A president’s first hundred days in office is an arbitrary but nonetheless useful benchmark. It provides a chance to evaluate and make preliminary judgments about a president’s early performance and policy priorities.
In his first hundred days back in office, President Donald Trump has given a masterclass on how to destroy a nation’s reputation and damage its interests around the world. It’s the most disastrous first hundred days for a president since the term passed into popular usage more than nine decades ago — particularly when it comes to national security. Indeed, Trump is personally responsible for three major national security debacles that have defined his first hundred days: launching an unprovoked and irrational trade war with the rest of the world, actively alienating America’s closest and oldest allies while cozying up to dictators and long-time adversaries, and displaying a shocking level of ineptitude in the conduct of foreign affairs as well as a politicization of national defense.
Trump’s foreign policy has already damaged American national security in deep and profound ways. In just over three months, Trump and his preferred policies have made America less secure, less prosperous, and less trusted in the world.
It’s worth taking a closer work to see just how.
