Opinion 100 alternative days

The phrase now typifies much of the Trump presidency.

April 29 marks 100 — fractious — days of Donald Trump’s presidency. After a bitter election, and amid allegations of Russian hacking in the US polls, Trump entered the Oval Office under a dark cloud. He immediately chose the offensive. His allegations of the “failing” US media lying about enormous crowds at his inauguration provoked controversy. The media released pictures of a paltry gathering, Trump’s spokesperson Sean Spicer claimed much larger numbers, while his advisor Kellyanne Conway followed with fictitious tales of terrorism elsewhere, eventually claiming “alternative facts”.

The phrase now typifies much of the Trump presidency. By withdrawing America from the collaborative Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), rolling back on key climate change agreements, attempting to overturn the Obamacare health plan, insisting on the environmentally-damaging Dakota Pipeline, emphasising that Mexico pays for a migrant-barring wall, pushing tax cuts for the rich while glorifying the poor, Trump has pushed a new “alternative politics”. This is often devoid of facts, mostly running on rhetoric, victim-hood, contradiction and occasionally, spite. Meanwhile, Trump’s presidency has seen the rise of US unilateralism, with America bombing Syria and Afghanistan on its own, even clashing with rumoured paramour Russia.

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But these 100 days have also seen a pause in several of Trump’s promised moves. Despite his sharp accusations of currency manipulation against China, Trump has apparently softened, even describing Chinese President Xi Jinping as “a very good man” who could help solve the brewing North Korean crisis. Despite his conflicts with German Chancellor Angela Merkel over migrants, and his abrasive relationship with Europe, Trump recently stated America still believes in NATO. Most importantly, in these 100 days, America has displayed its own inner grit. Even as Trump signed his infamous travel ban, court after court struck it down, a judge’s sagacity standing against the US president’s might. These 100 days have seen Trump veer from a bitter, hard line to unpredictable U-turns. But these 100 days have also seen the US restore some faith in institutions like the media and judiciary, which have emphasised that there is no alternative to due process.