News Barron

Make. America. Great. Again. The epic slogan rings in every patriot’s ears as we stare down midterms in five weeks. Trump’s second term is in its twentieth month, so it’s time to look back at his twenty promises.

Trump promised to get all of them done very quickly. Some have been completed. Others are mostly there. And a few have yet to be acted on. The following is the Official Report Card.

1. Seal the border and stop the migrant invasion: A+

-Encounters collapsed to a record low. Admin says no catch-and-release for 15+ months and negative net migration in 2025. -CBP One app is dead, Remain in Mexico back, wall contracts moving, troops on the border. -Asylum grant rate cratered. The invasion stopped.

2. Largest deportation operation in American history: B+

-Due to OBBB (July 2025 reconciliation bill) ICE roughly doubled, detentions near 70k, 600k+ formal removals plus a mountain of “self-deportations.” -Laken Riley Act signed. Gang and criminal targeting is real. TPS ended for 90% of recipients, opening up more targets for deportation. -Numbers started shooting up post Markwanye Mullin confirmation as DHS Secretary, but still room to improve. Courts have done their best to slow it down, and we are slowly winning each legal battle, emphasis on slowly. -Overall, work in progress with significant wins. Not finished.

3. End inflation and make America affordable again: B-

-Headline CPI was about 2.7% in 2024. August 2026 print: 3.4% year-over-year. Core inflation is lower at 2.4%. Food overall +2.7%, groceries at home +2.2%. -Eggs: clear win. Dozen went from roughly $4.71 in 2024 / nearly $5 in early 2025 to about $2.19 by mid-2026 after the bird-flu flock recovered. -Gas: initially down in 25, now much higher. 2024 annual average sat near $3.22. National regular is around $4.30+ in September 2026 after the Iran oil shock. Gasoline index +27.4% over the last year. Energy overall +16.3%. -Shelter still grinding higher (~3%) nationally. But in areas with high deportations and large visa cuts, rent IS falling. San Antonio (-5%), Austin (-3 to -4%), DFW/Houston (-2 to -3%). -Ground beef never really came home, as herds need time to rebuild from Biden era policies. Tax cuts and energy production helped the grocery aisle more so than the pump.

4. Make America the dominant energy producer in the world, by far: A+

-Record crude and gas, record LNG, emergency declaration, federal-land drilling, exited Paris agreement. -EV credits killed. “Drill, baby, drill” has been actualized with the first new oil refinery in 30 years in Texas.

5. Stop outsourcing and turn the U.S. into a manufacturing superpower: A-

-Recent news: Mesabi Metallics / Essar $15–18 billion Iowa steel mill, sold as the largest in U.S. history. ~1,750 permanent jobs, up to 6,000 construction, first-phase ~7.5 million tons, targeting 2030 start. Fed by the new Minnesota iron-ore mine (first of its kind in 50 years). White House says $95 billion economic add. -Steel: U.S. passed Japan in crude output for the first time since 1999, now No. 3 in the world. Raw steel up ~9% since Trump returned. Domestic mills supply 84% of finished steel vs 77% in 2024. Industry groups credit 50% steel tariffs with $47 billion in announced mill investment. Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown got a $500 million DOE assist. -Trade: 20+ deals (Japan $550 billion framework, Korea shipbuilding/strategic package, EU energy buys, etc.). Admin claims trillions in pledged investment with private trackers putting all announced manufacturing north of $2 trillion since 2025. Manufacturing expansion streak, mill orders at records. -Caveat: much of this takes time to fully actualize, and won’t reap rewards for several years. However, this is THE greatest onshoring push in decades, if not ever.

6. Large tax cuts for workers and no tax on tips: A

-One Big Beautiful Bill, July 4, 2025. 2017 cuts locked in. No tax on tips, overtime, and a chunk of Social Security. Senior deductions.

7. Defend the Constitution, Bill of Rights, speech, religion, and 2A: A

-DOJ Civil Rights Division stood up a Second Amendment Section (late 2025) and started suing: LA County Sheriff carry delays, Denver, Colorado, D.C., Virginia’s assault-weapon ban. Harmeet Dhillon’s “see you in court” era. -ATF: Trump’s Protecting Second Amendment Rights order. Zero-tolerance FFL policy dumped. Dozens of rules rewritten or proposed. New path to restore federal gun rights under §925(c). OLC told DOJ it will not criminally enforce the 1968 dealer ban on handgun sales to 18 to 20 year-olds. Postal Service moving a regulation to treat handguns like long guns in the mail. -DEI gutted across the feds and contractors. Speech, guns and religion fights back on offense. 2A actually has active defenders filing pro gun lawsuits at the DOJ.

8. Prevent WW3, restore peace in Europe and the Middle East, build a Golden Dome: C+

-Ukraine war did not end in 24 hours. The war is sending diesel prices upward with Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy facilities. However, recently passed Russian sanctions bill may help the peace process. -Middle East is hotter, not quieter. Israel/Gaza war is ended, but Lebanon/Iran conflicts are ongoing. -Golden Dome is funded and moving (see #12). Overall, mixed bag with more negatives than positives right now.

9. End the weaponization of government: B+

-DOGE cuts, Schedule F-style control over executive branch members, agencies slashed, Humphrey’s Executor punched in the mouth at SCOTUS. -Pardon list included Jan 6 prisoners, Ross Ulbricht (say thank you Libertarians!), Mechanics who worked on diesel emissions monitors, and more. -Anti weaponization fund created to compensate victims, but later halted.

10. Stop migrant crime, smash cartels, crush gangs: A-

-Laken Riley Act. ICE gang takedowns (Tren de Aragua and friends). Synthetic-opioid (fentanyl) deaths fell 22% in 2025, 48,913 → 38,084. All-drug overdoses down 14%, 81,313 → 69,973. HALT Fentanyl Act signed July 2025. Seizures at the border dropped 45% in FY2025, which the Trump admin argues is because less product is making it to the border. DEA: share of seized pills with a lethal dose went from 76% to 29%. -Shield of America agreements have brought Latin American countries onboard with crushing transnational crime. -Mexico repatriated a dozen top cartel members. Still resistant on more help with illegal immigration.

11. Rebuild our cities, including Washington, D.C., safe, clean, and beautiful: B+

-D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force: National Guard still in the streets. White House tally after one year: 16,000+ arrests, ~2,000 illegal guns, homicide suspects and gangbangers pulled off the sidewalk, missing kids recovered. Homeless encampments cleared from parks. Beautification scoreboard: thousands of lights fixed, benches rebuilt, graffiti blasted, monuments and fountains cleaned, truckloads of debris out of Constitution Gardens, rat-proof cans, potholes filled. Homicides, carjackings, and robberies down hard. Winning! -Memphis Safe Task Force (one year in): overall crime ~36% down vs last year. Murders ~35–36% down. Auto theft ~57% down. Robberies ~42% down. 12,700–13,000 arrests, 2,100+ guns, 1,400 known gang members, 189 missing kids found. Guard and feds still there. Winning! -Model Cities money is supposed to clone this. Still limited to Memphis and DC thus far.

12. Strengthen and modernize the military: A-

-Record defense ask (~$1.5 trillion floated). Golden Dome funded with initial $25 billion in the 2025 OBBB. -Record recruitment numbers across every branch. Complete 180 from the Biden years (what did Lloyd Austin even do???). -Space Force: extra 36 Golden Dome missile-tracking sats ($1.75 billion, L3Harris + Sierra Space) on top of 72 already ordered. Space-based interceptor competition aiming at 2028 demo. Secretary Meink said that Space Force has on-orbit space-control weapons. Palantir AI contract to fuse the “brain.” -AI in command-and-control, hypersonic tracking, shipyard missile-tracking vessels. Munitions stockpiles need to be replenished after Iran conflict, with more contracts being signed.

13. Keep the dollar as the world’s reserve currency: B+

-Dollar is still the world’s reserve currency. -No BRICS common currency. Trump threatened 100% tariffs on anyone building a CIPS / BRICS Pay / mBridge end-run around the dollar. -Bond market has been jumpy (tariffs + debt).

14. Protect Social Security and Medicare, no cuts, no retirement-age hike: A

-OBBB had social security tax cut for seniors. -DOGE team cleaned up social security death database (13 million entries without deaths filled in). -CMS tackling Medicare fraud across US since March, Dr. Oz says this will double the lifespan of the Medicare fund.

15. Cancel the EV mandate and cut stupid regulations: A

-OBBB killed EV Credits. EPA Admin Zeldin reset the CAFE/fuel-economy standards. Methane tax also gone. Zeldin working on further cuts to power plant greenhouse gas regs.

16. Cut federal funding for CRT / gender ideology in schools: B+

-Executive orders, funding threats, Education Department finally beginning to get dismantled. Districts and courts still fighting tooth and nail.

17. Keep men out of women’s sports: A-

-SCOTUS case greenlit state bans. -Education dept going after schools that still have it. Making progress rapidly. -NCAA redid medals for Lia Thomas and other trans athletes, giving them to real women instead.

18. Deport pro-Hamas radicals, make campuses patriotic again: B

-Sec State Rubio announced massive student visa revoking (6,000+). Much quieter campuses than in 2023-2024. -Universities have signed agreements with the admin on courses and funding. -Unclear how to grade making campuses “Patriotic again”.

19. Secure elections (same-day, ID, paper, proof of citizenship): B

-DOGE enhanced DHS SAVE system to allow for states to check voter rolls. Leftist district courts blocked it, but SCOTUS recently upheld the system. -SAVE America Act passed House 4 times. Senate filibuster preventing it from passing. -USPS regulation to ensure mail ballots are secure was blocked by courts. Likely to be in force for 28, but not this year.

20. Unite the country by record success: C

-Border, energy, steel, tax cuts, beautiful cities, lower crime, inflation low in some areas. -However, polarization and a lack of positive coverage by the LIBERAL mainstream media (and the vast majority of the online RW influencer sphere) for any successes of the admin has not increased crossover appeal.

21. Bonus: addressing legal immigration, which was not one of the 20 promises: B+

-Parole programs for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans shut down. Refugee cap crushed (FY26 target 7,500, vs 100k+ under Biden). Almost all recent admits were White South Africans. -The H-1B: lottery tilted toward higher pay/degrees; $100,000 entry fee on new petitions (judge knocked the first version, the admin came back via an actual rule/proclamation which may hold up better in court). Big IT outsourcers’ registrations collapsed (~25k to ~2k, about −92%) -Public charge, higher naturalization fees, no SBA loans or easy mortgages for the wrong statuses. -More action could be taken on OPT and H1B. Still, significant progress in the right direction.

Overall: A-

Much progress was made across all 20 promises plus a bonus, the border sealing being the top highlight. OBBB legislation codified many additional wins. We even got progress on legal immigration, which, contrary to what the online commentariat would suggest, was never really part of the campaign. However, the Iran conflict has damaged some inflation wins and hurt Trump’s overall approval. This is still one of the most productive administrations ever, with many more wins I could include on the list. In November, we vote RED to give Trump the reinforcements he needs. Onwards Patriots!!!!