Historians we checked with mostly agreed that Trump’s appointment of Neil Gorsuch to fill a Supreme Court vacancy was a significant event, and one that could influence public policy long after Trump leaves the White House. "Everyone does that, so it doesn’t give him a comparative edge," said David Greenberg, a Rutgers University historian who has written books about Presidents Richard Nixon and Calvin Coolidge. Bush overturned Clinton’s opposition to a ban on aid to international groups that participate in abortions. Bush administrations, and with equal speed, President George W. While these may eventually have a significant impact, it’s worth noting that many new presidents routinely issue orders during their first 100 days that overturn actions of their predecessors of the opposite party.įor instance, just two days after taking office, President Bill Clinton signed orders overturning restrictions on abortion imposed during the Reagan and George H.W. Some of these started the ball rolling to overturn federal regulations. Meanwhile, by the time of the Kenosha speech, Trump had signed 24 executive orders, 22 presidential memorandums, and 20 proclamations, the Post noted. Moreover, many of Trump’s bills were "minor or housekeeping bills," and none met a longstanding political-science standard for "major bills." By contrast, at least nine of Roosevelt’s did. The Post counted 28 bills signed by Trump - the highest since 1949, but well below the 76 signed by Roosevelt in 1933.
Let’s start with the raw numbers, Our friends at the Washington Post Fact Checker did some calculations comparing Trump’s bill-signing output to that of his predecessors during their first 100 days. Brands, a presidential historian at the University of Texas-Austin whose books include Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This meant they "did not have much in the way of legislative achievements during that period," Skidmore said.Īll in all, "most presidents have not considered 100 days a significant milepost," said H.W. Skidmore, a University of Missouri-Kansas City political scientist who has written several books on the presidency. Just because a president signs a significant law outside the 100-day window doesn’t make it less of an accomplishment.įor instance, Johnson and Ronald Reagan "laid the groundwork for gigantic accomplishments" such as on civil rights and taxes, respectively, that fell outside the 100-day window, said Princeton University historian Sean Wilentz.Īnd both Truman and Dwight Eisenhower were preoccupied with wars during their first 100 days, said Max J. Perhaps most notably, there is widespread agreement among historians that the 100-day standard is arbitrary. Without a crisis, Congress is less likely to act quickly. This was true for Roosevelt (the Great Depression), Truman (the end of World War II), Ford (the Watergate scandal), and Barack Obama (the Great Recession). In addition, it’s easier for a president to put points on the board quickly if they enter office in the midst of a national crisis. The latter category includes presidents who took over after the death of their predecessor (such as Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson) or their predecessor’s resignation (Gerald Ford). While there’s a lot of nuance in gauging accomplishments, Trump doesn’t have much evidence to back up his boast that his administration has accomplished the most.Īll presidencies are different, and there’s an especially big difference between those that began after an election and those that got their start suddenly. We interviewed historians and considered the 100-day track records of presidents back to President Franklin D. He said more details would be offered as the 100-day mark approached.
TRUMPS FIRST ONE HUNDRED DAYS SERIES
The White House didn’t respond to an inquiry for this article, but when asked about some of the president’s 100-day accomplishments during the April 19 press briefing, White House press secretary Sean Spicer cited a series of executive orders, including some on regulatory reform a drop in border crossings and job creation. That’s a pretty high bar, especially for an administration that has registered historically low levels of support in public-approval polls for presidents this early in their terms. "No administration has accomplished more in the first 90 days," Trump told an audience in Kenosha, Wis. As he neared the end of his first 100 days in office, President Donald Trump touted his first three months as a rousing success.
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