Presidents’ Day Scorecard: How’s Trump Stacking Up To His Predecessors?

President Donald Trump is closing in on one month on the job, and his administration’s breakneck pace has barely slowed down since day one.

In honor of Presidents’ Day, we thought we’d break Trump’s second term down by the numbers, and see how he compares to other presidents at this point in the year.

Here’s how he stacks up.

Executive Orders: Winning!

So far during his second term Trump has signed 68 executive orders, far more than any other president in recent history. By this time in his first term, he had signed only a dozen orders, a sign of how much more aggressive Trump intends to be this time around.

Joe Biden had signed 32 executive orders by Presidents’ Day — some on racial equity and requiring COVID face masks — while Barack Obama had signed 14 executive orders. George W. Bush had signed seven, Bill Clinton six, and Ronald Reagan five.

Trump immediately took a slew of actions against illegal immigration, sending troops to the border, launching a massive deportation operation, and ordering border wall construction. He took action to end the weaponization of the federal government, and cut regulation.

He also took aim at gender ideology, banning federal funding for transgender drugs and procedures for children and prohibiting public schools from promoting gender ideology or allowing men on women’s sports teams or in their bathrooms. He also took an axe to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies.

Cabinet Nominees: Winning!

Meanwhile, Trump’s cabinet nominees are working their way through their Senate confirmations, with 16 out of 22 nominees confirmed so far. By this time in Trump’s first term, he had only nine nominees confirmed.

Biden had only six nominees confirmed at this point, while Obama had 11. Bush had all 14 of his nominees confirmed, Clinton had all but one of his 14 nominees confirmed, and Reagan had all 13 of his nominees confirmed.

On Thursday, Trump was able to get his most controversial pick, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Job Approval: Better Than Last Time

Despite years of relentless attacks from the media, Trump’s job approval is significantly better now than at this point during his first term.

Trump’s approval rating sits at 48.8% as of Monday, higher than the 40% he scored at this point in his first term, but below where recent Democrat presidents were.

Biden’s approval rating was 54.8% at this point in his presidency, as he enjoyed a brief honeymoon period while Americans hoped he would quickly end the pandemic. His approval rating started plummeting that summer, just before the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. It  never recovered, at one point dipping below 36%.

Obama’s approval rating was 62% this time in his first term, George W. Bush was at 57%, Bill Clinton at 51%, and Ronald Reagan at 55%.

Diplomacy: Winning!

Trump has also taken a forceful approach to bringing home Americans detained abroad.

Since taking office last month, Trump has secured the release of at least 12 hostages held by Hamas terrorists, the Taliban, Russia, Venezuela, and Belarus. The administration is working closely with Israel to free hostages in Gaza.

Biden said last year that he had secured the release of more than 70 hostages over his entire four years in office.

Trump has also begun negotiations with Russia and Ukraine to end the decades-long war that accelerated when Russia invaded Ukraine a year after Biden took office.

Trump has also already hosted three foreign leaders at the White House. Biden did not have a foreign leader at the White House until April, when he hosted the Japanese prime minister.

Super Bowl Attendance: Winning!

Trump was the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl, delivering him a resounding victory in this category — which is more than you can say for the Chiefs.