It’s been 10 months since Donald Trump began his second term in office and we have seen a lot of changes made, for better or worse. He released classified JFK’s assassination files, added multiple tariffs on nondomestic goods sold in America, withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, made to address climate change, pardoned convicted people from the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol raids and labeled drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
Before the 2024 election I never cared about politics. I tried to care but I never fully understood what was going on in the world until 2024, my senior year of high school. I try to be as centrist as I can but it’s hard given everything going on with this administration. Trump is such an interesting character, a businessman turned president. I still sometimes see him as the guy from “Home Alone 2.”
In my mind he always seemed like he was destined to lose, considering his constant lies, extremely unprofessional behavior, disrespecting other candidates, and all the insane things coming out of his mouth, but somehow he managed to win.
I don’t agree with a lot of things he does, but I’ll give him credit where credit is due. When Trump wants something done he usually gets it done, but the negatives just outway the positives. America is in a crisis right now and people like you and I need to stop this administration and all its corruption now.
Trump Isn’t a Good President
Trump has done more harm to this country than good. He made policies that harm almost every citizen in America. One such action is the “Securing Our Borders” policy which increases mass deportations with the help of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump’s handling of mass deportation has not been the best. ICE raids ramped up in January 2025 as officers detained up to 14,882 illegal and legal immigrants, which is now 58,766 as of Sept. 7, according to Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. ICE officers often go to public places and events and detain people who they deem as undocumented immigrants.
ICE has become the largest funded law enforcement agency in America today. That’s concerning, especially with the new Supreme Court ruling that lets ICE officers in Los Angeles racially profile and detain people that they please. Imagine you were born and raised in America and decide to go to the nearby mall, and you get detained for allegedly being an undocumented immigrant because of how you look. I don’t know how Trump or anyone can justify what’s happening. So many families have been split up and hurt due to these raids. So many innocent people have been harassed by these officers.
Trump has also been making bad economic decisions. When Trump was sworn into office one of his promises was new tariffs on all imported goods sold in America. I’ll be honest, like many people I didn’t know what a tariff was. But Trump promised that these tariffs would help Americans like you and me. Not once have these tariffs benefited me. Whenever I buy something from outside the country I always have to pay more just to get that item shipped to me.
These tariffs have also ruined relations with other countries. Why would Trump threaten other countries like China, Canada, or the EU with tariffs as high as 200%? Why start problems with other countries and ruin our reputation? Why would he implement a 40% tax on all transshipped goods? Why implement these tariffs if they hurt relations with other countries and every American citizen? Well not every citizen.
U.S. business owners get a financial boost due to these tariffs as more people buy from America and not other countries, but this just makes things harder for people when most things aren’t made in America. This change was purely out of ego, which leads to another issue. Trump has tried making weird decisions that boost our country’s image. Something everyone might remember is his renaming of the “Gulf of Mexico,” to “Gulf of America.” What is the point of this? About 25-30% of Americans wanted this change, but I don’t think that justifies changing history in the name of boosting American patriotism.
One of my biggest personal gripes is the fact Trump is only four years younger than Joe Biden, the previous president. On multiple occasions Trump called Biden “too old to run for president,” but he is the same age now as when Biden was in office, which means Trump shouldn’t be in office according to his own words.
Trump’s current health doesn’t look too good either, at least Biden managed to sort of keep it together for four years. This is Trump’s first year into his second term and already he’s having to hide certain aspects of his health to the public with makeup. He is a hypocrite, a liar and a threat to all American citizens.
Take Action
If you agree with me that Trump has done a terrible job as president, then take some action. Write to your federal representatives or congress/senate members and personally tell them your disdain, take the streets, organize events. It’s up to people like you and I to use our voices to show that the administration can’t treat us like this. Thankfully there’s been huge movements throughout the country in protest of the administration’s actions that are good examples to follow. An example was the No Kings protest, which had about five million people across the country, and I think it’s been one of the best protests in American history.
It was non-violent, got a clear message across and was very impactful. It was a good idea to hold this protest on Trump’s birthday. It demeans his birthday, but it also contrasts his illusion and the reality of what people think of him. There’s a reason why people see him as a tyrant or a dictator when he has parades like the United States Army 250th Anniversary Parade at a time where citizen morale is at its lowest. The protest also really showed how many people disapprove of his actions.
Two major things that America needs to do if they want to see change in this country is keeping up the good work in protesting and finding a new figurehead for the Democrats. Ever since Trump won the 2024 election, Kamala Harris disappeared after losing and Biden left office with a terrifying message about how the country will turn out. They were the two biggest Democratic figures in the country, but right now nobody has stepped up to take their place. I think if people want hope for something different they need to find someone who can take their spot.
After the 2024 election there hasn’t really been a Democratic leader for people to turn to, so it was eye opening for me and probably other people seeing everyone who is against Trump standing together against him, and it’s insane how all 50 states managed to band together against this guy. This protest is the third largest protest in American history and I think that’s amazing.
A Warning For What’s to Come
While showing disapproval for this administration is a good thing that people should consider, I should speak out on something else I’ve noticed recently. Following the murder of Charlie Kirk, I’ve seen people seeing this as a great opportunity of sorts. A sort of relief that someone who supported Trump is gone now, like it’s some sort of tally mark on a list of people who need to go.
Personally I never cared for Kirk, and I still don’t. I never liked his ideals but I just ignored him. I don’t care if he deserved it or not. I don’t care if people mourn or celebrate his death. I don’t even care if he was a conservative or a liberal. What I do care about is the fact that people see the murder of another person as an opportunity to make a political statement or change.
I don’t think it has to be said, but murder is wrong. Murdering political figures is an even worse idea, especially with the state of the country. These murders silence people in this country and indicate that people aren’t allowed to say what they want to say. This is not a good thing. I don’t like Trump if it wasn’t clear, but murdering him isn’t a good idea at all. I am one of the people who were glad the assassination attempt on Trump back in July of 2024 didn’t work, because there would have been dire consequences if he did die. Let’s just imagine what could have happened if Trump died. I think something bad and dire, like a war between the Democrats and Republicans, could have been initiated, and still might be a possibility.
So far nothing bad has happened in terms of imminent danger, but soon something will happen if this country goes down that dark path. I want to make it absolutely clear that America is in absolute danger and something bad will happen, I cannot stress that enough. Many stories were overshadowed by Kirk’s death but revolts and wars have happened and unfolded in other countries and America might unfortunately be next.
Hopefully we never reach the point of mass murdering politicians or destroying important buildings, but by the looks of how events are unfolding I’m afraid even one small step in the wrong direction can lead to devastating consequences. America is on thin ice right now and we as citizens need to be careful as to not promote the wrong ideals in times like these, or things could go for the worse.
Eventually things will die down, and after every storm there is a melancholy aftermath of uncertainty, so let me leave you with a thought. Considering widespread disapproval, Trump’s age and the fact his health has been questioned in recent times, when Trump is eventually gone, what comes next for our country?
