April 29, 2025 marked 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term in office.

It has been 100 days characterised by chaos as the president has sought to shake up the federal government under the guise of destroying the so-called deep state. In doing so he unleashed his “second in command”, and some would say the actual president, Elon Musk, on important government agencies. Musk and his young minions at the putative Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have embarked on their task with juvenile ferocity, shutting down important agencies like the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), relieving people from posts they have held for years, and intimidating others in a shambolic roll-out of policies not defined by any sense of compassion.

The reorganisation of important institutions in the Department of Health and Human Services under the leadership of Robert F Kennedy Jr has led to the termination of key programmes that functioned in the past to preserve the integrity of the health services given to people. Kennedy’s attitude towards vaccines, which was well known before the Republican-controlled Senate foisted him on the people, seems to be responsible for the increasing cases of measles throughout the country. Key health personnel have been fired and some rehired when the mistakes became too obvious.

Trump has moved to attack educational institutions, seeking to have inordinate authority over them that was never in the past exercised by the Executive. He has also attacked the legal establishment, getting some law firms to bow to his demands and threatening others to get in line, or else. While doing this, he has skirted the boundaries of the law, and in the case of Abrego Garcia, an American citizen who is being detained unlawfully in El Salvador, the Trump Administration seems to be disobeying the orders of the Supreme Court to have him returned to the United States.

Trump’s immigration policy is nothing but chaotic. The massive deportation that he talked about during the campaign has not occurred because of logistics and funding problems. More importantly, Trump is failing in this important area, where people expected him to excel most, precisely because his approaches were not well thought out and structured on fear, brutality, and obvious cruelty. A lot of innocent families are being hurt and there is fear in the land.

I have merely highlighted some of the most prominent aspects of the shambolic rule of Trump in the first 100 days. I could mention his Cabinet appointment of lackeys who would be willing to do his bidding, and the serious mistakes that some of them are making, especially at the US Department of Defense under Secretary Pete Hegseth. God only knows what is happening in other departments. I could also mention how he has marginalised and rendered the Republican-controlled Congress almost redundant. Its supine submission to his demands is a matter of grave danger to the country.

His expansive use of executive orders tells us that he regards the Congress as a mere humbug. More importantly, it is a testament to the disdain he has for the august body.

On every metric Trump is failing in his first 100 days. Poll after national poll reflects this. What should be of great interest to Trump is that he is failing in some of the most important areas that people, even some of his detractors, expected him to be strongest. Two areas stand out: immigration and the economy. Americans have for a long time recognised that immigration reform was impatient of redress, but many were astounded and later angered by the harsh approach of Trump to this matter and how unwilling he appears to subject his actions to the due process of law. The intimidation of even American citizens has left a lot of people uncertain about their own futures.

It is in the area of the economy that his failures are most obvious. Trump came in to power riding a crest of expectation that he would tame inflation and reduce the grocery bills of Americans. He spoke of a golden age for the American economy, promising to cut taxes which he believed would spur growth. This is still being pursued by the Congress and there is no clear path that it will bear good fruit. He did talk about tariffs, but not even the most learned economist could have imagined his shambolic and expansive approach to this subject. What leading economists have warned is that they are likely to spur inflation, if not cause stagflation (inflation with no growth). The dreaded word “recession” has now come into play.

Trumps tariff policy is not helped by his on-again, off-again approach. His frequent reversal of his position on tariffs has created uncertainty in the marketplace. Businesses, especially small businesses, do not know how to plan. Some have started to layoff staff, delay orders, or even prepare to file for bankruptcy. Of one thing one can be sure: Trump will not accept any responsibility for any damage to the economy caused by his policies. Former President Joe Biden and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will be used as scapegoats for his failed policies.

Meanwhile, there is the continued existential threat that his Administration poses to the country’s democratic way of life. Many people are beginning to see that his Administration really does not have a great deal of respect or admiration for the rule of law; thus, its attacks on judges and willingness to ignore the ruling of the courts. Yet these institutions constitute the best democratic traditions of the country that Americans must fight like hell to preserve if they want to save their country.

Donald Trump (AFP)

My suspicion is that when Musk leaves DOGE with egg on his face, the trumpist assault on the American work ethic will abate. What damage this unofficial branch of government may have done to the country thus far might be incalculable. My suspicion is that the Trump mobile is getting low on gas and we may have a period of drift, but he will still have 1,360 days left in office.

If there is not a seismic rejection of the hubris we have seen in the first 100 days, we can expect more of the carnage of which he spoke in his first inaugural.

Dr Raulston Nembhard is a priest, social commentator, and author of the books Finding Peace in the Midst of Life’s Storms; The Self-esteem Guide to a Better Life; and Beyond Petulance: Republican Politics and the Future of America. He hosts a podcast — Mango Tree Dialogues — on his YouTube channel. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or stead6655@aol.com.

Dr Raulston Nembhard