Trump's First 100 Days
Thanks to suitedjustice for the effort put into these cliffs notes. I'll keep updating this sticky as long as he keeps going. If anyone has credible evidence that anything written here is incorrect PM me and I'll look into it and update as necessary.
Added disclaimer from suitedjustice
Day 1:
Day 2:
Day 3:
Day 4:
Day 5:
Day 6:
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 10
Day 11
Day 12
Day 13
Day 14
Day 15
Day 16
Day 17
Day 18
Day 19
Day 20
SJ's Notes on 11-20
Added disclaimer from suitedjustice
Disclaimer:
None of the list below should be confused with actual journalism. It's a lot of compilation, cutting and pasting of other people's work, along with some paraphrasing of the same, and only a negligible amount of research and commentary from me.
None of the list below should be confused with actual journalism. It's a lot of compilation, cutting and pasting of other people's work, along with some paraphrasing of the same, and only a negligible amount of research and commentary from me.
Day 1:
- Reads 16-minute inauguration speech he falsely claims to have written himself.
- In that speech, inadvertently quotes movie villain Bane from Batman.
- Announces the Alt-Right's theme of America First as policy and philosophy.
- Cites American 'carnage', without going into detail as to what that might entail.
- Falsely claims it stopped raining when he began to speak.
- Passes over long-time inauguration parade announcer Charlie Brotman, replacing him with no one.
- Six journalists are arrested while covering the inauguration and charged with felony rioting.
- Trump signs emergency order increasing mortgage costs for first time home buyers.
Day 2:
- Climate change data on White House website scrubbed.
- Trump calls National Park Service Director Michael T. Reynolds and orders him to produce photos showing a more crowded inauguration.
- He lies to the press about the size of the crowds at his inauguration, then complains when the press calls him on that lie.
- Gives speech at CIA headquarters. Brings along a claque of staffers unrelated to the CIA to cheer and clap at his words.
- Later claims he received the "greatest standing ovation since Peyton Manning won the Super Bowl."
- Protocol calls for government employees to remain standing until the president asks them to sit
- Outgoing CIA director, John Brennan, calls the CIA speech "a despicable display of self-aggrandizement."
- Claims to hold the all-time record of Time magazine covers at "14 or 15." He has been on 11 covers.
- Richard Nixon holds the actual record with 55 Time covers. Hillary Clinton has 22 covers.
Day 3:
- Spokesperson Conway announces Trump won't be releasing his tax returns regardless of the state of his IRS Audit.
- She claims that the people don't care about Trump's taxes.
- Conway also introduces the concept of lies as "alternative facts."
Day 4:
- Spanish language option on White House website scrubbed.
- Conway reverses herself and says that Trump will release his taxes once his IRS audit is complete.
- After lying about inauguration crowd sizes on Day 1, Press Secretary Spicer says "...our intention is never to lie to you."
- Spicer claims hiring freeze will halt "dramatic increase" in government employment.
- Number of federal employees at the beginning of Obama's terms, 2.77 million; towards the end, 2.66 million.
- Spicer declines to give the current unemployment rate when asked by a reporter.
- Trump bans aid to international health organizations, including the World Heath Organization, if they mention abortion.
- Claims he will cut all regulations on businesses by 75%, that the remaining 25% will be just as strong about protecting the people as before the cut.
- Claims to have “received many awards on the environment.”
- The only award that can be verified is a Trump golf course that received one in 2007.
- In 2011 the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection cited the same golf course for several environmental violations.
- At a meeting with lawmakers, Trump repeats the false claim that between 3 and 5 million illegal voters made him lose the popular vote.
- The initial evidence he cites is the anecdote of a 59-year-old golf pro and German citizen, Bernhard Langer, who Trump claims saw a lot of Latin faces in a polling line in Florida.
- Reporters reached the golf pro's daughter on Langer's cell phone. She said "He is not a friend of President Trump's, and I don't know why he would talk about him."
- An attempt to sue Trump under the Constitution's Emoluments Clause begins.
Day 5:
- Retroactively declares his inauguration day, January 20, 2017, the National Day of Patriotic Devotion.
- Revives the Keystone XL and Dakota Access crude oil pipelines.
- The Badlands National Park Twitter account goes rogue and begins to tweet global warming stats and other scientific facts. It is shut down.
- A few other National Park accounts begin to follow suit out of solidarity.
- White house imposes a freeze on grants and contracts from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, prohibits employees from speaking to the press or on social media.
- Slaps a similar gag order on US Department of Agriculture scientists.
- Press Secretary Spicer says Trump's 306 electoral votes were the most won by a GOP president since Reagan.
- But after Reagan, George HW Bush won with 426 electoral votes.
- Spicer calls prospective Attorney General Sessions record on voting and civil rights "exemplary." Says Sessions "has fought very hard for voting rights, civil rights and on areas of minority rights."
- Sessions was considered to be too racist for a federal judgeship in the 1980's. As a US Attorney, Sessions prosecuted 3 black activists for hand delivering, rather than mailing a small number of absentee ballots.
- Sessions also called a fellow US Attorney "Boy."
- Spicer repeats Trump's lie regarding 3-5 million illegal votes during the election, citing non-existent "studies and evidence."
- A member of the House and a Senator introduce a bill that would prevent the president from launching a nuclear first strike without a congressional declaration of war.
- A short time after a Bill O'Reilly episode touching on Chicago gun violence airs on Fox, Trump threatens to send federal troops into Chicago.
- Chicago's murder rate in 2016 failed to put it in the top 10 US cities.
Day 6:
- Expands media and social media gag orders to include US Departments of Commerce, the Interior, Transportation and Health and Human services.
- Trump issues Draft Order designed to reopen CIA.-run “black site” prisons.
- These secret overseas prisons detained and tortured terrorism suspects for years, before being shut down by President Obama.
- Trump claims that intelligence officials have told him that torture "absolutely" works.
- George Orwell's classic book 1984 hits #6 on Amazon's bestseller list.
- Trump tweets that he will be asking for a "major investigation into VOTER FRAUD."
- When confronted on ABC with the fact that the Pew reporter he was citing regarding voter fraud said there was in fact no voter fraud, Trump claimed the Pew reporter was "groveling."
- Claims that two people were shot in Chicago during Obama's farewell speech. Police reported no shootings in Chicago on that day.
- In the same interview, says "We ended up winning by a massive amount, 306." In terms of electoral votes, Trump's win ranks 46th out of 58 elections.
- Says "They say I had the biggest crowd in the history of inaugural speeches." Estimates for crowds at Trump's speech are 80% below those of Barack Obama's in 2009.
- Says "We have spent as of one month ago 6 trillion dollars in the Middle East." From 2001 to 2014 the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan--the latter country is in South Asia--cost an estimated $1.6 trillion.
- Says "You had millions of people that now aren't insured anymore." Some 20 million people have gained health care coverage because of the Affordable Care Act.
- He signs directive to build border wall with Mexico, reiterates that Mexico will pay for it.
- The deepest channel of the Rio Grande river serves as the US-Mexico border for 1255 miles, longer than the distance from New York City to Orlando, FL.
- The river is known to change its course rather frequently.
- Signs another directive increasing detention centers and Border Patrol staff.
- Signs another directive that threatens to cut off federal funds to cities that don't actively and vigorously pursue illegal aliens.
- Another order cuts U.S. funding to the International Criminal Court by 40 percent. The U.S. currently gives zero funding to the International Criminal Court.
- Trump's Mar-a-Lago country club doubles membership fees.
- His hotel business reveals plans for a major US expansion.
Day 7
- 14 minutes after Fox News calls Chelsea Manning an ungrateful traitor who called Obama a weak leader, Trump tweets that Chelsea Manning is an ungrateful traitor who called Obama a weak leader.
- Entire US State Department senior management team resigns. All were career foreign service officers who served under both Republican and Democratic administrations.
- Infowars, who reported that the murdered Sandy Hook 1st graders were paid actors hired by the anti-gun lobby, and that the Air Force is purposefully creating deadly tornadoes in the Midwest, is granted White House Press credentials.
- Trump tweets that Mexico should cancel the upcoming summit with the US if they don't want to pay for the wall.
- Enrique Pena Nieto, president of Mexico, our close ally, cancels his planned trip to Washington.
- Trump proposes a 20% tax on goods coming from Mexico. Sellers will increase their prices by 20%, which will be paid for by the US consumer.
- In Philadelphia Trump says that “the murder rate has been steadily -- I mean, just terribly increasing.”
- Data provided by the Philadelphia Police Department shows a record downturn in violent crimes, with fewer occurring in 2016 than in every other year since 1979.
- Trump orders his new administration to publish a weekly list of crimes committed by immigrants.
- The idea is not new. The German newspaper Der Stürmer had a feature known as the "Letter Box", which encouraged the reporting of Jewish illegal acts in the 1930's and 40's.
- “The media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for awhile,” -Steve Bannon, Donald Trump's closest adviser.
- In an interview with Sean Hannity, Trump says that he doesn't consider waterboarding to be torture.
- In April of 2009, Hannity agreed to be waterboarded for charity, but has yet to follow through on the offer.
- Trump draft proposal will ban immigration and to the US from Muslim majority countries Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Sudan, Yemen and Somalia.
- Muslim majority countries Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and the U.A.E. will not be on the banned list. These five countries are where Trump has business interests.
Day 8
- Trump signs ban on Muslims from the 7 countries from traveling into the US.
- Announces that persecuted Christians will be given priority over Muslim refugees.
- A screenshot of Mike Pence's December 2015 tweet is revived stating “Calls to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. are offensive and unconstitutional."
- Dick Cheney says Muslim ban "goes against everything we stand for and believe in."
- By a margin of 42% to 39%, Trump voters believe that it would be okay for him to use his private email server for official business.
- George Orwell's 1984 hits #1 on Amazon's bestseller list.
- Trump tweets that he has another source for his oft-debunked claim of millions of illegal votes - Gregg Phillips, who has made claims that the Department of Homeland Security hacked the 2016 US election at Obama's request, and that Israel was the culprit for the DNC hacks.
- Three paragraph White House statement on Holocaust Remembrance Day makes no mention of the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust.
- White Supremacist publication the Daily Stormer praises Trump on this statement for daring to reject "Jewish science fiction" about the Holocaust.
Day 9
- Donald Trump calls Vladimir Putin from the White House.
- Steve Bannon, former publisher of radical right wing website Breitbart, is granted a regular seat at National Security Council meetings.
- Sample Breitbart headlines include Data: Young Muslims in the West Are a Ticking Time Bomb, and Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy.
- In 2013, Bannon told a writer for the Daily Beast, “I’m a Leninist. Lenin wanted to destroy the state, and that’s my goal, too. I want to bring everything crashing down."
- The Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff will no longer have regular seats on the NSC.
- Some legal permanent US residents are being stopped from reentering as they return from visits or studies abroad.
- The Muslim ban will also keep Oscar-nominated director Asghar Farhadi from attending the Oscars.
- Referencing an article on how the ban will include green card residents, former KKK Grand Wizard and current racist icon David Duke tweets, "Greatest. Year. Ever."
- Protesters flood JFK International Terminal in New York, demanding that detainees there be allowed to go free.
- More protesters assemble at airports in Denver, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, LA, and Washington DC.
- Dozens of lawyers show up at various airports to work pro bono to free detainees there.
- New York judge issues a temporary injunction halting deportations nationwide from Trump's ban.
- Similar rulings follow in Virginia, Massachusetts and Washington State.
Day 10
- The US Department of Homeland Security says it will comply with judicial orders not to deport detained travelers affected by Trump's ban.
- The DHS reverses itself and announces it will defy the court orders, potentially provoking a constitutional crisis.
- According to White House sources, Top Trump policy director Stephen Miller tells government employees that the public is behind Trump's ban, and to ignore the hysterical voices on TV.
- While at Duke, Stephen Miller worked closely with White Nationalist Richard Spencer--the man who was recently punched in the face on air while explaining the Alt-Right, provoking debate amongst the Left as to whether or not it's okay to punch a Nazi.
- As chaos and protests continue at airports in the US and around the world, Trump tells reporters "It's not a Muslim ban. We were totally prepared. It's working out very nicely. You see it at the airports, you see it all over. It's working out very nicely."
- Trump issues a statement saying, “To be clear, this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting,”
- Earlier in the day, Rudy Giuliani, adviser to Trump, told a reporter, "I’ll tell you the whole history of it. When he first announced it, he said ‘Muslim ban.' He called me up, he said ‘put a commission together, show me the right way to do it, legally.’ ”
- A petition calling for Trump to be prevented from making a state visit to the United Kingdom picks up over 600,000 signatures, Once a petition passes the 500,000 threshold, the matter must then be debated in the UK Parliament.
Day 11
- Pentagon boasts of killing 14 militants in a raid in Yemen on Day 10.
- Does not boast of killing 20 civilians in the same raid.
- 36-year-old Navy SEAL William (Ryan) Owens killed during the raid.
- Military officials tell press Trump approved operation without sufficient intelligence, ground support or adequate backup preparations.
- President was not present in the WH Situation Room for the raid.
- Reportedly had hostile exchanges over the phone with the leaders of two of our closest allies: Mexico and Australia.
- 1000 State Department staffers sign a "dissent cable" expressing contempt for Trump's travel ban.
- Personal staff of Senators and Representatives helped the WH draft the travel ban in secret, keeping it from their bosses in Congress.
- Spokesperson Conway expresses dismay that media outlets are not firing reporters for their critical views on herself and Trump.
- Tweets "Where was all the outrage from Democrats and the opposition party (the media) when our jobs were fleeing our country?"
- We are currently in the longest sustained period of job growth since record keeping for it began in 1939.
- Stephen Miller tells senior officials that Homeland Security might start demanding browsing histories, social media passwords and cell phone contact names from foreign visitors
- Trump and his aides cite the Boston Marathon bombings, the San Bernardino shootings and the Orlando shootings as reasons why the travel ban is necessary.
- None of these attacks were carried out by residents from banned countries.
- Accuses Sen Schumer of crying "fake tears" over the travel ban.
- Schumer's grandfather was a Jewish refugee from the Holocaust. Most of his grandfather's immediate family were machine-gunned to death by Nazis in the Ukraine.
- Trump adds, "I'm gonna ask him who is his acting coach."
- Speaking about a 5 year-old detainee, Press Sec. Spicer says, "To assume that just because of someone's age or gender or whatever, that they don't pose a threat, would be misguided and wrong."
- Asked about Trump's Holocaust statement that omits mentioning Jews killed in the Holocaust, Spicer says, "I think by and large he's been praised for it."
- Spicer says the Quebec City attack is "a reminder of why the president is taking steps to be proactive and not reactive."
- The Quebec City shooter is white, and is a professed alt-right Nationalist with strong anti-immigrant views.
- Acting Attorney General Sally Yates refuses to order subordinates to defend Trump's travel ban. Trump fires her.
- Demotes and replaces Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Daniel Ragsdale
Day 12
- Tweets "Nancy Pelosi and Fake Tears Chuck Schumer held a rally at the steps of The Supreme Court and mic did not work (a mess)-just like Dem party!"
- WH issues assurances that it will continue to protect the rights of LGBTQ people in the workplace.
- An order allowing discrimination against LGBTQ people based on religious exemptions is reportedly scuttled by Trump's daughter and son-in-law.
- Spicer says that there has never been a SCOTUS nomination made as late as Obama's ignored choice, Merrick Garland.
- Obama nominated Garland on March 16th of his last year in office.
- Lyndon Johnson nominated Homer Thornberry on June 26th of his last year.
- Dwight Eisenhower recess-appointed William Brennan in October, three weeks before the 1956 election.
- In both of the latter cases, the Senate confirmed the nominees.
- Nominates Neil Gorsuch for the Supreme Court.
- Gorsuch is a 49 year-old conservative whose philosophy is aligned with the late Antonin Scalia.
- He is also the founding member of the Fascism Forever Club at his high school.
- Three unnamed WH officials said that Thomas Hardiman, the other judge under consideration for the Supreme Court spot, was encouraged to begin driving towards Washington in order to build suspense for the selection.
Day 13
- Still has not spoken about or offered condolences to the Quebec terrorist attack's surviving victims or family members.
- Changes "Countering Violent Extremism" program to "Countering Islamic Extremism," removing the program's mandate to counter violent white supremacists.
- WH spokespeople will no longer appear on CNN because the network does not promote the Trump agenda.
- Goes off-script less than a minute into his Black History Month speech to call CNN fake news. Later thanks Fox News for being kind to him.
- Total words used to praise Martin Luther King Jr, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman & Rosa Parks in toto: 53. Number of words to praise staffer Omarosa Manigault: 51
- His statement on Frederick Douglass suggest the president may think that Douglass is still alive.
- Recent ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson confirmed as Secretary of State.
- Ranking House Democrats ask the Pentagon about National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's 2015 dinner with Vladimir Putin, where he was paid to speak.
- The dinner was for the Kremlin-controlled RT News Network.
- Jill Stein sat at the table with Putin and Flynn.
- Russian-backed rebels step up shelling and attacks in the Ukraine. The WH has not yet offered comment on the developments.
- Asked directly about the Ukraine, Spicer say the president has been "kept aware" of the situation.
- Ends the day by vaguely threatening Iran on Twitter.
Day 14
- Tweets a threat to pull federal funds from UC Berkeley for cancelling a right-wing extremist's speech after student protests turned destructive.
- Mocks Arnold Schwarzenegger's ratings on "The Apprentice" at the National Prayer breakfast, and brags about his own ratings as the former host of the show.
- Vows to repeal the Johnson Amendment, which takes away the tax exempt benefit from churches that endorse political candidates.
- Modifies sanctions imposed on Russia as punishment for hacking Trump's opponent in the recent US election.
- The new order from the Treasury Dept allows U.S. companies to make limited transactions with Russian intelligence agency FSB.
- Modifications to the sanctions reportedly were planned during the Obama administration.
- Mike Pence praises Abraham Lincoln for his contributions to Black History Month.
- During his fourth debate with Stephen Douglas, Lincoln said, "I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races, that I am not nor ever have been in favor of making voters or jurors of negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality."
- Lincoln went on to say better things.
- Spokesperson Conway brings up the Iraqi refugees responsible for the Bowling Green Massacre.
- The Bowling Green Massacre is not an event that exists.
Day 15
- Tweets more attacks on Arnold Schwarzenegger's role on "The Apprentice," on Twitter.
- Complains about "Professional anarchists, thugs and paid protesters."
- On the fifth day of his silence on Quebec attacks on Muslims, tweets, "A new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris."
- The terrorist has a knife, and is the only one injured during the attack.
- He is not from one of the countries affected by the travel ban.
- Tweets "Thank you to Prime Minister of Australia for telling the truth about our very civil conversation that FAKE NEWS media lied about. Very nice!"
- This contradicts several sources, as well as his own words at the Prayer Breakfast, "When you hear about the tough phone calls I'm having, don't worry about it. Just don't worry about it. They're tough. We have to be tough. It's time we're going to be a little tough, folks,"
- Slaps new sanctions on Iran for testing a ballistic missile.
- The test did not violate any previous agreements with the US.
- Houthi rebels attack a Saudi frigate.
- Pres Sec. Spicer conflates Houthi rebels with Iranian troops and the Saudi frigate with a US warship.
- The original WH number for people affected by the travel ban is 109.
- Justice Dept lawyer testifies in a VA court that 100,000 valid visas have been revoked due to the ban.
- State Dept counters with a statement that only 60,000 visas have been revoked.
- Holds meeting on women in the workforce. Two male CEOs are his advisory panel.
- Announces rollback of rules put in place to prevent another financial collapse after the worldwide Great Recession in 2008.
- Says, "...frankly, I have so many people, friends of mine, who have nice businesses who can’t borrow money," due to the rules.
- A federal judge temporarily blocks the travel ban. Airlines are told by the government to seat passengers from the 7 countries
- WH vows to block travelers again with an emergency stay of the order.
- Responding to Bill O'Reilly pointing out suspicions of Putin killing people who oppose him, Trump says, "There are a lot of killers. You think our country's so innocent?"
Day 16
- Tweets a vow to overturn the block on his ban by "this so-called judge."
- Judge is James L. Robart, a nominee of George W Bush, who was approved in the Senate by a vote of 99-0.
- Tweets "After being forced to apologize for its bad and inaccurate coverage of me after winning the election, the FAKE NEWS @nytimes is still lost!"
- NYT has not apologized for any of its Trump coverage. Digital subscriptions to the paper grew 16% in 2016.
- Softening on their ban of CNN, spokesperson Conway asks to be on CNN's State of the Union.
- Her request is denied.
- 1000 protesters serenade the president near his Mar-A-Lago retreat.
- Trump lawyers file a notice to appeal the block on his ban.
- Travelers with valid vias from the 7 countries rush to get flights into the US during this window.
Day 17
- 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upholds temporary restraining order on Trump's ban.
- Trump supporters, spurred by right-wing nationalist site Breitbart.com, vow to boycott Budweiser for airing a commercial telling the story of the brewer's immigrant founder.
- Places his assets in a trust which names the president as the sole beneficiary of that trust, and gives him the power to revoke it at any time.
- The trust will be co-managed by the president's son, along with his chief financial officer.
- Is reportedly angry about not being fully briefed on the executive order he signed placing his top aide Steve Bannon on the National Security Council.
- Threatens to defund California if they don't toe the line on immigration, says "California in many ways is out of control, as you know.”
- California is among a handful of donor state.
- These pay more in taxes to the federal Treasury than they receive in government funding.
Day 18
- Tweets "Any negative polls are fake news"
- Claims the "very dishonest" media is deliberately not reporting recent terrorist strikes in Europe.
- Sean Spicer later provides a list of 78 attacks.
- The list includes all of that famous attacks which were heavily covered by the press.
- Spicer rolls back Trump's "not even reported" description of attacks, reducing it to, "aren't exactly covered to a degree on which they should be."
- Mother of one young woman killed last year by an insane stalker writes in an open letter to Trump.
- Calls him out for falsely including her death on the list of 78 unreported terror attacks.
- Regarding the travel ban, she writes, "My daughter's death will not be used to further this insane persecution of innocent people."
- Spokesperson Conway claims she meant to say Bowling Green Terrorists instead of Bowling Green Massacre in her last interview, but used the word massacre in two prior interviews--with Cosmopolitan and TMZ--back on Day 10.
- Russia demands an apology from Fox News for calling Putin a killer. Bill O'Reilly demurs.
Day 19
- Tweets," I don't know Putin, have no deals in Russia, and the haters are going crazy."
- Department of Defense is seeking to rent space in Trump’s New York skyscraper, Trump Tower.
- This will set up the DOD as paying rent to the president.
- Officials from the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans and the Veterans of Foreign Wars say they were not invited to a WH listening event for veterans.
- Military officials say the objective of the botched Yemen raid was to kill or capture Qassim al-Rimi, head of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
- Al-Rimi has survived and taunts the president through audio missives.
- Press Sec Spicer had called the raid "a successful operation by all standards,"
- The First Lady sues the Daily mail for $50 million dollars, claiming false accusations have hurt her brand value during this "multi-year term" of elevated publicity.
- According to the suit, her brand categories would have included "among other things, apparel accessories, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics, hair care, skin care and fragrance,”
- House of Commons speaker says he will not make the customary invitation to Trump to address the UK Parliament.
- Betsy DeVos confirmed as Sec. of Education by a vote of 51-50.
- Republicans hold off confirming Sen Jeff Sessions as Attorney General so that he may vote for DeVos first.
- FBI reports from the last two years show that more suspected terrorists encounters occur near our border with Canada than our border with Mexico.
- Texas sheriff complains about a state senator making it harder for police to seize citizen assets through civil forfeiture.
- Trump says, "Do you want to give his name? We'll destroy his career."
- Says that his travel ban executive order was "written beautifully," and predicts that "even a bad high school student would find in my favor" in the court battle over it.
- Says that the murder rate is "the highest it's been in 47 years" and adds, "I'd say that in a speech and everybody was surprised because the press doesn't like to tell it like it is."
- Murder rate is currently the lowest it's been in 45 years.
- Sen Elizabeth Warren is not allowed to finish her speech against the nomination of Jeff Sessions for Attorney General.
- She is accused of impugning the conduct of another Senator, and silenced for the duration of confirmation hearings.
- Asked about the president's silence on the Quebec terrorist attack, spokesperson Conway says, "He doesn't tweet about everything."
Day 20
- Tweets "My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person -- always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!"
- Tweets "Big increase in traffic into our country from certain areas, while our people are far more vulnerable, as we wait for what should be EASY D!"
- Yemen will no longer allow U.S. ground troops into the country on special-operations missions.
- Asked about this in regards to the botched Yemen operation, Pres Sec Spicer says, "It's absolutely a success, and I think anyone that would suggest it's not a success does a disservice to the life of (slain Navy Seal) Chief Ryan Owens."
- Spicer mentions an Atlanta Attack three times to make a case for Trump's travel ban. No Islamist attack has occurred in Atlanta.
- Trump reportedly veered off topic during a call with French President Hollande on Day 9, complaining that the US is being shaken down by other countries, and declaring that the French can continue protecting NATO, but that the U.S. “wants our money back."
- Senate confirms Jeff Sessions as Attorney General in a 52-47 vote.
SJ's Notes on 11-20
The House passed some villainous legislation in the last 10 days. These will be covered bill by bill if they get to Trump and he signs them. I've also left out some of the more minor brouhahas, times when I felt the press was getting silly during the short intervals when the president wasn't feeding them outrage quickly enough: like the semantics battle over the word 'ban', or whether or not Trump walks around in his bathrobe, or Vanity Fair's theory that the president's behavior grows acutely worse when his daughter and son-in-law are away observing the Jewish Orthodox Shabbat.
Some items were cut due to exaggerations or sketchy sourcing: like the complaint that some airport detainees were tricked into signing their green cards away, or that Trump demands that his female staffers "Dress like women," or that the entire management staff of the State Department was summarily fired. These scraps would all be of interest in any other administration; the talk of the nation for a month of Mondays. Unfortunately for us, we live in interesting times.
Some items were cut due to exaggerations or sketchy sourcing: like the complaint that some airport detainees were tricked into signing their green cards away, or that Trump demands that his female staffers "Dress like women," or that the entire management staff of the State Department was summarily fired. These scraps would all be of interest in any other administration; the talk of the nation for a month of Mondays. Unfortunately for us, we live in interesting times.
Day 21
Day 22
Day 23
Day 24
Day 25
- Trump says that from now on he will pick the reporters allowed in the WH.
- Sends tweets saying Sen John McCain should not be commenting on the Yemen raid, and that the raid was a complete success.
- Spokesperson Conway tells Fox & Friends viewers to "go buy Ivanka's stuff."
- Asked, "Do you believe Conway crossed an ethical line here?" Press Sec Spicer replies, "Kellyanne has been counseled, and that's all we're going to go with."
- Chairman of the House Oversight Committee says the Conway plug was “Wrong, wrong, wrong. It is wholly unacceptable no if, ands or buts about it.”
- Jeff Sessions begins his time as US Attorney General by parroting the president's false statistics about the crime rate.
- He also looks into weakening Obama-era protections for transgender children.
- Former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke tweets, "Mr. Trump’s appointment of Bannon, Flynn and Sessions are the first steps in the project of taking America back."
- 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rules against Trump's travel ban.
- Judges calls the WH's claims of exclusive executive branch power regarding the ban "contrary to the fundamental structure of our constitutional democracy."
- Tweets "SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!"
- Supreme Court Justice Gorsuch finds Trump's criticism of a federal judge to be "disheartening and demoralizing."
- Trump insists that Gorsuch's words were misrepresented.
- This in spite of their meaning being confirmed by Gorsuch's spokesman and two Senators.
Day 22
- Trump mentions plans to privatize air traffic control.
- Says "Pocahontas is now the face of your party"
- Pocahontas is the president's favorite nickname for Sen Elizabeth Warren.
- Has not nominated any second-tier officials—i.e. deputy, under, or assistant secretaries—in any major cabinet department.
- Nixes deputy Sec of State candidate, Elliot Abrams, after hearing that Abrams said critical things about him.
- At a Senate listening session dedicated to new Justice Gorsuch, the president veers off course again and spends several minutes talking about the election.
- Claims voters were illegally bussed in from Massachusetts to vote in New Hampshire.
- After a congressional rebuke suggesting she be suspended or fired for plugging Ivanka's brand, spokesperson Conway says that the president supports her 100%.
- WH spokesperson Salena Zito tells a CNN panel that it is clear that Conway was joking when she made the plug.
- More than half of Trump voters believe that the fictional Bowling Green Massacre is real.
- Says he may write a new travel ban order.
- Asked what he would change in the new order, answers "very little."
- US Officials confirm some of the details of the infamous Steele Dossier.
- None of the more interesting details have been confirmed or debunked at this time.
- Standing Rock anti-pipeline activists interviewed by FBI terror task force.
- It's reported that National Security Adviser Flynn talked sanctions with Russia in December, then repeatedly denied that he did.
Day 23
- Unleashes a wave of immigration raids across the country.
- Tweets “Our legal system is broken! "77% of refugees allowed into U.S. since travel reprieve hail from seven suspect countries." (WT) SO DANGEROUS!”
- The surge is a backlog of previously vetted refugees who were blocked due to the travel ban.
- (WT) is the Washington Times, a conservative paper founded and owned by the Unification Church, aka the Moonies.
- Blacks out windows at Mar-A-Lago resort to keep press pool from taking pictures of him playing golf.
- Once tweeted, "The habitual vacationer, @BarackObama, is now in Hawaii. This vacation is costing taxpayers $4 milion +++ while there is 20% unemployment."
- $1 million per day is spent housing the current First Lady in a Manhattan penthouse.
- Reports emerge that National Security Adviser Flynn lied to the vice president and other colleagues about his talks with Russia.
- When asked about Flynn, the president falsely pretends be unaware of the growing controversy.
- Given that the Justice Dept pointedly warned Trump and gave him specifics regarding Flynn's collusion as far back as Day 10.
- Trump will not ask for Flynn's resignation until late on day 25.
Day 24
- Tweets "The crackdown on illegal criminals is merely the keeping of my campaign promise. Gang members, drug dealers & others are being removed!"
- Back in August 2016 announced that wife Melania would hold a press conference regarding her immigration status.
- Nothing like this has occurred.
- Delays trip to the United Kingdom to avoid a planned snub by their Parliament while it's in session.
- WH Policy Director Miller makes the Sunday talk show rounds.
- Miller repeats the president's lie about voter fraud in New Hampshire.
- When asked for evidence, Miller says, "It is a fact, and you will not deny it."
- He claims that deportations will “prevent crime before it happens.”
- Miller also claims a 2000 mile wall on the border "will pay for itself many, many, many times over."
- Finally, in the arena of national security, Miller says the president's power "will not be questioned."
- Trump Tweets, "Congratulations Stephen Miller-on representing me this morning on the various Sunday morning shows. Great job!"
- After tweeting eleven times about Obama's golfing, has played golf twice so far as president.
- Pentagon official says they are holding back intelligence from the WH because, “since January 20, we’ve assumed that the Kremlin has ears inside the SITROOM,”
- Hold's open-air national security meeting on North Korea at Mar-A-Lago with club members seated around him and waitstaff looking on.
- Aides point cell phones and electronic devices at confidential documents laid out on the dinner table.
- Let's one of his Mar-A-Lago members pose for a picture with and tag on social media the aide who carries the nuclear football.
Day 25
- Meets with Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.
- Trudeau becomes the first foreign leader to successfully fend off the president's upending handshake.
- During press conference, picks only friendly reporters whom he's assured won't ask him about embattled NSA adviser Flynn.
- Gateway Pundit, a conservative blog, granted WH press credentials.
- The blog's founder Jim Hoft has frequently been branded as the "dumbest man on the Internet."
- Foreclosure specialist Steven Mnuchin confirmed as Treasury secretary by a vote of 53-47.
- NSA adviser Flynn resigns amid accusations of colluding with Russian ambassador during the transition.
- Flynn is the third Trump campaign team member to resign over Russian ties.
Day 26
Day 27
Day 28
Day 29
Day 30
- Signs repeal of the rule requiring oil companies to disclose payments to foreign parties.
- Undisclosed payments would presumably include bribes and kickbacks to foreign officials.
- 35 mental health professionals sign a letter to the NYT that states, "We believe that the grave emotional instability indicated by Mr. Trump’s speech and actions makes him incapable of serving safely as president."
- Tweets that the "real story" of Flynn's resignation were the leaks that brought it about.
- Spokesperson Conway says that the key to Flynn's resignation was his misleading the vice president.
- Press Sec Spicer says, “The irony of this situation is that the President has been incredibly tough on Russia,."
- Russia deploys nuclear cruise missiles which violate the INF treaty signed in 1987.
- Russia parks a spy ship off the US Coast.
- Russia tells WH it will not give the Crimea back to the Ukraine.
- WH has no immediate comment on these developments.
- Also no comment regarding multiple Russian aircraft buzzing a U.S. destroyer patrolling in the Black Sea.
- House Panel votes against requesting Trump's tax returns.
- Intercepted calls show that the president's campaign team had repeated contacts with Russian intelligence officials throughout 2016.
Day 27
- Sends a flurry of tweets blaming in turn the media, the intelligence community, the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton for the mounting unease over his ties to Russia.
- Carter Page, disgraced former foreign policy adviser to Trump now under investigation for Russian ties, writes bizarre letter to the DOJ accusing Clinton campaign of "severe election fraud," "hate crimes and other extensive abuses."
- Office of Government Ethics finds Spokesperson Conway in "clear violation of the prohibition against misuse of position,"
- According to the rules, It is up to the president to determine her punishment.
- Trump unfollows Conway on Twitter.
- Former campaign manager Lewandowski is telling prospective lobbying clients that he has access to the president's Twitter account.
- It's unclear whether he claims to have the password, or merely the president's ear on what to post.
- Trump company awarded valuable, long sought-after trademark in China.
- This occurs a few days after the president steered US policy back towards China's much-preferred One China policy.
- Press conference with Israeli PM Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu.
- Once again picks only friendly reporters: one from conservative website Town Hall and one from the Christian Broadcasting Network.
- Asked about the sharp rise in anti-Semitic incidents in the US, says "Well I just want to say that we are very honored by the victory that we had. 306 Electoral college votes"
- It's discovered that WH Policy Director Stephen Miller follows former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke on Twitter,
- Miller "likes" Duke's tweet about Pizzagate.
- Andrew Puzder: fast food CEO, critic of the minimum wage, illegal immigrant employer, and alleged wife-beater, withdraws from the nomination for Labor Secretary.
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a top adviser to the Trump campaign, says he won't recuse himself from any investigations of the Trump campaign.
Day 28
- Tweets, "Leaking, and even illegal classified leaking, has been a big problem in Washington for years. Failing @nytimes (and others) must apologize!"
- Trump will ask New York billionaire friend Stephen A Feinberg to review all US intelligence agencies.
- Top House Republicans ask for investigation into the leaks that revealed the Trump campaign's Russian ties.
- No House investigation into the campaign's actual Russian ties is planned.
- In addition to 10 children and 9 women, botched Yemen raid also killed Sheikh Abdel-Raouf al-Dhahab, a tribal chief allied with the US.
- Director of National Intelligence denies reports from Day 24 that they are withholding intelligence from Trump.
- Holds press conference and answers a wide range of questions from a large pool of reporters.
- "To be honest, I inherited a mess. It’s a mess. At home and abroad, a mess."
- “The leaks are absolutely real. The news is fake because so much of the news is fake.”
- Is called out on his lie that his electoral victory was the greatest since Reagan, answers that he was simply "given that information."
- Says his administration is not rife with chaos; quite the opposite, it's running like a "fine-tuned machine."
- Says he is fine with WikiLeaks because it never leaked classified information.
- This is an absurd lie.
- Dismisses GOP town hall protesters because “They are not the Republican people that our representatives represent.”
- Says the alternative to having good relations with Russia would be a “nuclear holocaust.”
- Says, "You know what uranium is, right? It’s this thing called nuclear weapons. And other things. Like lots of things are done with uranium. Including some bad things."
- Tells a reporter from a Jewish publication asking about the rise in anti-Semitic crimes that it's "not a fair question," and to "sit down."
- Says, "I am the least anti-Semitic person that you've ever seen in your entire life."
- Another reporter reminds the president that the Antisemitism question regards his followers, not the president.
- Blames the attacks by his followers on Democrats pretending to be Trump supporters, as a false flag operation.
- Asks a black reporter to help him set up a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus.
- During a Day 5 interview, former national security adviser Flynn lied to the FBI, telling them he had never discussed sanctions with Russia.
- This is a felony offense.
- The FBI is not expected to file any charges.
- Defense Industry Exec Robert Harward declines offer to replace Flynn.
Day 29
- House Oversight chair Jason Chaffetz seeks criminal charges against an employee who helped set up Hillary Clinton's email account.
- Chaffetz has refused repeated requests to investigate the Trump campaign.
- Tweets "The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!"
- One month after Vladimir Lenin seized power in 1917, he coined the term "vrag naroda", which means enemy of the people.
- Trump signs repeal of law preventing the dumping of coal mining waste into streams and rivers.
- Climate change skeptic Scott Pruitt cleared by Senate 52-46 to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
- 700 former EPA officials wrote to Congress opposing Pruitt’s confirmation.
- Pruitt sued his agency 14 times during the Obama administration, seeking to curb its regulation of toxic mercury pollution, smog, carbon emissions from power plants, and the pollution of wetlands.
- His efforts were largely funded by oil and gas firms.
- WH denies AP report of a plan to mobilize 100,000 National Guard troops to round up illegal immigrants.
Day 30
- The WH has made no nominations for 662 out of the 696 executive branch positions requiring Senate confirmation.
- Tweets "Don't believe the main stream (fake news) media.The White House is running VERY WELL. I inherited a MESS and am in the process of fixing it."
- Eric and Donald Trump Jr. cut the ribbon on a new Trump luxury golf course in the United Arab Emirates.
- The UAE is one of several Muslim majority nations where the Trump company does business.
- As mentioned on Day 7, none of these Trump-friendly nations are included in the travel ban.
- As with all of their company trips, taxpayer money will be used for Eric and Donald Jr's secret service travel and hotel costs.
- Trump family trips have cost $11.3 million over the first month of the administration.
- Obama family travel expenses averaged $12.1 million per year,
- One month into his new term, holds what is billed as a campaign rally in Florida, ostensibly for his 2020 re-election (?)
- Attacks the media again, quoting Thomas Jefferson as saying “'nothing can be believed which is seen in a newspaper.' ''Truth itself,' he said, 'becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle.'”
- Jefferson also wrote "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
- After several more minutes of undermining the free press, goes on to essentially repeat his 2016 campaign platform, as follows:
- Fixing the "terrible mess" the country is in.
- Repeal of the Affordable Care Act.
- Vastly stepping up harassment and deportation of illegal immigrants.
- Removal of regulations preventing air, water and soil pollution by oil, coal and gas interests.
- Passing a $1 trillion infrastructure program.
- "Rebuilding" the military.
- All while reducing tax rates.
- Abrogation of trade agreements and the introduction of tariffs.
- Law enforcement task forces for the inner cities.
- Showing support for the EU-undermining Brexit,
- And of course, once again rehashing the 2016 election and his victory over the "dishonest media's" predictions.
- Speaking about terrorism, alludes to some sort of incident "last night in Sweden. Sweden, who would believe this? They took in large numbers."
- Nothing of note happened last night in Sweden.
Day 31
Day 32
Day 33
Day 34
Day 35
- Trump Tweets that he heard of the Sweden Incident from Fox News.
- Defense Sec Jim Mattis makes assurances that that we will not be stealing Iraq's oil.
- This was presumably in response to the president telling CIA staff in January that, "We should have kept their oil."
- WH Chief of Staff Reince Priebus hits the Sunday talk circuit.
- Regarding Flynn's collusion with the Russian ambassador, says There’s nothing wrong with having a conversation about sanctions.”
- On a different talk show he claims there was "absolutely no" collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian agents.
- Priebus implies that the media's use of unnamed sources to break the Russia story is what makes them an enemy of the American people.
Day 32
- UK parliament receives a petition with 1.8 million signatures asking it to downgrade or disallow the president's upcoming state visit.
- During the parliament debate, Trump is called a "protozoan" intellect and a "petulant child" by the party opposed to his visit.
- The party in favor of his visit still acknowledges his "more grotesque characteristics and behavior."
- Picks Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster to replace Flynn as his national security adviser.
- McMaster is a well-regarded historian and seen as a favorable choice by many.
Day 33
- After three failed public attempts over the past weeks to get the president to acknowledge the rise in anti-Semitic incidents, Trump says "The anti-Semitic threats targeting our Jewish community and community centers are horrible and are painful and a very sad reminder of the work that still must be done to root out hate and prejudice and evil,"
- Press Sec Spicer then says, "It's ironic that no matter how many times he talks about this, that it's never good enough.”
- 'One' is the number of times the president has spoken about the attacks.
- At 6:18 PM Fox's Steve Doocy says, “some of the chaos from GOP town hall meetings is very well-choreographed by the liberal activists."
- At 6:23 PM the president tweets, "The so-called angry crowds in home districts of some Republicans are actually, in numerous cases, planned out by liberal activists. Sad!"
Day 34
- UK Parliament votes against supporting Trump state visit.
- This is their first ever vote on a US presidential visit.
- Ukraine opens treason case against Andrii Artemenko, a member of their Parliament.
- Artemenko is accused of proposing an unauthorized peace plan to associates of president Trump.
- The plan would involve leasing the Crimea to Russia, then lifting US sanctions against Russia.
- The associates of the president in this case are his personal lawyer Michael Cohen and Felix Sater, a Russian-American real estate developer.
- Mr. Sater, a convicted felon, claims to have helped Trump scout deals in Russia.
- The president has repeatedly denied having business associations in Russia.
- Sec of Education DeVos is reportedly uncomfortable with the WH's plan to strip transgender children of Obama-era guidance allowing them to use the restroom of their choice.
- Attorney General Sessions, a strong opponent of expanded LGBT rights, is reportedly joining the president in pressuring DeVos to toe the line on this issue.
- DeVos later signs off on removing the guidance for transgender kids.
- The argument for rescinding guidance from the WH is that transgender bathroom use is a matter best left to the states.
- Sec Spicer says, “The president has made it clear throughout the campaign that he is a firm believer in states’ rights.”
Day 35
- Sec Spicer says that the Department of Justice will be "taking action" against states that have legalized marijuana for recreational use.
- Attorney General Session rescinds guidance directing the DOJ to reduce its use of private prisons.
- According to Sessions, reducing private prisons has "impaired the Bureau's ability to meet the future needs of the federal correctional system."
- First Lady Melania Trump refiles her $150 million lawsuit vs the Daily Mail, omitting the wording about her missing out on a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to profit from her brand.
- VP Pence proclaims that the "Obamacare nightmare is about to end."
- 54% of Americans surveyed oppose repealing Obamacare.
- The president says that we have "fallen behind on nuclear weapons capacity."
- Experts in the field reply that no country can match the US for the strength, size or modernity of its nuclear weaponry.
- Says that deporting undocumented immigrants will be “a military operation,”
- On a visit in Mexico, Homeland Security Sec Kelly clarifies that there would be “no use of military force in immigration operations.”
- The Air Force says it cannot account for the $1 billion in savings Trump claims to have negotiated regarding Air Force One.
- The WH has made several attempts to get the FBI to leak statements to the press claiming that information linking the administration with Russia is false.
- The FBI has turned down these leak requests, citing that they are in violation of procedures that limit WH communications with it during an investigation.
Day 36
Day 37
Day 38
Day 39
Day 40
Notes:
In these installments, I've made a number of references to the "botched" Yemen raid. Whereas the WH claims that raid was a “successful operation by all standards.” Therefore the addition of that word might be unnecessary editorializing.
Before I post, I like to cut out as many adjectives as I can. Last week a poster, Ivo Shandor on Fark.com, pointed me to the article below, which was also cited in Newsweek.
https://www.thebureauinvestigates.co...-raid-in-yemen
The word botched stays.
- Tweets "find the leakers within the FBI itself. Classified information is being given to media that could have a devastating effect on U.S. FIND NOW."
- Sec Spicer holds an off-camera press briefing inside his office.
- He does not allow the NYT, The Hill, Politico, BuzzFeed, the Daily Mail, the BBC, the LA Times or the Daily News to attend.
- These outlets are turned away at the door by the Secret Service.
- The Associated Press and Time magazine are invited, but both refuse to go out of principle.
- Spicer says, to those who were invited, "I think that we have shown an abundance of of accessibility."
- During the transition, Spicer said the WH would never ban individual media outlets because, "That's what makes a democracy a democracy vs a dictatorship"
- After failing with the FBI, the WH turns to congressional and intelligence officials to try to anonymously knock down reports of the WH's ties to Russia.
- The new leakers chosen by the WH are the two men who would be the heads of any future congressional investigations into the WH's ties with Russia.
- At the annual CPAC gathering for GOP conservatives, anti-Trump activist Ryan Clayton hands out Russian flags with TRUMP written on them.
- Trump supporters dutifully wave the Russian flags during the president's speech, causing staffers to scramble to confiscate them.
- During Mr. Trump's speech at CPAC, he repeats nearly all of the major lies already noted above in Days 1-35.
- The president does not bring up anything else of note.
- US immigration plan calls for deporting all undocumented immigrants found near the border to Mexico, regardless of their nationality.
- Mexican officials say they will reject deportees who are not from Mexico.
Day 37
- Tweets, "the National Debt in my first month went down by $12 billion vs a $200 billion increase in Obama first mo."
- In his first month, Obama signed an emergency economic stimulus package to counter the 2008 worldwide financial collapse.
- Trump has not signed any financial legislation.
- Tweets a hint that he would like to hold another rally soon.
- Tweets that he will not be attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, site of his infamous 2011 ribbing at the hands of Barack Obama and others.
- The last 15 presidents have attended the dinner at least once over the years, starting with Calvin Coolidge in 1924.
- EPA head Scott Pruitt used private emails to conduct state business in Oklahoma, then lied about it during his Senate confirmation hearings.
- No comment yet from the WH or from the Senate on this.
- Ex-Labor Sec Perez is voted in as Democratic National Committee Chairman.
- He immediately calls for the second place finisher, Rep Ellison, to be made deputy Chairman of the DNC.
- Deputy Chairman Ellison then says to attendees, "We don't have the luxury to walk out of this room divided."
Day 38
- Tweets "The race for DNC Chairman was, of course, totally "rigged.""
- There is no evidence--and no accusations beyond the president's--of vote fixing or tampering in the contest.
- Details are leaked of Sec Spicer seizing and examining phones of staff members...for evidence of leaks.
- A number of lifelong Muslim US citizens are finding that their Global Entry cards have been mysteriously revoked.
- Others are saying that their applications for the cards have been denied without explanation, after being told earlier in person that they would be approved.
- Global Entry is a program for US citizens who are frequent international travelers, designed to expedite their return through Customs.
- Father of Navy Seal Ryan Owens, who was killed in the botched Yemen raid, demands an investigation.
Day 39
- Senior US officials tell NBC news that the Yemen raid has yielded no significant intelligence.
- Bomb threats force evacuations at Jewish schools and community centers in 11 states.
- The president has still not commented on a Day 35 shooting of two Indian immigrants mistaken for Muslims by an American racist, who shouted "Get out of my country," before opening fire.
- Philip Bilden, a private equity fund manager, withdraws from the Sec of the Navy nomination.
- Bilden has concluded that US ethics rules will cause an undue disruption to his financial interests.
- Trump meets with CEOs of leading U.S. health insurance companies.
- Comes away from the health care meeting saying, ""I have to tell you, it's an unbelievably complex subject,"
- Asked about a replacement for the ACA, says, ""We have come up with a solution that's really, really I think very good,"
- Says he wants a $54 billion increase in military spending.
- To pay for it, cuts will be made to foreign aid and on domestic spending.
- The lion's share of domestic spending is on the poor, on health care and education and on product safety and protecting the environment.
- Asked if there is a need for a special prosecutor to look into ties with Russia, says, "I haven’t called Russia in 10 years."
- The president last called Russia on Jan 28th of this year.
- He was in Russia four years ago for the Miss Universe pageant.
- At a conference nine years ago, Donald Trump Jr. said, "“Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.”
- Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross confirmed as Commerce Sec.
- During the Senate hearings, Ross was not asked about his extensive business ties with Russia.
Day 40
- Education Sec DeVos calls historically black colleges “pioneers” of “school choice.”
- The colleges came into being when black students were not allowed to choose other colleges.
- The president is interviewed on the friendly Fox & Friends show.
- Blames Barack Obama for the leaks in his administration.
- Blames Barack Obama for the angry town hall responses to GOP lawmakers.
- Blames his generals for the botched Yemen raid, saying "This was a mission that was started before I got here. This was something they wanted to do."
- At a meeting with state attorneys, suggests that he believes at least some the recent antisemitic bomb threats to be false flag operations.
- As he said "sometimes, it's the reverse," he presumably means that the attacks are carried out by Jews themselves.
- Asked about the hundreds of executive positions still left without nominees, says, "You don’t need all those jobs. Many of those jobs, I don’t want to fill.”
- Addresses joint session of Congress. Sticks largely to his prepared remarks.
- Promises $1 trillion for infrastructure rebuilding.
- Says, "We have the worst financial recovery in 65 years."
- This will be a difficult statement to quantify, to say the least.
- Says, "And overseas, we have inherited a series of tragic foreign policy disasters."
- Does not give any examples of what he might be referring to.
- Once again calls botched Yemen raid highly successful.
- Says he wants to work with both parties for affordable child care and family leave.
- Says he wants to promote clean air and clean water.
- Legislation for this and his pick for the EPA are both diametrically opposed to this statement.
- Promises a stable transition from Obamacare using tax credits and health care savings accounts.
- Pledges support for NATO, having once questioned the alliance, and complained that members were not paying their fair share.
- Regarding payment from NATO countries, says, "I can tell you that the money is pouring in."
- Offers no examples or evidence for this.
- Says that the construction of the 2000 mile wall with Mexico will begin soon.
- Promises that it will be a very effective weapon against drugs and crime.
- Says, "American companies are taxed at one of the highest rates anywhere in the world."
- Compared to 33 countries with the highest industrial development, the US places in the middle or towards the bottom of the list on typical taxation metrics.
- Wants to create an office, known as VOICE, that will publicize crimes performed by immigrants, as these are being, "ignored by our media, and silenced by special interests."
- Once again, immigrants commit crimes at a lower rate than native-born residents.
- Crimes are not publicized as often when they do not occur as often.
- The president's announcement of VOICE draws audible gasps from members of congress.
Notes:
In these installments, I've made a number of references to the "botched" Yemen raid. Whereas the WH claims that raid was a “successful operation by all standards.” Therefore the addition of that word might be unnecessary editorializing.
Before I post, I like to cut out as many adjectives as I can. Last week a poster, Ivo Shandor on Fark.com, pointed me to the article below, which was also cited in Newsweek.
https://www.thebureauinvestigates.co...-raid-in-yemen
The word botched stays.
Days 41-45
Day 41
Day 42
Day 43
Day 44
Day 45
Day 41
- Missed from Day 40: Signed, without any announcement or fanfare, a bill allowing severe mental illness to no longer be a factor in background checks to buy guns.
- FCC chairman Pai says net neutrality was a mistake.
- Pai was outvoted on the matter in 2014 and 2015, when he wasn't chairman, but is now likely to succeed in getting rid of net neutrality going forward.
- Montana Rep Ryan Zinke confirmed Sec of the Interior by a vote of 68-31.
- Zinke is a former eagle scout and an avid outdoorsman who has advocated against giving protected federal lands back to the states.
- He is also a strong supporter of coal, and has a 4/100 lifetime score from the League of Conservation Voters.
Day 42
- Attorney General Sessions talked to the Russian Ambassador twice in 2016, then lied about it to the Senate during his confirmation hearings.
- Sessions was a vital part of the president's campaign team.
- For weeks he refused requests to recuse himself from heading FBI investigations into Russian ties with the same campaign.
- Today, under mounting pressure from lawmakers due to his lying to the Senate, Sessions recuses himself from Trump campaign probes.
- Sec Spicer says, "There's nothing to recuse himself [from]. He was 100% straight with the committee,"
- Spicer adds that the Democrats who bring attention to Sessions lying under oath in the Senate should be "ashamed of themselves."
- WH claims not to know of Sessions' meetings with the Russian ambassador.
- Senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner also met with the Russian ambassador, in December, in Trump Tower.
- WH counsel's office tells staffers to preserve any materials related to Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
- Much of this material was carefully archived and disseminated by the outgoing Obama administration, in order to prevent its destruction.
- Ben Carson confirmed as HUD secretary by a vote of 58-41.
- Carson is the only black nominee for a cabinet position. There is also one Asian nominee in the 22-member cabinet.
- Former Governor Rick Perry confirmed as Sec of Energy.
- Perry tells the Senate he regrets earlier vows to abolish the department he now heads.
- VP Pence used an AOL account for official business while governor of Indiana.
- The account was hacked by a scammer, who sent emails to his contacts claiming Pence's wife was stranded and broke in the Philippines.
Day 43
- Asked about his use of a private email account for public business in comparison to former Sec Clinton's use of a private email account for public business, Pence says, "There's no comparison whatsoever."
- Watchdog groups say Trump 2020 campaign is illegally piling new donations into the 2016 campaign, allowing contributors to give the max twice; once for 2016 and once for 2020.
- Tweets, "It is so pathetic that the Dems have still not approved my full Cabinet."
- 18 of 22 cabinet positions have been confirmed.
- Republicans hold the majority in the Senate and control the pace of cabinet approvals.
- Tweets a picture of Sen Schumer (D) with Vladimir Putin.
- Writes, "We should start an immediate investigation into @SenSchumer and his ties to Russia and Putin. A total hypocrite!"
- Sen Schumer answers, "Happily talk re: my contact w Mr. Putin & his associates, took place in '03 in full view of press & public under oath. Would you &your team?"
- Tweets, "I hereby demand a second investigation, after Schumer, of Pelosi for her close ties to Russia, and lying about it."
- Takes three attempts to spell 'hereby' correctly.
- Rep Pelosi answers, "@realDonaldTrump doesn't know difference between official mtg photographed by press & closed secret mtg his AG lied about under oath."
- WH claims Sessions met with Russian ambassador in his capacity as Senator, not as a Trump campaign higher-up.
- But Sessions used Trump campaign funds to pay the expenses involved with the Russian meeting.
- GOP drafting its health care repeal in secret, in a basement room with Capitol police guarding the doors.
Day 44
- Supporters of the president gather in towns and cities during a planned March 4 Trump event.
- Crowd sizes supporting the president on this Saturday range from several people to several hundred people.
- After saying "The time for trivial fights is behind us," in his Day 40 speech, tweets "Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't voluntarily leaving the Apprentice, he was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me. Sad end to great show."
- Sends multiple tweets accusing former president Obama of wiretapping his Trump tower office in 2016.
- WH staff offers no comment on this.
- Three possibilities exist:
- The first is that former president Obama wiretapped the offices illegally and without the knowledge or permission of a federal court.
- There are no creditable news reports or sources that suggest this.
- The second is that candidate Trump was under surveillance through an order from a FISA court.
- This would mean that a federal judge felt there was probable cause to believe that the Trump campaign had committed a serious crime, or that someone in his camp was an agent of a foreign power.
- The third is that the president was duped into believing something false by one or more of the fringe right wing news sources he relies upon.
- A spokesman for former president Obama, as well as several of his former aides, as well as the former Director of National Intelligence, all say the wiretapping claim is false.
Day 45
- WH puts out official press release stating that it has no comment on the wiretapping business.
- The same statement calls on Congress to investigate the matter.
- FBI director Comey asks the Department of Justice to publicly state that the president's wiretapping claim is false.
- Former Trump campaign official Roger Stone admits on Twitter to having a personal back-channel with Wikileaks,
- Wikileaks is the outlet that released the hacked Russian information on the DNC during the election.
- Stone then deletes the tweets.
- Eric and Donald Trump Jr say they are using connections made on the 2016 campaign trail to expand the Trump company holdings.
Days 46-50
Day 46
Day 47
Day 48
Day 49
Day 50
Notes:
On Day 46, Gold Star father and Trump critic Khizr Khan cancelled a scheduled speaking engagement in Canada, claiming his travelling privileges were under review. There are unanswered questions about his claim. As a US citizen with a valid passport and no felony convictions, Khan has a right to travel overseas. There are really no privileges, as such, that can be revoked. A few spiteful things could be done involving having ones name added to either the No Fly List or the Secondary Security Screening Selection list, but there's no use speculating until Mr. Khan clarifies what he's talking about.
Day 46
- Department of Justice remains silent on FBI director Comey's request to knock down the president's wiretapping accusations.
- Trump signs revised travel ban affecting six predominantly Muslim nations.
- Iraq, included in the old defunct travel ban, has been removed from the list.
- Iraq's government is a close US ally and a partner in our shared battle against ISIS.
- No citizens of the six remaining countries in the ban have been involved in any recent attack on US soil.
- HUD Sec Carson says that black slaves were immigrants who "worked harder for less," and who had a dream that one day their descendants "might pursue prosperity and happiness in this land.”
- WH press release on energy policy contains a paragraph cut and pasted directly from an ExxonMobil press release.
Day 47
- While watching a feature on Fox & Friends, blames Obama for 122 "vicious" prisoners released from the Guantanamo Bay prison.
- 113 of these 122 prisoners were released by the Bush administration.
- This is one of six tweets he sends this morning that are directly related to today's Fox & Friends episode, which is playing while he tweets.
- GOP bill effecting rollback of Affordable Care Act unveiled.
- New bill will cut funding to states that help poor adults with their Medicaid programs.
- Will bar Planned Parenthood from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursements.
- Will cut back on financial assistance for lower income families shopping for insurance.
- Will offer tax incentives and the ability to open tax free health care savings accounts.
- Many families live from paycheck to paycheck and can't afford to maintain a standard savings account, much less an additional savings account.
- Allows insurers to charge older people substantially higher rates than were allowed under the ACA.
- Repeals tax penalties on larger employers who do not offer coverage.
- Repeals tax penalties on people who do not buy insurance.
- Will instead punish the uninsured with higher premiums if they miss more than 2 months of coverage.
- Repeals 10% sales tax on fake tanning salons.
- Gives tax breaks to insurance executives making more than $500,000/year.
- 6 of the bill's 60 pages are dedicated to handling lottery winners.
- The president has signaled his full support for the bill.
- Steel from the US will not be used exclusively on the Keystone Pipeline, as was promised by the president.
- The pipeline will use Canadian steel manufactured by a company 1/3 owned by Roman Abramovich.
- Abramovich is a Russian billionaire oligarch with longstanding ties to Vladimir Putin.
- Under pressure from the Justice Dept, former national security adviser Flynn registers himself retroactively as an agent for a foreign interest.
Day 48
- Opposition to the GOP health bill from every Democrat as well as some GOP members of Congress has imperiled its passing.
- Sponsors of the bill now calling it a "work in progress."
- At a closed meeting with GOP congressmen, the president tells them the 2018 midterms will be a "bloodbath" if they don't pass their health bill.
- Spokesperson Conway is not sure that the president would like Trumpcare to be called Trumpcare going forward.
- Says she prefers for now that Trumpcare be called something other than Trumpcare.
- WH's Office of Management and Budget director Mulvaney says the GOP won't consider the number of people who lose their insurance as a measure of success or failure for Trumpcare.
- He adds, "insurance is not really the end goal here, is it?"
- Press Sec Spicer concurs, saying that the number of people who will be covered under Trumpcare "is not the question."
- On Democrats and passing the original ACA aka Obamacare in 2010, Spicer says, “With all due respect, this is the same group who passed it and then told us we could read it,”
- The original ACA was available for review and debated in congress for nearly a year before it was passed.
- Citing "multiple reports," Spicer falsely claims that Fox reporter James Rosen had his phones tapped by the Obama administration.
- Rosen denies that he or anyone close to him was wiretapped.
- China approves Trump-branded trademarks for spas, massage parlors, escort services, hotels, finance and real-estate companies, retail shops, restaurants and bars.
- Representatives of the largest US candy companies are giving Trump resorts a large amount of business, booking several conventions at the Trump National Doral resort near Miami and the Trump International Hotel in DC, as well as buying group golf outings at Trump courses.
- They are preparing to lobby the administration on rolling back sugar subsidies, as well as other matters of import to their industry.
Day 49
- Asked about the booming Trump golf business, Eric Trump says, "The stars have all aligned. I think our brand is the hottest it has ever been."
- Sen Rand Paul (R) Introduces a bill to rival Trumpcare.
- Paul's bill will simply repeal the ACA without offering an alternative.
- Head of the Environmental Protection Agency says he doubts that increased carbon dioxide caused by human activity is "a primary contributor to global warming."
- Close UK Trump Ally Nigel Farage pays 40 minute visit to the Ecuadoran embassy, where Wikileaks head Julian Assange lives.
- Asked by reporters what he's doing there, says he doesn't remember.
- Senate Majority Leader McConnell, asked if Mexico will pay for the proposed border wall, says "Uh, no."
- Several states are now suing to overturn the president's revised travel ban.
Day 50
- Attorney General Sessions asks for the resignations of 46 US Attorneys, all appointees from previous administrations.
- This is not unprecedented, as the Clinton administration asked for an equivalent number of resignations in 1993.
- The president has cancelled two open press events this week: one without explanation; the other due to the venue being too full, according to a spokesperson.
- Brookings Institute analysis of Trumpcare estimates that 15 million people will lose their insurance coverage.
- The president, long a vocal doubter of past job gain figures issued by the Bureau of Labor, now praises current the job gain figures, issued by the Bureau of Labor.
- Sec Spicer says that the president tells him the figures "may have been phony in the past, but it's very real now.'"
Notes:
On Day 46, Gold Star father and Trump critic Khizr Khan cancelled a scheduled speaking engagement in Canada, claiming his travelling privileges were under review. There are unanswered questions about his claim. As a US citizen with a valid passport and no felony convictions, Khan has a right to travel overseas. There are really no privileges, as such, that can be revoked. A few spiteful things could be done involving having ones name added to either the No Fly List or the Secondary Security Screening Selection list, but there's no use speculating until Mr. Khan clarifies what he's talking about.
Day 51
Day 52
Day 53
Day 54
Day 55
- Speaker Ryan, asked why congress will only be in session for 8 days in April, says congress members will want to talk to their constituents during that time.
- Ryan has refused multiple requests by his constituents to schedule a town hall-style meeting with them.
- Preet Bharara, one of the 46 US Attorneys asked to resign, refuses to and is fired.
- Bharara was a high-profile federal prosecutor who had earlier been asked by the president to stay on.
- House Intel committee investigating the president's wiretapping allegations asks the executive branch to pass along any evidence they may have.
- They would like the evidence be provided by Monday, i.e. Day 53.
Day 52
- American Medical Association says Trumpcare is critically flawed.
- Andrew Gurman, president of the AMA, says those of limited means will lose their insurance and "live sicker and die younger."
- Sec of Health and Human Services Price disagrees, saying, "Nobody will be worse off financially," from Trumpcare.
- Former Trump campaign official Roger Stone, after previously admitting contact with DNC hack publishers Wikileaks, admits additional contacts with Guccifer 2.0, the purported DNC hacker.
- WH Budget Director claims Obama-era Bureau of Labor Statistics manipulated data to make the unemployment rate look smaller.
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics has used the exact same method for calculating the unemployment rate since 1940.
- Spokesperson Conway, asked about the president's wiretapping accusations, mentions that surveillance can be made by "microwaves that turn into cameras."
Day 53
- Conway, asked today about the microwave business, said she wasn't specifically accusing Obama of spying on Trump through microwaves.
- Claims that she is "not Inspector Gadget," nor is she "in the job of having evidence."
- Nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office figures are posted for Trumpcare.
- If Trumpcare is enacted 14 million will lose insurance by 2018, 24 million will lose it by 2026.
- The federal deficit will be reduced by $337 billion over the next decade.
- This savings will be driven by the reduction or elimination of health care subsidies for the poor, as well as $880 billion cut from Medicaid.
- The president had promised during his campaign to make no cuts to Medicaid.
- Average insurance pricing will spike in the short term, but will eventually drop to 10% lower than Obamacare's projected costs by 2026.
- Many GOP members of Congress and the WH began to criticize the CBO numbers well before the CBO numbers came out.
- This despite leaked WH figures projecting 26 million losing coverage, 2 million more than the CBO estimates.
- Prior to today, the president used CBO figures favorably, as support for his tweeted arguments, on 13 separate occasions.
- Health and Human Services Sec Price calls the CBO numbers "“virtually impossible.”
- Price chides the CBO for not taking into account a wholly speculative future phase of Trumpcare, which he claims will actually add people to the roll of insured Americans.
- Details of this nonexistent future phase have never been introduced in any sort of creditable fashion.
- At the deadline, neither the WH nor the DOJ has evidence to give to the Congressional panel investigating the president's wiretapping accusations.
- The DOJ asks the panel for more time to come up with something.
- Sec Spicer, asked about this, says "The president used the word wiretap in quotes to mean broad surveillance and other activities,"
- He also suggested that the president wasn't accusing Obama specifically of wiretapping.
- Direct quotes from the president's tweets:
- "Just found out that Obama had my "wires tapped" in Trump Tower just before the victory."
- "Is it legal for a sitting President to be 'wire tapping' a race for president?"
- "How low has President Obama gone to tapp my phones during the very sacred election process."
Day 54
- Spicer changes course today and says the president is "extremely confident" the DOJ will find evidence that Obama wiretapped him.
- As the president makes plans to meet Chinese president Xi, Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Kushner also has plans to sell a $400 million stake in a Manhattan building to a Chinese insurance company.
- The Chinese company has close ties to leading Party figures in China.
- Real estate experts claim that $400 million seems to be far up on the high end given the known terms of the deal and the current real estate market in New York.
- Monica Crowley, once in line for a senior post on the National Security Council before plagiarism accusations brought her down, registers as a lobbyist for a pro-Russian Ukrainian billionaire oligarch.
- A portion of the president's 2005 tax returns are leaked on MSNBC. They comprise two plain pages of figures.
- The figures given do not indicate any wrongdoing on the president's part.
Day 55
- Hours after the WH confirms the authenticity of the leaked tax return, Trump tweets, "Does anybody really believe that a reporter, who nobody ever heard of, "went to his mailbox" and found my tax returns? @NBCNews FAKE NEWS!"
- The reporter, David Cay Johnston, won a Pulitzer prize for exposing tax loopholes.
- Sec of State Tillerson breaks precedent on his first overseas trip by traveling with only one reporter.
- That would be Erin McPike from the right wing Independent Journal Review (est. 2013).
- AG Sessions blasts legalized marijuana in a speech in Richmond, calls for a return to the 1980's Just Say No campaign.
- Also says he's dubious about medical marijuana.
- Federal judge in Hawaii issues nationwide order blocking the WH's revised travel ban, hours before it is due to begin.
- Judge Watson declares that “a reasonable, objective observer," when viewing the context of the ban, "would conclude that the Executive Order was issued with a purpose to disfavor a particular religion.”
- As context Watson points out a Trump campaign press release calling for the "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."
- At a rally in Nashville, Trump threatens to revive the original order, saying, "“Let me tell you something, I think we ought to go back to the first one and go all the way.”
- After the rally, Trump announces to reporters, We're going to do these rallies every two weeks."
- Gives an interview with Tucker Carlson on Fox News.
- Carlson points out that an analysis of Trumpcare shows, "that counties that voted for you--middle-class and working-class counties--would do far less well under this bill.”
- The president answers, "“Oh, I know, I know. It’s very preliminary.”
- Asked about proof of wiretapping, says "I mean, let's see whether or not I prove it. I just don't choose to do it right now."
- Adds, "But I think we have some very good stuff. And we're in the process of putting it together, and I think it's going to be very demonstrative."
- House Intel Chairman Nunes, a frequent defender of the president, now tasked with finding evidence of wiretapping, says “We don’t have any evidence that it took place," and "I don’t think there was an actual tap of Trump Tower.”
Day 56
Day 57
Day 58
Day 59
Day 60
- House speaker Ryan confirms, "that no such wiretap existed,"
- Press Sec Spicer persists, citing claims that President Obama asked British intelligence agency GCHQ to wiretap Trump
- GCHQ responds that Spicer's allegations, "are nonsense. They are utterly ridiculous and should be ignored."
- Federal judge in Maryland suspends part of the new travel ban that stops visas from being issued to citizens of the six countries.
- President introduces his new proposed budget:
- Adds $54 billion per year to the military budget.
- Cuts significantly from the Departments of Labor and Agriculture and State, from the Environmental Protection Agency and from FEMA.
- Eliminates funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting--i.e. PBS and NPR.
- Eliminates the National Endowment for the Arts.
- Eliminates Legal Services Corporation, which helps poor people find lawyers, and helps domestic violence victims get restraining orders.
- Eliminates funding that helps poor families pay their heating bills.
- Eliminates funding for a program that helps poor senior citizens find jobs.
- Eliminates the $3 billion Community Development Block Grant program.
- The block grant funds Meals on Wheels, which feeds low income and elderly shut-ins who have trouble getting out to buy food.
- Also funds after-school programs which help to feed low-income kids who may not get enough to eat at home.
- No part of the trillion dollar infrastructure improvement promised during the campaign remains; instead, 14% will be cut from the Transportation Dept.
- Meanwhile, several hundred million dollars per year will be spent on the following:
- Trips nearly every weekend to his private Florida golf resort.
- Rallies every few weeks in states that voted for him.
- Security entourage following his sons as they travel the world, expanding his business interests.
- Third wife and son staying in a gold-plated Manhattan penthouse.
Day 57
- Under the new budget, Israel will be the only country to escape review for proposed deep cuts in foreign aid.
- UK ambassador demands an explanation for the WH accusing them of involvement with wiretapping the president.
- Pres Sec Spicer answers that he was merely pointing out media reports about the supposed UK involvement, and not endorsing any specific story.
- WH revokes guidance protecting people in default of their student loans from being charged high penalty fees.
- At a meeting with German Chancellor Merkel, a German reporter asks the president, “Why do you keep saying things you know are not true?”
- President does not respond to the question.
- Asked about his wiretapping claims, Trump refers to revelations that the NSA wiretapped Merkel's office by joking that he and her at least have something in common.
- Merkel responds to the joke with a puzzled look.
- At a later photo op, the press prompts the two leaders to shake hands. Merkel turns to him and asks if he would like to shake hands. Trump hears her offer, but turns away and ignores her.
- Sec. of State Tillerson cuts his South Korea visit short due to fatigue.
- South Korea's press notes that Tillerson had not joined the country's acting president or prime minister for any meals or social events during the state visit.
- DOJ argues in court that they should be able to fire the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
- By law, the head of the Bureau can only be fired for cause. The Trump administration would like to fire him for no cause.
Day 58
- Tweets, "Despite what you have heard from the FAKE NEWS, I had a GREAT meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel."
- Later in the same tweet, claims that Germany "owes vast sums of money to NATO."
- Germany owes no money to NATO.
- The president may be referring to a NATO guideline suggesting that each nation spend 2% of its GDP on its own military.
- But each nation following the guideline would spend the 2% on itself, and not give the money to NATO.
- Asked why he's not travelling with the customary press pool, Sec. of State Tillerson says, "“I’m not a big media press access person."
- WH is ignoring repeated requests from the Ukraine, who are seeking to question former Trump campaign head Manafort in an ongoing criminal corruption investigation.
- Larry C Johnson, the man responsible for spreading the Michelle Obama Whitey Tape lie, is traced as one of the original sources for spreading the Obama wiretapping lie.
- Deputy head of the NSA calls accusations that the UK was involved in wiretapping for Obama "arrant nonsense," and "just crazy."
Day 59
- Spends a quiet day at his Mar-A-Lago golf resort.
- He has changed his nickname for the private club from the Winter White House to the Southern White House.
- Currently, one does not have to pay a $200,000 membership fee to visit the actual White House.
Day 60
- WH announces it will boycott the United Nation's Human Rights Council over the council's critical stance on Israel's human rights violations in Palestine.
- Ahead of today's House Intel hearings looking into Russian meddling, sends series of tweets denouncing the Democrats, the media and leakers for promoting the story.
- Also characterizes his low poll numbers as fake news, and rehashes the 2016 Election once more.
- At the hearing, FBI chief Comey confirms the Justice Department is investigating potential collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians.
- Soon after this, the president tweets, "The NSA and FBI tell Congress that Russia did not influence electoral process."
- Director Comey and NSA chief Michael Rogers confirm that there is no evidence that Trump was wiretapped
- They also confirm there is no evidence that president Obama requested any wiretaps on Trump, or any surveillance on Trump.
- NSA head Rogers confirms there is no evidence that British intelligence was asked to spy on Trump.
- Asked by reporter David Corn about Carter Page and Roger Stone, Rep Devin Nunes claims to have never heard of either.
- Page and Stone are important and well-known Trump campaign officials, both of whom are possibly implicated in the Russian investigation.
- Rep Nunes is the head of that investigation.
- Press Sec Spicer, questioned about various Trump campaign members who are likely part of the DOJ investigation, characterizes Paul Manafort, for one, as playing "a very limited role for a very limited amount of time."
- Manafort was the head of the Trump campaign for nearly five months.
- President ends the day with another political rally in a state that supported him in 2016.
Day 61
Day 62
Day 63
Day 64
Day 65
- Missed from Day 59: Going against the president's promises never to cut Social Security, Budget Director Mulvaney says he is aiming to cut Social Security Disability Insurance.
- SSDI is a longstanding part of Social Security. Workers have been paying into it for the last 60 years.
- President holds closed-door meeting with some GOP members and tells them they will lose re-election in 2018 if they don't vote for Trumpcare.
- House moderate and conservative wings are opposed to parts of the Trumpcare bill for opposite reasons, endangering its passing.
- No Democrats are expected to vote for the bill.
- In November, the president tweeted, "I am not trying to get 'top level security clearance' for my children. This was a typically false news story."
- Ivanka Trump is granted WH security clearance and a West Wing office.
- It's revealed that Trump Tower was wiretapped by the FBI from 2011 to 2013.
- The target was a Russian criminal syndicate, and not the president.
- A Ukrainian lawmaker releases financial documents showing money laundering by former Trump campaign head Manafort on behalf of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.
- Yanukovych was close to Putin before his ouster by pro-Western protesters. He is wanted in the Ukraine on corruption charges.
Day 62
- The AP reveals documents showing that in 2005, Paul Manafort pitched and sold a strategy to the Russians designed to influence politics, business dealings and news coverage in the US and around the world.
- Regarding the strategy Manafort wrote, "We are now of the belief that this model can greatly benefit the Putin Government."
- Manafort then signed a $10 million annual contract with Russian billionaire oligarch Oleg Deripaska, a member of Putin's inner circle.
- House Intel Chair Nunes announces that Trump campaign officials may have been caught up in lawful, incidental surveillance of foreign nationals during the transition.
- He specifies that the surveillance was not intended for Trump campaign officials, nor was it investigating Russian meddling.
- Nunes came up with this information by acting outside his House Intel committee.
- Says he is on his way to brief Speaker Ryan and the WH on the details. He has not briefed his own Intel committee.
- This draws a rebuke from Nunes' colleague, House Intel ranking member Adam Schiff, who complains that withholding this information from the committee is a "profound irregularity", adding that "a creditable investigation cannot be conducted this way,"
- Rep Schiff calls for an independent committee to investigate Russian meddling.
- Sen McCain weighs in on the sparring committee members, saying "I think that this back and forth and what the American people have found so far is that no longer does Congress have the credibility to handle this alone."
Day 63
- Rep Nunes tells his House Intel committee he will eventually give them the information he shared with speaker Ryan and the president, but doesn't tell them when he will do so.
- He also tells them he will not reveal his sources.
- It is later revealed that Nunes received the information on the WH grounds from two WH officials.
- President fills his Time magazine interview on the subject of Truth and Falsehoods with a bewildering and lengthy eruption of lies.
- Adds to his earlier lies about immigrant trouble in Sweden by saying, "The next day they have a massive riot, and death,"
- Stockholm had a small riot two days after Trump's initial lie about Sweden--possibly in response to his statement--but no deaths.
- Claims that disgraced congressman Weiner had, "all of Hillary’s email on his thing.”
- Weiner had some duplicates of Clinton emails on his laptop, all of which had already been reviewed by the FBI and found not to be of substance.
- About NATO, says, "“NATO, obsolete, because it doesn’t cover terrorism."
- NATO has been involved with counterterrorism since 1980.
- Repeats his claim that NATO countries aren't paying their bills, with the implication that they should be paying into a general fund, or maybe paying the US directly.
- None of the NATO countries owe money in this manner.
- There is a guideline to spend 2% of their own GDP on their own defense. Most of the NATO countries have not been following that.
- To conflate this with not paying dues to a general fund is a lie.
- Uses the "I put wiretapping in quotes" argument at first; then a few minutes later says that House Intel Chief Nunes has vindicated his wiretapping accusations.
- Nunes' Day 62 revelations say nothing about Trump or his staff being wiretapped.
- Q: The claim that thousands of Muslims celebrated 9/11 in New Jersey... A: Well if you look at the reporter, he wrote the story in The Washington Post.
- The reporter Trump mentions has repeatedly denied that any of his stories supported this claim.
- Trump later publicly mocked the reporter for his physical disability, then afterwards lied about mocking him.
- There is no TV coverage showing or claiming that large groups of Muslims celebrated the 9/11 attacks in New Jersey.
- A retired NJ police captain claims to have cleared 20-30 people off of a rooftop after the WTC buildings fell.
- This is as close to a creditable claim as can be found.
- Repeats the lie about the existence of millions of illegal voters in the 2016 election.
- On his accusation that Sen Cruz's father worked with Oswald to assassinate Kennedy, says “Well that was in a newspaper."
- The newspaper was the National Enquirer, which published a grainy photo of someone whom they purport was Cruz's father, handing out pro-Castro pamphlets.
- Concludes his defense by saying to his interviewer, "I guess I can't be doing so badly, because I'm president, and you're not."
- Trumpcare vote scheduled for today is delayed when it becomes apparent that it will not pass.
- The president signals his wish for a vote tomorrow, saying he will leave Obamacare in place and move on to other agendas if Trumpcare doesn't pass.
- Speaker Ryan announces a vote for tomorrow.
- A 19-year-old American-Israeli Jew is tagged as the prime suspect in threats against U.S. Jewish community centers.
Day 64
- House Intel Chief Nunes postpones open hearing scheduled for Day 68, where several Obama officials were set to testify on possible Trump campaign ties to Russia.
- House Intel ranking member Adam Schiff accuses Nunes of acceding to pushback from the WH in postponing the meeting.
- Trumpcare is pulled before the House can vote on it, due to its not having enough votes to pass.
- The president claims that the Democrats are to blame for the defeat saying, "So when you get zero from the other side--they're letting us down because they're hurting the people."
- Also says, "“You've all heard my speeches. I never said ‘repeal it and replace it within 64 days.’ I have a long time."
- Over the past year and a half, the president promised on at least 11 occasions to either immediately or to very quickly repeal and replace Obamacare.
- Three major Trump campaign officials--Paul Manafort, Carter Page and Roger Stone--all volunteer to talk to the House Intel committee for its investigation into Russian meddling.
- FBI Director Comey visits the WH. No meeting with him is listed in the WH public schedule today.
- Former CIA director Woolsey reports that former national security adviser Flynn talked with Turkish officials about kidnapping a Turkish exile in the US and returning him to Turkey as part of an illegal covert operation.
- Forbes publishes an interview with Eric Trump where he says he gives quarterly financial reports on the Trump business to his father
- US-led military coalitions in Iraq and Syria are investigating reports that as many as 300 civilians were killed in three recent American airstrikes in the two countries.
Day 65
- Tweets, "Watch @JudgeJeanine on @FoxNews tonight at 9:00 P.M."
- Jeanine Pirro, the host of the Judge Jeanine show, lambastes House speaker Ryan and calls for his ouster.
- Heads out for a day at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia.
- Asked about the president's frequent golf trips, Press Sec Spicer says, "“the president will continue to go and travel around the country and have meetings to solve the nation’s problems”.
Day 66
Day 67
Day 68
Day 69
Day 70
Notes:
There is a report that WH chief strategist Stephen Bannon confronted the House Freedom Caucus during the Trumpcare vote run-up, saying, ""Guys, look. This is not a discussion. This is not a debate. You have no choice but to vote for this bill,” and that one of the House members replied, "“You know, the last time someone ordered me to do something, I was 18 years old. And it was my daddy. And I didn't listen to him, either." At present, the story is thinly sourced, so it will have to live in the notes.
Also developing but not quite bullet point material: House Intel Chief Nunes reportedly has $50,000--most of his reported net worth--tied up in a winery that has business ties with the largest alcohol distributor in Russia, and the winery has recently pulled the Russian company's name off the distributor list on their website, possibly in response to the recent attention being drawn to it.
Lastly, a bill passed the House and Senate that will allow ISPs to sell your browsing history and location data to advertisers, insurance companies, law enforcement and anyone else who wants it, but the president has not yet signed it.
- It is reported that Trump presented a bogus $374 billion invoice to German chancellor Angela Merkel at their meeting on Day 57.
- Chancellor Merkel chose not to dignify the insult with a response.
Day 67
- Signs several Executive Orders reversing several Obama-era regulations.
- Companies with a history of violating wage, labor and workplace safety laws may now receive federal contracts.
- The Bureau of Land Management now has less of a say on land that is targeted for use by logging, mining and energy extraction companies.
- Does away with several school performance measurement and teacher training guidelines.
- Tweets accusation that 'Bill and Hillary' allowed uranium to go to Russia in return for money
- He's referring to Russia's nuclear power agency buying a controlling interest in a Toronto-based company,
- That company has some mines and mills in the USA.
- Hillary Clinton was Sec of State at the time, and had no power to approve or reject the deal.
- Nine other federal agencies were tasked to scrutinize, then sign off on the deal, then president Obama signed it.
- Finishes the tweet with, "Trump Russia story is a hoax."
- Senate Intel committee plans to question Trump senior adviser/son-in-law Kushner about his two meetings with Russians in December.
- The first meeting was with Russian ambassador Kislyak, and was previously acknowledged by the WH.
- Kushner's second meeting was with Sergey N. Gorkov, head of a Russian bank that was under sanctions from the Obama administration.
- This second meeting was not disclosed by the WH until very recently.
- House Intel chief Nunes admits, through a spokesman, to meeting the anonymous source of his purported Trump surveillance documents on the WH grounds.
- Several more House and Senate members call for Nunes to recuse himself from the investigation into the Trump campaign's ties to Russia.
- Asked by Bill O'Reilly about the growing number of calls for his ouster, Nunes says, “I’m sure that the Democrats do want me to quit, because they know that I’m quite effective at getting to the bottom of things.”
- Mexico, a country of 122 million people that buys 98% of its corn from the US, is looking into deals on corn with Argentina and Brazil ahead of the president's threatened trade re-negotiations.
- Attorney General Sessions threatens all sanctuary cities and noncomplying local governments with the loss of Justice Department grants
- Sanctuary cities are those municipalities that do not task their law enforcement to actively seek out illegal immigrants for deportation.
Day 68
- Signs executive order rolling back Obama era regulations that would have closed some of the most polluting coal-burning power plants in favor of promoting solar plants and wind farms.
- The order is not expected to add many jobs to the coal industry, despite the president's promises, as the mining jobs are being lost to increased mechanization and the availability of cheaper, cleaner fuels such as natural gas.
- The order will likely make it impossible for the US to meet its agreed-upon carbon dioxide emission standards for the Paris climate accord.
- It's reported that the WH sent a letter to former acting Attorney General Yates seeking to limit her upcoming testimony on possible Russian ties to the Trump campaign.
- WH gave "presidential communication privilege" as the reason for limiting what Yates could say to the House Intel committee.
- Yates was investigating former Trump national security adviser Flynn shortly before the Trump administration fired her.
- She was set to testify to the House Intel committee today, along with former CIA director John Brennan, before House Intel chief Nunes abruptly postponed their testimony.
- Later in the day, Nunes cancels all remaining House Intel meetings for the rest of this week.
- House Intel committee member Himes responds, saying, "“Since Monday, I’m sorry to say, the chairman has ceased to be the chairman of an investigative committee and has been running interference for the Trump White House, cancelling hearings.”
Day 69
- After taking more heat for cancelling this week's meetings, Nunes says, "it appears like the Democrats aren’t really serious about this investigation,”
- Interior Secretary Zinke asks "“The Rio Grande, what side of the river are you going to put the wall? We’re not going to put it on our side and cede the river to Mexico. And we’re probably not going to put it in the middle of the river”
- The Government Accountability Office will soon review security procedures and overall costs of the president's trips to his Florida Mar-A-Lago resort.
- Speaking at a women’s empowerment event, Trump asks, "Have you heard of Susan B. Anthony? I’m shocked that you’ve heard of her."
- Trump lies a second time about the New York Times having apologized for their coverage of him.
- The NYT corrects him again, once again making it clear that they've never apologized for it.
- The Energy Dept Office of International Climate and Clean Energy has banned the use of the term 'climate change' in its communications.
- Scott Pruitt, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, reverses a proposed ban on a commonly used agricultural pesticide, chlorpyrifos.
- The Obama administration had sought to outlaw the pesticide due to mounting scientific evidence that prenatal exposure can pose risks to fetal brain and nervous system development.
Day 70
- Tweets, "The failing @nytimes has disgraced the media world. Gotten me wrong for two solid years. Change libel laws?"
- Senate Intel committee starts hearings today on possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russian meddling in the 2016 Election.
- Former FBI special agent Clinton Watts started testimony by advising the committee to "“Follow the trail of dead Russians,”
- The committee heard testimony about a massive Russian disinformation campaign, involving at least 15,000 operatives worldwide.
- The operatives have been writing and spreading false news stories and conspiracy theories online for years.
- Committee ranking member Mark Warren says he heard testimony that up to a thousand Russian operatives were tasked to move opinions in swing states in 2016.
- Former national security adviser Flynn tells the FBI he is willing to testify on Russian meddling in exchange for immunity from prosecution.
- Criticizing former Clinton aides for taking immunity last year, Flynn had said, "When you are given immunity, that means you have probably committed a crime."
- Many employees of the State Department have not yet met Sec of State Tillerson, as he takes a private elevator to his office every day and almost never holds meetings.
- Some of the diplomats there report that they've been instructed not to speak to Tillerson, and not to make any eye contact with him.
Notes:
There is a report that WH chief strategist Stephen Bannon confronted the House Freedom Caucus during the Trumpcare vote run-up, saying, ""Guys, look. This is not a discussion. This is not a debate. You have no choice but to vote for this bill,” and that one of the House members replied, "“You know, the last time someone ordered me to do something, I was 18 years old. And it was my daddy. And I didn't listen to him, either." At present, the story is thinly sourced, so it will have to live in the notes.
Also developing but not quite bullet point material: House Intel Chief Nunes reportedly has $50,000--most of his reported net worth--tied up in a winery that has business ties with the largest alcohol distributor in Russia, and the winery has recently pulled the Russian company's name off the distributor list on their website, possibly in response to the recent attention being drawn to it.
Lastly, a bill passed the House and Senate that will allow ISPs to sell your browsing history and location data to advertisers, insurance companies, law enforcement and anyone else who wants it, but the president has not yet signed it.
Day 71
Day 72
Day 73
Day 74
Day 75
- Judge okays $25 million settlement in favor of two class action lawsuits accusing Trump University of defrauding its students.
- One litigant had been holding up the final settlement, upset that the terms did not require the president to admit fault and apologize for cheating his customers.
- Judge ruled in favor of the other customers who wanted the settlement to move forward.
- President Tweets, "Mike Flynn should ask for immunity in that this is a witch hunt (excuse for big election loss), by media & Dems, of historic proportion!"
- At a televised Executive Order signing, he gives a brief speech, then leaves, having neglected to sign his Executive Orders.
- Senate Intel Committee rejects former national security adviser Flynn's initial quest for immunity in return for testifying.
- Sec of State Tillerson says sanctions will remain in place on Russia until that country reverses its actions in the Ukraine.
- In Syria, US State Dept. draws its policy closer to Russia by backing off on demands for president Assad to step down.
Day 72
- President proclaims April as National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
- That's the joke.jpg
- Tweets, "“When will Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd and @NBCNews start talking about the Obama SURVEILLANCE SCANDAL and stop with the Fake Trump/Russia story?”
- Former national security adviser Flynn files amended financial disclosure forms, adding payments from state-sponsored media outlet Russia Today he neglected to include on his initial disclosure.
- Flynn didn't report being paid for speaking at the dinner that produced the famous picture of him sitting at a table with Vladimir Putin and US Green Party candidate Jill Stein.
- Chinese company pulls out of $400 million real estate deal with Trump adviser/son-in-law Jared Kushner.
- Five Democratic lawmakers had written to the WH asking for further details of the deal, which they called a "highly troubling transaction."
- WH has stopped disclosing US troop deployment numbers in Iraq and Syria.
- WH informs the American Bar Association that it will no longer use their evaluations of lawyers to vet nominations for federal judges.
Day 73
- Federal judge will not dismiss a lawsuit by three protesters who were roughed up at a Trump rally after the president pointed at them and repeatedly shouted "get them out."
- The president's golf outing today is at the Trump National Golf Club in Potomac Falls, Virginia.
Day 74
- Meets with Egyptian president Sisi--who had until recently been barred from the WH after seizing power in a military takeover--and heaps praise on the authoritarian dictator.
- Asked about Trumpcare's failure to get a vote, says "There was no reason to take a vote. I said, ‘Don’t take a vote,’ and we will see what happens."
- This is exactly the opposite of what he said.
- Signs the bill that allows ISPs to sell your browsing history and location data to advertisers, insurance companies, law enforcement and anyone who wants it.
- Donates his first quarter presidential salary, $78,333, to the US Park Service to help preserve old battlefields.
- Trump's proposed budget would cut $1.5 billion from the Dept that runs the US Park Service.
- Tweets once again that his wiretapping claims have been validated.
- There is still no evidence for this being true.
- WH aides and officials hold meetings on Capitol Hill in an attempt to revive Trumpcare before the House breaks for Spring recess begins after Day 78.
- It's discovered that the president has quietly amended the trust designed to isolate him from his business interests.
- The trust may now "distribute net income or principal to Donald J. Trump at his request”, or whenever his sons or attorney deem appropriate.
- There is no limit to the type or amount of income he may pay himself from his business interests, and he need not report any details of the transactions.
- It's reported that Erik Prince, founder of Blackwater and brother of Education Sec DeVos, arranged a secret meeting in January with a Russian official.
- Prince represented himself as an unofficial representative of the incoming Trump administration, and interested in a back channel line of communication with Moscow.
- Former campaign adviser Carter Page admits to meeting with Victor Podobnyy, a Russian intelligence operative, in 2013.
- According to charges filed against the Russian spy in 2015, Page met with, exchanged emails with and provided documents related to the energy business to Podobnyy.
- US Attorney Preet Bharara was in the process of prosecuting the spy ring involving Podobnyy when the Trump administration fired him.
Day 75
- Attorney General Sessions releases a memo that maps a course for reducing investigations into unconstitutional policing, racial profiling, excessive force and other misconduct by local police forces.
- WH blames the Obama administration for Syrian president Assad gassing his own civilians to death today.
- The Obama administration had held firm its with demands that Assad step down; the Trump administration had backed away from those demands last week.
- Speaker Ryan gives noncommittal answers when asked if a new Trumpcare bill will be introduced this week ahead of the House break.
- It will not be introduced in time.
- WH announces that tax reform is the next big legislative agenda.
- The president had promised a full new tax plan by early March, between Days 41-50.
- Former Obama national security adviser Rice denies leaking the names of the Trump campaign members who were caught up in incidental surveillance of Russian agents.
- The WH is arguing that Rice improperly asked for the names, which were blacked out in the surveillance reports.
- Top officials such as Rice are allowed by law to ask intelligence agencies, for national security purposes, to reveal blacked out names.
- Evidence of collusion between Americans and Russian spies to tip the US election in Trump's favor would be considered a national security issue.
- Rice at first denied knowing anything about the incidental surveillance after it was made public by Rep Nunes.
- She lied when she said that.
- House Intel member Joaquín Castro, asked about the evidence he's seen so far in hearings on the Trump campaign, says, "I wouldn’t be surprised after all of this is said and done, that some people end up in jail.”
- Asked if 'some people' means Trump associates, Castro says "If I were betting, I would say yes,”
Day 76
Day 77
Day 78
Day 79
Day 80
- Back on Day 32, the Newtown CT school board wrote a letter to the president asking him to denounce Alex Jones' conspiracy theory that the Sandy Hook mass killings were a hoax.
- Jones has repeatedly said that the murder victims--20 children and 6 adults--were all actors participating in a staged event designed to bring about stricter gun controls.
- The president is a fan of Jones and has called in to his radio show.
- During the last 44 days, the president has never acknowledged the plea from Newtown.
- He did find time today to praise Fox News personality Bill O'Reilly, who has settled five sexual harassment lawsuits and lost 38 advertisers so far from his top-rated show.
- He called O'Reilly a "good person," and said "I think he shouldn't have settled; personally I think he shouldn't have settled. Because you should have taken it all the way. I don't think Bill did anything wrong."
- Signs bill allowing hibernating bears and wolf cubs in dens to be hunted on Federal lands.
- Sen Merkley gives a speech on the Senate floor detailing his opposition to Neil Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court. His speech last 15 hours and 28 minutes.
- Chief WH strategist Bannon is removed from the National Security Council.
- Energy Sec Perry is added to the NSC.
- President says he thinks former national security adviser Rice committed a crime by asking for the blacked out names in the Russian surveillance reports.
- Current and former intelligence officials say Rice acted lawfully when asking for the names.
- US Ambassador to the UN Haley holds up pictures of victims of the Syrian gas attacks at a UN Security Council meeting and asks, "How many more children have to die before Russia cares?"
- Sen Rubio says it's no coincidence that Assad gassed his own civilians soon after the US backed off on calling for his ouster.
- Later in the day, the president says, ""It's very, very possible, and I will tell you it's already happened, that my attitude toward Syria and Assad has changed very much."
Day 77
- Says, “I think we’ve had one of the most successful 13 weeks in the history of the presidency.”
- It's reported that Trump senior adviser/son-in-law Kushner omitted foreign contacts on his security clearance application.
- The application grants top-secret security clearance and requires the applicant to disclose all encounters with foreign officials over the last seven years.
- Kushner did not list dozens of contacts he made with foreign leaders and officials during the transition.
- House Intel Chief Nunes temporarily recuses himself from the investigation into the Trump campaign's possible ties to Russia.
- Nunes is now under investigation himself, as complaints have been filed against him through the the Office of Congressional Ethics.
- Rep Conway will head the investigation while Nunes addresses these complaints.
- Nunes claims they are from "left wing activists," angry at his focus on the source of the leaks, rather than any evidence of collusion that these leaks may have uncovered.
- Senate vote to confirm Neil Gorsuch does not get the required 60 votes to end debate on the nomination.
- Senate votes to employ the 'nuclear option,' which is to change the long-standing rule, reducing the number of votes needed for a Supreme Court nomination from 60 to 51.
- Trump orders strike: 59 Tomahawk missiles launched at the Sharyat Airfield in Syria.
- American officials believe this is the base the Assad government used to launch chemical weapon on its own civilians.
- Russia, which claims that Assad is not responsible for the chemical attacks, denounces the US strike.
- Aside from telling the US they would not give Crimea back to the Ukraine, this may be the first criticism of US policy made by Russia during the Trump administration.
Day 78
- Meets with Chinese leader Xi at Trump's luxury Mar-A-Lago golf resort
- Says they had "very frank, very candid" discussions that were "very positive," but gives no details of the results.
- The leaders will not be holding a joint press conference.
- Posts photo of he and his team being briefed on Syria in a situation room at Mar-A-Lago.
- Several people in the picture are economic advisers who have nothing to do with Syria. They are seat fillers for the photo.
- Senate confirms Neil Gorsuch as Supreme Court Justice by a vote of 54-45.
- Federal Government will pay US Marshals $7.78 million to guard Education Sec DeVos from February-September.
- Russia suspends agreement to share flight information related to their aircraft in Syria with the US, increasing the chance of a midair collision or a confrontation between the two forces.
- Press Sec Spicer tells press pool to turn off their cameras and recorders while he briefs them on Syria.
- Spicer claims he would like the president to have the first broadcasted words on the Syria attack.
- But Spicer had already given Fox news two on-camera interviews on the attack before making his demand to the remaining press.
- Many from the loose confederation of racist, nationalist web-savvy right wing commenters who've made up the president's support base have come out against the Syria attack.
- They are repeating Russian claims that the chemical attack on civilians was staged by someone other than Assad.
Day 79
- Department of Homeland Security abandons pressuring Twitter to reveal the user identity of an anonymous account critical of the Trump administration.
- Twitter subsequently drops a lawsuit against the DHS over their demands.
- Eyewitnesses report that Syrian planes are flying out of Sharyat Airfield, two days after it was struck by 59 Tomahawk missiles.
- President orders a meeting between senior advisers Bannon and Kusher to address reported infighting between the two.
- Bannon represents the reactionary, nationalist anti-immigrant side of the administration and Kushner stands for the pro-Wall Street, pro-global conglomerate wing.
- The president's golf outing today is at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, FL.
Day 80
- Plays a follow-up round at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach.
- US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley announces that US policy will swing back towards prioritizing Assad's ouster in Syria.
Day 81
Day 82
Day 83
Day 84
Day 85
- Missed from Day 80: At the same time that US ambassador to the UN Haley was calling for Assad's ouster in Syria, Sec of State Tillerson was calling for working with Assad to bring about a ceasefire there.
- WH budget chief Mulvaney sends memo to federal agencies telling them to prepare for major cuts in funding and staffing.
- Russian hacker Pyotr Levashov is arrested in Spain on a US international arrest warrant.
- Levashov's wife tells Spanish officials he is suspected of hacking the DNC and RNC in order to influence the 2016 US presidential election.
- US Navy claims it is deploying the USS Vinson carrier strike group to waters near North Korea
- China deploys 150,000 troops to North Korean border.
Day 82
- Tweets "North Korea is looking for trouble. If China decides to help, that would be great. If not, we will solve the problem without them! U.S.A."
- Sec of State Tillerson changes his stance today, now says Assad's rule “is coming to an end."
- Tillerson also asks a group of European diplomats, “Why should U.S. taxpayers be interested in Ukraine?”
- Today is the second day of Passover. Press Sec. Spicer, attempting a comparison to Assad's chemical attack, says "You know, you had a — someone as despicable as Hitler who didn't even sink to using chemical weapons”
- MSNBC, in the midst of the gaffe, posts the caption, known as a chyron, "(Hitler gassed millions)" on screen below their shot of Spicer.
- Sec. of Education DeVos rolls back student loan protections.
- Collection agencies with a history of abusive consumer service may now be given government contracts to collect student debt.
- It's reported that the FBI was granted a FISA warrant to surveil Trump campaign aid Carter Page.
- In order to get that type of warrant, the FBI needed to convince a judge that Page was acting as an agent of a foreign power.
Day 83
- Tweets, "Great win in Kansas last night for Ron Estes, easily winning the Congressional race against the Dems, who spent heavily & predicted victory!"
- It was a close and embarrassing win for Estes against the Dems, who spent virtually nothing and were expecting to lose by a larger margin.
- North Korea responds to US saber rattling with, "We will not miss a chance to sweep the imperialist group with a nuclear fire of justice."
- Chinese President Xi makes a phone call to Trump, urging him to find a peaceful solution with North Korea.
- In an interview, the president says that Xi gave him a brief history lesson on Chinese-North Korean relations and, "After listening for 10 minutes, I realized it’s not so easy."
- After describing in detail the dessert he was having with Xi at Mar-A-Lago to Fox Business news, president says he told Xi, "We've just launched 59 missiles heading to Iraq."
- Press Sec Spicer, attempting to apologize for his gaffe on day 82, refers to Nazi death camps as "Holocaust Centers."
- Most agree this new term is too mild of a euphemism for the Nazi extermination camps that murdered 6 million Jews and other innocent victims.
- We are reliant on Russian media to report that Sec of State Tillerson met briefly with president Putin, as the Secretary travels without the American press.
- Tillerson says US-Russian relations are at a low point.
- He is standing with his diplomatic counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, when he says this.
- Budget director Mulvaney announces an end to the Federal government hiring freeze imposed on day 1 by the Trump administration.
- Mulvaney says he will replace the policy with "a smarter plan."
- Asked about the president's promise to eliminate the national debt by the end of his second term, Mulvaney says, "It’s fairly safe to assume that was hyperbole.”
- Asked about his tax reform plan, now more than a month after he'd promised to roll it complete, Trump says, "I have to do health care first,"
- He then repeats his claim that he has "a great health care plan that I think will happen."
- In another interview, says the WH doesn't have the authority to authorize payments to insurance companies that subsidize low cost health insurance for the poor.
- This is the linchpin of Obamacare. Remove the subsidies, and low-cost insurance to the poor will be taken away, and Obamacare will collapse.
- Says, "I don’t want people to get hurt. What I think should happen—and will happen—is the Democrats will start calling me and negotiating.”
- Announces that NATO is "no longer obsolete."
- And declares that China is no longer a currency manipulator.
- And decides that the Import-Export bank no longer needs to be abolished.
- Claims that Hillary Clinton was "guilty of every charge," that FBI director Comey "read out."
- Hillary Clinton was never charged with a crime.
- Another Trump cabinet member, EPA head Pruitt, has asked for funds for round-the-clock security for himself.
- Attorney General Sessions says, “I’m getting worried we’re not locking more people up.”
Day 84
- It's reported that on the day former Trump campaign head Manafort resigned, he received $20 milion in loans, $13 million of them tied to Trump business relations.
- In early 2016, intelligence services from the UK, the Netherlands and France reported suspicious interactions between Trump campaign figures and Russian agents to US Intelligence services.
- After being nudged out of his job at the EPA for interrupting policy meetings with bizarre unrelated statements, former Washington state Senator Don Benton is moved over to head the Selective Service program.
- Afghan officials claim that 36 Islamic militants were killed by a giant conventional bomb dropped by the US on the militants' tunnel complex.
- 90 days ago today, the president-elect tweeted, "My people will have a full report on hacking within 90 days!”
- The Trump administration has never initiated, nor has it ever announced plans for its own investigation into the Russian hacking scandal.
- It's possible that the president meant that the WH will have a full report on Russian hacking by Day 90 of his administration, which, to be fair, is still 6 days away.
Day 85
- Air China announces it will suspend flights to Pyongyang, North Korea, starting on Monday.
- Beijing warns North Korea though an editorial in a state-sponsored paper that they may limit oil shipments if North Korea goes ahead with a suspected nuclear test on day Day 86.
- Another golf outing for the president today in West Palm Beach.
- Citing the need for the president to seek advice from whomever he wants without being obligated to disclose who they are, the WH will keep its visitor records secret.
- CIA director Pompeo brands Wikileaks as "a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia.”
- This goes against the president's past frequent and glowing praise for Wikileaks.
- Attorney General Sessions says he's "surprised" that people don't seem to like his virulent anti-marijuana stance.
- Candice Jackson, the new head of the Office for Civil Rights for the Dept of Education, has complained in the past about suffering racial discrimination due to her white heritage.
Day 86
Day 87
Day 88
Day 89
Day 90
- Another day of golfing in West Palm Beach.
- Thousands march in 150 US cities, demanding the president release his income tax records.
- The president has reportedly made it clear that he wants a ride in the Queen's gold-plated horse carriage for his scheduled visit in October.
- This will bring about monumental logistical problems with providing security for this type of conveyance.
- The president's lawyers say that he is immune from the ongoing lawsuits against him for inciting violence at his election rallies because, "he is president of the United States."
- North Korean missile malfunctions and blows up almost immediately on a test flight.
- Vice president Pence arrives in South Korea.
- Senate majority leader McConnell says that tax reform, the next item on the Trump legislative agenda after health care, will "hopefully" pass by some time towards the end of this year.
Day 87
- From his private luxury Florida golf resort, tweets out two responses to the Tax Day protests.
- "I did what was an almost an impossible thing to do for a Republican-easily won the Electoral College! Now Tax Returns are brought up again?"
- "Someone should look into who paid for the small organized rallies yesterday. The election is over!"
Day 88
- Calls president Erdogan of Turkey to congratulate him on narrowly winning a referendum that will erode Turkey's democracy and give the leader near-dictatorial powers.
- Foreign observers report that up to 2.5 million votes may have been manipulated in the referendum. Erdogan says the observers should, "know their place."
- Tweets "The super Liberal Democrat in the Georgia Congressioal race tomorrow wants to protect criminals, allow illegal immigration and raise taxes!"
- The candidate he's tweeting about, Democrat Jon Ossoff, is said to have an even chance to win a Congressional seat easily held by Republicans for the last few decades.
- Hosts the 139th annual Easter Egg Roll. Nashville-based band Martin Family Circus heads the list of entertainers.
- As he walks through the crowd at the event, two fans give the president their hats to sign. He signs each and throws them high in the air and carelessly back into the crowd.
- Tax preparation firms are reporting that income tax filings from ITIN holders are significantly down this year.
- ITIN holders do not have Social Security numbers. For the most part, they are illegal aliens who pay taxes. They paid $24 billion last year.
Day 89
- Tweets, "The weak illegal immigration policies of the Obama Admin. allowed bad MS 13 gangs to form in cities across U.S. We are removing them fast!"
- The MS-13 gangs formed and grew in the early 2000's, during the first term of the Bush administration.
- Signs executive order designed to cut H1B guest worker visas for skilled foreign workers.
- H2B visas, for unskilled workers such as the maids at the president's luxury Mar-A-Lago resort, will be unaffected.
- Homeland Security Sec John Kelly says congress members who object to his policy of deporting illegal aliens for marijuana possession should "shut up and support the men and women on the front lines."
- Ivanka Trump, currently an unpaid government employee, joins her father in being awarded difficult-to-obtain Chinese trademark concessions for her brand of products.
- Last year, Apple Inc. lost a trademark battle in China, and has no exclusive right to sell its own iPhone logo on leather goods there.
- The USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group, reported on Day 81 to have been steaming towards North Korea, is currently in the Sunda Strait near the Indian Ocean, thousands of miles away from the Korean peninsula.
Day 90
- Press Sec Spicer, asked about the Vinson carrier strike group, says "The president said we have an armada that’s going toward the peninsula. That’s a fact, it happened. It is happening, rather.”
- It's reported that Trump's inaugural committee raised $106.7 million, about twice as much as president Obama’s committee raised in 2009.
- Most of the million dollar plus contributions came from fossil fuel, pharmaceutical, financial and food and beverage corporations that stand to profit greatly from regulation shredding.
- Three current and former US officials report that two confidential documents have emerged from the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies.
- This institute is staffed by retired senior Russian foreign intelligence officials appointed by Putin.
- One document recommended a strong push by Russian agents on social media to encourage US voters to elect a president who will take a softer line towards Russia.
- The other document concluded that, it being likely at the time that Hillary Clinton would be elected, it was better for Russia to scale down its pro-Trump propaganda in favor of spreading doubts about the integrity of the election.
- The WH is reportedly pushing for another vote to repeal and replace Obamacare before Day 100, in order to have a legislative victory to tout by that deadline.
- The president says, "We are going to have a big win soon, because we are going to have health care and that's gonna happen."
- He says, "No administration has accomplished more in the first 90 days,”
- This record shows that the president has accomplished remarkably little in his first 90 days.
Day 91
Day 92
Day 93
- In court today, the president's lawyers argue that protesters at his rallies have no right to express dissent.
- Their reasoning is that protesters are infringing on the president's First Amendment rights by disagreeing with him.
- Budget Chief Mulvaney says Democrats in the House should help fund the border wall with Mexico because "elections have consequences," and "they lost the election."
- Attorney General Sessions is "amazed" that Trump's second attempt at a travel ban could be blocked by "a judge sitting on an island in the Pacific."
- He's referring to a federal judge from the State of Hawaii.
- Sessions, after vowing to "use every tool" against criminals and drug offenders, has so far filled none of the 93 open US attorney positions.
- South Korean officials and media outlets are expressing their anger at the WH falsely reporting that the USS Carl Vinson strike group was sailing in their direction.
- Presidential candidate Hong Joon-pyo says, "If that was a lie, then during Trump's term, South Korea will not trust whatever Trump says."
- Turning to our trade relations with Canada, our president says, "what they have done to our dairy farmer workers is a disgrace."
- FCC votes to eliminate price caps for Internet broadband service for schools, libraries and hospitals.
- FCC head Pai claims there is "sufficient competition" to keep pricing down for these locations.
- 97% of the locations in question have either two or just one Internet provider as their only choices.
Day 92
- Tweets, "No matter how much I accomplish during the ridiculous standard of the first 100 days, & it has been a lot (including S.C.), media will kill!"
- Several mental health professionals, speaking at a congress at Yale University, claim that the president is "paranoid and delusional," and should be removed from office under article 4 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution.
- Treasury Department says it will not grant ExxonMobil a waiver to drill in areas of Russia currently under sanctions.
- Mysterious shell companies are some of the new purchasers of several million dollars worth of Trump real estate holdings.
- 53% of Trump voters believe that president Obama played more golf than president Trump during their respective first 90 days in office.
- Obama played no golf at all until Day 97 of his first term.
- Surgeon General Murthy is asked to resign, refuses and is fired, according to his wife, Alice Chen.
- No reason was given for his removal, other than the need for a "smooth transition."
- Dr. Murthy was a vocal opponent of gun violence, and the NRA lobbied heavily against his confirmation in 2014.
- Egyptian/American charity worker Aya Hijazi, her husband and four others are released from 3 years of detention in Egypt, in part through the president's efforts.
- House leaders are working on a new version of Trumpcare in an attempt to expedite passing it between Day 96, when the House returns from Easter break, and Day 100.
- This version of Trumpcare appears to retain essential coverage standards, but will allow States to opt out of almost every part of health coverage, as well as allow them to oversee high premiums for preexisting conditions.
- As with the previous version of Trumpcare, it will strip large amounts of funding from Medicaid, a program which has helped to make health care and nursing homes affordable to the sick, the poor and the elderly since 1982.
Day 93
- Visits Walter Reed Hospital and hands out a Purple Heart to Sergeant First Class Alvaro Barrientos.
- Says to Barrientos, who appears from the published picture to have lost his right leg below the knee, "Congratulations on behalf of Melania and myself and the entire nation."
- Tens of thousands take part in the March for Science protests in 600 cities across the world.
- Today is Earth Day. To commemorate the day, president issues a statement claiming that "economic growth enhances environmental protection."
- Economic growth, when not sufficiently regulated, has historically been a major cause of environmental degradation.
Day 94: The day that nearly broke America's brain.
Day 94
AP: This morning you tweeted that after the possible terrorist attack in Paris, that it will have a big effect on the upcoming French election. What did you mean by that?
TRUMP: Well, I think it will have a big effect on who people are going to vote for in the election.
AP: Do you think it’s going to help Marine Le Pen?
TRUMP: I think so.
AP: Do you believe that she should be the president?
TRUMP: No, I have no comment on that, but I think that it’ll probably help her because she is the strongest on borders and she is the strongest on what’s been going on in France.
AP: Do you worry at all that by saying that, that a terrorist attack would have an impact on a democratic election, that it would actually embolden terrorists to try to...
TRUMP: No. Look, everybody is making predictions who is going to win. I am no different than you, you could say the same thing. ...
AP: I just wonder if you are encouraging, you are the president of the United States, so to say that you worry that it encourages terrorists ...
TRUMP: No, I am no different than — no, I think it discourages terrorists, I think it discourages. I think what we’ve done on the border discourages it.
AP: On Iran, which is another thing you talked a lot on the campaign...
TRUMP: And the other thing that we should go after is the leakers. ...
AP: Do you feel that one of the things with cable is there’s such real-time reaction with everything you say?
TRUMP: Yeah.
AP: Can you separate that sometimes from that actual decision?
TRUMP: The one thing...
AP: That you have to do...
TRUMP: OK. The one thing I’ve learned to do that I never thought I had the ability to do. I don’t watch CNN anymore.
AP: You just said you did.
TRUMP: No. No, I, if I’m passing it, what did I just say (inaudible)?
AP: You just said...
TRUMP: Where? Where?
AP: Two minutes ago.
TRUMP: No, they treat me so badly. No, I just said that. No, I, what’d I say, I stopped watching them. But I don’t watch CNN anymore. I don’t watch MSNBC. I don’t watch it. Now I heard yesterday that MSNBC, you know, they tell me what’s going on.
AP: Right.
Day 94
- Tweets, "Eventually, but at a later date so we can get started early, Mexico will be paying, in some form, for the badly needed border wall."
- AP releases a transcript of its interview with the president.
- Brings up obtaining the release of detained charity worker Aya Hijazi from Egypt, says, "You know Obama worked on it for three years, got zippo, zero."
- Trump has highly praised Egyptian leader Sisi and his authoritarian regime, which has cracked down heavily on activists since Sisi seized power in a military coup in 2013.
- Recounts how he continues to insist to the leaders of Germany and Italy that they "pay up," referring to NATO dues which do not exist.
- Claims the concept of his first 100 days in office is "just an artificial barrier."
- When its pointed out that he and his campaign touted a first 100 day plan, and that he mentioned it in his speeches, says, "Somebody, yeah, somebody put out the concept of a hundred-day plan."
- Asked if he should feel accountable to his 100 day plan, says "No, because much of the foundation’s been laid. Things came up."
- Calls members of the press "very stupid people," for pointing out his 180° change in stance regarding China being a currency manipulator.
- Lists the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Gorsuch as "the biggest thing I’ve done."
- Asked about other achievements, says, "Our military is so proud. They were not proud at all. They had their heads down. Now they have their heads up."
- Talks extensively about saving $725 milion on the F-35 fighter plane budget, calling it "a massive amount of money."
- The president's proposed budget will increase military spending by $54 billion in one year.
- Promises, on day 97, to roll out a tax reform package that will be, "a massive tax cut. It will be bigger, I believe, than any tax cut ever. Maybe the biggest tax cut we’ve ever had."
- Asked about the border wall, says, "People want the border wall. My base definitely wants the border wall, my base really wants it."
- Adds, "My base, which is a big base; I think my base is 45 percent."
- From there, he drifts for several minutes into his standard re-litigation of the 2016 election.
- Brought back to the subject of the wall and its potential costs, says, "Oh I’m seeing numbers--$24 billion, I think I’ll do it for $10 billion or less."
- Asked what he'll do if he can't get the funding for it from Congress, says, "that wall’s getting built, OK? One hundred percent. One hundred percent it’s getting built."
- Asked about his earlier statements that NATO was obsolete because it didn't focus on terrorism, says, " You know, back when they did NATO there was no such thing as terrorism."
AP: This morning you tweeted that after the possible terrorist attack in Paris, that it will have a big effect on the upcoming French election. What did you mean by that?
TRUMP: Well, I think it will have a big effect on who people are going to vote for in the election.
AP: Do you think it’s going to help Marine Le Pen?
TRUMP: I think so.
AP: Do you believe that she should be the president?
TRUMP: No, I have no comment on that, but I think that it’ll probably help her because she is the strongest on borders and she is the strongest on what’s been going on in France.
AP: Do you worry at all that by saying that, that a terrorist attack would have an impact on a democratic election, that it would actually embolden terrorists to try to...
TRUMP: No. Look, everybody is making predictions who is going to win. I am no different than you, you could say the same thing. ...
AP: I just wonder if you are encouraging, you are the president of the United States, so to say that you worry that it encourages terrorists ...
TRUMP: No, I am no different than — no, I think it discourages terrorists, I think it discourages. I think what we’ve done on the border discourages it.
- Asked about NAFTA, says, 'I am very upset with NAFTA. I think NAFTA has been a catastrophic trade deal for the United States."
- Adds, "If they don’t treat fairly, I am terminating NAFTA.
- Asked about Wikileaks, says, "You know, they tried to hack the Republican, the RNC, but we had good defenses."
- Adds, "They weren’t able to get through to Republicans."
- FBI Director Comey testified that the RNC was hacked, but not to the extent to which the DNC was compromised.
- RNC emails from older domains were obtained, but none were leaked.
- Asked if he supported Assange's leaking of DNC emails, says, "No, I don’t support or unsupport. It was just information."
- The president, at a campaign rally on Oct 10, said, "I love Wikileaks," then proceeded to read out leaked DNC emails to the crowd.
AP: On Iran, which is another thing you talked a lot on the campaign...
TRUMP: And the other thing that we should go after is the leakers. ...
- Brought back to Iran, says he feels that they are violating the spirit of the nuclear agreement made with the US due to "what they are doing all over the Middle East and beyond."
- The interviewer presses him but he won't give any details as to what he feels Iran is doing to violate the spirit of the nuclear agreement.
- Brings up his Day 40 speech to Congress, says, "A lot of the people have said that, some people said it was the single best speech ever made in that chamber."
- No one has said that.
- On the possibility of an increase in US troops in the Middle East, says, "It could be an increase, then an increase. But not many more. I want to do the job, but not many more. ... This is an important story. I’ve done a lot. I’ve done more than any other president in the first 100 days and I think the first 100 days is an artificial barrier. And I’m scheduled ... the foundations have been set to do some great things. With foreign countries. Look at, look at President Xi. I mean ..."
- Asked if he has the right team in place for the next 100 days, drifts off into another long rant about the 2016 Election.
- Wraps it up with the thoroughly debunked lie or delusion that Representative Cummings (D) MD, told him, "you will be the greatest president in the history of this country."
- Does not allow the interviewer to correct him on this point.
- Brags that his ratings on Face the Nation--the show he calls 'Deface the Nation" were the show's highest since "the World Trade Center came down."
- Complains about being treated unfairly by the "fake media", and asserts that Fox news is not granting him favorable treatment; they are simply reporting on him in the most accurate manner.
AP: Do you feel that one of the things with cable is there’s such real-time reaction with everything you say?
TRUMP: Yeah.
AP: Can you separate that sometimes from that actual decision?
TRUMP: The one thing...
AP: That you have to do...
TRUMP: OK. The one thing I’ve learned to do that I never thought I had the ability to do. I don’t watch CNN anymore.
AP: You just said you did.
TRUMP: No. No, I, if I’m passing it, what did I just say (inaudible)?
AP: You just said...
TRUMP: Where? Where?
AP: Two minutes ago.
TRUMP: No, they treat me so badly. No, I just said that. No, I, what’d I say, I stopped watching them. But I don’t watch CNN anymore. I don’t watch MSNBC. I don’t watch it. Now I heard yesterday that MSNBC, you know, they tell me what’s going on.
AP: Right.
Day 95:
Day 96
Day 97
Day 98
- State Department removes a blog post promoting the president's private luxury golf resort, Mar-A-Lago, following criticism over ethics concerns.
- Budget Director Mulvaney says he's offered a deal to House Democrats: If they agree to help fund the border wall, the WH will not cut off subsidies that allow the poor to afford health care.
- President asks the UN for stronger sanctions against North Korea.
- A new poll says 73% of Americans would prefer an independent investigation of the Trump campaign's Russian ties; only 16% feel that Congress should be handling it.
- French presidential election is being plagued by the same type of social media accounts spreading fake news as was seen in the 2016 US election.
- The Russians are again suspected to be at the center of these attempts to elect their preferred candidate in another country.
- Russian hackers are targeting French candidate Macron and leaving Le Pen, the candidate they support, alone.
Day 96
- Judge blocks WHs order threatening to take away federal funds from sanctuary cities.
- Senior WH Aide Sebastian Gorka walks out of Georgetown conference after fielding a few questions he didn't like from undergraduate students.
- Gorka opened with confrontational remarks, accusing establishment journalists of using anonymous sources to manufacture fake news stories.
- Members of the audience began to pull out their phones, ostensibly to check on Gorka's bio.
- Questions were then posed about his alleged ties to the Hungarian Nazi-affiliated group, The Order of Vitez, as well as Gorka's harsh anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric.
- After a handful of questions, Gorka departed abruptly, reportedly "huffing and puffing and just very angry."
- Women's panel in Germany hisses and boos Ivanka Trump after she says her father "has been a tremendous champion of supporting families and enabling them to thrive."
- In a new poll 36% of Republicans say that freedom of the press "does more harm than good."
- Some conservative press reporters and personalities, invited to a briefing at the WH for the pro-Trump media only, are reportedly disappointed that their cell phones were confiscated, rendering them unable to record the event.
- WH denies request from the House Oversight Committee for information on payments former national security adviser Michael Flynn received from Russia.
- The WH's reasoning is, "It is unclear how such documents would be relevant to the stated purpose of the committee's review."
- Both ranking members of the House Oversight Committee then announce that they believe Flynn did not comply with the law that bars former military officers from accepting payments from foreign governments, in Flynn's case the countries were Russia and Turkey.
- Breaking this law is a felony.
- Pentagon inspector general launches an investigation on the Flynn foreign payments.
Day 97
- Signs executive order directing federal officials to review existing protected national monuments with an eye towards rescinding those protections in favor of natural resource exploitation.
- Misidentifies the judge who issued the injunction halting the his plans for stripping funding for sanctuary cities as being a judge from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
- Tells the conservative Washington Examiner that, "There are many people that want to break up the 9th Circuit."
- Vows in a tweet to take the fight to the Supreme Court.
- WH opens a new hotline, 855-48-VOICE, to report crimes or ostensibly any activity by illegal aliens.
- Critics respond by calling 855-48-VOICE and reporting space alien activity.
- WH announces the president is considering signing an executive order directing the USA to pull out of the 23-year old NAFTA trade agreement with Canada and Mexico.
- A few hours later, the president announces that he will not pull out of NAFTA.
- House Republicans add provision to new Trumpcare bill that would allow House members and their staff and families to be covered for essential care and pre-existing conditions if their home State opts out of these coverages.
- The same Republicans are responsible for the State opt-out option.
- As mentioned in Day 92, if passed this option will likely take away or significantly degrade basic health care for tens of millions of older and lower income Americans.
- Treasury Sec Mnuchin announces the president's tax plan.
- Corporate taxes to be slashed from 35% to 15%, nearly guaranteeing a massive increase in the federal deficit.
- Ending taxpayer deductions for paying State and local taxes, which will increase payments for taxpayers in blue states like New York and California.
- Reducing the number of tax brackets by way of dispensing with the top $39.6% bracket for wealthy taxpayers.
- Eliminating the alternative minimum tax, saving money for the 4 million wealthy taxpayers in the upper middle class and above, and further increasing the deficit.
- During the 2016 campaign the president said of his tax program, “It’s going to cost me a fortune, which is actually true.”
- The statement was not at all true
- Doubling the standard deduction, helping lower wage taxpayers, and still increasing the federal deficit.
- Providing unspecified tax relief for families with child care and dependent care responsibilities.
- Repealing estate taxes, helping those with large inheritances from wealthy parents and relatives.
- A clause for further defunding of Obamacare.
- A one-time tax on corporate dollars held overseas.
- The president's tax plan is to be understood as a wish list, submitted to congress a few days before the 100 day deadline.
- Congress will be responsible for creating and passing its own tax plan.
- Experts predict the president's target numbers are unlikely to make it intact into any legislation that emerges.
- After announcing the president's tax plan, Sec Mnuchin is asked if the president plans on releasing his own tax information.
- Mnuchin responds, "The president has no intention....The president has released plenty of information and has given more financial disclosure than anybody else."
- This is an absurd lie.
Day 98
- It's reported that the president's reversal on NAFTA happened due in part to Agriculture Sec Purdue bringing an electoral map to the WH and showing the president the areas where voters would be hurt by rescinding NAFTA, and emphasized that most of those voters were Trump voters.
- Reflecting on his first 100 days as president, says "This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier.”
- Reporters discover that the president still keeps copies of the 2016 electoral map on his desk, and hands them out to visitors.
- Upon signing one of his new Executive Orders, says, "So this is promoting agriculture and rural prosperity in America. And, now, there’s a lot of words. I won’t bother reading everything. But agriculture and rural prosperity in America, that’s what we want."
- After a week of making pointed threats of US military action against North Korea, says "I informed South Korea it would be appropriate if they paid," for the missile defense system installed to protect the country from a North Korean attack.
- A missile and artillery barrage on South Korea would be a near-guarantee in the immediate aftermath of any US-North Korean hostilities.
- Seoul, South Korea's capital of 10 million people, sits a few miles from their border with North Korea.
- House delays new Trumpcare vote until after Day 100, denying the president a legislative victory before that milestone.
- Press Sec Spicer blames the Obama administration for renewing the security clearance of embattled former Trump campaign national security adviser Flynn.
- Obama fired Flynn from the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014, two years before Trump hired him for his presidential campaign.
Day 99
Day 100
Conclusion:
Much better writers are handling this milestone. I will be as brief here as I can.
This president, in his first 100 days, has been contentious and wildly ineffective at his best. Most Americans are thankful for this, as his agenda--such as it is--is disastrous.
The president is a habitual liar. He seems to enjoy it. He sends his lieutenants out nearly every day to tell absurd lies to the country, and he watches them squirm on the screen in his office . He's shown no empathy for others; quite the opposite in cases. He is unable to handle criticism in a positive or even a neutral manner. He is obsessed with being a celebrity figure. He lacks the intellectual curiosity which is essential for uncovering facts and sorting through details. He's done nothing to counter his record of entrenched sexism and bigotry. He has viciously derided our freedoms and institutions whenever they've become inconvenient for his agenda. He has done nothing to show that he is not using his office to enrich himself, his family and his friends. He has antagonized our allies, and he has given comfort and support to regimes who are opposed to our American ideals. And lately he has shown puzzling speech patterns and behavior which appear to be similar to symptoms of age-related dementia.
In conclusion, after following this administration closely for the last 100 days, it is this compiler's opinion that Mr. Trump is unworthy to serve our country in his current capacity. In just 100 days he has already shown himself in many cases to be an historical embarrassment to the office of the president. Going forward, an obligation falls on all of us, to do what we can, using our individual abilities within our legal rights, to ensure that this administration will be known to future generations for its ineffectiveness, rather than the series of disasters it brought about.
- Sources close to the Trump-Russia investigation report that the Trump team vetted Flynn before hiring him as national security adviser, and that they were aware of his potentially felonious business ties to Turkey.
- Another North Korea test firing of a ballistic missile fails.
- Gives speech to the National Rifle Association.
- In the interest of context, NRA chief LaPierre once said, "Academic elites, political elites and media elites. These are America's greatest domestic threats."
- LaPierre shares the same principles with Pol Pot, former ruler of Cambodia, responsible for the murders of 2 million of his own people, most of the slain being academic elites, political elites and media elites.
- The president says, "I want to also thank Wayne LaPierre for his unflinching leadership in the fight for freedom."
- Launches into his standard tirade, again re-litigating the 2016 election in mind-numbing detail over several minutes.
- Calls Senator Warren 'Pocahontas' again.
- Touts his accomplishment of helping to streamline veterans benefits, which is an extension of an existing Obama-era program.
- Says, "It’s been a tough fight against those who would go so far as to ban private gun ownership entirely."
- No one in either party in any of the three branches of government has suggested anything like this in more than a generation.
- Says, "The eight-year assault on your Second Amendment freedoms has come to a crashing end."
- Offers no evidence, or even an anecdote, suggesting that gun rights were less protected during the Obama administration in comparison to the Bush II administration.
- Touts his other accomplishment in office, nominating Justice Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
- Claims to have achieved a 73% decrease in illegal immigration since his election.
- Says, "We’ll build the wall. Don't even think about it. Don't even think about it. Don't even think about it. That's an easy one. We're going to build the wall. We need the wall."
- Adds, "And it’s a wall in certain areas. Obviously, where you have these massive physical structures you don't need...and we have certain big rivers and all."
- The Rio Grande serves as the US-Mexico border along 1255 of the border's 1989 miles
- In many places, the river is shallow and easy to cross on foot.
- Says, "Hundreds of individuals from other countries have been charged with terrorism-related offenses in the United States."
- 28 people from other countries have been convicted of terrorism in the 16 years since 9/11. 25 of the 28 convictions were for crimes outside of the US. Only 3 of them were for crimes inside the US. 2 of those remaining 3 were for plotting crimes, not for committing them.
- Congress passes stopgap funding bill to keep the government running for one more week.
- The economy grew slowly during the first quarter of 2017, posting a 0.7% increase in GDP, down from the 2.5% posted in the final quarter of the Obama administration.
- Treasury Sec Ross blames this recent slump on the "dismal economy inherited by the Trump administration."
- In his weekly radio address, announces, ""My fellow Americans, I truly believe that the first 100 days of my administration has been just about the most successful in our country's history."
Day 100
- Tweets, "Mainstream (FAKE) media refuses to state our long list of achievements, including 28 legislative signings, strong borders & great optimism."
- The 28 signings are as follows: 13 rollbacks of Obama-era laws, mostly environmental and consumer safety protections, 3 modifications to existing programs, 2 suggestions to modify programs, 2 namings of veterans affairs clinics, 1 encouragement to fly the flag on Vietnam Veterans Day, 1 allowing for the building of a memorial for Desert Storm, 5 executive branch personnel matters, and 1 extension of an Obama-era law allowing veterans to streamline their care outside the VA system.
- Proclaims May 1st as "Loyalty Day."
- An estimated 200,000 people participate in the Climate March on Washington DC.
- The president holds another rally for himself, gathering his supporters in Pennsylvania.
- The Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center hosting the rally normally seats 7600, though the State department of Agriculture claims it can hold up to 11000.
- In any case, there are empty rows at the top of the arena when the president speaks at his free event.
- He claims the crowd is a record-breaker, and that people are lined up outside to get in, but he has always lied about crowd sizes.
- The president saves tonight's vitriol for the media, calling the concurrent White House Correspondent's Dinner, “a large group of Hollywood actors and Washington media consoling each other in a hotel ballroom.”
- He then rails about the "Fake News" media and the "totally failing" New York Times and lies for what seems the hundredth time about how the NYT apologized for their coverage of him.
- At several points the crowd spontaneously breaks out into chants of "Lock her up."
- Later, the chants change to "Build that wall," and the president responds.
- “Don’t worry, we’re going to have the wall. Don’t even worry about it. Rest assured. Go home. Go to sleep.”
- Donald Trump finishes his first 100 days with the lowest approval ratings of any president at this point since the polling began with president Roosevelt in 1932.
Conclusion:
Much better writers are handling this milestone. I will be as brief here as I can.
This president, in his first 100 days, has been contentious and wildly ineffective at his best. Most Americans are thankful for this, as his agenda--such as it is--is disastrous.
The president is a habitual liar. He seems to enjoy it. He sends his lieutenants out nearly every day to tell absurd lies to the country, and he watches them squirm on the screen in his office . He's shown no empathy for others; quite the opposite in cases. He is unable to handle criticism in a positive or even a neutral manner. He is obsessed with being a celebrity figure. He lacks the intellectual curiosity which is essential for uncovering facts and sorting through details. He's done nothing to counter his record of entrenched sexism and bigotry. He has viciously derided our freedoms and institutions whenever they've become inconvenient for his agenda. He has done nothing to show that he is not using his office to enrich himself, his family and his friends. He has antagonized our allies, and he has given comfort and support to regimes who are opposed to our American ideals. And lately he has shown puzzling speech patterns and behavior which appear to be similar to symptoms of age-related dementia.
In conclusion, after following this administration closely for the last 100 days, it is this compiler's opinion that Mr. Trump is unworthy to serve our country in his current capacity. In just 100 days he has already shown himself in many cases to be an historical embarrassment to the office of the president. Going forward, an obligation falls on all of us, to do what we can, using our individual abilities within our legal rights, to ensure that this administration will be known to future generations for its ineffectiveness, rather than the series of disasters it brought about.
I screwed up on Day 100. Trump didn't proclaim May 1 as Loyalty Day, he posted a reminder of it as an already existing observed day in the US.
Loyalty day was originally invented to counteract the Russian's celebration of May Day, and also to get ahead of potential labor unrest, as it's International Worker's Day in most other places.
Loyalty day was originally invented to counteract the Russian's celebration of May Day, and also to get ahead of potential labor unrest, as it's International Worker's Day in most other places.
Great job Suited!
I thought the first 100 were pretty much what was expected. He is very incompetent and his supporters have very very low standards so they dont care. The first Muslim ban pretty much displays all of Trumpism. Unnecessary, incompetently written, poorly executed and a complete fail even if you were dumb enough to believe it needed to be done
I thought the first 100 were pretty much what was expected. He is very incompetent and his supporters have very very low standards so they dont care. The first Muslim ban pretty much displays all of Trumpism. Unnecessary, incompetently written, poorly executed and a complete fail even if you were dumb enough to believe it needed to be done
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