April 30, 2025

This newsletter wraps up our weekly recaps of the first 100 days of President Trump's second presidential term. After today, look for us back on Saturday mornings -- and listen to the Trump's Terms podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or in the NPR App for more updates.

The Big Picture: The First 100 Days

Scott Olson/Getty Images

So much has happened in the first 100 days of President Trump’s second term.

On Day 1, he signed a slew of executive orders aimed at, among other things, creating DOGE, his government-slashing informal Department of Government Efficiency, erasing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, getting rid of birthright citizenship for people born in the U.S. to parents without permanent legal status, declaring an emergency at the southern border and recognizing only “two sexes – male and female.”

He’s moved aggressively to implement tariffs on imported goods, restructure the federal government and tighten his grip on power, carry out deportations, reposition the United States on the world stage, and punish perceived political enemies.

It hasn’t all gone smoothly. There was the Signalgate scandal that has engulfed several top members of his administration, some courts have pushed back on his deportation attempts, there have been reversals in some of the firings of federal workers and cuts to programs and agencies, and the billionaire leading his government restructuring effort, Elon Musk, has grown increasingly unpopular.

The public reaction toward Trump’s trade wars, in particular, hasn’t been positive, leading to a plunge in his poll numbers, according to a NPR/PBS News/Marist poll released this week. A slim majority now even disapproves of his handling of immigration, which had been a relative strength. It's all added up to a controversial, historic and wildly busy first 100 days with no one quite sure what's to come next.

— Domenico Montanaro, NPR’s senior political editor/correspondent

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From his early promises to his policy decisions, we’re making sense of Trump's extraordinary approach to presidency—and what it all might mean for you. LISTEN NOW.

Going Deeper: More On Trump's First 100 Days

Ben Curtis/AP

100 days of DOGE: Despite Elon Musk’s lofty goals, the “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE has not really delivered on its promised savings. But it has reshaped the federal government in significant ways: effectively dismantling agencies, slashing spending on foreign aid and amassing unprecedented power over government data. Read more from NPR’s Stephen Fowler and Shannon Bond.

By the numbers: 10 key numbers that sum up Trump's first 100 days.

Trump marks 100 days in Michigan: Trump, back in rally mode, marks 100 days in office with a boisterous speech in Michigan.

Econ check-in: Trump promised a “Golden Age” for the American economy. But 100 days in, Americans are feeling antsy about Trump’s tariffs potentially driving up prices.

Trump’s immigration crackdown: In 100 days, Trump has dramatically upended U.S. immigration policy through sweeping executive orders and an aggressive campaign of raids, detentions and deportations. That has sown fear in migrant communities and set up a showdown between the White House and the courts. Here are five cases you should be watching.

🎧 Want to learn more? The NPR Politics Podcast broke down key issues of the first 100 days of Trump’s second term, examining the influence of Project 2025 on his agenda, how he’s expanded the role of the presidency and more. Listen on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

— Lexie Schapitl, NPR Politics producer

The Shot: ROMEO, Oh ROMEO

Bill Snellings

Loneliness can strike anyone. But it can be especially difficult to get older men — many of whom were taught not to show emotion or lean on others — to socialize and find connection.

Enter, ROMEO: Retired Older Men Eating Out, a monthly lunch club run by local groups across the country. Jim Hays, a retired harbor master in Maine, was skeptical at first, but now attends the ROMEO lunches regularly.

"We have worked all our lives and it's hard to get out of the chair and get involved with something," he says. "You know, we lose our contacts with the outside world, and it takes something like this to pull us back in." Read more.

— Lexie Schapitl, NPR Politics producer

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