The Latest: Trump marks his first 100 days in office as consumer confidence plunges

The Latest:

Trump dismisses Biden nominees to US Holocaust Memorial Council, including Doug Emhoff

Trump has dismissed many of former President Joe Biden’s nominees to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, including Doug Emhoff, the husband of former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Emhoff, who is Jewish, led the Biden administration’s efforts to combat antisemitism.

He criticized the action, saying, “Let me be clear: Holocaust remembrance and education should never be politicized.” He called it “dangerous” to “turn one of the worst atrocities in history into a wedge issue.”

▶ Read more about the dismissals

Trump announces new fighter jet mission for Air National Guard base near Detroit

Trump and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appeared together at Selfridge Air National Guard Base to announce the new fighter jet mission, allaying worries that the installation could close.

For decades, Trump said, the base has “stood as a crucial pillar of North American air defense.”

“In recent years, many in Michigan have feared for the future of the base. They’ve been calling everybody, but the only one that mattered is Trump,” he said. “Today I have come in person to lay to rest any doubt about Selfridge’s future.”

During his remarks, Trump said the governor has been “very effective” in advocating for the base.

▶ Read more about the fighter jet announcement

Education Department investigates Chicago school program that helps Black students

The U.S. Education Department says it is investigating whether a Chicago Public Schools program meant to improve outcomes for Black students violates anti-discrimination laws.

The investigation comes in response to a complaint filed by Defending Education, an advocacy group founded to root out what it views as activist agendas in public schools.

The complaint alleges that the district’s “Black Student Success Plan” violates civil rights laws because it is only meant to help Black students, despite students of all races facing academic struggles.

The school system did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

Trump administration approves $1.3B sale of missiles to Poland

The Trump administration has approved a $1.3 billion sale of hundreds of Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles to NATO ally Poland, a neighbor of Ukraine that has expressed concerns about possible concessions to Russia in U.S. efforts to mediate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.

The State Department said Tuesday it had notified Congress of the sale to Poland of 400 AMRAAM missiles and related equipment, including spare parts, guidance systems and engineering and technical support.

The department said the sale would “support the foreign policy goals and national security of the United States by improving the security of a NATO ally that is a force for political and economic stability in Europe” and contribute to Poland’s self-defense capabilities.

Alaska US senator tells those worried about Trump administration to ‘continue to raise your voice’

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a moderate who has shown a willingness to challenge Trump, urged Alaskans who have been protesting or calling members of Congress with concerns about the administration and federal government to not give up.

“Keep the engagement up,” she said during a call-in radio program on Alaska Public Media on Tuesday.

Areas touched on during the hourlong program included concerns about the privacy of personal information, status of federal funding to certain programs, and potential Medicaid cuts.

She said that if people stop speaking out, it will send a message to lawmakers that they’re OK with things.

“And I don’t think that — as I’ve listened to Alaskans — I don’t think Alaskans are saying things are OK now,” she said.

Trump jokes that he’d like to be the next pope, plugs NY cardinal

“I’d like to be pope. That would be my number one choice,” Trump joked with reporters as he left the White House to travel to Michigan.

He said he doesn’t have a preference on who should succeed Pope Francis, but he put in a plug for Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York.

Trump and Dolan saw each other at Francis’ funeral in Rome last Saturday.

“I must say we have a cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who’s very good, so we’ll see what happens,” Trump said.

The US will walk away from Russia and Ukraine mediation without concrete proposals

The Trump administration says that Russia and Ukraine must now produce concrete proposals to end the conflict or the U.S. will walk away from efforts to mediate peace.

After several says of President Donald Trump’s increasing public frustration over the slow pace of developments, the State Department on Tuesday ramped up pressure on both sides to move quickly.

Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce quoted Secretary of State Marco Rubio as telling her that “we are now at a time where concrete proposals need to be delivered by the two parties on how to end this conflict.”

“How we proceed from here is a decision that belongs now to the president,” she told reporters, relating a conversation she had with Rubio. “If there is not progress, we will step back as mediators in this process.”

Senate confirms former Sen. David Perdue as Trump’s US ambassador to China amid tariff showdown

Perdue, a Republican who served one term as a U.S. senator from Georgia, was confirmed 67-29 with some Democratic support. At his confirmation hearing this month, the former business executive called the U.S. relationship with China the "most consequential diplomatic challenge of the 21st century."

“Our approach to China should be nuanced, nonpartisan and strategic,” Perdue said.While the Trump administration appears to be betting that the substantial 145% tariffs it’s imposed will be unsustainable for the Chinese economy and bring Beijing to the negotiating table, the Chinese leadership has vowed to “fight to the end.”

China is readjusting domestic policies to expand the domestic market and reduce reliance on the U.S.

Trump for president in 2028? White House press secretary says it’s ‘trolling’

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt played a round “Trump trolling or Trump truthing” with a questioner at a special briefing Tuesday for organizations they consider “new media.”

Asked about “Trump 2028,” Leavitt said, “it’s Trump trolling.” She added that hats promoting another Trump campaign for president “are flying off the shelves.”

The Constitution limits presidents to two terms, and the 78-year-old Trump just hit the 100 day mark of his second term.

But he also has encouraged – rather than shut down -- speculation about a potential 2028 campaign, citing unspecified “loopholes” for how a third term could be achieved.

In other “trolling” or “truthing” responses from Leavitt:

Greenland joining America? “Definitely Trump truthing,” she replied.

And Canada as the 51st state? “Trump truthing all the way,” Leavitt said.

Eliminating the IRS? “I think that is an optimistic goal … so I would say we’re on the side of truthing there for sure,” she said.

NAACP President laments ‘One hundred days of Making America Bigoted Again’

“This trend cannot continue,” Derrick Johnson said in a statement. “We refuse to go back to Jim Crow. And we refuse to return to pre-1776, when America answered to a monarch. The rule of law matters. That’s why we’ve been fighting the Trump Administration for its unlawful and unconstitutional actions — and why we’re organizing nationwide to mobilize the masses.”

“This is no time to stay silent,” Johnson added. “Our democracy is on the brink of extinction. Everyone’s voice matters now more than ever.”

Defense secretary boasts on X about ending Trump-era ‘Women, Peace & Security’ program

Pete Hegseth’s post Tuesday morning inaccurately called the Department of Defense program “yet another woke divisive/social justice/Biden initiative that overburdens our commanders and troops.”

“WPS is a UNITED NATIONS program pushed by feminists and left-wing activists. Politicians fawn over it; troops HATE it,” Hegseth claimed as he pledged to do the bare minimum required by Congress while working to eliminate the program altogether.

But it was Trump who proudly signed the bipartisan law in 2017, and its supporters include Trump’s new Joint Chiefs Chairman, Gen. Dan Caine.

The act recognizes the security advantages for field commanders of having women on negotiating teams, for example in societies where access to female leaders is limited to women.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., read the tweet aloud during a hearing Tuesday, and said it “contains some glaring inaccuracies that are far beneath the standard we should expect from the Department of Defense.”

Trump’s Michigan rally-goers line up while listening to ‘YMCA’ rewritten for ‘MAGA’

The line of people waiting to get into Trump’s rally in Warren, Michigan, began forming more than five hours before doors opened.

Some brought coolers and held small tailgating sessions among the metal barriers, to a soundtrack including a new version of Trump’s favorite ‘YMCA’ song.

“MAGA, there’s no need to feel down,” the rewrite goes, leading to the refrain “Make America Great Again.”

“The American dream, where a deal’s a deal,” the song continues. “You can do whatever you feel.”

The song wasn’t prompting anyone to dance yet. More hours in line could change that.

Johnson says he spoke with Trump twice this morning

Speaker Mike Johnson said at a news conference that he had already spoken with Trump twice on the morning of his 100th day in the White House and dismissed polling showing dips in the president’s approval rating.

“In any new administration, it’s a rollercoaster, right?” Johnson said. Those “bumps in the road” are expected as Trump sets out to become the most “consequential president of the modern era,” he added.

Explore Trump’s first 100 days through AP push alerts

The second Trump presidency has produced a seemingly constant stream of news.

The Associated Press has shared the headlines with people worldwide, flagging the most notable developments in hundreds of news alerts that reflect a dizzying stretch of activity by Trump, those who oppose him, the courts and the world.

To show the back-and-forth, we sorted the alerts into six categories. The alerts show how the days played out in some of the areas where Trump focused most, which included immigration, federal spending, foreign policy and tariffs.

▶ Read more about the story these alerts tell about Trump's first 100 days

Vice president to tour steel manufacturing plant in South Carolina on Thursday

Vance and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin are set to tour Nucor Steel Berkeley in Huger, South Carolina, Vance’s office announced Tuesday.

Both will speak about the Trump administration’s manufacturing agenda in the first 100 days.

A $425 million expansion creating 50 jobs at the plant was announced in 2022, with groundbreaking a year ago.

Amazon had not decided to list tariff costs on its ‘Haul’ site, source tells AP

The White House press secretary appears to have been working off incomplete reports when she said Amazon would list the price impacts of Trump’s tariffs on the products it sells, an action Leavitt called “hostile” and “political.”

Amazon was weighing whether to list the tariff costs as part of its Haul service, which it launched last year to compete against low-cost China-founded e-commerce platforms such as Temu and Shein, according to a person familiar with the situation who insisted on anonymity to discuss it.

But the company decided against such plans. It never considered showing tariff costs on its main site and nothing has been implemented on any Amazon sites, the person said.

—- Associated Press writer Josh Boak

US farm and energy goods are hardest hit in tariff war with China

U.S. agriculture and energy products are the country's largest exports to China and among the worst hit by Beijing's retaliatory tariffs, according to a report released Tuesday by the U.S.-China Business Council.

U.S. exports to China support more than 860,000 jobs in the U.S., especially in sectors such as agriculture, aerospace and aviation, and semiconductors, the council said.

The state-by-state report shows companies, workers and farmers in the American Midwest and South are the most exposed.

“This two-way tariff shock feels like a 2018 flashback, except worse. No one is spared this time.” said Sean Stein, the council’s president.

Trump will relax some auto tariffs as he visits a state defined by auto manufacturing

The White House hasn’t provided details ahead of Trump’s signing of an executive order on the changes.

Arthur Laffer, whom Trump gave the Presidential Medal of Freedom to during his first term, said in a private analysis that the 25% tariffs without any modifications could add $4,711 to the cost of a vehicle.

The modifications come as Trump marks 100 days back in the White House by going to Michigan, a state Trump won last year by promising to increase factory jobs.

US consumer confidence plunges to 5-year low on tariff worries

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell 7.9 points in April to 86 as anxiety over the impact of tariffs weigh down growth expectations.

There's a rapidly souring mood as most consumers expect prices to rise because of Trump's taxes on imports. About half of Americans are worried about a potential recession, according to a survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center.

How this gloom translates into spending, hiring, and growth will become clearer in the coming days and weeks as the normally resilient American job market also responds to Trump’s purges of federal workers and the deportation of immigrants working in the United States illegally.

U.S. employers posted 7.2 million vacancies in March, 300,000 below what economists forecast and down from 8.1 million the year before.

▶ Read more on consumer confidence and job openings

Denmark’s king is greeted warmly by Greenland’s prime minister

King Frederik X is in Greenland, the semiautonomous territory Trump wants to annex.

The king wore a jacket with emblems of the Danish and Greenlandic flags as he disembarked to applause on Tuesday, following the new Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen’s visit to Copenhagen this week.

Frederik's visit includes meeting with the new Greenlandic government and attending a traditional "coffee break" with Greenlanders.

The trip comes after U.S. Vice President JD Vance visited a remote U.S. military base on the island and accused Denmark of underinvesting in it. Trump hasn't ruled out taking the island by military force, even though Denmark is a NATO ally.

▶ Read more on the Danish king's response to Trump's threats about Greenland

US stocks drift in early trading as CEOs cite uncertainty caused by Trump’s trade war

Stronger-than-expected profits keep piling higher for companies, but CEOs also say they’re unsure how long it can last because of uncertainty around Trump’s trade war.

The S&P 500 was 0.3% lower early Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 48 points, and the Nasdaq composite was down 0.4%.

UPS is among the companies saying it won’t update its forecasts because of “macro-economic uncertainty.”

Investors fear Trump’s tariffs could cause a recession by sending prices higher, but the erratic way they’re being rolled out is also causing confusion among businesses and households.

Trump will relax some of his 25% auto tariffs to help domestic carmaking

Leavitt declined to provide details of the relief for autos and auto parts before Trump signs Tuesday’s executive order. Bessent said the goal is to enable automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs. Trump himself has suggested the changes would come.

Automakers and independent analyses have indicated that Trump’s tariffs could raise prices, hurt sales and make the U.S. sector less competitive worldwide.

“President Trump has had meetings with both domestic and foreign auto producers, and he’s committed to bringing back auto production to the U.S.,” Bessent said. “So we want to give the automakers a path to do that, quickly, efficiently and create as many jobs as possible.”

Treasury secretary says market uncertainty is good for Trump negotiating trade deals

Scott Bessent says the economic uncertainty upending global financial markets is a tool Trump can use as he negotiates tariffs and trade deals. “President Trump creates what I would call strategic uncertainty in the negotiations,” he told reporters at the White House.

“I think the aperture of uncertainty will be narrowing and, as we start moving forward announcing deals, then there will be certainty,” Bessent said. “But certainty is not necessarily a good thing in negotiating.”

To those with questions about the market uncertainty, Leavitt added: “I would say, trust in President Trump.”

White House slams Amazon’s plans to show how much tariffs increased prices

Leavitt said showing consumers how much tariffs raised prices on certain goods “is a hostile and political act.”

The import taxes imposed by Trump threaten to increase prices on consumers and businesses and worsen inflationary pressure. Companies want customers to understand the source of these higher prices.

Leavitt suggested at Tuesday’s briefing with reporters that such transparency is un-American, saying “Amazon has partnered with a Chinese propaganda arm.”

White House says economy is getting stronger at 100-day mark for Trump’s second term

The White House is cheering Trump’s economic management despite a down stock stock market and depressed consumer sentiment.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the economy has added 345,000 jobs since Trump took office, including 9,000 manufacturing jobs. Leavitt also took credit for lower oil prices, even though some of the decline reflects expectations of slower economic growth worldwide because of Trump’s tariffs. And she said deregulating would lead to savings for U.S. families.

“As President Trump has said before, the best is yet to come,” Leavitt said.

China to US: You started this trade war

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a short social media video Tuesday in response to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s comments Monday that China is responsible for escalating tariffs since it sold vastly more goods to the U.S. than vice versa.

Amid soaring rhetoric and scenes of charged moments in U.S.-China relations, the narrator says China would never “kneel down” before Trump, as “kneeling only invites more bullying.”

“When the rest of the world stands together, the U.S. is just a small, stranded boat,” said the narrator.

China has called for the U.S. to completely remove all tariffs on Chinese goods if they want to hold negotiations.

Trump’s team has disrupted some $430 billion in federal funds, top Democrats say

The Trump administration has frozen, stalled or otherwise disrupted some $430 billion in federal funds — from disease research to Head Start for children to disaster aid — in what top Democrats say is an "unprecedented and dangerous" assault on programs used by countless Americans.

Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut on Tuesday released an online tracker that is compiling all the ways Trump and his adviser, Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, are interrupting the flow of federal funds, often going up against the law.

“Instead of investing in the American people, President Trump is ignoring our laws and ripping resources away,” said Murray and DeLauro, who are the top Democrats on the Appropriations committees in Congress.

The tally is far from complete or exhaustive, the lawmakers said, but a snapshot in time. It comes in a rapidly changing political and legal environment as the Trump administration faces dozens of lawsuits from state and local governments, advocacy organizations, employees and others fighting to keep programs intact.

▶ Read more about Trump's use of federal funding

Trump made big promises and moved at frenetic speed. 100 days in, here’s what he’s done and not done

The weeks since Trump returned to office have been a whirlwind of activity to show Americans that his administration is relentlessly pursuing his promises.

With a compliant Republican-controlled Congress, Trump has had a free hand to begin overhauling the federal government and upending foreign policy.

As Trump hits his 100th day in office, his imprint is everywhere. But the long-term impact is often unclear.

Some of the Republican president’s executive orders are statements of intent or groundwork to achieve what has yet to be done.

Trump’s goals occasionally conflict with each other. He promised both to lower the cost of living and to impose tariffs on foreign goods, which will most likely increase prices. Other issues are languishing.

Very much unsettled is whether Trump has run up his scorecard lawfully. He has faced lawsuits over some of his actions, meaning much of what he’s done could be undone as cases play out.

▶ Read more about where progress on his promises stands

Trump marks his first 100 days in office with a rally in Michigan, a state rocked by his tariffs

Trump is holding a rally in Michigan on Tuesday to mark the first 100 days of his second term, staging his largest public event since returning to the White House in a state that has been especially rocked by his steep trade tariffs and combative attitude toward Canada.

He will make an afternoon visit to Selfridge Air National Guard Base for an announcement alongside Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. He's expected to speak at a rally at Macomb Community College, north of Detroit, allowing him to revel in leading a sprint to upend government and social, political and foreign policy norms.

Michigan was one of the battleground states Trump flipped from the Democratic column. But it's also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new imported cars and auto parts.

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Credit: AP