Since President Trump announced his candidacy in 2015, commentators have asked whether he really understands the office. Over the last few tumultuous months, some have concluded that he does not. But another way to understand Trump’s presidency is as a throwback to a previous era: Trump is — in some ways — a normal 19th-century […]
The trio of major announcements made by President Trump’s administration on Friday night — the departure of national security aide Sebastian Gorka, the pardon of former Maricopa County, Arizona, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and the release of a formal memo from the president ordering the Pentagon not to accept transgender people as new recruits in the […]
President Trump pardoned ex-Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona’s Maricopa County on Friday night. Arpaio, known for his hardline stance on illegal immigration, had been convicted of criminal contempt for violating a federal court order commanding his department to stop racially profiling Latinos. National surveys conducted before the pardon suggest it’s likely to be unpopular with […]
Welcome to TrumpBeat, FiveThirtyEight’s regular look at the latest policy developments in Washington and beyond. Want to get TrumpBeat in your inbox? Sign up for our newsletter. Comments, criticism or suggestions for future items? Email us or drop a note in the comments. Back in January, a few days after Donald Trump was sworn in […]
It still isn’t entirely clear how much President Trump’s reaction to the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia — which was criticized by both Democratic and Republican lawmakers after he blamed “many sides” for the violence there — has affected his job approval rating. As of Wednesday evening, Trump’s approval rating was 36.9 percent, according […]