As we enter the halfway point of 2025, we have endured President Donald Trump’s administration for multiple months, around 120 days, which has left the United States to face a critical time that is crucial to our future. While the administration highlights their achievements to shadow over their mistakes and difficulties, a closer observation reveals that their actions instead challenge constitutional norms, cut off international alliances, and undermine public trust in government.
Trump’s approach to governance has certainly centralized power, often sidelining traditional checks and balances, which can be seen in their constant choice to ignore the orders of the Supreme Court. His administration’s use of the “unitary executive theory” seeks to consolidate control over independent agencies, diminishing their structure and potentially compromising their ability to act in the public interest, according to the newspaper American Progress, an independent, nonpartisan policy institute. This centralization raises public concerns about the erasure of institutional checks that were designed to prevent authoritarianism.
During his campaign, Trump claimed he could resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict swiftly compared to the other presidential candidate Kamala Harris. However, his administration’s efforts have shown limited results, with ceasefires proving temporary and broader peace agreements remaining elusive, according to the Washington Post’s article titled “How Trump has reshaped U.S. foreign policy in his first 100 days”. To add on, President Trump himself has admitted that stopping the war was more difficult that he made it to be. The outcomes that have come from such decisions highlight the complex constraints that come with international diplomacy and the consequences of solutions with little evidence.
Moreover, the choices that the Trump administration has made on environmental policies have drawn criticism both on the domestic and international side. Their actions that create rollbacks on clean energy initiatives and environmental protections have not only impacted the U.S.’s ecological footprint but have also strained relationships with global partners committed to combating climate change, emphasized by Jay Turner in a story by the Economic Times on May 22.
As for many Americans, it is clear that they support the choices made, which can be seen throughout many platforms like “X”. At the same time, it is visible that public confidence in the government operations as a whole has seen a steady decline during Trump’s presidency. Surveys indicate that a significant portion of the populace have shown less confidence in the government, as they constantly have shown concerns over leadership and policy decisions, as shown by the survey conducted by the Navigator Research, an organization led by pollsters. This disappearance of trust creates new challenges for effective governance and civic engagement, leading to miscommunication between the administration and the media.
While every administration faces challenges throughout the difficulties of maintaining America’s safety, the patterns emerging in Trump’s second term raise pressing questions about the direction of our American democracy and where it will stand years from now. What impact will happen after constant ignorance of the Supreme Court? Will news sources be able to criticize the president in the future? Observant oversight, sturdy civic participation, and a clear commitment to democratic principles are essential to navigate these difficult times and to ensure the principles of the nation’s foundation remain the same.
