GOP strategist: Remember Trump’s first 100 days for chaos, complicity and courage

President Donald Trump has been in office for 100 days. It’s time for Republicans to stop hiding behind his predecessor, Joe Biden. It’s time to stop using “Biden did it” as a political hall pass.

Using Biden’s presidency as a benchmark of success sets the bar dangerously low. Doing better than Biden isn’t an accomplishment. It’s the bare minimum.

Americans should expect more. Americans should demand more. Republicans should be striving to lead with principle, discipline and a clear, compelling vision for the future.

Besides, comparisons to Biden are political theater — “lipstick on a pig” — meant to distract from the complete failure of Trump’s first 100 days back in office.

Instead of fixing the economy, Trump upended the nation — delivering chaos, confusion and decisions fueled more by impulse than by any coherent agenda. That’s not to say the story is finished. There’s still time to change course, and history has a way of surprising us. But based on what we’ve seen so far, calling it anything other than a disaster requires a willful denial of reality.

Of course there have been some successes. But so far, Republicans have squandered this historic opportunity to show America what real conservative leadership looks like — limited government, free markets, fiscal responsibility and a steadfast defense of individual liberties.

With the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Trump had the chance to deliver on a core conservative promise and finally scale back the size of government. Instead, he handed the reins to Tesla, X and SpaceX executive Elon Musk — an unelected bureaucrat whose erratic and overtly politicized approach eroded public trust and may have seriously destroyed America’s stability and credibility, both at home and abroad.

Worse still, the two issues that should have been political layups for Trump — the economy and immigration — have become self-inflicted liabilities.

Trump’s reckless trade war and sweeping tariffs directly contradict core free-market principles. These aren’t bold strategies. They’re the same failed economic nationalism and protectionism that history has proven leads to job losses, business failures and long-term instability. Tariffs are nothing more than hidden taxes on American consumers, and in an already fragile economy, they threaten to make life harder for families, farmers and small businesses.

Any success on immigration has been overshadowed by Trump’s disregard for constitutional limits. Invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport individuals without due process is a blatant attempt to sidestep the Fifth Amendment, and attempts to end birthright citizenship strike at the core of the Fourteenth Amendment. His sweeping use of executive power — 142 executive orders, more than any modern president at this stage — undermines the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution.

This isn’t bold leadership; it’s an abuse of power. And Republican complicity is not just hypocrisy, it’s a dereliction of duty.

Some may see this as signs that our institutions are faltering. That America’s best days are behind us. That’s not true.

While Trump has been blessed with a legislative branch filled with spineless Republicans and weak Democratic opposition, the judiciary has remained a steadfast check on power.

The more than 200 lawsuits filed against his administration aren’t evidence of collapse. They are a sign of constitutional strength. They show that checks and balances are still in place, that power is not absolute, and that the rule of law still matters.

Our nation survives because of “We the People” — an engaged citizenry that holds leaders accountable, even if they wear the same political jersey. Every day across America, we see patriots living up to the high standards our founders envisioned. Democracy doesn’t protect itself. It demands effort. It demands perseverance. And it demands courage.

Trump campaigned on the promise to Make America Great Again. The truth is, America has never stopped being great. We face challenges, we stumble, we argue, but American exceptionalism has always been rooted in our resilience.

We are not defined by the noise in Washington. We are defined by our perseverance, our grit and our refusal to give up on the promise of America.

This story was originally published May 1, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "GOP strategist: Remember Trump’s first 100 days for chaos, complicity and courage."