President Trump marked the first 100 days of his second term on Tuesday at a rally in Michigan in which he celebrated his border crackdown and boasted of the retribution he has carried out against his perceived enemies and his opponents’ inability to thwart his agenda.
The President addressed about 3,000 of his supporters at Macomb Community College, in an area near Detroit seen as key to his electoral victory in the state and emblematic of union workers’ shift from the Democratic to the Republican Party.
Trump was in campaign mode, peppering his sentences with false statements — such as the lie that the 2020 election had been stolen — exaggerations, jokes and insults. He mocked the way his predecessor, Joseph R. Biden Jr., looked in a bathing suit and encouraged the crowd to cheer to indicate which demeaning nickname for him they preferred: “Sleepy Joe” or “Crooked Joe”.
“I miss the campaign,” Trump said at one point.
The speech had been billed as a way for Trump to build momentum for his economic policies, which have been dragging him down politically. The area in which Trump spoke held signs that said “Buy American. Hire American”.
His expansive tariffs have hurt the stock market and contributed to a drop in his approval rating. A majority of Americans approved of Trump’s performance in office throughout January and February, but he is now struggling with what polls show is greater public disapproval.
Those in the crowd cheered Trump’s agenda, and attendees said they supported his efforts to use tariffs to try to bring back manufacturing jobs to areas like Detroit, the home of the US auto industry.
Brian Pannebecker, a retired auto worker who backs Trump’s tariffs, spoke at the rally, declaring that “Macomb County is the home of the Reagan Democrats.” About 56 per cent of the county’s votes in 2024 went for Trump.
Outside the venue, however, protesters gathered with signs saying, “I dissent.” Two protesters who made it into the rally were removed by security, and the President laughed after calling one by the wrong gender.
Much of the speech focused on Trump’s border crackdown, which has resulted in a sharp drop in crossings but also concerns about a lack of due process for those who’ve been arrested. Trump reveled in a cinematic video using drone footage that depicted men in military-style gear taking deported migrants into a prison in El Salvador as their heads were shaved.
Since coming into power, the Trump administration has deployed an extensive public relations effort to promote its deportation policy. President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador has assisted in the effort. Both administrations have posted sensational videos of the deportations on social media.
Trump exaggerated the extent of his crackdown during his speech, falsely claiming at one point that only three people had slipped by his border agents. Trump also cast himself as a man of action, highlighting the rapid pace of his executive orders. He has signed more than 130 executive orders this year, nearly as many as Biden did throughout his term.
New York Times News Service