Since President Donald Trump returned to office, every week has been a whirlwind of activity to show Americans that his administration is relentlessly pursuing his promises.
After 100 days, his imprint is everywhere. But will it last?
Trump has faced lawsuits over his attempts to surge deportations, punish law firms and slash the federal workforce. All of that and more is being adjudicated in courtrooms, meaning much of what he's done could come undone.
President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it Jan. 20 during an Inauguration Day event in Washington.Â
Here's a look at where progress on his promises stands:
Inflation
"We're going to get those prices down," he told voters.
Prices have come down — before Trump took office and since. Inflation has been falling since a peak of 9.1% in 2022. It was at 3% in January, the month Trump was inaugurated, and 2.4% in March.
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But the Federal Reserve has warned that the president's tariff plans will most likely lead to higher prices by taxing foreign imports.
Illegal immigration
Trump has clearly made progress on a signature promise to control the border.
The number of people trying to cross illegally into the United States from Mexico dropped steeply in President Joe Biden's last year, from a high of 249,740 in December 2023 to 47,324 in December 2024. Under Trump, the numbers sank to only 8,346 in February and 7,181 in March.
It's unclear whether he's matching Biden's aggressive deportation record last year — the numbers are not yet in.
Meanwhile, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is arresting large numbers of people across the country. Many who assert their innocence have been deported without due process.
Tariffs
Trump vowed in the campaign: "I will impose across-the-board tariffs on most foreign-made goods."
He's followed through, big time, though with frequently changing caveats.
Trump began by escalating tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, ostensibly as punishment for allowing fentanyl into the U.S. Then he announced even more widespread taxes on foreign imports on April 2, part of what he described as "Liberation Day." Trump retreated from parts of that plan, choosing to pursue negotiations instead, but he left in place tariffs on China as high as 145%.
The stock market has whipsawed from the hefty import taxes and the erraticism in their application.
Vice President JD Vance, right, speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, as President Donald Trump listens in the Oval Office at the White House, Feb. 28, in Washington.
War in Ukraine
At rally after rally last summer, Trump promised peace between Russia and Ukraine merely by winning the election.
"Before I even arrive at the Oval Office, shortly after I win the presidency, I will have the horrible war between Russia and Ukraine settled," he told a Detroit conference in August. By then, he'd been making the same vow at least since May. It did not happen.
At times, he framed the promise differently, saying he would end the war in one day. That day has not come.
Tax cuts
Trump has tested the limits of what he can do by decree, but he'll need Congress to achieve his promised tax cuts.
He pledged to eliminate taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security payments, and he said he will make permanent the expiring tax cuts he enacted during his first term.
None of this has happened. And with big tariffs kicking in, the tax burden is on track to get worse before it possibly gets better. Trump is working with Republicans in Congress to push through legislation achieving the tax cuts, but his party has thin majorities.
Education and culture
Trump's threats to choke off billions in tax dollars to many universities flow from multiple promises in the campaign — to combat antisemitism on campuses, to take on diversity, equity and inclusion programs and to rid campuses of foreign students he considers hostile to American values.
After several other prominent schools signaled their willingness to comply with Trump's demands, Harvard stood firm against the pressure.
In response, Trump has called for withdrawing Harvard's tax-exempt status, has threatened to block it from enrolling foreign students and has frozen more than $2 billion in grants and contracts.
Trump's promised agenda against "woke" policy swept quickly through the government, as DEI programs from the Biden years were halted and references to diversity in federal communications were purged.
At the Pentagon, in particular, a messy revisionism ensued, as thousands of images on webpages and other online content were flagged for removal. An image of the Enola Gay bomber from World War II was flagged for deletion — because of the word "gay" — as were materials paying tribute to Black and Navajo war heroes and pioneering women. Most of the targeted material ultimately survived.
An executive order from Trump on "restoring truth and sanity to American history" forbids federal money to Smithsonian programs that promote "improper ideology."
Transgender rights
Trump campaigned against the participation of transgender athletes in sports and against broader moves in society, especially in Democratic-led jurisdictions, to accommodate views that gender is not inherently binary.
As president, he has signed executive orders to ban transgender athletes from girls' and women's teams, and he's asked the Supreme Court to rule against lower courts that have blocked his attempt to remove transgender troops from the military.
Jan. 6 pardons
In the campaign, Trump celebrated the Jan. 6 rioters as "patriots" and "hostages" of the justice system and promised, "I will sign their pardons on Day 1." He did exactly that. Roughly 1,500 people, including those who attacked police officers, received pardons.
