Trump celebrates 100 days in office with campaign-style rally

President Donald Trump arrives to speak on his first 100 days at Macomb County Community College Sports Expo Center, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, in Warren, Mich. (AP)
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Updated 30 April 2025
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Trump celebrates 100 days in office with campaign-style rally

  • Joe Biden is “sleepy,” the media is “fake,” judges who oppose him are “communist,” Democratic opponents are “radical left,” and friendly countries have “abused us more so than foe on trade,” Trump said, listing targets of his ire
  • Unlike most presidents, Trump has focused more on energizing his base than broadening his appeal — and many supporters are still with him

WARREN, United States: Donald Trump promised Tuesday that he is just getting started as he marked the radical and vengeful beginning of a presidency that has shaken the world and destabilized the United States.
Basking in the adulation of cheering supporters in Michigan, the 78-year-old touted the “most successful first 100 days of any administration in the history of our country,” even as polls show Americans becoming disenchanted with the economic and political tumult.
Trump said he missed the campaign trail, and launched with visible relish into a speech that often sounded more like that of a candidate than a head of state.
Joe Biden is “sleepy,” the media is “fake,” judges who oppose him are “communist,” Democratic opponents are “radical left,” and friendly countries have “abused us more so than foe on trade,” Trump said, listing targets of his ire.
The president promised to conclude deals on trade, but provided little in the way of details.
And — to chants of “USA! USA!” — he showed a video of migrants in handcuffs and shackles being taken from a plane, transported by bus and filmed on their knees as their heads were shaved, illustrating his controversial deportation policy.

Trump has shaken up the United States like few presidents before him.
His billionaire backer Elon Musk has led dramatic cutbacks of the federal workforce, and the president himself has reshaped relations with the world by unveiling sweeping tariffs, berating allies and eliminating much foreign aid.
Polls show that the honeymoon period that Americans historically accord presidents at the start of their terms has evaporated for Trump, who has angrily dismissed the results, but has tacitly acknowledged that he must moderate some policies as stock market turmoil takes a toll.
Wall Street, down more than six percent since Trump took office, ticked up Tuesday on news he would soften some of the sweeping tariffs impacting automakers.
He also recently backtracked on threats to fire Jerome Powell — who has warned that Trump’s tariffs would likely reignite inflation — but still criticized the Federal Reserve chairman Tuesday as “not really doing a good job.”
After a 2017-2021 term in which some aides sought to rein him in, Trump has surrounded himself this time with unabashed loyalists — and told reporters he was on track to accomplish all of his second-term goals.
“I think either we’ve done everything, or it’s in the process of being done,” Trump said before heading to his rally.
In the grand entrance hallway of the White House, Trump has removed a portrait of Barack Obama, the United States’ first Black president, to make way for a painting of himself surviving an assassination attempt.
He has used threats of cutting off government access and contracts to pressure law firms whose partners once were involved in cases against him, and he has frozen billions of dollars in funding for universities — hotbeds of criticism against the administration.

Unlike most presidents, Trump has focused more on energizing his base than broadening his appeal — and many supporters are still with him.
“He’s amazing. Everybody’s worried about tariffs. We don’t care — look at everything else that’s coming together too,” said Donna Fitzsimons, a 65-year-old merchandise seller at the Michigan rally venue ahead of Trump’s appearance.
“People don’t realize it takes time to get where you need to go.”
The rival Democratic Party has seized on economic anxieties although it has also struggled in polling.
“Trump is to blame for the fact that life is more expensive, it’s harder to retire, and a ‘Trump recession’ is at our doorstep,” the Democratic National Committee said, calling the 100 days a “colossal failure.”
Even with Congress narrowly in Republican hands, Trump has tested the limits of presidential power by signing more than 140 executive orders, many of which have faced court scrutiny.
He has sought to end birthright citizenship — which is guaranteed by the US Constitution — and Musk has summarily axed billions of dollars appropriated by Congress.
Trump has shown signs of impatience. He promised on the campaign trail to end the Ukraine war within 24 hours, but Russia has rebuffed a broad ceasefire offer.
The former reality TV star has claimed the pledge was made “in jest,” although CNN reported that he made it more than 50 times before taking office, and was even at pains to point out that he was being serious.
 

 


UK working with Israel to arrange charter flights out of Tel Aviv, Lammy says

Updated 10 sec ago
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UK working with Israel to arrange charter flights out of Tel Aviv, Lammy says

LONDON: Britain is working with Israeli authorities to arrange charter flights for British nationals from Tel Aviv when the airport reopens, foreign minister David Lammy said on Friday.
“As part of our efforts to support British nationals in the Middle East, the government is working with the Israeli authorities to provide charter flights from Tel Aviv airport when airspace reopens,” Lammy said in a statement.
Israel’s main international gateway, Ben Gurion Airport, closed last week due to Israel and Iran’s spiralling air war.
On Monday, the British government advised its citizens in Israel to register their presence with British authorities, saying it was monitoring the situation and considering options for assistance.
It said it had increased its logistical support for citizens who have turned to overland routes into Jordan and Egypt.

Taiwan to hold recall election for lawmakers that could reshape parliament

Updated 7 min 36 sec ago
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Taiwan to hold recall election for lawmakers that could reshape parliament

TAIPEI: Taiwan will hold a recall vote for around one quarter of parliament’s lawmakers — all from the main opposition party — next month, the election commission said on Friday, a move which could see the ruling party take back control of the legislature.
While Lai Ching-te won the presidency last year, his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its parliamentary majority, leaving the Kuomintang (KMT) and the much smaller Taiwan People’s Party with the most seats.
The KMT and the TPP have passed a series of measures, including swingeing budget cuts, angering the DPP, though the campaigns to gather enough signatures for the recalls were led by civic groups.
The opposition has 62 of parliament’s 113 seats and the DPP holds the remaining 51. The recall votes for 24 KMT lawmakers will take place on July 26, the election commission said.
The DPP has given full support for the recalls, releasing a video this week calling on people to vote yes and “oppose the communists” — a direct reference to China and what the party says is the opposition’s dangerous cosying up to Beijing.
The KMT has vowed to fight what it calls a “malicious recall” that comes so soon after the last parliamentary election in January 2024.
“The KMT calls on the people of Taiwan to oppose the green communists and fight against dictatorship, and vote ‘no’,” the party said in a statement after the recall vote was announced, referring to the DPP’s party colors.
The KMT says its engagement with China, which views separately-governed Taiwan as its own territory, is needed to keep channels of communication open and reduce tensions.
China has rejected multiple offers of talks from Lai, branding him a “separatist,” and has increased military pressure against the island.
Recall campaigns against DPP lawmakers failed to gather enough valid signatures.
For the recalls to be successful, the number of votes approving the measure must be more than those opposing it, and also exceed one-quarter of the number of registered voters in the constituency, so turnout will be important.
If the recall votes are successful, there will be by-elections later this year to select new lawmakers.
Taiwan’s next parliamentary and presidential elections are not scheduled until early 2028.


Belgium announces border checks in migration clampdown

Updated 24 min 40 sec ago
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Belgium announces border checks in migration clampdown

  • A spokesperson for the Belgian Immigration Office said it was difficult to give figures for illegal immigration at the moment without the systematic border checks

BRUSSELS: Belgium will introduce border checks on people coming into the country to clamp down on illegal migration, the government said, in another limit on free movement across Europe’s Schengen zone.
The restrictions in the country that borders the Netherlands, France, Luxembourg and Germany will start this summer, a spokesperson for the junior minister for migration, Anneleen Van Bossuyt, said on Friday.
“Time for entry controls. Belgium must not be a magnet for those stopped elsewhere. Our message is clear: Belgium will no longer tolerate illegal migration and asylum shopping,” Van Bossuyt wrote on X.
The announcement follows similar moves by the Netherlands and Germany, part of a broader crackdown on migration across the continent, even as numbers of arrivals on many major routes have shown signs of falling.
“The checks will be carried out in a targeted manner on major access roads such as motorway car parks, on bus traffic ... on certain trains ... and on intra-Schengen flights from countries with high migration pressure, such as Greece and Italy,” a Belgian government statement said late on Thursday.
Prime Minister Bart De Wever, in office since February, has said curbing migration is a key priority for his right-leaning government.
Belgium is part of the open-border Schengen area which guarantees free travel between its 29 member states. Under article 23 of the Schengen Borders Code, members can temporarily reinstate border checks in response to security or migration pressures.
A spokesperson for the Belgian Immigration Office said it was difficult to give figures for illegal immigration at the moment without the systematic border checks.
Belgium, one of the world’s richest countries, received 39,615 asylum applications in 2024, 11.6 percent more than in 2023, numbers from the Federal Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers show.
The country had the capacity to take in 35,600 applicants in 2024, according to the figures, leaving many arrivals without proper accommodation.


Iran-Israel war could have ‘harmful’ migration impact on Europe, Erdogan warns

Updated 41 min 27 sec ago
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Iran-Israel war could have ‘harmful’ migration impact on Europe, Erdogan warns

ISTANBUL: The Iran-Israel air war could spark a surge in migration that could harm Europe and the region, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Friday.
Israel, saying Iran was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon, launched a massive wave of strikes a week ago, triggering an immediate retaliation.
“The spiral of violence triggered by Israel’s attacks could harm the region and Europe in terms of migration and the possibility of nuclear leakage,” his office quoted him as saying in a phone conversation with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Erdogan said the solution to the nuclear disagreements with Iran was “through negotiations.” He said the violence had “raised the threat to regional security to the highest level” and Turkiye was “making efforts to end the conflict.”
Despite the escalating confrontation, a Turkish defense ministry source said Thursday there had been “no increase” in numbers crossing from Iran.
The Turkish authorities have not released any figures.
AFP correspondents at the main Kapikoy border crossing near the eastern Turkish city of Van reported seeing several hundred people crossing in both directions, with a customs official saying the numbers were “nothing unusual.”
During a visit to the frontier on Wednesday, Defense Minister Yasar Guler said “security measures at our borders have been increased.”


Armed men in western Niger kill 34 soldiers and wound 14, authorities say

Updated 20 June 2025
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Armed men in western Niger kill 34 soldiers and wound 14, authorities say

DAKAR: Armed men killed 34 soldiers and wounded 14 others in western Niger near the tri-state border with Mali and Burkina Faso, the defense ministry said.
The attack was carred out around 9 a.m. Thursday in Banibangou by attackers using eight vehicles and more than 200 motorbikes, the ministry said in a statement.
The government said its forces killed dozens of attackers it called “terrorists,” adding that search operations by land and air were being conduted to find additional assailants.
Niger, along with its neighbors Burkina Faso and Mali, has for more than a decade battled an insurgency fought by jihadi groups, including some allied with Al-Qaeda and the Daesh group.
Following military coups in the three nations in recent years, the ruling juntas have expelled French forces and turned to Russia’s mercenary units for security assistance. The three countries have vowed to strengthen their cooperation by establishing a new security alliance, the Alliance of Sahel States.
But the security situation in the Sahel, a vast region on the fringes of the Sahara Desert, has significantly worsened since the juntas took power, analysts say, with a record number of attacks and civilians killed by Islamic militants and government forces.