In this episode of “The Opinions,” the deputy Opinion editor Patrick Healy is joined by the columnists Maureen Dowd and Carlos Lozada to dissect the first 100 days of President Trump’s second term and prepare for what’s to come.
Maureen Dowd and Carlos Lozada on 100 Days of Trump’s ‘Fake Reality’
“Nothing like this has ever happened in Washington.”
Below is a transcript of an episode of “The Opinions.” We recommend listening to it in its original form for the full effect. You can do so using the player above or on the NYT Audio app, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.
The transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Patrick Healy: This is the First 100 Days, a weekly series examining President Trump’s use of power and his drive to change America.
On Tuesday we hit the milestone: President Trump has been in office 100 days. So what have we learned? He has used power chaotically — but for a purpose: to throw an entire country off balance, to gain maximum leverage while keeping friends and enemies alike on their back heel. He’s ruled by executive order to an unprecedented degree, and he’s trying to remake America in his image.
He decides who matters and who is disposable. So tens of thousands of federal workers are gone. D.E.I. is gone. Transgender people are erased as a matter of government policy. Undocumented migrants are being rounded up, and deportations are also underway of people lawfully in the country, and even American citizens. The president is doing much of this in defiance of the courts and the Constitution.
