“For Republicans, it’s the second coming, for Democrats it’s the apocalypse.” This early quote, spoken by Larry Sabato, set the tone for what would become a lively discussion. On Tuesday, April 8th, the Center of Politics had the privilege of hosting Jim Acosta, Tara Setmayer, and Marc Short in a panel on President Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. Jim Acosta is a broadcast journalist, most recently for CNN, and was the chief White House correspondent during Trump’s first term. Tara Setmayer is a Center of Politics scholar and the CEO and co-founder of the Seneca Project, a political group for women fighting for democracy and women’s issues. Lastly, Marc Short is the former chief of staff to Mike Pence while he was Vice President, and former director of legislative affairs for the Trump administration in the first term.
The first question posed was how each panelist would assess Trump’s first month in office. Marc Short kicked off the discussion by describing how the contrast to his predecessor, Joe Biden, has benefited Trump. Trump was elected primarily due to his stances on the economy and the border. Regarding the border, Short stated that the president is doing very well on delivering his promises and giving Americans the results for which they voted. He then went on to discuss the contrast of economic policies from Trump’s first term to his second. According to Short, the first term was marked by a “deregulatory agenda” with advisors who valued relationships with other countries. This term is being offset “by the trade agenda that is far more protectionist,” and the President has surrounded himself with advisors who believe in tariffs as a tactical economic policy. Short concluded by saying, “I fear that this trade policy is going to drive countries towards China,” and that there is concern with our foreign policy and where we are heading.
Setmayer followed Short, and when asked how the Trump administration would be graded on a scale, she replied “a schedule grade F, or R for a grade for retribution.” She described how the rumored agenda that was feared during the campaign is the playbook for the administration, and people who wanted a better economy are confused as to why he is taking an ax to the federal government. Setmayer then went on to illustrate that the USAID cuts are hurting the farmers who voted Trump into office, and Americans are disoriented by all of these changes. To finish, she asked, “We’re picking a fight with Canada… how are we lowering the price of eggs?”
Jim Acosta finished this question off, stating that the pardons of the Capitol protestors on January 6th, 2021, were an abomination to the Constitution, and “a slap in the face to this country that almost cost the life of Mike Pence.” Acosta recounted studies he read that suggest that there is no difference between deportations in the Biden era and now, and that he is more concerned with what happens when Trump is told no by the Supreme Court and he does it anyway. He ended this question by stating that “nobody elected Elon Musk to be the shadow president.”
The panelists then moved on to discussing the Alien Act for a brief time. The Alien Act of 1798 gives the president the power to deport any non-citizen considered dangerous to the country. Short claimed that if Trump feels that the Alien Act from the 1700s will be effective, then he will send it to the higher courts, allowing him to deport illegal immigrants here with greater ease. Setmayer countered him and stated that the president cannot just wake up and decide if we are at war or not. Further, she spoke about how Trump posts about being a king on the White House official account, and everyone else around him treats him as such. She concluded by saying that he is trying to influence the courts. Short countered this and drew on examples of other past presidents going against the courts, but without the public backlash. The Supreme Court ruled that Biden could not forgive student loans; he did it anyway, a week later. Obama did a similar maneuver as well with his immigration policies, but there is a different standard for Trump. Acosta and Setmayer countered Short by stating that student loan debt forgiveness is not a constitutionally guaranteed right, and Trump did not put people like Pence, someone who will disagree with him, in his inner circle in this administration. Acosta capped off this part of the panel by stating that the immunity decision the Supreme Court came out with gave Trump the green light to continue deportations without due process, against the Supreme Court’s ruling.
The next question posed by Sabato was “What can Democrats do to do better, because they can hardly do worse?” Acosta kicked off this discussion and described how Democrats are all moving in different directions. Nancy Pelosi used to keep them all in control, and now they are all scattered. Short then spoke on how American people have a way of making sure that their voices are heard when they want them to, and that, for him, there are a lot of policies under Trump that he is excited to see. He brought up the point that the debt is a bigger issue than Americans are being let on, and that this is the first time where, if you add up the debt payment plus interest, it is more than our discretionary spending. Acosta countered him and claimed that Trump is cutting Medicaid to keep cutting taxes on the rich. Short followed that point by explaining that there are 20 million more Americans on Medicaid since the first time Trump was in office, and that it is unrealistic to keep this with our ballooning debt. Setmayer then made the point that Republicans are skilled at messaging and communicating simply, and that Democrats need to learn the Republican playbook. She stated that “You could fire every single person in the federal government and it wouldn’t put a dent in the debt.” Setmayer went on to explain that Democrats are on the defense, and they need to put themselves on the offense and ask the voters if these budget cuts are making America great for them. She claimed that they are firing people and cancelling funds without a plan, “so Elon can have easier conversations with his buddy Putin.” She rounded off this point by stating that the messaging for Democrats should flip the narrative, and said “make Republicans defend what they are doing to this country, [and] put them on defense.”
The question panel was then opened up to the audience, and the first audience question asked if Republicans think these policies are hurting them and how it shapes the future of the party. Short starts by explaining how the first administration had a lot of chaos, but that Trump’s persona carried them through. Regarding this administration, he stated, “The policies I believe in have been abandoned by the party for a more populist agenda.” Short points out that Trump is very good at primaries, and when Trump’s numbers fall is when Republicans will “stand up against him.” Acosta corroborates this by affirming that many congressmen in the House are worried about getting primaried because Trump has the resources to make that happen. Setmayer supported this point and added that Elon Musk said that he would finance these primaries. She finished her answer by claiming that more Republicans need to stand up and say no, but she does not have faith in that after January 6th.
The next question pertained to the future of the conservative movement, and Short kicks off this section by stating that he is more discouraged about the conservative movement. He explains how expectations for elected officials are low, as they have enjoyed the access that Trump gives them to a donor base; therefore, they will not come out and say anything against Trump. Acosta corroborated this and elaborated that there is no right and left side anymore. One of the issues he describes the party will run into is that the Republican Party is running on populism and tariffs because it welcomes more autocracy and authoritarianism
Setmayer then answered a question about whether we were having a constitutional crisis. She claimed that “the foundation [of this nation] is the rule of law and respecting it.” She then furthered her opinion by stating that Trump hates everything that makes America great. She exclaimed, “this country was founded on the idea of protecting minority rights and having due process. When authoritarianism comes knocking it never stops at the first door, and it might come for you.”
The conversation then shifted to Trump’s “bullish” foreign policy. Acosta unpacked America’s contentious relationships with the world, and how long it will take to come back. He used Vice President Vance’s remarks about Denmark as an example, in which the Vice President questioned how much they have done for the United States. Acosta claimed that 9/11 was an example of Denmark helping out the United States. Acosta then went on to describe how Zelensky and Putin have put NATO on the spot, and that Putin could go for Estonia or Moldova, not just Ukraine. Acosta cited the leaked Signal chats, where Vance and Hegseth discussed bailing Europe out of their conflicts. He countered this by outlining that the US has spent less than Europe in the Russia-Ukraine conflict than Europe. Further, he described how Europe not paying their fair share in NATO is not an issue unique to Trump; Obama complained about this issue as well. Short then continued this conversation by explaining that in Trump’s first term, he took out hundreds of Russian mercenaries in Syria, while Obama did not, and that there were many sanctions placed on Russia. He stated that the war in Ukraine is terrible; there are major atrocities in Ukraine and he is shocked we are walking away. Short explained that there was never a point where the United States was discussing using military force, and currently we are using just 5% of our military to destroy 50% of the Russian force. Further, the three countries that are coming to Putin’s aid are Iran, North Korea, and China and yet there are people on TV saying that the Russian leader is a “very nice person.” However, Short is confident that the United States can restore its dominance very quickly, similar to the 1970s and 1980s. Something that he feels should be discussed more, however, is that Vice President Vance is in a group chat with other cabinet members disagreeing with Trump. Short feels that is an underreported part of the Signal scandal. Setmayer then rounded off this discussion by exclaiming that it was going to be a generational fight to get America back to where it was on the geopolitical stage. She claimed that allies are scrambling with contingency plans in case America becomes a failed state, and that there was never a question of where America stood on the world stage until Trump took office. Setmayer finished by questioning global confidence in Trump’s cabinet picks, particularly Hegseth and Gabbard.
This riveting debate on the first 100 days of Trump in office highlighted the contrasting opinions of his term, and this kind of dialogue will further evolve as the administration progresses.
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