Political strategist Karl Rove says President Trump’s first 100 days is a mess, and that Trump needs a complete overhaul in order to have something resembling a successful first term in the White House.
“[A]side from this week’s likely confirmation of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, Mr. Trump’s first 100 days have been dominated by needless controversies and stalled initiatives,” Rove wrote in the Wall Street Journal. “The White House needs a course correction.”
Rove made several suggestions, many of which were aimed at Trump himself:
Focus on substance: “He won’t stop tweeting, but he should at least focus his early-morning missives on governance.”
Rove suggested that top aides might look over Trump’s tweets before he sends them. “The president’s tweets can educate millions. Why not keep them substantive?”
Move on from the spying allegations: “Mr. Trump should move on, saying simply that he is happy lawmakers are investigating and looks forward to their report. A day of vindication is probably coming, but this story has become a distraction.”
Stop blaming Obama: “It was tiresome when President Obama did it and made him look weak.”
Lower expectations: “ObamaCare will not be repealed and replaced easily. Mr. Trump is not ‘the greatest jobs producer that God ever created.’ The strategy should be to underpromise and overdeliver.”
Leave Republicans alone: “Punching down at the Freedom Caucus makes it more difficult for its members to support him on issues like the debt ceiling and tax reform.”
Unite the White House team: “Constant leaks suggest that the White House staff is riven by division and disunity, with three feuding tribes: the Trump family and its allies, populist disrupters led by Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller, and everyone else.”
More time for substance: “The president should regularly block off substantial time on his calendar for policy briefings, preceded by meetings during which the principals can frame the debate for him.”
