What Biden’s First 100 Days in 2021 Looked Like Compared to Trump’s in 2025
Written by
Alan Joseph
Edited by
Amber Barkley
Commitment to Our Readers
GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.
20 Years
Helping You Live Richer
Reviewed
by Experts
Trusted by
Millions of Readers
Democrat or Republican — irrespective of party affiliation, the first hundred days of American presidents are the most critical and consequential. This longstanding tradition can be traced back to nearly a century ago, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt, amid the Great Depression, laid the foundation for what became the New Deal.
Since then, the first 100 days of every president have become a benchmark for assessing their performance.
Here’s an analysis of former President Joe Biden’s first 100 days and how they compare to the current administration of President Donald Trump.
The First 100 Days of the Biden Administration
Voted into the White House in the middle of a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic and the scramble to return to normalcy, Biden presided over 11 new bills, in addition to signing 42 executive orders.
Significant Actions
Among the most significant actions were his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package, the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline project for environmental concerns and a much-needed and months-long eviction ban to protect renters who suffered economic hardships.
In addition, 140 million Americans got the COVID-19 vaccine, while overall cases dropped by a remarkable 73%.
Unemployment and Inflation
Not everything was perfect, though. Roughly 10 million people were out of work, and based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment was 2.5 points higher than pre-pandemic figures.
Simultaneously, inflation was beginning to sharply accelerate, with the Consumer Price Index rising 4.2% from the year prior — the fastest pace since the 2008 financial crisis.
Overall Approval
Still, more than half of Americans appreciated Biden’s handling of his first 100 days, giving him a 53% job approval rating.
The First 100 Days of the Trump Administration
President Trump has issued 142 executive orders in his first 100 days — more than three times his predecessor, shattering Roosevelt’s previous record of 99 orders according to CBS News. Furthermore, five bills were signed into law, including the Laken Riley Act and the Congressional Review Act resolutions, designed to overturn Biden-era policies.
Layoffs and Immigration Policies
The 47th president has also laid off hundreds of thousands of federal workers across several agencies to streamline operations and reduce government spending as part of his broader Department of Government Efficiency agenda, led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Another key theme Trump has focused on is immigration. He repeated his pledge to stop border crossings ad nauseam throughout his campaign and, per U.S. Customs and Border Protection, there were 7,180 crossings for the month of March — a steep fall off compared to previous months.
These policies have not gone unnoticed, with Reuters reporting over 200 lawsuits filed against the Trump administration in his first 100 days, and that is without counting by far his most consequential policy: tariffs.
Tariffs
Also known as import duties, tariffs are essentially taxes on products imported into the United States. Trump asserts that tariffs are necessary to revive American manufacturing, reduce trade deficits and raise government revenue, but the stock market begs to differ so far.
Year-to-date, the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq are down 4.5% and 8.1%, respectively.
Given the bleak outlook of what a global trade war could bring, many economists fear that a recession at this point may be inevitable. Consequently, consumer confidence has plummeted to its lowest level since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Overall Approval
This sobering fact may explain why only 42% of Americans currently approve of Trump during what is typically a president’s honeymoon period.
Editor’s note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
More From GOBankingRates
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment Situation News Release.”
- CBS News, “Trump sets executive order record in his first 100 days.”
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection, “CBP releases March 2025 monthly update.”
- Reuters, “More than 200 lawsuits and many judicial setbacks in Trump’s first 100 days.”
