President Trump’s First 100 Days: Government by Chaos
With one broken promise after another broken promise — and without a single major legislative accomplishment, the Trump administration may have set one record in its first 100 days: a record breaking number of blunders, falsehoods and crises.
Let’s name just a few
“Former CIA Director Brennan is deeply saddened and angered at Donald Trump’s despicable display of self-aggrandizement in front of CIA’s Memorial Wall of Agency heroes.” Brennan believed President Trump “should be ashamed of himself.”
- JANUARY 25th — Vanity Fair: Donald Trump Announces “Major Investigation” into Nonexistent Voter-Fraud Conspiracy
“Over the past several days, President Donald Trump has spent an inordinate amount of time claiming that he only lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton on account of 3 million to 5 million illegal votes. And now, he’s angling to do something about it.”
“It is a startling elevation of a political adviser, to a status alongside the secretaries of state and defense, and over the president’s top military and intelligence advisers.”
- JANUARY 30th — Washington Post: Angry Republicans lash out at Trump for not consulting them on travel ban
“At least a dozen key GOP lawmakers and aides said Trump’s order took them by surprise, even as the White House insisted that it collaborated with Congress. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan’s political team sought to reassure donors and other supporters that the temporary ban on travelers from seven majority-Muslim countries does not amount to a “religious test.” And a steady stream of Republican lawmakers released carefully tailored written statements expressing concerns about the order.”
- FEBRUARY 3rd — Washington Post: Kellyanne Conway cites ‘Bowling Green massacre’ that never happened to defend travel ban
“The Bowling Green massacre didn’t get covered because it didn’t happen. There has never been a terrorist attack in Bowling Green, Ky., carried out by Iraqi refugees or anyone else.”
- FEBRUARY 9th — New York Times: Court Refuses to Reinstate Travel Ban, Dealing Trump Another Legal Loss
“The three-judge panel, suggesting that the ban did not advance national security, said the administration had shown “no evidence” that anyone from the seven nations — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — had committed terrorist acts in the United States.”
The Trump administration has stumbled into crisis after crisis.
“Michael T. Flynn, the national security adviser, resigned on Monday night after it was revealed that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and other top White House officials about his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the United States.”
“The episode marks the second time in Trump’s nascent administration when the truthfulness of one of its top officials has come under scrutiny. In February, Trump fired his national security adviser, Michael Flynn, after The Post reported he had not fully disclosed his contacts with Russian officials.”
“Donald Trump remained unrepentant amid a diplomatic row with Britain on Friday, hours after US officials made a formal apology for accusing GCHQ of helping Barack Obama spy on the then presidential candidate.”
- MARCH 24th — Huffington Post: Steve Bannon Thought He Could Bully Republicans On Health Care. He Couldn’t.
“In a humiliating turn for Trump’s White House, the bill was pulled off the table just minutes before a vote was scheduled to take place on Friday.”
“The comments about Hitler were particularly damaging given criticisms that the White House has not done enough to fight anti-Semitism.”
- April 18th — New York Times: Aircraft Carrier Wasn’t Sailing to Deter North Korea, as U.S. Suggested
“By the time the White House was asked about the Carl Vinson, its imminent arrival had been emblazoned on front pages across East Asia, fanning fears that Mr. Trump was considering a pre-emptive military strike.”
This government by chaos is hurting American families because the Trump administration has failed to do much of anything to improve the bottom lines of those who are trying to make ends meet.
Our list of more than one hundred scandals, blunders, falsehoods, broken promises, errors, firings, withdrawals and examples of gross incompetence in the first 100 days of the Trump Administration:
January 20 — New York Magazine: Trump’s New Twitter Photo Is Actually From Obama’s 2009 Inauguration
January 21 — NBC News: Ex-CIA Boss Brennan, Others Rip Trump Speech in Front of Memorial
January 21 — CNN: White House press secretary attacks media for accurately reporting inauguration crowds
January 22 — CNN: Conway: Trump White House offered ‘alternative facts’ on crowd size
January 24 — Washington Post: Facing criticism, Trump administration has no regrets about leaving out Jews in Holocaust statement
January 25 — Vanity Fair: Donald Trump Announces “Major Investigation” into Nonexistent Voter-Fraud Conspiracy
January 25 — The Hill: Trump falsely claimed two were fatally shot in Chicago during Obama’s speech
January 26 — CNN: White House misspells Theresa May’s name ahead of meeting
January 26 — PBS: @POTUS Twitter account appears to be linked to a personal Gmail account
January 28 — New York Times: Bannon Is Given Security Role Usually Held for Generals
January 30 — Washington Post: Angry Republicans lash out at Trump for not consulting them on travel ban
January 30 — AP: Trump’s voter fraud expert registered in 3 states
January 31 — Boston Globe: WH spokesman: Trump called immigration action a ‘ban’ because the media used that word
January 31 — AP: Trump pledges beefed up cybersecurity but doesn’t sign order
February 1 — Washington Post: Trump implied Frederick Douglass was alive. The abolitionist’s family offered a ‘history lesson.’
February 1 — AP: Trump to Mexico: Take care of ‘bad hombres’ or US might
February 2 — Politico: Trump threatens to pull U.C. Berkeley funding after protests against Milo Yiannopoulos turn violent
February 2 — CNN: Trump at National Prayer Breakfast: ‘Pray for Arnold’
February 3 — Washington Post: Kellyanne Conway cites ‘Bowling Green massacre’ that never happened to defend travel ban
February 4 — Business Insider Australia: The White House just called Malcolm Turnbull ‘the president of Australia’
February 4 — Washington Post: Trump lashes out at ‘so-called judge’ who temporarily blocked travel ban
February 5 — Reuters: Trump says Pence will lead voter fraud panel
February 6 — Washington Post: President Trump is now speculating that the media is covering up terrorist attacks
February 6 — AP: First lady says high profile could mean millions for brand
February 6 — Politico: White House rattled by McCarthy’s spoof of Spicer
February 7 — Bloomberg: Trump Team Shuffles Lawyers in Hours Before Travel Ban Hearing
February 8 — The Hill: White House defends Trump’s tweet criticizing Nordstrom
February 8 — Washington Post: Journalist says Omarosa Manigault bullied her and mentioned a ‘dossier’ on her
February 9 — Business Insider: Trump reportedly revives false voter fraud claims, calling Elizabeth Warren ‘Pocahontas’
February 9 — New York Times: Court Refuses to Reinstate Travel Ban, Dealing Trump Another Legal Loss
February 10 — The Hill: Trump nixed candidate for State Department job over campaign criticism: report
February 11 — Miami Herald: Trump, Abe got North Korea missile news amid Mar-a-Lago crowd
February 11 — Roll Call: Mar-a-Lago Member Posts Photo with ‘Nuclear Football’ Aide
February 12 — Washington Post: Stephen Miller’s authoritarian declaration: Trump’s national security actions ‘will not be questioned’
February 12 — Washington Post: DeVos’s Education Department misspells name of NAACP co-founder in tweet — and the apology had a mistake
February 12 — Washington Post: Trump Posts Fake Abraham Lincoln Quote
February 13 — New York Times: Ethics Watchdog Denounces Conway’s Endorsement of Ivanka Trump Products
February 13 — New York Times: Michael Flynn Resigns as National Security Adviser
February 14 — BuzzFeed: Kellyanne Conway Claims She Doesn’t Know Who Retweeted A White Nationalist From Her Twitter Account
February 14 — USA Today: White House posts wrong versions of Trump’s orders on its website
February 15 — Politico: Labor nominee Puzder withdraws
February 16 — AP: Harward turns Trump down for national security adviser job
February 16 — CNN: Trump asks African-American reporter to set up meeting with black lawmakers
February 16 — CBS News: No, Trump’s victory was not the biggest Electoral College win since Reagan
February 17 — AP: DHS weighed Nat Guard for immigration roundups
February 18 — New York Times: ‘Last Night in Sweden’? Trump’s Remark Baffles a Nation
February 24 — New York Magazine: Trump Praises First Amendment, Calls for Media Suppression and Fewer Protests
February 24 — Washington Post: White House blocks CNN, New York Times from press briefing hours after Trump slams media
February 25 — CNN: Trump declines to attend White House correspondents’ dinner
February 26 — Politico: Sean Spicer targets own staff in leak crackdown
February 27 — CNN: Trump: ‘Nobody knew health care could be so complicated’
February 27 — NBC News: DeVos Slammed as ‘Totally Nuts’ for Calling HBCUs ‘Pioneers of School Choice’
March 3 — Wall Street Journal: Keystone Pipeline Won’t Have to Use U.S. Steel Despite Trump Pledge
March 3 — USA Today: President swings and misses twice in attempt to spell ‘hereby’
March 6 — New York Times: Ben Carson Refers to Slaves as ‘Immigrants’ in First Remarks to HUD Staff
March 7 — The Hill: Trump incorrectly blames Obama for release of 122 ‘vicious’ Gitmo detainees
March 9 — CNBC: EPA chief Scott Pruitt says carbon dioxide is not a primary contributor to global warming
March 13 — LA Times: Kellyanne Conway on surveillance: We have ‘microwaves that turn into cameras’
March 15 — CNN: Media protests after Tillerson takes only one reporter to Japan
March 15 — New York Times: Donald Trump Condemns Snoop Dogg on Twitter for Satirical Video
March 16 — New York Magazine: White House Says Cutting Meals on Wheels Is ‘Compassionate’
March 17 — NBC News: Trump to Merkel on Wiretaps: ‘At Least We Have Something in Common’
March 18 — Washington Post: No, Germany doesn’t owe America ‘vast sums’ of money for NATO
March 20 — Business Insider: Ivanka Trump is getting her own office in the West Wing, raising ethical concerns
March 21 — Washington Post: Trump: Most people don’t know President Lincoln was a Republican
March 21 — Daily Beast: Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn Didn’t Sign Trump’s Ethics Pledge
March 22 — New York Times: Rick Perry Calls Election a ‘Mockery.’ It’s Not What You’re Thinking.
March 24 — Huffington Post: Steve Bannon Thought He Could Bully Republicans On Health Care. He Couldn’t.
March 27 — Wall Street Journal: State Department Press Room Goes Dark — At Least for Now
March 28 — CNN: Exasperated Spicer tosses out salad dressing analogy to defend WH
March 28 — NBC News: ‘Stop Shaking Your Head’: Sean Spicer Lashes Out at Reporter April Ryan
March 29 — Politico: Judge maintains broad block on Trump travel ban
March 30 — Vanity Fair: EPA accidentally issues press release slamming Trump’s climate policy
March 31 — The Hill: Trump leaves photo op before signing executive orders
April 1 — AP: Trump aide urges defeat of Michigan member of Freedom Caucus
April 3 — The Hill: ProPublica fact-checks Spicer after he claims Trump trust docs were never altered
April 4 — Time: Rex Tillerson Offers ‘No Comment’ on North Korea Missile Launch
April 4 — The Guardian: Donald Trump’s response to Syria gas attack: blame Obama
April 5 — Hollywood Reporter: Trump Defends Bill O’Reilly: “He Shouldn’t Have Settled”
April 6 — The Hill: China approved three Ivanka trademarks on same day she met with Xi: report
April 10 — CNN: Trump, who scorned Obama’s golf habits, outpacing him in rounds
April 11 — The Hill: Spicer: Even Hitler didn’t use chemical weapons
April 12 — Elle: Audience Laughs as Kellyanne Conway Complains About Liars
April 14 — Time: The White House Will Keep Its Visitor Logs Secret
April 14 — CNN: Trump claims immunity as President in lawsuit
April 17 — CBS News: Melania appears to remind Trump to put hand on heart for national anthem
April 18 — New York Magazine: Trump Referred to Several Different North Korean Leaders As ‘This Gentleman’
April 18 — New York Times: Aircraft Carrier Wasn’t Sailing to Deter North Korea, as U.S. Suggested
April 20 — Politico: Trump blows his deadline on anti-hacking plan
April 23 — Washington Post: White House officials offer conflicting details of Trump tax plan
April 24 — Mic: Donald Trump may have lied in ‘AP’ interview about having “never heard” of WikiLeaks
April 24 — Washington Post: Trump boasts of highest TV ratings since ‘the World Trade Center came down’
April 24 — CNN: State Dept. blog promotes Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, prompting ethics concerns
April 24 — Bloomberg: Trump Adviser Gorka Walks Off Stage at a Discussion of Fake News
April 25 — CNN: White House denies House investigation request for Flynn documents
April 25 — CNN: House oversight panel: No sign Flynn complied with the law
April 25 — HuffPost: Trump Inauguration Admits Errors, Vows To Correct Numerous Faulty Donor Records
April 25 — Politico: Judge blocks Trump’s order on sanctuary cities
April 25 — Time: The White House Says Trump Signed More Executive Orders So Far Than FDR. That’s Wrong
April 26 — Politico: Trump incorrectly targets 9th circuit for blocking order on sanctuary cities
April 26 — The Hill: White House incorrectly calls Mnuchin secretary of commerce in press release
April 27 — Inside Climate News: Pruitt Pulls Out of GOP Fundraiser After Ethics Complaint
April 27 — New York Magazine: By Being Bad at His Job, Sean Spicer Nearly Causes Market Panic
