Trump Presidency News

Original reporting on the Trump presidency with in-depth coverage of the administration’s policies, appointments, and governance. Explore news, commentary, and analysis on how President Trump’s presidential leadership continues to define America’s political, economic, and cultural direction.
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  • opinion

    What African-Americans Have to Gain From a Trump Presidency
    A lot of strong words were thrown about in this year’s presidential campaign, but few packed as powerful a punch as a single question that Donald Trump asked black voters in August. “What do you have to lose?” The pundits didn’t seem to understand, but many of us knew exactly what he meant. While the black…
    Kay C. James
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  • news

    Trump’s Pick for EPA Has a History of Fighting the Agency
    President-elect Donald Trump reportedly has nominated Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt is known for waging legal battles against the EPA over its climate change agenda, suggesting that Trump could intend to make good on his promise to “get rid of [the agency] in almost every form.” Pruitt, a Republican,…
    Kelsey Bolar
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  • news

    Top House Republican Proposes Aggressive Plan to Help Trump Fight Terrorism
    Speaking at a military base in Tampa on Tuesday, President Barack Obama touted his legacy as commander-in-chief, making the case that “no foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland” during his eight years in office. On Wednesday, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee countered Obama’s state…
    Josh Siegel
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  • news

    How Democrats Could Regulate Internet Even After Trump Takes Office
    Democrats could maintain control of the agency making rules about the internet and other communications issues even after Donald Trump becomes president, as Democrats are pushing to lift the hold on President Barack Obama’s nominee to serve a second five-year term on the Federal Communications Commission. Outgoing Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is trying…
    Fred Lucas
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  • news

    Can Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos Really End Common Core?
    On the campaign trail, President-elect Donald Trump made big promises about getting rid of Common Core. “We’re going to end Common Core, we’re going to have education an absolute priority,” he said in a campaign video. Upon being nominated secretary of the Department of Education, Betsy DeVos made clear her stance against the national education standards….
    Kelsey Bolar
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  • opinion

    Trump-Tsai Phone Call a Good Start to Reforming US-Taiwan Relations
    The transition team has announced that President-elect Donald Trump spoke by phone with the president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen Friday. Not only is there nothing wrong with this, it could be a sign of good things to come in America’s Taiwan policy. U.S.-Taiwan relations operate under a number of restrictions derived from the three communiques with China…
    Walter Lohman
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  • news

    4 Things to Know About ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis, Trump’s Pick for Defense Secretary
    President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, retired four-star Marine Gen. James Mattis, is worried that the U.S. is retreating in a chaotic world. “Right now we have an America that is starting to reduce its role in the world,” Mattis said in a speech at The Heritage Foundation last year. “That’s not good.”…
    Josh Siegel
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  • news

    One of These 21 Men and Women Will Be Trump’s First Supreme Court Pick
    President-elect Donald Trump is that rare president who will nominate a Supreme Court justice almost immediately after taking office. Trump is expected to act quickly to fill the seat of Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in February. During a Thursday interview with Sean Hannity, Trump announced he’s narrowed his original list of 21 people to…
    Fred Lucas
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  • opinion

    No, Trump Likely Will Not Mediate India-Pakistan Conflict
    The Indian media is raising concern about President-elect Donald Trump’s phone conversation with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and what it might mean for his policies toward the subcontinent. While on the phone, Trump reportedly told the Pakistani prime minister, “I am ready and willing to play any role that you want me to play…
    Lisa Curtis
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  • news

    Meet Wilbur Ross, Trump’s Pick for Commerce Secretary
    President-elect Donald Trump tapped Wilbur Ross, an investor and longtime Trump associate, to serve as secretary of the Department of Commerce, the transition team announced Wednesday. “Wilbur Ross is a champion of American manufacturing and knows how to help companies succeed. Most importantly, he is one of the greatest negotiators I have ever met, and…
    Melissa Quinn
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  • news

    What to Know About Steven Mnuchin, Trump’s Pick for Treasury
    Though not a widely known quantity in Washington, Steven Mnuchin, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for treasury secretary, has had a seasoned career in high finance, in Hollywood, and, most recently, as finance chairman of the Trump campaign. “I am honored to have the opportunity to serve our great country in this important role,” Mnuchin, 54,…
    Fred Lucas
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  • news

    Trump Likely Has Insurmountable Lead Over Clinton in 3 States Challenged by Stein
    Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein’s effort to force recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania isn’t likely to change the presidential election result, most experts say. “The best hope whenever there is a recount is that it will validate numbers reasonably close to the original canvassing,” said Kay Stimson, spokeswoman for the National Association of Secretaries…
    Fred Lucas
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  • news

    See College Students’ Responses When Asked to Compare Castro to Trump
    College students in the nation’s capital thought it was a “tough question” whether former Cuban President Fidel Castro or American President-elect Donald Trump is more favorable. Campus Reform, a project of the Leadership Institute, polled several students at American University in Washington, D.C., and captured the students’ responses in the video below. Many students could…
    Leah Jessen
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  • news

    6 Interesting Facts About Elaine Chao, Trump’s Pick for Transportation Secretary
    President-elect Donald Trump tapped Elaine Chao to head the U.S. Department of Transportation, his transition team announced Tuesday. “Secretary Chao’s extensive record of strong leadership and her expertise are invaluable assets in our mission to rebuild our infrastructure in a fiscally responsible manner,” Trump said in a statement. “She has an amazing life story and has…
    Kelsey Bolar
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  • news

    After Castro’s Death, Trump Seeks ‘Concessions’ From Cuba
    Under the Castro regime in Cuba, Sebastian Arcos spent a year of his life in prison for trying to escape the grip of communism. But the death of Fidel Castro on Friday did not give Arcos immediate relief, because the regime that altered the course of his life remains in power. “I have become old…
    Josh Siegel
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  • news

    How Trump Can Reshape US Policy Toward Refugees
    As a candidate for president, Donald Trump advocated a restrictive U.S. policy toward refugee resettlement and other forms of legal immigration. In his speech accepting the Republican nomination for president, Trump said he would suspend immigration from countries that are “compromised by terrorism.” Trump, when he assumes office in January, will find that he has…
    Josh Siegel
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  • news

    Meet Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Pick for Education Secretary
    President-elect Donald Trump has selected billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVos, a relatively unknown figure on the national scene, to head the U.S. Department of Education. “Betsy DeVos is a brilliant and passionate education advocate,” Trump said in a press release. “Under her leadership we will reform the U.S. education system and break the bureaucracy that is…
    Kelsey Bolar
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  • news

    Trump to Follow Reagan Model in Federal Hiring Freeze
    President-elect Donald Trump won’t be saying you’re fired, but he will be saying you’re froze as a one means of shrinking the bureaucracy. Trump has pledged to reduce the federal workforce through attrition, and leaving positions unfilled through a hiring freeze. It’s part of his first 100-day plan that he first laid out during his…
    Fred Lucas
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  • news

    Clinton Critics Voice Disappointment After Trump Vows to Drop Investigation
    President-elect Donald Trump asserted Tuesday his administration would not further investigate his vanquished opponent Hillary Clinton. “I don’t want to hurt the Clintons,” Trump said in a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times. The news came after a rough campaign where Clinton faced an FBI investigation into classified information sent and received on her…
    Fred Lucas
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  • news

    We Looked at Cabinet Picks Over the Last 40 Years. Here’s How Trump Stacks Up So Far.
    A Daily Signal analysis of Cabinet nominations dating back 40 years reveals that President-elect Donald Trump is outpacing all of his predecessors, including George H.W. Bush, who was a sitting vice president at the time of his election. Trump's selection of Jeff Sessions as attorney general on Nov. 18 made him the second-fastest president-elect in…
    Robert B. Bluey | Rachel del Guidice
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