Donald Trump

Trump signed executive orders early in his second term directing federal agencies to identify and eliminate regulations, framing deregulation as a core economic priority. However, implementing a verified 10-to-1 elimination ratio across all agencies has proven difficult to track and enforce consistently, and independent analysts have noted the pace of formal regulatory rollbacks has not yet matched the stated goal.

Used tariffs and investment incentives to attract manufacturing commitments. The White House claimed nearly $2 trillion in new U.S. investment pledges by March 2025, including Apple ($500B), TSMC ($100B), and Eli Lilly ($27B). The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provided full expensing for factory construction to encourage domestic investment. However actual manufacturing jobs declined — the U.S. lost over 80,000 manufacturing jobs in 2025 and nearly 100,000 since Trump took office per PBS reporting. The trade deficit in manufactured goods remained near a record high. Economists noted most investment pledges were announcements not completions, and factory construction takes 12-36 months before jobs materialize.

A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect January 19, 2025 — one day before Trump's inauguration — with Trump's team playing an active role in negotiations. The deal secured the release of hostages in eight rounds. However the ceasefire collapsed on March 18, 2025 when Israel resumed military operations after Hamas refused to extend the agreement. Fighting resumed through the summer. A second ceasefire brokered by the U.S. took effect October 10, 2025 — releasing all remaining living hostages and ending major combat operations. Trump declared "the war is over." However Israeli military operations continued inside Gaza under the ceasefire and as of April 2026 a permanent resolution remains unresolved.

Signed Executive Orders 14151 and 14173 on January 20-21, 2025 terminating all DEI offices, programs, mandates, and preferences across the federal government. Directed OMB to close all agency DEI offices and place employees on paid leave within 24 hours. Removed DEI from the Foreign Service in March 2025. Extended the ban to federal contractors in March 2026 requiring all contractors to certify they do not operate DEI programs. Directed the Attorney General to investigate private sector companies with DEI programs. Over 1,000 nonprofits rewrote their mission statements to remove DEI references following the orders.

Signed Executive Order on May 12, 2025 implementing Most-Favored-Nation pricing — requiring drug manufacturers to offer Americans the same prices paid by other developed nations or face consequences. Launched TrumpRx.gov in February 2026 allowing patients to purchase drugs directly at discounted prices. Negotiated agreements with 16 major pharmaceutical manufacturers including Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, and Merck on price reductions for dozens of drugs. Ozempic and Wegovy prices reduced to $245 per month for Medicare. However independent analysts noted the MFN pricing was voluntary for manufacturers and the claimed 30-80% reductions have not materialized broadly across the prescription drug market.

Terminated the Biden-era SAVE Plan — which served over 8 million borrowers — through a settlement with Missouri in December 2025. Removed IDR enrollment applications from government websites in early 2025, halting forgiveness processing for hundreds of thousands of borrowers. The One Big Beautiful Bill signed July 4, 2025 eliminated Grad PLUS loans for new borrowers after July 1, 2026, extended forgiveness timelines to 30 years under the new Repayment Assistance Plan, and made student loan forgiveness taxable again starting 2026. Over 800,000 IDR applications remained backlogged as of November 2025.

Signed an executive order on January 20, 2025 directing agencies to tackle housing costs. Directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities to lower borrowing costs. Signed an executive order banning large institutional investors from buying single-family homes. Mortgage rates fell from 7.04% in January 2025 to approximately 6% by early 2026. However home prices continued rising and the national median sale price remained above $425,000. Tariffs on lumber, steel, and copper are projected to add $17,500 in costs per new home and result in 450,000 fewer homes built through 2030 according to the Center for American Progress.

Signed Executive Order on January 20, 2025 directing the EPA to reconsider the 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding. EPA announced rollbacks of 31 key environmental rules covering clean air, clean water, and climate change. On February 11, 2026 the EPA formally rescinded the 2009 Endangerment Finding — the legal foundation for all federal greenhouse gas regulations — along with all vehicle greenhouse gas emission standards. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called it the largest deregulatory action in U.S. history. The EPA also canceled approximately $20 billion in already-allocated clean energy grants and cut 65% of the agency's total spending.

Restarted border wall construction on January 20, 2025 after Biden halted it in 2021. Congress allocated $46.5 billion for the wall in the One Big Beautiful Bill signed July 4, 2025. CBP awarded $4.5 billion in contracts in October 2025 for approximately 230 miles of new Smart Wall combining physical barriers and technology. As of January 2026 only 30 miles of new barrier had been completed since Trump took office, with 83 miles under construction and 1,168 miles still in planning. The administration aims to complete construction by 2029.

The war was not ended within 24 hours or by any other deadline Trump set. Trump later said the promise was an exaggeration made in jest, contradicting his repeated emphatic statements on the campaign trail. The administration brokered a limited infrastructure ceasefire with Russia in March 2025 and facilitated the first direct Ukraine-Russia talks since the invasion in Istanbul in May 2025. However the war continued with Russian forces actively striking Ukrainian cities. As of April 2026, no ceasefire or peace deal has been reached and fighting continues.

No repeal of the Affordable Care Act occurred. The One Big Beautiful Bill signed July 4, 2025 did not include ACA repeal. Instead it made significant cuts to Medicaid, added work requirements for some enrollees, shortened the open enrollment period, and allowed the enhanced ACA subsidies enacted under Biden to expire at end of 2025 — causing average premiums to rise 114% for over 20 million subsidized enrollees in 2026. Dr. Mehmet Oz stated in October 2025 that Trump had a plan but offered no specifics. Nonpartisan analysts describe the cumulative effect as a partial dismantling rather than a repeal and replace.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed July 4, 2025 did not eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits. Instead it created a temporary $6,000 standard deduction for taxpayers age 65 and older, available from 2025 through 2028 and phasing out for higher income earners. The White House claimed the bill delivers on the Social Security tax promise, stating 88% of beneficiaries would owe no federal tax on benefits. However, nonpartisan analysts including the Tax Policy Center found the deduction does not directly exempt Social Security from taxation, more than half of beneficiaries already owed no tax before the bill, and the provision expires in 2028.

Established the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) by executive order on January 20, 2025, led initially by Elon Musk. DOGE cut over 270,000 federal workers — the largest peacetime workforce reduction on record — and cancelled thousands of contracts and grants. However, total federal spending increased in 2025, rising approximately $248 billion compared to 2024. DOGE's own savings claims were found to contain significant errors and inflated figures by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Cato Institute. Musk departed DOGE in May 2025 and later described it as only "a little bit successful."

Signed Executive Order 14160 on January 20, 2025 directing federal agencies to stop issuing citizenship documents to children born in the U.S. to parents who entered illegally or are on temporary visas. Multiple federal district court judges immediately blocked the order as unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment and it has never gone into effect. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on April 1, 2026 in Trump v. Barbara with justices across party lines — including Chief Justice Roberts and Trump appointees — expressing deep skepticism of the administration's position. A ruling is expected by June or July 2026.

Declared a national energy emergency on January 20, 2025. Opened hundreds of millions of acres of federal land to oil and gas production. The Bureau of Land Management approved nearly 6,000 drilling permits — a 55% increase year-over-year. The U.S. set a record in 2025 exporting over 100 million metric tons of LNG, the first country ever to reach that milestone. However, active drilling rig counts declined more than 6% as crude oil prices dropped below $60 per barrel, discouraging new investment. The promised production boom has not fully materialized.

Signed Executive Order on March 20, 2025 directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to facilitate the department's closure and return education authority to the states. The administration cut nearly half the department's workforce and transferred 118 programs to other federal agencies, moving K-12 and higher education management to the Department of Labor. However, only Congress can formally abolish the department, which it created by law in 1979. The department continues spending approximately $200 billion annually and Congress has not voted to eliminate it.

Signed executive order withdrawing the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement on January 20 2025 — his first day in office. This was also done during his first term in 2017.

Proposal included in budget framework discussions. As of April 2026 legislation has not passed Congress. Senate version introduced but stalled in budget negotiations. Still pending.

Signed clemency order January 20 2025 pardoning approximately 1500 individuals convicted in connection with the January 6 2021 Capitol breach including those convicted of violent offenses.

Signed executive order implementing 10% baseline tariff on all imports effective February 2025. Raised tariffs on Chinese goods to 60%+. Multiple trading partners announced retaliatory measures. Markets experienced significant volatility.

Declared national emergency at southern border January 20 2025. Reinstated Remain in Mexico policy. Ended catch-and-release. Deployed military to border. ICE arrests increased significantly in first 90 days.