US President Trump's first 100 days in office
This Saturday will mark the 100th day of Donald Trump's presidency. Whereas he had previously stressed all the things he planned to accomplish before this deadline, he has now described it as "ridiculous" and an "artificial barrier". How does the press see the president's first 100 days?
Not as bad as expected
Trump has achieved little but he's also done little damage, Die Welt concludes:
“Trump hasn't become an authoritarian leader. He continues to criticise the judges but hasn't ignored their rulings. He hasn't turned into Putin's lapdog either, and in fact seems to be standing by America's Western allies more than expected. And so far he hasn't triggered a trade war with China. All this may set the bar very low for a US president, but considering the things Trump said during the election campaign one does feel relieved. … The world and the West have got through the first 100 days of the Trump administration relatively unscathed. That's a hopeful sign. But it's far too soon to give the all clear signal.”
Better in the role of campaigner
Trump isn't behaving any more reasonably or calmly than he did during the election campaign in Kapital Daily's opinion:
“Trump has remained true to the scandalous behaviour he displayed during the entire election campaign. The key role played by his private home, his uneducated way of speaking, his caustic treatment of journalists, his exclusion of important media from the White House, his demonstratively crude behaviour toward women, from Merkel to his own wife, his clan building in the White House and many other things are all unprecedented for an American president. Trump is still stuck in his role as campaigner. His whole attitude shows that he would rather fight to become president than be one.”
Staying at home hasn't hurt Trump
What is highly unusual is that Trump hasn't made a single foreign trip yet, El Mundo comments:
“In these first 100 days in office Trump hasn't done much travelling. In fact he is the only president in 40 years not to have made any foreign trips, preferring to make use of the home advantage. He's probably made just as many headlines receiving foreign leaders at the White House as if he had visited them anyway - and saved energy to boot. In mid-May, however, he's due to make an important trip to Sicily, where his G7 colleagues will be waiting for him. And he'll also meet Pope Francis. There's not that much good feeling between the two. Francis is concerned by Trump's recent belligerent behaviour and has publicly criticised his immigration policy. For his part Trump distrusts the close friendship between Francis and Obama.”
Flexible but incoherent
Le Figaro proposes suggestions on the right attitude to take to Trump's zigzag course:
“Two reactions are conceivable. You can either be reassured by the 45th president's realism and ability to adapt or be terrified by the volatility of his convictions. Perhaps Trump's style is to have no style at all, either in manners or in his way of governing. It's blow by blow, case by case. His decisions are impulsive and serve his immediate interests. That has the advantage of flexibility, but not necessarily of coherence. The Europeans must take note of this absence of vision and urgently adopt a diplomacy with backbone. Otherwise we'll be condemned to being swept back and forth by the whims of the helmsman in Washington.”