President Trump, intent on enacting an expansive schedule, has moved at a dizzying tempo within the first 100 days of his time period, issuing a barrage of government movements and in the hunt for to amplify the scope of his presidential energy.
Underlying the ones efforts is a nonstop distortion of fundamental info as Mr. Trump has sought to reconfigure the worldwide economic system, reshape the government and limit immigration.
To justify his executive actions and policies, Mr. Trump has trusted false, deceptive and hyperbolic claims, deflecting blame for catastrophes, boasting about purported achievements and trying to seek leverage with Ukraine in negotiating a peace take care of Russia.
Here’s a fact-check of Mr. Trump’s often-repeated claims.
Federal Cuts
In his breakneck effort to become the federal paperwork, Mr. Trump has introduced deceptive justifications. He has usally echoed doubtful claims about so-called fraud made via Elon Musk, the billionaire main the cost-cutting initiative referred to as the Division of Executive Potency.
What Used to be Mentioned
“May just you point out one of the crucial issues that your crew has discovered, one of the crucial loopy numbers, together with the girl that walked away with about $30 million?”
— in a February appearance with Mr. Musk
False. Mr. Trump used to be addressing Mr. Musk, who answered that workers of america Company for Global Construction “mysteriously” amassed web worths of tens of hundreds of thousands of bucks whilst receiving a wage of a couple of hundred thousand bucks. Mr. Trump’s query referred to Samantha Energy, the company’s former administrator. However Ms. Energy’s web value didn’t building up via $30 million from 2021 to 2025, as Mr. Trump implied.
Mr. Musk had previously questioned Ms. Energy’s web value via amplifying a social media submit that cited “Within Biden’s Basement,” a website online database of public disclosure bureaucracy filed via greater than 200 Biden management officers. A White Area spokeswoman additionally cited the website online. (The website online itself is a project of a political advocacy group staffed via a minimum of one former Trump management legit.)
The website online’s database lists Ms. Energy’s web value as $10.1 million to $30.3 million. However her web value didn’t multiply, neither is there proof that she “walked away with about $30 million.”
Ms. Energy joined the Biden management in 2021. She and her husband, Cass Sunstein, had mixed belongings — from financial institution accounts, funding accounts, shares and retirement price range — of $9.7 million to $26.7 million as of July 2020, according to her financial disclosure form. (The shape studies in levels, quite than actual quantities.) Their source of revenue for that yr — from Ms. Energy’s wage at Harvard College, e book royalties, article charges, honorariums and capital beneficial properties — ranged from about $1.5 million to $3.6 million.
Those amounts weren’t considerably other in 2024: belongings of $9.7 million to $28.2 million and earning of $1.5 million to $3.1 million.
What Used to be Mentioned
That is exaggerated. Mr. Trump used to be regarding, and fairly exaggerating, the findings of a web-based survey. However legit knowledge presentations a some distance higher portion of presidency workers — greater than part — paintings within the workplace.
The Federal Information Community conducted an online survey in April 2024 asking federal workers about faraway paintings insurance policies. Of greater than 6,300 respondents, 6 % mentioned they labored solely in individual, when put next with 30 % who labored solely remotely and 64 % who labored on a hybrid agenda.
After lawmakers and Mr. Musk started mentioning the survey as proof of telework abuse, an editor’s observe appended to the thing in December clarified that the survey used to be “nonscientific” and that individuals self-reported that they have been federal employees.
Professional knowledge presentations a far higher percentage of federal workers operating on-site. An August 2024 report from the Place of business of Control and Funds to Congress mentioned that as of Would possibly 2024, 54 %, or about 1.2 million folks, labored totally on-site. About 10 %, or 228,800 workers, labored remotely. Apart from the ones employees, about 80 % of all operating hours amongst federal workers have been spent at a piece website.
Any other budget office report from December 2024 famous that within the 2023 fiscal yr, which led to September 2023, about 43 % of all federal workers and 75 % of eligible workers teleworked in some shape. The ones figures had declined from pandemic-era highs of 47 % and 94 % within the 2021 fiscal yr.
Immigration
As his hard-line immigration schedule has run into criminal demanding situations and logistical hurdles, Mr. Trump has defended the mistaken deportation of a Maryland resident to El Salvador with faulty claims and exaggerated the tempo of deportations.
That is deceptive. Whether or not Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a migrant who resided in Maryland and used to be deported to El Salvador closing month, used to be and stays a member of the crowd MS-13 is disputed and unproven. Mr. Trump designated MS-13 and different global gangs as foreign terrorist organizations in February, greater than 5 years after the preliminary unproven accusations of Mr. Abrego Garcia’s gang affiliations have been made.
Mr. Abrego Garcia mentioned he entered america illegally in 2012, in keeping with documents released by the Justice Department. A kind of paperwork used to be a neighborhood police division’s “gang box interview sheet” appearing that he used to be arrested in 2019 at a House Depot in Hyattsville, Md., via officials who equated his attire — a Chicago Bulls hat and a hoodie imprinted with cash rolls — as “indicative of Hispanic gang tradition.” A confidential informant later instructed officials that Mr. Abrego Garcia used to be an lively member of MS-13, the paperwork mentioned.
A pass judgement on in an immigration court docket denied Mr. Abrego Garcia’s request for bond, wondering his attire as enough proof of gang association however deeming the confidential informant’s verification as credible. Mr. Abrego Garcia contested that ruling and argued that the accusation used to be in accordance with rumour, however he misplaced his attraction.
It’s value noting that immigration courts are not part of the judiciary, however quite are housed throughout the Justice Division. Judges are appointed via the lawyer basic, migrants do not need the best to a attorney and complaints are subject to different rules on discovery and default judgments than judiciary department courts.
There’s no proof that Mr. Abrego Garcia has ever stood trial referring to gang club or been charged with a criminal offense rather than site visitors and immigration offenses. Mr. Abrego Garcia’s legal professionals have argued, each in court docket in 2019 and now, that he hasn’t ever been a member of MS-13.
This month, a federal pass judgement on additionally puzzled the proof introduced in 2019 and referred to as it “a singular unsubstantiated allegation.” The Washington Put up has reported that the police had stopped the usage of the crowd box interview sheet over considerations of racial profiling and that the officer who crammed it out used to be indicted and fired over unrelated fees of misconduct.
What Used to be Mentioned
“We started the biggest deportation operation in American historical past, higher even than that of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. You already know, he used to be kind of a average man, however he used to be very sturdy at the reality he didn’t need folks pouring into our nation from in every single place the arena. He used to be very tricky. He had the report. We’ve got the information.”
— at a political event in February
This lacks proof. The collection of deportations carried out thus far has lagged in the back of ancient highs.
Mr. Trump’s quotation of Eisenhower refers to a 1953-54 mass deportation marketing campaign of Mexican migrants. Historical data from the Division of Fatherland Safety presentations that some 1.1 million migrants have been deported within the 1954 fiscal yr. The most important collection of migrants deported — via removals the usage of formal complaints like a court docket order and thru returns, which can be extra casual and come with voluntary departures — used to be greater than 1.8 million within the 2000 fiscal yr.
To be had knowledge presentations that deportations thus far are nowhere close to the ones figures. Consistent with knowledge accrued via the Transactional Data Get admission to Clearinghouse at Syracuse College referred to as TRAC, the Trump management has got rid of 27,000 migrants from Jan. 26 to March 8, for a day-to-day reasonable of 661. Reuters reported that removals and returns totaled 37,700 migrants within the first complete month of the Trump management.
The ones figures have been not up to the day-to-day reasonable of 742 migrants got rid of within the 2024 fiscal yr underneath the Biden management and the 57,000 got rid of and returned within the closing month.
Tom Homan, Mr. Trump’s border czar, said on Monday that 139,000 migrants had been deported since Mr. Trump’s inauguration, a day-to-day reasonable of one,400. It used to be unclear whether or not that quantity incorporated each returns and removals. If the determine encompasses each, day-to-day averages have been nonetheless upper in 51 out of greater than 130 fiscal years for which information exist, together with within the 2024 fiscal yr.
Mr. Trump is on the right track to take away and go back kind of part one million folks altogether this yr, in keeping with an analysis by the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. That, too, can be fewer than the 685,000 removed and returned within the 2024 fiscal yr underneath the Biden management.
Industry and the Financial system
To make the case for his tariff coverage, Mr. Trump has became to a move of deceptive statistics and spurious claims about industry historical past. On the identical time, the president continues to insist that he has already presided over an financial turnaround via exaggerating costs.
What Used to be Mentioned
Mr. Trump has repeatedly shifted course on price lists since taking workplace, implementing steep charges on a variety of goods globally after which pausing them, singling out explicit nations and industries for added price lists after which carving out exemptions.
Mr. Trump could have been regarding a calculation from an financial adviser that so-called reciprocal price lists would usher in $600 billion yearly. However the estimate has been disputed by independent analysts and, extra necessary, Mr. Trump paused the ones price lists for 90 days ahead of they ever took impact.
A White Area spokeswoman cited america’ annual industry deficit in items of $1.2 trillion in 2024, which averages to about $3.3 billion day-to-day, as proof of Mr. Biden “shedding” $3 billion day-to-day. Industry deficits measure the space between how a lot a rustic imports and exports with every other, no longer how much cash a rustic is “shedding.” And via that very same good judgment, Mr. Trump is “shedding” extra: about $4.8 billion day-to-day, in accordance with February’s trade deficit in goods of $135.4 billion.
Releases from federal businesses display that day-to-day earnings accrued from price lists is some distance in need of $2 billion. Customs and Border Coverage, which collects customs tasks, mentioned in a statement in early April that on account of Mr. Trump’s tariff movements, the company “on a daily basis collects over $200 million in more related earnings.”
From Mr. Trump’s first complete day in workplace on Jan. 21 to April 23, a span of 93 days, the Division of Fatherland Safety deposited $41.6 billion in each customs tasks and excise taxes, in keeping with Treasury Department data. This is a mean of about $447 million day-to-day. (Excise taxes are break away customs and picked up on positive merchandise and imports similar to alcohol.)
All the way through the week after Feb. 4, when a ten % tariff on Chinese language imports went into impact, deposits of day-to-day tasks and excise taxes peaked at $229 million. Within the week after April 5, when a ten % tariff on maximum imported items took impact, day-to-day deposits peaked at $309 million.
For context, within the closing 91 days of the Biden management from Oct. 18 to Jan. 17, deposits averaged $283 million day-to-day. So whilst the determine has greater underneath Mr. Trump, it stays some distance in need of $3 billion day-to-day.
Having a look at customs tasks on my own, america accrued about $8.2 billion in March and $7.2 billion in February, averaging about $261 million day-to-day. Once more, the ones figures have been fairly decrease, however no longer noticeably other, within the closing complete months of the Biden management: $6.7 billion in November and $6.8 billion in December, averaging about $221 million day-to-day.
What Used to be Mentioned
“Egg costs have long past down 87 %. Power now could be down $65 a barrel. They’ve some power promoting gas for lower than $2 in a few states, Alabama, a few nice states.”
— while signing executive order in April
That is exaggerated. Retail egg costs have greater, no longer reduced, underneath Mr. Trump. And whilst wholesale egg and fuel costs have declined, he’s overstating the level.
The wholesale worth of eggs has certainly fallen via greater than part since Mr. Trump’s inauguration, however that decline isn’t but mirrored within the retail worth, which customers pay on the grocery retailer.
Consistent with the Agriculture Division’s weekly knowledge liberate, the nationwide wholesale reasonable has fallen from $6.55 a dozen on Jan. 24 to $3.13 on April 18, a 52 % decline.
The typical worth of a dozen eggs in grocery shops used to be $6.23 in March, the month with the most recent to be had knowledge, in keeping with the Bureau of Hard work Statistics, up from $4.95 in January and $5.90 in February.
The Agriculture Division predicted in its newest meals worth outlook that egg costs would building up via 54.6 percent in 2025 when put next with the former yr.
Fuel costs, too, aren’t as little as Mr. Trump claimed.
It’s true that crude oil used to be buying and selling at round $65 a barrel, a 13 percent decline since he took workplace, as Mr. Trump mentioned. However there used to be no state the place the typical worth used to be beneath $2 a gallon on the pump. According to AAA, the nationwide reasonable used to be $3.17 and the bottom state reasonable used to be $2.68 in Mississippi at the day he spoke. According to the United States Energy Information Administration, the nationwide reasonable used to be $3.14 at the week he spoke and the bottom state reasonable used to be $2.66 in Texas.
Nor have been the ones costs on the pump not up to ahead of he took workplace. On Jan. 18, the nationwide reasonable used to be if truth be told decrease, $3.12, whilst the bottom state reasonable used to be additionally $2.68 in Mississippi. The week before he took office, the nationwide reasonable used to be $3.04 and the bottom state reasonable used to be $2.64 in Texas.
Army and Global Conflicts
At house, Mr. Trump has minimized Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of Sign, citing a turnaround in military recruitment as Mr. Hegseth’s achievement. In another country, Mr. Trump has again and again put the onus to finish the Russia-Ukraine conflict on President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, every so often with exaggerated private assaults.
What Used to be Mentioned
That is exaggerated. Mr. Trump is right kind that recruitment within the military has surged, however the ones developments started ahead of he took workplace in January and ahead of his election in November.
The Military fell in need of its recruitment targets within the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, and the Army and the Air Pressure failed to satisfy their goals in 2023. Army leaders have mentioned that the pandemic, a powerful civilian jobs marketplace and demographic shifts in bodily health and attitudes towards services and products have all contributed to the difficulties in recruitment.
However within the 2024 fiscal year, which led to September, greater than a month ahead of Mr. Trump’s election, the Military, the Air Pressure and the Marines all exceeded their recruitment targets, although the Army fell brief via about 12 %. In October, the primary month of the 2025 fiscal yr and ahead of Mr. Trump’s election, the Military, the Marines and the Army all exceeded their goals and the Air Pressure used to be only one recruit shy of its objective.
On the time, the Pentagon celebrated its progress, with an legit noting that the army had taken a number of steps to give a boost to recruiting via beginning a pilot program taking into consideration clinical waivers, connecting with youths via influencers and higher explaining the learning and monetary advantages. Other military officials have noted that along with the ones yearslong advertising and marketing efforts, the Biden management additionally greater investments in recruiters via remodeled coaching, incentive pay and promotions.
Recruitment levels if truth be told peaked in August 2024, months ahead of the election and the inauguration, when the Military recorded greater than 8,400 recruits. When compared, the Military recorded virtually 6,500 in January and greater than 6,000 in February.
What Used to be Mentioned
“Smartly, now we have a state of affairs the place we haven’t had elections in Ukraine. Smartly, now we have martial legislation, necessarily martial legislation in Ukraine, the place the chief in Ukraine, I imply, I hate to mention it, however he’s down at 4 % approval score and the place a rustic has been blown to smithereens.”
— in an executive order signing in February
That is exaggerated. Mr. Zelensky’s approval scores have declined all over his tenure, however they have got no longer reached unmarried digits.
When Mr. Zelensky entered workplace in 2019, 80 % of Ukrainians mentioned they relied on him, in keeping with polling by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. That rose to a prime of 90 % in Would possibly 2022, within the rapid months after Russia invaded Ukraine, and had fallen to 52 % via December 2024. That may be a drastic decline, however nowhere close to 4 %.
Polling by Gallup additionally presentations a decline from the beginning of the conflict, however Mr. Zelensky nonetheless retained an approval score of 60 % in August 2024.
