with Trump’s characterization. He announced, “President Trump has most definitely not restored free speech in America. In fact, since Inauguration Day, we have witnessed some of the worst assaults on free speech in recent memory.”
Immigration and Economic Policies
For four years, Trump bragged about his administration’s draconian immigration policies, repeatedly touting his dedication to stopping people from crossing the border. When confronted with the absurdity, he quipped, “Whoever held the autopen is the actual president.” He was specifically talking about the practice of using an autopen to sign pardons.…to say that I don’t like what you guys are doing… to concede the legality of that practice.
On economic policies overall, Trump boasted some of the biggest savings on record while in office. He even touted the fact that under his administration, egg prices fell 87 percent. He touted that tax cuts were key to fueling that growth. “If the Democrats succeed on this bill, you get a 58 percent tax increase,” he shouted to the audience.
Though Donald Trump has made many lofty claims about his administration’s policies, there is still constant discussion over the true effects of his policy on prices and GDP growth. As we’ve written before, critics have called out the administration’s unsupported claims about cutting fraud costs in half.
Political Landscape and Future Directions
During his six-minute pitch for support to Michigan, Trump surprisingly touted Congressman John James five separate times, positioning him as a go-to ally in Congress. Fortunately, we have some friendly faces on Capitol Hill! Congressman John James of Michigan, one of them, and I’m looking forward to the great partnerships that lie ahead.
By the end of the rally, Trump was sewing the seeds of what we would later come to know as his greatest fear—impeachment. “This country has gone crazy. And today they did it again. Some dude I had never heard of, John James. Is he a congressman? This dude?” he asked theatrically before constructing a straw man and subsequently arguing that calls for impeachment were baseless and calculated for partisan gain.
It’s clear that Trump is focused on continuing to energize the base. He does so while strategically maneuvering a difficult political mine field, under fire from both party’s operatives.
