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Donald Trump has made bold claims about his plans for when he takes office next month, from drastic action at the border to ending birthright citizenship and pardoning January 6 insurrectionists.
When he sat down for his first postelection interview with a mainstream journalist, Kristen Welker of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” he promised he would not encourage his Justice Department to go after his political enemies but added that he thinks some of them belong in jail.
How those promises and desires will translate into action remains unclear, so it’s worth paying attention to what Trump said in that lengthy sit-down, which aired Sunday. Here are key lines from NBC’s interview, along with some context:
What will Trump accomplish in his first 100 days?
a ban on travel from predominantly Muslim countries and also put a hold on all refugees entering the US for four months.
Those moves, which made a statement, sparked protests at airports and a standoff between Trump and lawyers at the Department of Justice.
Trump has talked previously about mobilizing the military to do more at the border and about effectively shutting the border with Mexico.
In the NBC interview, he also talked about extending tax cuts and working with Democratic mayors to address crime in cities in his first 100 days.
considered alternatives to Hegseth, he has maintained public support for the former Fox News host.
There have been multiple reports about Hegseth’s drinking, including that it led him to be forced out of the leadership of veterans’ advocacy groups. He also has dealt with revelations about a settlement he reached with a woman who alleged Hegseth sexually assaulted her.
Can Trump guarantee tariffs won’t raise prices for American consumers?
tariffs raise prices for consumers, but Trump doesn’t believe it. He has promised a 25% tariff on all imports from Canada and Mexico, something he may be able to accomplish without Congress.
In the NBC interview, he pointed to tariffs he imposed, particularly on China, during his first term and kept in place by the Biden administration as evidence. Trump argued the US is “subsidizing” Canada to the tune of $100 billion per year and Mexico to the tune of $300 billion per year.
joke about annexing Canada during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Presumably he was riffing on that joke here rather than offering a serious idea.
After a recent phone call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump said they had agreed to “effectively” close the border, although she later disputed that claim.
It’s not entirely clear what Trump meant by arguing in the NBC interview that the US is subsidizing Canada and Mexico. It could be a reference to trade deficits between the US and those trading partners. But the trade deficit with Canada was about $54 billion in 2022 and about $131 billion with Mexico that year.
“madman theory” of foreign policy is that other countries stay in check because they think a powerful world leader is crazy and unpredictable, something Trump has embraced. Before November’s election, for example, Trump told The Wall Street Journal he would never have to use the military to protect Taiwan from China because China’s president knows he’s “f**king crazy.”
Trump also argued in the NBC interview that tariffs during his first term saved “tens of thousands” of manufacturing jobs at Whirlpool in Ohio, a debatable claim since the US International Trade Commission found that the tariffs led to an uptick of about 1,800 US jobs, at a cost to consumers of about $815,000 per job. Trump said “the market” will keep companies from raising prices as a result of his tariffs.
add $7.75 trillion to the national debt over 10 years.
Welker asked Trump directly whether tariffs are something he’ll really do or whether they’re a negotiating tactic. His 416-word response did not answer the question directly, but he did argue that his election has already dried up border crossings to a “trickle.”
executive action by the Biden administration.
Would Trump consider raising the minimum wage?
Alaska and Missouri, two states that backed Trump, voters also acted in November to raise the minimum wage. Trump has focused his outreach to wage earners on policy proposals such as exempting tips from taxes.
Is it realistic to deport every single one of the millions of people in the US illegally?
Read more about his immigration plans.
Does that include ‘Dreamers,’ who were brought to the US as children?
Dreamers to be able to stay in the US and suggested “doing something” about Dreamers could involve a bipartisan deal with Democrats.
But in mixed-immigration-status families, where children are citizens and their parents are not, Trump would focus on deporting the whole family
according to the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, every person born in the US is a citizen.
Read this fact check.
Trump still has only ‘concepts’ of a health care plan, but it’s hard to explain
Read more about what Trump did with the Affordable Care Act.
Will he follow up on making insurance companies pay for in vitro fertilization?
Kash Patel, to necessarily investigate his political enemies. He seemed surprised when Welker read back to him a 2023 Truth Social post in which he said he would appoint a special prosecutor to look into President Joe Biden. But does he want his political enemies investigated?
blueprint for a Republican administration and he agrees with much of it, Trump doesn’t want to be associated with it.
He’s not thinking about a pardon from Biden
While Trump said he thinks a president can pardon himself, he doesn’t think he needs one since the federal cases against him have been dropped. And on whether Biden should pardon him as a way to bring the country together, Trump doesn’t see it happening.
not correct.
In response to Trump’s argument that January 6 committee members should be jailed, Cheney said it would be inappropriate for the Department of Justice to investigate a congressional committee.
He’s serious about pardoning January 6 rioters on his first day in office
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and drug companies about a range of topics, including vaccines and pesticides.
But Trump said RFK Jr. will not pursue radical change
will work with Trump on ending the war.
Trump takes no responsibility for the divided country
Welker asked Trump whether, to unite the US and turn the page, he would admit he lost the 2020 election. He would not.
what role his wife, Melania, would play in her second four years as first lady, but he quickly pivoted to an attack on the press.
Trump will give every American the MAGA treatment
Welker asked for his message to the people who didn’t vote for him.
