The Daily T: The good, the bad, and the ugly of Trump's first 100 days
But how is Donald Trump really fairing on his campaign promises, 100 days into his second administration?
Kamal and Camilla review the president's achievements – and misses – so far, including immigration, the economy and slashing bureaucracy and DEI.
Later, they ask Greg Swenson, chair of Republicans Overseas UK, whether the president can retain support amongst Rust Belt America if prices shoot up – and why some supporters are wearing Trump 2028 hats…
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Reuters
26 minutes ago
- Reuters
European second-quarter corporate profits expected to rise after EU-US tariff deal
July 29 (Reuters) - The outlook for European corporate health has improved, the latest earnings forecasts showed on Tuesday, after the European Union struck a framework trade deal with the U.S. on Sunday after weeks of negotiations. European companies are expected to report growth of 1.8% in second-quarter earnings, on average, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data, a large improvement from the 0.3% fall analysts had expected a week ago. The framework trade agreement sets out a 15% import tariff on most EU goods from next month, lower than the 30% U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened to apply earlier in July, but likely higher than businesses had hoped. Before the agreement, Trump's tariff policies had changed frequently since April, the most common start of the second fiscal quarter. Some were imposed while others were proposed and then delayed. This earnings season is the first to expose the impact of Trump's tariff-fuelled trade war on corporate health. Revenue meanwhile is expected to be slightly worse than last week's estimate, the LSEG report showed, with analysts expecting a 3.3% fall versus a 3.1% drop previously. That would be the worst quarterly performance in more than a year. It compares to a 3.0% increase in earnings and a 0.8% drop in revenues a year ago. Milan-listed Stellantis ( opens new tab said on Tuesday as it reported its half-year results that it expected a 1.5 billion euro ($1.7 billion) impact from U.S. tariffs this year, at the higher end of a forecast range provided last week. Volkswagen ( opens new tab last Friday cut its full-year sales and margin forecasts when it reported a 1.3 billion euro hit from tariffs for the first half, in the German carmaker's first assessment of the damage from Trump's trade war. Companies still to report this week include Adidas ( opens new tab, Anheuser-Busch InBev ( opens new tab and Santander ( opens new tab. As of Monday's close, Europe's benchmark STOXX 600 (.STOXX), opens new tab index was up about 8% since the start of 2025. ($1 = 0.8674 euros)
The Independent
28 minutes ago
- The Independent
Surging US imports and lower tariffs to lift global growth, IMF predicts
Global economic growth will be stronger than previously thought, as US imports surged and some of President Donald Trump's tariff rates have been softened since April, new projections show. Global growth is forecast to be 3% in 2025 and 3.1% in 2026, according to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) latest World Economic Outlook. This is higher than the respective 2.8% and 3% forecast in the previous report in April. UK gross domestic product (GDP) is predicted to be 1.2% this year, and 1.4% in 2026, unchanged from revised forecasts set out in May. The upgrade to the world outlook reflects factors including a strong degree of trade 'front-loading' in recent months – referring to a rush of imports into the US. This has happened as businesses and households tried to get ahead of planned increases to US tariff rates, following Mr Trump's 'liberation day' announcements in April, according to the report. The IMF said front-loading had 'shaped economic activity in the first half of the year', adding that it was 'creating exposures that could amplify the impact of any potential negative shocks'. For example, firms could end up having too much stock, therefore pushing down future imports, or it could lead to additional holding costs or the risk of items becoming obsolete. Meanwhile, the growth upgrade since April was also driven by US tariffs being lowered since higher rates were first announced by Mr Trump, alongside improved conditions in the financial markets. This came after the US struck new trade deals, including with the UK and, most recently, the EU. The introduction of some higher tariff rates have also been paused until August, notably between China and the US, helping diffuse escalating trade tensions and open the door to negotiations. However, the IMF warned that a 'rebound in effective tariff rates could lead to weaker growth' and weigh on wider sentiment. 'Elevated uncertainty could start weighing more heavily on activity, also as deadlines for additional tariffs expire without progress on substantial, permanent agreements,' the report said. Furthermore, the IMF flagged conflict in the Middle East creating potential risks to global shipping and trade, which could further raise commodity prices like oil. On the other hand, the report found that global growth could be lifted if trade negotiations lead to lower tariffs, ease tensions, and create more certainty and predictability. The IMF also highlighted technological advancements, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI), as a way to further boost growth around the world. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: 'The IMF's forecasts show that the UK remains the fastest growing European economy in the G7 despite the global economic challenges we are facing. 'However, I am determined to unlock Britain's full potential, which is why we are investing billions of pounds through our plan for change – in jobs through better city region transport, record funding for affordable homes, as well as backing major projects like Sizewell C to drive economic growth and put more money into people's pockets.'
The Independent
28 minutes ago
- The Independent
With AI plan, Trump keeps chipping away at a foundational environmental law
When President Donald Trump rolled out a plan to boost artificial intelligence and data centers, a key goal was wiping away barriers to rapid growth. And that meant taking aim at the National Environmental Policy Act — a 55-year-old, bedrock law aimed at protecting the environment though a process that requires agencies to consider a project's possible impacts and allows the public to be heard before a project is approved. Data centers, demanding vast amounts of energy and water, have aroused strong opposition in some communities. The AI Action Plan Trump announced last week would seek to sweep aside NEPA, as it's commonly known, to streamline environmental reviews and permitting for data centers and related infrastructure. Republicans and business interests have long criticized NEPA for what they see as unreasonable slowing of development, and Trump's plan would give 'categorical exclusions' to data centers for 'maximum efficiency' in permitting. A spokeswoman for the White House Council on Environmental Quality said the administration is 'focused on driving meaningful NEPA reform to reduce the delays in federal permitting, unleashing the ability for America to strengthen its AI and manufacturing leadership." Trump's administration has been weakening the law for months. 'It's par for the course for this administration. The attitude is to clear the way for projects that harm communities and the environment,' said Erin Doran, senior staff attorney at environmental nonprofit Food & Water Watch. Here's what to know about this key environmental law, and Trump's effort to weaken it: What is NEPA and why does it matter? NEPA is a foundational environmental law in the United States, 'essentially our Magna Carta for the environment,' said Wendy Park, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, another environmental group, referring to the 13th century English legal text that formed the basis for constitutions worldwide. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon in 1970, NEPA requires federal agencies proposing actions such as building roads, bridges or energy projects to study how their project will affect the environment. Private companies are also frequently subject to NEPA standards when they apply for a permit from a federal agency. In recent years, the law has become increasingly important in requiring consideration of a project's possible contributions to climate change. 'That's a really important function because otherwise we're just operating with blinders just to get the project done, without considering whether there are alternative solutions that might accomplish the same objective, but in a more environmentally friendly way," Park said. But business groups say NEPA routinely blocks important projects that often taken five years or more to complete. 'Our broken permitting system has long been a national embarrassment,'' said Marty Durbin, president of the U.S. Chamber's Global Energy Institute. He called NEPA 'a blunt and haphazard tool' that too often is used to block investment and economic development. The White House proposal comes as Congress is working on a permitting reform plan that would overhaul NEPA, addressing long-standing concerns from both parties that development projects -- including some for clean energy -- take too long to be approved. What's happened to NEPA recently? NEPA's strength — and usefulness — can depend on how it's interpreted by different administrations. Trump, a Republican, sought to weaken NEPA in his first term by limiting when environmental reviews are required and limiting the time for evaluation and public comment. Former Democratic President Joe Biden restored more rigorous reviews. In his second term, Trump has again targeted the law. An executive order that touched on environmental statutes has many agencies scrapping the requirement for a draft environmental impact statement. And the CEQ in May withdrew Biden-era guidance that federal agencies should consider the effects of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions when conducting NEPA reviews. Separately, the U.S. Supreme Court in May narrowed the scope of environmental reviews required for major infrastructure projects. In a ruling involving a Utah railway expansion project aimed at quadrupling oil production, the court said NEPA wasn't designed 'for judges to hamstring new infrastructure and construction projects.' "It's been a rough eight months for NEPA,' said Dinah Bear, a former general counsel at the Council on Environmental Quality under both Democratic and Republican presidents. John Ruple, a research professor of law at the University of Utah, said sidelining NEPA could actually slow things down. Federal agencies still have to comply with other environmental laws, like the Endangered Species Act or Clean Air Act. NEPA has an often overlooked benefit of forcing coordination with those other laws, he said. Some examples of cases where NEPA has played a role A botanist by training, Mary O'Brien was working with a small organization in Oregon in the 1980s to propose alternative techniques to successfully replant Douglas fir trees that had been clear-cut on federal lands. Aerially sprayed herbicides aimed at helping the conifers grow have not only been linked to health problems in humans but were also killing another species of tree, red alders, that were beneficial to the fir saplings, O'Brien said. The U.S. Forest Service had maintained that the herbicides' impact on humans and red alders wasn't a problem. But under NEPA, a court required the agency to redo their analysis and they ultimately had to write a new environmental impact statement. 'It's a fundamental concept: 'Don't just roar ahead.' Think about your options,' O'Brien said. O'Brien, who later worked at the Grand Canyon Trust, also co-chaired a working group that weighed in on a 2018 Forest Service proposal, finalized in 2016, for aspen restoration on Monroe Mountain in Utah. Hunters, landowners, loggers and ranchers all had different opinions on how the restoration should be handled. She said NEPA's requirement to get the public involved made for better research and a better plan. 'I think it's one of the laws that's the most often used by the public without the public being aware,' said Stephen Schima, senior legislative counsel at environmental law nonprofit Earthjustice. 'NEPA has long been the one opportunity for communities and impacted stakeholders and local governments to weigh in.' Schima said rolling back the power of NEPA threatens the scientific integrity of examining projects' full impacts. 'Decisions are going to be less informed by scientific studies, and that is one of the major concerns here,'' he said. Ruple said uncertainty from NEPA changes and competing opinions on how to comply with the law's requirements may invite even more litigation. "And all of this will fall on the shoulder of agencies that are losing the staff needed to lead them through these changes," he said. ___ Follow Melina Walling on X @MelinaWalling and Bluesky @ ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
