Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Here are some key points about him: Presidency: Trump assumed office on January 20, 2017, succeeding Barack Obama. His vice president was Mike Pence, and he was succeeded by Joe Biden. Background: Born in Queens, New York City, Trump has been associated with various political parties over the years, including the Republican Party (1987–1999, 2009–2011, 2012–present), Reform Party (1999–2001), Democratic Party (2001–2009), and as an Independent (2011–2012). Trump was the chairman and president of The Trump Organization from 1971 to 2017. Personal Life: He has been married three times, with his current wife being Melania Knavs. Trump has five children: Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and Barron. Legacy and Controversies: His presidency was marked by a range of policies, controversies, and legal affairs. Notable events include the impeachment proceedings, foreign policy decisions, and his active presence on social media.
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Is Donald Trump right when he says the border is just an ’artificially drawn line’? Historians say he's not exactly wrong, but the story of the Canada-U.S. border is complicated. U.S. President Donald Trump repeated one of his favourite talking points in his meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney Tuesday, saying the Canada-U.S. border is an artificially drawn line. Somebody drew that line many years ago with, like, a ruler — just a straight line right across the top of the country, he said when the two leaders met in front of reporters at the White House. (RCI 5/7/25) READMORE>>>>>
April 27, 2025:
Trump's next 100 days to feature trade deals, peace talks, 'torpedoes,' officials say President Donald Trump and his administration this week will highlight the accomplishments of his first 100 days in office, while looking toward the next 100 days with a focus on trade deals and peace talks, White House officials said. After a pace of changes that have thrilled allies and stunned adversaries, including in social policy areas such as transgender rights, one official said Trump has "torpedoes" in store but did not explain what those were. (Reuters 4/27/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump steps from the cloister to shake hands with world leaders in Vatican City President Trump has worked aggressively in his second term to tear at the fabric of America’s post-WWII alliance with Europe. But his decision to fly halfway around the world to attend Pope Francis’ funeral in St. Peter’s Square Saturday morning — a somber affair under brilliant blue skies, the cries of Roman seagulls and the sonorous basilica bells — shows the divorce with Europe is not quite final. (Politico 4/27/24) READ MORE>>>>> Trump promised to improve the economy on Day 1. Americans are still waiting. Nearly 100 days after Trump took the oath of office for a second time, consumer and business sentiment is spasming from widespread federal job cuts, a ping-ponging stock market and president's on-again, off-again tariffs. Leading economists are predicting the U.S. could enter a recession, and millions of Americans are struggling with the continuing high cost of gas and groceries while getting buried beneath a growing mountain of credit card bills and car payments. (USA Today 4/27/24) READ MORE>>>>> NOTE: Trump: "I wouldn't say everything he's doing is moving in the right direction, but it seems to be going well overall," he said. "I feel like with Harris, nothing would have changed, and it would have gotten worse because nothing would have changed." I can't tell anymore whether he says this type of nonsense to make himself believable to himself...or attempt to convince others of his mighty wisdom. Unless you're Maga, though...you know better than to believe his continuously random pats on his own back. Tuesday briefing: How Donald Trump has left Ukrainian civilians in greater danger than ever Russia claimed that its ballistic missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Sumy was aimed at Ukrainian army commanders. But the truth is that the attack’s brutal toll was exacted against ordinary people. The deaths of at least 34 people made it the worst single attack on civilians in Ukraine this year. But the most Donald Trump would say was that he had been told it was a “mistake”. It appears unlikely he will take up Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s invitation, issued yesterday, to visit Ukraine and see the consequences of the invasion for himself. (The Guardian 4/15/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump was playing chicken with tariffs. Then he chickened out By imposing punitively high tariffs, Donald Trump was playing a high-stakes game of chicken with America’s trading partners – but it was Trump who chickened out and suspended his tariffs just hours after they took effect. The president couldn’t ignore the worldwide economic havoc that he had caused singled-handedly – stock markets were plunging, business executives were panicking and consumers were seething. (The Guardian 4/101/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump tariffs: ‘Do not retaliate and you will be rewarded,’ White House says Canada and Mexico will not face an additional 10% tariff as a result of Trump’s announcement revising his so-called reciprocal tariff policy, a White House official tells CNBC. The existing U.S. tariff structure on imports from Canada and Mexico — a 25% duty on goods not covered by the trilateral trade deal known as USMCA — remains unchanged, the official says. (CNBC 4/10/25) READMORE>>>>> Price hikes, layoffs and import fees: How car giants are reacting to Trump’s tariffs Auto giants have responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs by announcing plans to raise prices, impose import fees, pause production and even layoff staff. As part of plans designed to shift production to U.S. factories and bolster American jobs, the Trump administration introduced 25% tariffs on foreign auto imports on Thursday. Shares of some of the world’s biggest car brands traded sharply lower on Friday, extending steep losses from the previous session.(CNBC 4/3/25) READMORE>>>>> UK has best chance to overturn tariffs, says Reynolds The trade secretary has insisted the UK is best-placed to eventually overturn US trade tariffs, despite failing to negotiate an exemption so far. Jonathan Reynolds told the BBC the UK was expecting to be hit by a new raft of import taxes set to be announced on Wednesday by President Donald Trump. But he added ongoing talks with the Trump administration meant the UK was in the "best possible position of any country" to have them reversed. (BBC 4/1/25) READMORE>>>>> Danish foreign minister scolds Trump administration after Vance trip to Greenland The Danish foreign minister scolded the Trump administration on Saturday for its "tone" criticizing Denmark and Greenland during Vice President JD Vance's visit to the strategic island. Vance — joined by his wife, second lady Usha Vance, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Sen. Mike Lee of Utah — on Friday visited the Pituffick Space Base, the northernmost U.S. military installation, in Greenland. The trip had been scaled back after an uproar among Greenlanders and Danges who were not consulted about the original itinerary. While there, the vice president blasted Denmark for its handling of the island, saying the U.S. base in Greenland is less secure than it was decades ago because of Denmark's stewardship. (CBS 3/28/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump administration rejects Putin's proposal that the U.N. should govern Ukraine The White House on Thursday dismissed Russian President Vladimir Putin's suggestion that peace talks in Ukraine should depend on the country being governed by the United Nations while new elections are held. Speaking to reporters during a visit to a Russian nuclear submarine in Murmansk, the largest city north of the Arctic Circle, Putin reiterated his claim that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's mandate is illegitimate. With the United Nations, the United States and European nations, "we could discuss the possibility of introduction of temporary governance in Ukraine,” Putin said, while Ukraine holds “democratic elections, to bring to power a capable government that enjoys the trust of the people.” (NBC 3/28/25) READMORE>>>>> Asia-Pacific markets mostly higher even as Trump reciprocal tariff deadline looms Asia-Pacific markets are mostly higher Monday as U.S. President Donald Trump’s April 2 tariff deadline looms. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.07%. South Korea’s Kospi was up 0.13%, while the small-cap Kosdaq added 0.74% after South Korea’s Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s impeachment was struck down by the country’s Constitutional Court. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.14% while the Topix slipped 0.24%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 0.10% and mainland China’s CSI 300 traded flat after China’s Premier Li Qiang cautioned “rising instability” and called for countries to open up markets and enterprises. (CNBC 3/23/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump to sign order Thursday aimed at eliminating Education Department President Donald Trump is set to sign a long-anticipated executive order Thursday that seeks to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, delivering on a signature campaign promise to try to dismantle the agency, according to senior Trump administration officials. Trump is expected to sign the order, which has been in the works for weeks, at a White House ceremony attended by several Republican governors and state education commissioners. Trump will direct his education secretary, Linda McMahon, to take "all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return education authority to the States," according to a White House summary of the order reviewed by USA TODAY. It also calls for the "uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely." (USA Today 3/21/25) READMORE>>>>> Russia-Ukraine war live: Trump to discuss ‘land, power plants’ with Putin The Kremlin has confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin will speak to his United States counterpart, Donald Trump, on Tuesday. Trump, who has upended longstanding US policy by moving closer to Russia, says the discussions on ending the war in Ukraine will include “land and power plants”. (Aljazeera 3/17/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump threatens 200% tariff on E.U. booze over tax on U.S. whiskey President Donald Trump threatened Thursday to impose 200% tariffs on alcohol from the European Union in response to the region's retaliatory 50% tariff on U.S. whiskey, further escalating tensions between two longtime trading partners. Trump also sharpened his rhetoric toward the E.U., which has for decades been one of the closest U.S. allies. "The European Union, one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the World, which was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States, has just put a nasty 50% Tariff on Whisky," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "If this Tariff is not removed immediately, the U.S. will shortly place a 200% Tariff on all WINES, CHAMPAGNES, & ALCOHOLIC PRODUCTS COMING OUT OF FRANCE AND OTHER E.U. REPRESENTED COUNTRIES. This will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S." (NBC News 3/13/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump's plan to cut down more trees faces a host of problems The Trump administration last Saturday touted logging as the next frontier in job creation and wildfire prevention, but those goals will face confounding challenges. Trump issued two executive orders on March 1: the first to boost timber production on federal land and the second to address wood product imports. The moves were quickly cheered by the timber industry. “These are common sense directives,” said Travis Joseph, president of the American Forest Resource Council, a timber industry trade group. “Our federal forests have been mismanaged for decades and Americans have paid the price in almost every way – lost jobs, lost manufacturing, and infrastructure.” (USA Today 3/10/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump to revoke legal status for 240,000 Ukrainians as US steps up deportations U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is planning to revoke temporary legal status for some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia, a senior Trump official and three sources familiar with the matter said, potentially putting them on a fast-track to deportation. The move, expected as soon as April, would be a stunning reversal of the welcome Ukrainians received under President Joe Biden's administration. (Reuters 3/6/25) READMORE>>>>> The Trump administration kills nearly all USAID programs The Trump administration is terminating thousands of USAID foreign assistance grants and awards, according to the State Department. The move effectively guts the six-decade-old agency. The announcement came just hours before a federal district court deadline for the Trump administration to restart payments on those grants. The government still owes more than $1 billion for work done before Trump's foreign aid freeze. But late Wednesday the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to vacate the lower court order to start funding those programs again, saying that it could not make the payments on the deadline set by the judge. (NPR 2/26/25) READMORE>>>>> If Trump wants to fix the inflation crisis, he has a funny way of showing it Inflation appeared nearly defeated just a few months ago, but price hikes started accelerating again, led in particular by rising egg prices and fuel costs. A nation that has grown weary of inflation has turned its hopes to President Donald Trump to help fix its affordability crisis. But Trump, who had campaigned on bringing prices down on Day One of his presidency, has instead focused his economic policy thus far on tariffs – also known as higher taxes. Tariffs are paid by American importers, who typically pass those costs onto retailers, who, in turn, jack up the prices that consumers end up paying. Fearful that Trump’s tariffs will only exacerbate inflation, Americans are already beginning to sour on Trump’s economic plan. (CNN 2/24/25) READMORE>>>>> Appeals court denies Trump’s plea to reinstate birthright citizenship ban A federal appeals court in San Francisco denied the Trump administration’s request to reinstate a ban on birthright citizenship. Donald Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office that ordered an end to birthright citizenship for children for whom neither parent is a US citizen or legal permanent resident. Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the 14th amendment to the constitution. Civil rights groups argue an end to birthright citizenship would create a “permanent underclass” of stateless people denied basic protections. (The Guardian 2/20/25) READMORE>>>>> The Guardian view on Trump’s diplomacy: when the US knows the price and ignores values The Trump administration did not take red lines on Ukraine to its talks with Russia in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday: it cares about the bottom line. The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, underscored that when he said the two sides would create a team, not only to support Ukraine peace talks but also to explore the “incredible opportunities” to partner with Moscow geopolitically “and, frankly, economically” that might result. Kyiv and other European capitals are still reeling at the full extent of Donald Trump’s cynicism when it comes to world affairs, and callous disregard for the people caught up in them. But it should be no surprise that business dealings were high on the agenda. Vladimir Putin would dearly love to end his country’s economic isolation. Russia is making the case that American energy firms and others could profit handsomely by doing business with it again. (The Guardian 2/18/25) READMORE>>>>> The Trump wrecking ball keeps swinging. What are evangelicals saying? MAGA prophet Lance Wallnau once claimed that God told him that Donald Trump “is a wrecking ball to the spirit of political correctness.” Well, it looks the prophecy came true. The new president, with the help of Elon Musk, is trying to use his proverbial wrecking ball to destroy the federal government. As historian Johann Neem recently wrote, Trump is no longer the President of the United States, he is a tyrant who is exercising a coup. (Current 2/13/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump says he will announce 25% steel and aluminum tariffs Monday, and more import duties are coming President Donald Trump said he will announce on Monday that the United States will impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, including from Canada and Mexico, as well as other import duties later in the week. “Any steel coming into the United States is going to have a 25% tariff,” he told reporters Sunday on Air Force One as he flew from Florida to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl. When asked about aluminum, he responded, “aluminum, too” will be subject to the trade penalties. Shares of U.S. steel companies rose sharply in futures trading before the opening bell Monday. Cleveland-Cliffs, which wants to buy Pittsburgh’s U.S. Steel, jumped 8%. U.S. Steel rose 5%. Nucor rose almost 8%, and Steel Dynamics rose more than 6%. (Associated Press 2/10/25) READMORE>>>>> Trump won’t rule out deploying US troops to support rebuilding Gaza, sees ‘long-term’ US ownership President Donald Trump on Tuesday suggested that displaced Palestinians in Gaza be permanently resettled outside the war-torn territory and proposed the U.S. take “ownership” in redeveloping the area into “the Riviera of the Middle East.” Trump’s brazen proposal appears certain to roil the next stage of talks meant to extend the tenuous ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and secure the release of the remaining hostages held in Gaza. The provocative comments came as talks are ramping up this week with the promise of surging humanitarian aid and reconstruction supplies to help the people of Gaza recover after more than 15 months of devastating conflict. Now Trump wants to push roughly 1.8 million people to leave the land they have called home and claim it for the U.S., perhaps with American troops. (Associated Press 2/4/25) READMORE>>>>> |
January 1, 2025: The Hill reported: New Year’s Day ushers in a month of political events and milestones the likes of which Washington hasn’t seen in a while. From the House Speaker election and memorials to former President Carter, to the start of President-elect Trump’s second term and all that brings, January will kick off 2025 with tone-setting votes and significant actions. House and Senate seats will need to be filled, with Trump’s nominations and the election of Ohio Sen. JD Vance as vice president creating vacancies; that process starts in January.
January 2025: John Nichols, The Nation, wrote: The big Lie Donald Trump told after the 2024 election was that he'd won a |powerful mandate" from the American people. He hadn't, and neither had his MAGA movement. The United States is, undoubtedly , a divided nation. But a majority of Americans who cast ballots in the 2024 presidential election actually agreed on once thing: They did not want Trump as their president. With almost all of the votes tabulated, we now know that around 50.2 percent were cast for someone other than Trump. That's a small antio-Trump majority, but it's enough to vex the incoming president, who has been at great pains since election night to foster the fantasy that he has achieved A"a political victory that our country has never scene before, nothing like this."
January 9, 2025: Letter to the Editor in Columbia Disptach wrote: In a 2024 survey sponsored by the University of Houston, nearly 200 presidential scholars listed Abraham Lincoln as the greatest American president, and Donald Trump as the worst. Joe Biden came in at #14, below Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, but ahead of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. Biden inherited several disasters from the Trump administration, including the Covid-19 pandemic and its economic consequences, as well as Trump’s negotiated deal with the Taliban in Afghanistan, shutting out the Afghan government and agreeing to the release of several thousand Taliban fighters from prison. The withdrawal from Afghanistan under the terms negotiated by Trump was never going to be clean or easy. Under the Biden administration and the Federal Reserve, inflation following the impact of the pandemic was less than for other industrialized nations, and the control measures put in place allowed a “soft landing” without triggering a recession. The fact is the U.S. economy is stronger now as a result of Biden’s actions than it has been in years.
January 10, 2025: Financial Times
reported: Russia’s president Vladimir Putin is ready to meet Donald Trump but has yet to agree a date, the Kremlin said on Friday, after the US president-elect said the two sides were preparing a possible summit. The comments by Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, came after Trump answered questions about a possible meeting with Putin by saying “we’re setting it up”, while adding he would prefer to wait until after his inauguration on January 20.“President Putin has repeatedly declared his openness to contacts with international partners, including the US president and Donald Trump”, Peskov told the press, according to the Interfax news agency. January 12, 2025: CNN reported: Special counsel Jack Smith has resigned from the Justice Department effective Friday, according to a court filing. The filing comes amid a legal fight to stop Attorney General Merrick Garland from releasing the special counsel’s report of his investigations into then-President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and the alleged mishandling of classified documents after Trump left office. Smith gave his final, two-volume report to the attorney general on Tuesday. Garland has indicated he would not release the part of the report regarding the classified documents investigation, but believes it should be public eventually.
January 15, 2025: BBC reported: Donald Trump has made an impact on the Middle East even before he sits down in the Oval Office to start his second term as president. He cut through the delaying tactics that Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in alliance with his ultranationalist coalition partners, had used to avoid accepting the ceasefire deal that Joe Biden put on the negotiating table last May. American pressure on Hamas and other Palestinian groups is a given. Under Biden, pressure on Israel was the lever that was never pulled. Trump starts his second term claiming credit, with reasonable justification, for getting the ceasefire deal in Gaza over the line. He can bask in some glory. Netanyahu, on the other hand, is dealing with a coalition crisis. The entire principle of doing a deal with Hamas is repugnant to the ultra nationalist politicians who have supported his government. One of them, the national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir says his party, Jewish Power will only support the government if it resumes the war, cuts off all aid to Gaza and destroys Hamas. If that does not happen he will resign.
January 17, 2025: USA Today reported: Even if President-elect Donald Trump offers assurances, companies like Apple, Google, and Oracle would be risking major financial penalties by not complying with the TikTok ban that goes into effect Sunday. The law, which the Supreme Court upheld Friday, requires TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell TikTok's American assets if the app wants to keep operating in the U.S. Congress passed the law out of concern that TikTok's ownership structure could allow the Chinese government to get sensitive personal information on Americans and manipulate the information Americans receive. Trump, who takes office Monday, has expressed interest in finding a solution that would keep the popular social media app available in the U.S. while addressing national security concerns.
January 19, 2025: Yahoo Today reported: Investors brace for a bumpy ride as President-elect Donald Trump’s second term gets underway bringing the promise of significant policy shifts — including lighter regulation and tax cuts. Those two priorities have Wall Street upbeat, while cooling inflation and strong earnings have also fueled investor optimism. This past week, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) clocked its best weekly performance since the election. Since Nov. 5, the S&P 500 has climbed 3.6%. Yet some areas of the market could be at risk, as Trump’s unpredictable approach is largely expected to trigger market volatility.
January 20, 2025: Reuters reported: President Donald Trump laid out a sweeping plan to maximize oil and gas production, including by declaring a national energy emergency to speed permitting, rolling back environmental protections, and withdrawing the U.S. from an international pact to fight climate change. The moves signal a dramatic U-turn in Washington’s energy policy after former President Joe Biden sought for four years to encourage a transition away from fossil fuels in the world's largest economy. But it remains to be seen if Trump's measures will have any impact on U.S. production, already at record levels as drillers chase high prices in the wake of sanctions on Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
January 22, 2025: ABC News reported: President Donald Trump's executive order challenging birthright citizenship will face its first legal test in a Seattle courtroom. A federal judge will hear a request made by four Democratic-led states to issue a temporary restraining order against the executive order signed by Trump that purports to limit birthright citizenship to people who have at least one parent who is a United States citizen or permanent resident. Trump's executive order reinterpreting the 14th Amendment's guarantee of birthright citizenship -- long promised by Trump on the campaign trail -- is expected to spark a lengthy legal challenge that could define the president's sweeping immigration agenda.
January 28, 2025: The Guardian reported: The justice department fired more than a dozen federal prosecutors involved in the two criminal prosecutions against Donald Trump after receiving instructions to do so from the White House, indicating the late-night purge was a political directive that deputized the justice department..The termination of the career prosecutors were ostensibly at the direction of the acting attorney general, James McHenry, according to the notices sent to anyone remaining on the trial team of 18 who had worked for former special counsel Jack Smith. But in a remark during her first briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked whether the president had authorized the firings, said the firings were tied to a memo issued by the White House personnel office.
January 30, 2025: Axios reported: President Trump rallied against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in air traffic control as having contributed to the deadly plane crash outside of D.C, but the data paints a different picture. The big picture: Statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau and IPUMS show air traffic controllers and airfield operations specialists are predominately male and white. By the numbers: 78% are men, while 22% are women, per data from the U.S. Census Bureau and IPUMS. 71% identify as non-Hispanic white. The data includes air traffic controllers and airfield operations specialists working in air transportation or services incidental to transportation. February 25, 2025: USA Today reported:" President Donald Trump said he will talk to leaders from Canada and Mexico, a day before the 25% tariffs he imposed on the country's top two trading partners go into effect. Within hours of Trump’s order,
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hit back with tit-for-tat retaliatory 25% tariffs on American goods. Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said she was considering "tariff and non-tariff measures in defense of Mexico's interests." "I'm speaking with Prime Minister Trudeau tomorrow morning and I'm also speaking with Mexico tomorrow morning," Trump said, as he landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, after flying back from his Florida home. "They owe us a lot of money, and I'm sure they're going to pay." February 25, 2025: USA Today reported: Families of the victims the catastrophic airline collision are in the early stages of filing claims against the government, and their case could receive a boost from high profile comments made by President Trump and members of his cabinet admitting fault. Lawyers from the nation’s top aviation disaster firm say they’ve already been contacted by some families exploring lawsuits after the disaster near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday that killed 67 people. The firm secured settlements for families of victims in the nation's last major air disaster, the 2009 crash of a Continental Airlines flight in Buffalo that killed 50 people. Public comments by Trump, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could make their cases stronger if families of victims in this week's crash move forward, according to partners with New York-based Kreindler & Kreindler.
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February 9, 2025: Trump: “I think Canada would be much better off being the 51st state because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada. And I’m not going to let that happen. Why are we paying $200 billion a year, essentially a subsidy to Canada?”
February 9, 2025: Trump: “For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies...Let’s rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it’s a penny at a time."
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