WARREN, Mich. (AP) — President Donald Trump is holding a rally in Michigan on Tuesday to mark the first 100 days of his second term, staging his largest political event since returning to the White House in a state that has been especially rocked by his steep trade tariffs and combative attitude toward Canada.
Trump is making an afternoon visit to Selfridge Air National Guard Base for an announcement alongside Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. He's then addressing a rally at Macomb Community College, north of Detroit, allowing him to revel in leading a sprint to upend government and social, political and foreign policy norms.
His Republican administration's strict immigration polices have sent arrests for illegal crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border plummeting, and government-slashing efforts led by billionaire adviser Elon Musk have shaken Washington to its core. Its protectionist import taxes imposed on America's trade partners have also sought to reorder a global economy that the U.S. built in the decades after World War II.
Trump has also championed sweeping expansionism, refusing to rule out military intervention in Greenland and Panama, suggesting that American developers could help convert the war-torn Gaza Strip into a Riviera-like resort and even suggesting annexation of Canada.
“I run the country and the world,” Trump told The Atlantic magazine in an interview. He told Time of his first 100 days, “I think that what I’m doing is exactly what I’ve campaigned on.”
But only about 4 in 10 Americans approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, and his ratings on the economy and trade are lower than that. Additionally, 46% of U.S. adults approve of Trump's immigration policies, with about half of Americans saying he has “gone too far” when it comes to deporting immigrants living in the country illegally.
Just 33% of Americans, meanwhile, have a favorable view of Musk, the Tesla CEO and world's richest person, and about half believe the administration has gone too far in working to pare back the government workforce.
“The bottom line for the first hundred days is, lots of damage being done to the fundamentals of our government,” said Max Stier, founding president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit dedicated to better government.
Michigan was one of the battleground states Trump flipped from the Democratic column. But it’s also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new imported cars and auto parts.
Michigan's unemployment rate has risen for three straight months, including jumping 1.3% from March to reach 5.5%, according to state data. That’s among the highest in the nation, far exceeding the national average of 4.2%.
Automaker Stellantis halted production at plants in Canada and Mexico after Trump announced a 25% tariff on imported vehicles, temporarily laying off 900 U.S. employees. Industry groups have separately urged the White House to scrap plans for tariffs on imported auto parts, warning that doing so would raise prices on cars and could trigger “layoffs and bankruptcy.”
That seemingly would make the state an odd choice for Trump to hail his own accomplishments.
“I’m not sure that he is at all interested in doing the smart thing," said Bernie Porn, a longtime Michigan pollster. “He is what I would call an in-your-face president. 'This is what I’m going to do.'"
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday morning that Trump would sign an executive order relaxing some of his tariffs on cars and auto parts, though Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the goal remained enabling automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs.
Bessent said Trump is concerned with “jobs of the future, not of the past.”
Carolyn Martz, 61, was helping to collect signatures for an anti-tax petition drive outside the Trump rally. She said her husband is an auto technician and has noted how parts come from China and elsewhere overseas.
“I'd like to see more stuff made in America, by Americans, for Americans," Martz said, of Royal Oak, Michigan, who added that tariffs could stimulate U.S. manufacturing.
“If we have to take eat more in the beginning with higher prices, that might just be part of it,” she said.
The president is also visiting Selfridge, which was established after the U.S. entered World War I in 1917, and the community college campus in Warren. Both are near the Canadian border and home to many people with deep business and personal ties to that country.
“Michigan always feels very, very positively toward Canada,” said the pollster, who noted that its voters “can’t be reacting well to the kinds of things he’s done."
Michigan will be important for Republicans in 2026 as their party tries to pick up a Senate seat in the state for the first time in decades and regain control of the governor’s office, with Whitmer term-limited. Multiple competitive House races will also be on the midterm ballot, along with control of the state legislature.
Typically, presidents use the 100-day mark to launch multiple rallies. But Trump is doing only the Michigan stop .
Administration officials say Trump is at his most effective staying at the White House, having meetings and speaking to reporters nearly every day. Indeed, speech in Macomb County will be one of the few large, political crowds he's addressed since Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.
The exceptions have been flying most weekends to golf in Florida or attend sporting events, including the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500, where Trump relished the crowds but didn't speak to them. The limited travel to see supporters is a major departure from his first term, when Trump held a series of rallies before celebrating 100 days in office with a Pennsylvania speech in 2017.
Also in the spotlight is Whitmer, who is frequently mentioned as a future presidential candidate. Long a Trump critic, Whitmer has sought to find common ground with the president lately, visiting him at the White House and discussing the future of Selfridge specifically.
The governor is concerned about the A-10 aircraft stationed at the base being phased out, though Trump recently said he hoped to keep Selfridge “open, strong, thriving.”
Will Weissert And Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press
