Oops!: Trump's first 100 days marked by incompetent screw-ups and frantic walk backs

Summary

Summary of "Oops!: Trump's First 100 Days Marked by Incompetent Screw-Ups and Frantic Walk Backs"

The Rachel Maddow Show
Host: Rachel Maddow, MSNBC
Release Date: April 24, 2025

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Introduction

In the April 24, 2025 episode of The Rachel Maddow Show, host Rachel Maddow delves into the tumultuous first 100 days of Donald Trump's presidency. Titled "Oops!: Trump's First 100 Days Marked by Incompetent Screw-Ups and Frantic Walk Backs," the episode scrutinizes the administration's numerous administrative blunders, strategic missteps, and the resulting national backlash. Maddow combines meticulous reporting with sharp analysis to highlight how Trump's actions have both threatened American institutions and inadvertently exposed the administration's incompetence.

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Protests and Legal Battles

Vermont Protests Over Mohsen Madawi's Case

At the episode's outset, Maddow discusses the fervent protests in Vermont surrounding the case of Mohsen Madawi, an international student and legal permanent resident arrested by the Trump administration without any criminal accusations.

• Timestamp [01:30]: "Protesters outside rallying on the steps of the State Capitol... to show support for Mohsen Madawi... who Donald Trump has arrested even though he's not accused of any crime."

The protests extended to Burlington, coinciding with a federal judge's decision to prevent Madawi's relocation to an immigration prison in Louisiana. Maddow notes the significant public turnout and the legal system's response favoring the law firms contesting Trump's immigration policies.

• Timestamp [05:45]: "The judge says he needs to stay where he is. His lawyers say they are going to be back before this same judge next week seeking immediate release."

Legal Hearings Against Trump Administration

Maddow highlights two federal court hearings where law firms opposing Trump's tactics received favorable rulings from judges. However, high public interest led to overcrowded courtrooms, complicating media coverage.

• Timestamp [07:10]: "Stakes are very high. People want to be there to witness it. People are showing up."

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Tesla and Elon Musk

Tesla's Declining Fortunes and Public Reaction

The episode shifts focus to Tesla's financial struggles revealed during an earnings call, leading to public backlash against Elon Musk. Seattle locals organized parties and protests to celebrate Musk's scaling back involvement in Washington, aiming to undermine his influence.

• Timestamp [09:30]: "People all over the country, including in Seattle, have made this strategic decision to protest Tesla... the company's nosedive... the damage to Tesla may very well be irrevocable."

Maddow connects Tesla's decline to Musk's diminishing role in government, suggesting that this could reflect broader resistance to Trump and his allies.

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Maddow’s Analysis of Trump's Administration

Attempted Authoritarianism and Organizational Failures

Maddow provides a comprehensive analysis of Trump's attempts to consolidate power and dismantle democratic institutions. She outlines three main facets of Trump's first 100 days:

1. Extremism and Authoritarian Tactics

   • Timestamp [10:15]: "We really are without a doubt going through a kind of attempted authoritarian takeover of our country."

2. Public Resistance and Protests

   • Maddow enumerates widespread protests across various states against Trump's policies, emphasizing the unified national opposition.
   • Timestamp [11:30]: "Every single fricking day... yesterday in Detroit and yesterday in San Diego... Tyler, Texas... North Carolina... Pomona, California... Anaheim..."

3. Incompetence and Administrative Blunders

   • She argues that Trump's administration is not only authoritarian but also grossly incompetent, leading to numerous mistakes that undermine their agenda.

Notable Administrative Screw-Ups

Maddow catalogs a series of high-profile errors and policy reversals made by the Trump administration, each illustrating the administration's lack of competence and foresight.

• Freezing Federal Grants Memo

  • Timestamp [11:55]: "Trump White House rescinds memo freezing federal grants... widespread confusion and legal challenges."

• FBI Leadership Mix-Up

  • Timestamp [12:01]: "Accidentally put the wrong person as the acting head of the FBI... temporary titles at the FBI."

• Postal Service Mishaps

  • Timestamp [12:20]: "Trump made it impossible for the Postal Service to accept mail from China... had to be reversed."

• Nuclear Security Agency Firing

  • Timestamp [12:40]: "Accidental firing of the National Nuclear Security Agency... attempts to rehire nuclear weapons workers."

• Agriculture Department Errors

  • Timestamp [13:45]: "Agriculture department tries to rehire fired workers tied to bird flu response. Oops."

• COVID Test Program Revocation

  • Timestamp [13:46]: "Reverses plan to end free COVID test program... decide to incinerate millions of tests."

• Legal Aid for Migrant Children

  • Timestamp [13:02]: "Reinstates legal aid for migrant children... later attempts to revoke it again."

• Veterans Crisis Line and 911 First Responders

  • Timestamp [17:02]: "Accidentally cut the program that helps the 911 first responders... had to reverse."

• Real Estate and Tariffs Confusion

  • Timestamp [19:15]: "Trump announced selling hundreds of federal buildings... entire list removed within hours."

• Social Security Data Breach

  • Timestamp [20:32]: "Released unredacted files exposing Social Security numbers... Federal agencies react slowly."

Maddow underscores these incidents as evidence of systemic chaos within the Trump administration, highlighting a pattern of reversible decisions born from mismanagement rather than intentional policy shifts.

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Interview with Jake Sullivan

Assessing the Impact of Trump’s Policies on American Advantages

In a pivotal segment, Maddow interviews Jake Sullivan, former National Security Advisor to President Biden. Sullivan provides a critical perspective on how Trump's actions have eroded America's global standing and internal strengths.

• Timestamp [29:41]: Rachel Maddow asks Sullivan about Trump's dismantling of America's core advantages.

Key Points Discussed:

1. Erosion of International Alliances

   • Sullivan: "Donald Trump is intent on busting up those alliances... unique system of alliances." [30:14]

2. Undermining Attraction of Global Talent

   • Sullivan: "Casting doubt on whether we will be a welcoming place for students and researchers." [30:14]

3. Attacks on Scientific Research and Innovation

   • Sullivan: "Going after basic research funding at NIH and major universities." [30:14]

4. Destabilizing Capital Markets and Currency Trust

   • Sullivan: "Question whether America can be relied upon for its capital markets and for the dollar." [30:14]

5. Threats to Constitutional Systems and Rule of Law

   • Sullivan: "Rule of law... he's put under threat in various ways." [30:14]

Sullivan emphasizes that while Trump's dismantling efforts are severe, they are not irrevocable, attributing hope to the resilience and regenerative capacity of the American populace.

• Timestamp [30:14]: "I don't believe anything is ever irrevocable... but the damage he has done so far is significant."

Comparisons to Authoritarian Regimes

Sullivan draws parallels between Trump's administration and more overtly authoritarian governments like China and Russia, noting that Trump's erosion of American advantages could reposition the U.S. towards a more authoritarian global stance.

• Timestamp [32:31]: "Taking us in the direction of a more authoritarian, more brutal great power... more like China or Russia."

Future of U.S. Global Standing

Discussing the potential long-term effects, Sullivan expresses concern over whether European allies and Ukraine can compensate for the weakening of U.S. leadership.

• Timestamp [34:29]: "The United States of America has a unique role to play here... hoping the administration changes course, but no evidence they will."

Maddow commends Sullivan's insights and underscores the gravity of the administration's impact on national security and global standing.

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Grassroots Movements and Indivisible

Tennessee's Legislative Battle Over Immigrant Education

Maddow recounts the successful grassroots efforts in Tennessee to halt a Republican bill targeting immigrant children in elementary schools. Through persistent protests and community organizing, activists, including elderly citizens and young students, influenced the state legislature's decision not to pass the bill this session.

• Timestamp [38:22]: "80-year-old Lynn McFarland... made of sheer determination... arrested for protesting a Republican bill targeting immigrant kids."

• Timestamp [40:15]: "Emmy Wilkins, a 10-year-old from Chattanooga, knelt in front of the representative in protest."

The episode highlights how sustained local activism can effectively counteract state-level policies, serving as a model for nationwide resistance against Trump's agenda.

Interview with Ezra Levin, Co-Founder of Indivisible

In a subsequent interview, Maddow speaks with Ezra Levin, co-founder of the grassroots organization Indivisible, about the burgeoning resistance movement against Trump.

• Timestamp [44:13]: "We've broken each previous month's record in the number of new Indivisible groups."

Key Insights from Levin:

1. Surge in Grassroots Organizing

   • Levin: "Incredible number of new local volunteers... breaking records each month." [44:48]

2. Impact of Local Activism

   • Levin: "80-year-old in Tennessee or the 10-year-old... had a real impact on that bill." [44:48]

3. Courage as a Catalyst for Action

   • Levin: "Cowardice is contagious. So is courage... people see others standing up and decide to act themselves." [44:48]

4. Countering Authoritarian Strategies

   • Levin: "MAGA movement is using the authoritarian playbook... but grassroots movements are pushing back effectively." [44:48]

Levin emphasizes the importance of collective action and the ripple effect of individual courage in dismantling authoritarian tendencies within the administration.

• Timestamp [46:50]: "You see a 10-year-old stand up and say no, it had an impact on that bill."

Maddow and Levin conclude that the Indivisible movement and similar grassroots efforts are pivotal in sustaining resistance against Trump's policies and fostering a resilient democratic society.

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Conclusion

Rachel Maddow wraps up the episode by reflecting on the dual nature of Trump's first 100 days: a combination of overt authoritarian efforts and a cascade of administrative blunders. She underscores that while Trump's actions pose significant threats to American institutions and democratic norms, the widespread and diverse protests across the nation demonstrate a robust and growing resistance movement. Maddow posits that the administration's incompetence may inadvertently become a stumbling block to its own agenda, as evidenced by numerous policy reversals and public backlash. The episode concludes with a hopeful note on the power of grassroots activism to effect meaningful change, even in the face of high-stakes political maneuvering.

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Notable Quotes

1. Rachel Maddow on Authoritarianism:

   • "We really are without a doubt going through a kind of attempted authoritarian takeover of our country."
     [10:15]

2. Jake Sullivan on Trump's Impact:

   • "Donald Trump is intent on busting up those alliances... unique system of alliances."
     [30:14]

3. Ezra Levin on Grassroots Movement:

   • "Cowardice is contagious. So is courage."
     [44:48]

4. Rachel Maddow on Administrative Failures:

   • "The one word that most sums up Donald Trump's term in office thus far is oops."
     [23:54]

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Key Takeaways

• Trump's Administration: Marked by a series of strategic missteps and administrative errors that undermine its broader authoritarian objectives.

• Public Resistance: Nationwide protests demonstrate significant and diverse opposition to Trump's policies, illustrating the power of collective action.

• Grassroots Movements: Organizations like Indivisible play a crucial role in mobilizing citizens and countering authoritarian tendencies through sustained activism.

• Global Implications: Trump's policies threaten to erode America's unique global advantages, as highlighted by former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

• Hope Amid Chaos: Despite the administration's attempts at destabilization, the persistent and growing resistance offers a path to safeguarding democratic institutions and values.

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Note: This summary omits advertisements, non-content sections, and introductory/outro segments to focus solely on the substantive discussions and analyses presented during the episode.

Transcript

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[Roman Mars]

Hi, I'm Roman Mars, host of the podcast 99% Invisible. Design is everywhere in our lives, but it's easy to not notice or take it for granted. 99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. It's stories of who we are through the lens of the things we build. Like have you ever wondered why we use the 1kHz bleep sound to cover up inappropriate words on radio and TV? Or what aspects of infrastructure allow 5 year olds in JAP to run errands by themselves while kids in the US are completely dependent on their parents or their parents cars? Or why the historic flag of South Vietnam shows up at right wing protests all the time? Or why people are obsessed with houseplants? And when did we start bringing plants from halfway around the world into our homes to begin with? 99% Invisible will explore all of that and more every Tuesday. Follow and listen to 99% invisible wherever you get your podcasts.

[Rachel Maddow]

Very happy to have you here. The capital of Vermont is the beautiful city of Montpelier. This was yesterday at the State Capitol in Montpelier. Protesters outside rallying on the steps of the State Capitol. They also marched outside. They ended up protesting inside, including with some state legislators among them, all to show support for Mohsen Madawi, a Vermonter and one of the international students, also a legal permanent resident who Donald Trump has arrested even though he's not accused of any crime. This was yesterday at the State Capitol in Montpelier. This was early this morning in Burlington, Vermont. People turning out about an hour away from Montpelier in Burlington because Burlington is where the federal courthouse is. And they turned out there early this morning after rallying at the State House yesterday. They turned out there early this morning while a federal judge held a hearing on Mr. Madawi's case. And at that hearing, the judge ruled that Mohsen Madawi cannot be moved out of Vermont. The Trump administration cannot move him to some immigration prison in Louisiana or somewhere else all the way across the country. The judge says he needs to stay where he is. His lawyers say they are going to be back before this same judge next week and they will be seeking Mr. Madawi's immediate release. Today, two of the law firms that are fighting in court against Trump's efforts to target them had federal court hearings. The judges in both of those hearings appeared to favor the arguments from the law firms against the Trump administration, as they have in every hearing thus far involving these cases. But I will tell you, there was a little bit of a logistical complication in trying to get that reporting from those two court hearings today. Because in both of those court hearings today, the courtrooms were packed to the rafters, every seat full and then some, which made it hard for some reporters to get in. Stakes are very high. People want to be there to witness it. People are showing up. Last night as the car company Tesla held its earnings call to discuss that company's catastrophic decline in Fortune this year, folks in Seattle held a party at a local bar to listen to the sound of the call and to cheer their guts out when Elon Musk announced that he would be scaling back his time in Washington to instead try to salvage his flailing company. People all over the country, including in Seattle, have made this strategic decision to protest Tesla, to protest Elon Musk Musk's role in the destruction of the federal government by focusing on that company, which of course, is the source of his wealth and therefore his power. The company's nosedive, which was announced and conceded formally by the company in that call last night, the company nosediving has been the whole point of those protests, which have succeeded in their aim. And the damage to Tesla may very well be irrevocable, but so is much of the damage that Elon Musk and Don Trump have done together in Washington. The only thing successful here is the focus on Tesla strategy, which has apparently succeeded in pushing Elon Musk out of the bizarre, unprecedented, unelected government role he took in Washington after paying for Donald Trump's presidential campaign. It worked. Pushback doesn't always work, but not pushing back never works. And sometimes when you do push back, you win. So this is my last week of doing this show. Five nights a week. I said around inauguration time that I would be here for the first hundred days of Trump's term in office. That hundred days is up a week from tonight. And so a week from tonight will be my last night of this five day a week thing. I will stop doing five nights a week. Next week I will go back to just doing Mondays. I'm not going away. I'm going to be here every Monday. And the great Jen Psaki is going to be here at 9:00 Eastern Time, Tuesday to Friday. You're going to love it. Don't worry, it's all going to be fine. But as we get to this benchmark, which is is going to be a transition for me, I've been thinking about what we've been through this past 90 plus days as we're heading toward the 100 day benchmark. And I realized that at least the way that I have come to understand what we're going through, it's got kind of, I guess it's got like three sides to it. I mean, yes, this is a story of Trump's extremism, right? We really are without a doubt going through a kind of attempted authoritarian takeover of our country. And that has included destroying as much of the government as possible and using the government in every way they can to try to hurt people in the country who the President wants targeted. They are having government attempted takeovers of huge swaths of civil society, including the legal profession and education and even like museums. They are banning books. They are policing what words people are allowed to use in bizarre and authoritarian ways. They are using terror tactics and secret police tactics against people they are targeting, including secret detention and sending people to foreign gulags. They are reversing our alliances with the countries of the free world and aligning us with the dictatorships. Instead, they have freaking redecorated the White House with cheesy looking gold gewgaws. So it looks like a cheap budget hotel version of the Kremlin. I mean, like, we are. We are there. The authoritarian project is definitely here. It is what we are up against. Everybody who warned against that before the election was correct. No question. That's part of it. Right? The second part of what we're going through is the country loudly and roundly saying no to that. People protesting against him in every single state in the country. In blue states, in red states, in big cities, in small towns, in Washington and everywhere else. I mean, every single fricking day. This was yesterday in Detroit and yesterday in San Diego, people protesting, saying hands off the epa. This was Tyler, Texas, yesterday. People absolutely reaming out their Republican Congressman Nathaniel Moran at a town hall in his district in Tyler, Texas. This was North Carolina, earlier this week. People in Republican Congressman Ted Budd's district holding an empty chair, town hall there for him, to which he refused to show up. They packed the house anyway without him. Pomona, California, yesterday, people turned out to protest at a Home Depot parking lot after Trump's immigration agents came there earlier that day and arrested. People from that parking lot community turned out in response. This was 40 minutes away in Anaheim, outside the offices of Republican Congressman Young Kim. People protesting against the Trump cades to Medicaid, which will be absolutely devastating in Kim's district and in most places around the country. And everywhere, this just, you know, like snapshot headlines today. Everywhere, every state, people turning out and saying no every way they can. That has been part of the story, too, and one that we've tried to keep in focus here on this show. But I said there's kind of, I think, three parts to this story. It's Trump's extremism, people saying no. But there then is this third thing which has been the undercurrent to all of it. And to me, I think it is the real lesson of the first hundred days. I mean, I know the first hundred days is like an artificial benchmark, but it's a benchmark that we are using. And if there is something to learn about what Trump in power is gonna be like, I think the first hundred days have given us one very clear lesson, right? We know he's trying for the whole dictator thing. You know, no elections, no courts, no resistance, rule by terror. Right? We know that. We know the people of this country aren't having it. But I think what we should also, what we have just lived through in this first 90 plus days thus far is him screwing up. It's him absolutely blowing it. I mean, it is one thing to understand the gravity of his intentions, but I think it is equally important to recognize that he's really bad at everything he tries to do. I don't know if he's bad at good stuff he tries to do because he's not trying to do much that seems good, but the bad stuff he's trying to do, he's been real bad at that. I mean, it hasn't been funny exactly. It's too disgusting for that. But it has been the proverbial comedy of errors. Let me show you what I mean. Do you remember the first big surprise? Destroy the government thing that he did right after the inauguration? He sent out a White House memo ordering the freezing of all federal funding, all federal grants. And then less than 48 hours. Oops, had to take that back. Headline, Trump White House rescinds memo freezing federal grants. After widespread confusion and legal challenges, quote, President Donald Trump's budget office on Wednesday rescinded a memo freezing spending on federal grants less than two days after it sparked widespread confusion and legal challenges across the country. The Monday evening Memo from the White House Office of Management and Budget sparked uncertainty and left the White House scrambling to explain what would and wouldn't be subject to a pause in funding. So it was kind of the first big thing he did, and then they immediately had to take that back. Did we say freeze federal funding? We didn't. We're just gonna. That's rescinded. We'll try that again right out of the gate. And then right on the heels of that, you remember this one, when they accidentally put somebody in charge of the FBI who they didn't mean to quote, White House officials goofed on the White House website. You don't see the word goofed in the Wall Street Journal all that often. White House officials goofed on the White House website and the wrong man in charge of the FBI, people familiar with the matter said instead of correcting the error, White House officials let it stand, and the two men traded temporary titles at the FBI. So they, Oops. Accidentally put the wrong person as the acting head of the FBI. Mixed up the names. We didn't mean to put you in there. Oh, oh, well, who cares? We'll just let the other guy we didn't mean to put in charge of the FBI be in charge of the FBI. What could possibly go wrong immediately after that?

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Turns out they accidentally put the names of hundreds of CIA officers in an unclassified email and sent it to the White House, where things like that just kind of happen. Now, that same day, we learned that Trump has accidentally made it impossible for the Postal Service to accept mail from China.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Trump made an announcement about shipping things from China. He had no idea, apparently, what the implications of that announcement would be. Then the Post Office announced a. Based on what you said, sir, this means America can no longer receive mail from China. And, well, I'm not exactly sure what he did mean, but that wasn't what he meant, so.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

That had to be reversed, too. By then, the President's top campaign donor was working his bizarre magic in Washington. So we got the accidental firing of the National Nuclear Security Agency, which handles the safe transportation, storage, assembly, and dismantling of our nation's nuclear weapons.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops. Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

We didn't mean to do that.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Trump administration fires and then tries to rehire nuclear weapons workers in Doge reversal. Then this was the very next day. Headline, New York Times. Doge claimed it saved $8 billion in one contract. It was actually $8 million, so that's cool. They were off by roughly 100,000%. But you know, don't forget, these are the smart guy, the smart guys, smart kids. Next day headline, Agriculture department tries to rehire fired workers tied to bird flu response. Oops, we accidentally fired all the bird flu people in the middle of the bird flu.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Can we get them back? No. No, we can't. That same day headline, Trump administration reverses plan to end free COVID test program. The taxpayers bought these Covid tests, perfectly good Covid tests. They're still Covid. People are still testing for Covid to see if they have Covid. But because the Trump administration doesn't like Covid, they're going to, what, incinerate millions of tests of perfectly good tests, so Americans instead have to buy more of them by paying for themselves instead of getting the free ones the government already bought to hand out. Seriously? No, not seriously. Reverse that one too. This was also that same day. This is a big day in Oopsville. Headline, Trump administration reverses its previous decision and reinstates legal aid for migrant children. Yeah, turns out babies don't make great lawyers. Doesn't work out great to have literally babies and toddlers appearing in court alone with a judge, like, asking them questions. I said, all rise. Baby, are you able to stand on your own? Oh, actually, sorry, yeah, they reversed that too. They have since tried again to take away the lawyers for babies and little kids in court after this initial reversal. So this one actually remains a live issue. I don't know if that's better. Two days later, oops, we accidentally cut the program that helps the 911 first responders. Did we mean to do that? I think we did mean to do that, but we certainly can't defend it now that people are asking us to defend it. So that one gets reversed too. Then Trump's top campaign donor, Elon Musk tries on the federal government the same thing he did to destroy the company Twitter. He sends out the what did you do last week? Email insisting that anybody who doesn't immediately respond to that email will instantly be fired from the federal government. No exceptions. Really? Seriously? No, not really and definitely not seriously. Headline Federal agencies can ignore what did you do last week Email. Trump administration says. Then this is the following day we get news from the VA where Trump has cut things like, oh, I don't know, little liberal woke programs like cancer treatment and support for veterans with cancer and burial services for veterans. Trump cut burial services for veterans. Really? Yeah, for a hot minute until people freaked out. And so, yeah, he reversed that too. I mean, are you kidding me? He was not kidding. Next Headline, VA Contract cancellations halted in major Reversal. Maybe at this point they're getting a little shy about screwing up so much, about having to take back and try to undo all these things that they're messing up. No, they're just getting warmed up. The very next day, after taking back the veterans burials that Trump cut, we got this headline, Elon Musk admits DOGE accidentally eliminated prevention measures combating Ebola virus.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

The next day headline, Trump administration reverses course after putting Veterans Crisis line hires on hold quote. Due to an administrative error. Job offers for some Veterans Crisis Line positions that were scheduled to be filled later this month were mistakenly rescinded. This issue has been addressed and VA is in the process of reissuing these offers due to an administrative error. What kind of administrative error has you accidentally cutting the suicide hotline? That same week, struggling with errors, DOGE Deletes billions more from list of savings, quote. Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has deleted hundreds more claims from its mistake plagued wall of receipts. Late Sunday night, the group erased or altered more than 1,000 contracts it had claimed to cancel, representing more than 40% of all the contracts listed on its site last week. Then this was the next day, Trump abruptly walks back his directive to fire thousands of federal employees. Quote. In revised guidance issued to the heads of federal agencies, the Office of Personnel Management tries to rewrite history by claiming it never actually ordered agencies to fire those employees. Let's pretend we didn't do that one then this was the next day. Oh, this was a. This was a great one. Quote At 2pm Tuesday, the Trump administration posted a list of 443 properties for sale, an inventory that ranged from an El Paso toll booth to the FDA's research campus in Silver Spring, Maryland. In the next five hours, more than 100 properties were removed from the catalog, including the headquarters of the U.S. department of Agriculture, the headquarters of the Department of Health and Human Services, the headquarters of the Department of Justice, the headquarters of the Department of Labor, and the Headquarters of Veterans Affairs. By Wednesday morning, the entire list had been removed. So, yes, Trump did announce that he was selling hundreds of federal buildings, including, I don't know, the headquarters of the Justice Department, but did he mean that? But we're not even sure if we know.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

They just put them all up for sale and then took them all down and didn't answer any questions about what had happened there. Pretend that didn't happen. Then this was the. This was the very next day headline. In dizzying reversal, Trump pauses tariffs on some Mexican and Canadian products. Few days later headline, Trump administration scraps far reaching cuts to Social Security Phone Services after Washington Post reports this was genius. Quote, the Social Security this is amazing. The Social Security numbers and other private information of more than 400 former congressional staffers and others, including President Trump's own lawyer, were made public Tuesday in the unredacted files related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy that President Trump ordered released. After the Post reported the disclosure on Wednesday, the White House rushed to mitigate the impact. The National Archives then started screening the documents for Social Security numbers after they had already been publicly released. National Archives started screening the documents for Social Security numbers after the fact so that the Social Security Administration could identify living individuals and issue them new Social Security numbers.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops. Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

We accidentally very thoroughly doxxed hundreds of people including the president's own lawyer publishing, like their names, their place of birth, their full birth dates and their full unredacted Social Security numbers. Hundreds of them.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Then the following week we get, oh, this is a real oops. Jeffrey Goldberg, editor of the Atlantic magazine headline, the Trump Administration accidentally texted me its War Plans. Then this one headline, trump Administration admits Maryland man sent to El Salvador Prison by Mistake. Two days later headline, Trump's tariffs hit Remote islands. One is home to Mainly penguins. The next day headline, we'll make mistakes says RFK Jr. As fired US health staff asked to return. Three days later headline, economists reveal major Math Blunder in Donald Trump's tariff formula which inflates the impact by 400% and could spark global trade chaos. The next day headline, National Park Service restores Underground Railroad webpage.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops. Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

Had we messed that up. Will you guys please pretend that that was a mistake and not something we totally did on purpose, but then we couldn't defend it once we did it and so we just quietly undid it while hoping you wouldn't notice. Can we leave it like that? Same day headline, doge Cuts at a Florida Manatee Refuge have been reversed. Same day headline, trump administration says it cut funding to some life saving UN Food Programs by mistake.

[Unknown Speaker (possibly a co-host or guest)]

Oops.

[Rachel Maddow]

The next day headline, trump announces sudden reversal on Tariffs. This past Friday night, New York Times headline, trump officials blame mistake for setting off confrontation with Harvard. Quote, the April 11th letter from the White House to Harvard should not have been sent and was, quote, unauthorized. And it hasn't even slowed down. I mean, just this week, Trump Administration reverses course, restores funding for critical weather data centers. Headline, elon Musk's hand picked IRS chief lasts just 72 hours. The story of this first hundred days of Donald Trump's presidency is sometimes a very scary movie because of what he really does seem to be trying to do and what he has already done to some people and some parts of our government and some elements of our country. Sometimes it is a very scary movie. It is sometimes also an action movie with people all over the country springing into action and standing up to stop him from doing those things as best they can. But the one thing it has consistently also been from the moment he got back to Washington, is an unfunny farce, a slapstick mess of reversals and mistakes and oops, let's pretend we didn't do that and let's try to undo it and let's hope no one notices just how dumb it was when we really did do it and we can't even really defend it.

[Unknown Speaker (Gamma App Advertisement)]

So.

[Rachel Maddow]

Oops. I mean, the one word that most sums up Donald Trump's term in office thus far, heading to 100 days in the one word that best sums it up is oops. Just because they're trying to do really, really bad things doesn't change the fact that they're also just really bad at everything they try to do, which for this country is definitely a curse, but also in some ways a blessing. We're heading towards 100 days. There's going to be a lot of like, look backs at what Trump has done. Whatever you hear what anybody says, don't let anybody tell you this time around that they are competent.

[Unknown Speaker (Gamma App Advertisement)]

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[Rob Lowe]

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[Rachel Maddow]

There were peace talks for Russia's war in Ukraine today. Peace talks in London. But they were thrown into disarray by us, by our government. When the American Secretary of State pulled out of these talks at the last minute. Just hours after Trump's State Department said that Marco Rubio would be there for the talks, Secretary Rubio canceled. Then Vice President J.D. vance announced his own version of a supposed peace plan for Ukraine. The JD Vance peace plan for Ukraine appears to consist entirely of Russia getting everything it wants, including all the Ukrainian territory it has invaded and occupied by force in this war. When Ukraine's president said in response, you know that might not work for us, Donald Trump went on a rant against Ukraine's president online. Today's London talks were supposed to be attended not just by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but also by the other actor who plays the role of Secretary of State for some reason in this administration. That would of course be Trump's real estate friend Steve Witkoff, seen here bumbling through a meeting in Paris last week. Seriously, at this meeting, telling French officials how much their country's 18th century presidential palace looks just like Donald Trump's house in Florida, they literally laughed in his face. Even some of the people on his own side of the table laughed in his face. Mr. Witkoff did not laugh. He did not appear to get the joke, nor did he appear to get the fact that he was it. But nevertheless, Mr. Witkoff was supposed to be there at those London talks today along with Marco Rubio. When Marco Rubio pulled out, Steve Witkoff also pulled out. Where is Steve Witkoff today? Instead, he is getting ready once again to fly to Moscow for yet another personal man to man meeting with Vladimir Putin. This will be Steve Witkoff's fourth, fourth in person visit with Vladimir Putin in Russia. Why would any individual real estate friend of the US President need to have four, four hours long, lengthy solo meetings in Russia with Vladimir Putin? That remains unexplained. President Biden's National Security adviser, Jake Sullivan, in one of his first interviews since President Biden left office, says that from a national security perspective, in his estimation Trump's first hundred days in office have been a, quote, unadulterated disaster. He says, quote, president Trump and his team have gone at the core American advantages in the world and systematically tried to dismantle them across all of the major dimensions of the things that have been America's major advantages. In less than 100 days, President Trump has put them all at risk. He says, quote, this is about the core foundations of American power and purpose in the world and President Trump's efforts, essentially, to knock them out. Joining us now is Jake Sullivan, former National Security Advisor to President Biden. Mr. Sullivan, I really appreciate you being here. I know you haven't done many interviews, and I really appreciate you being here tonight for this one.

[Jake Sullivan]

Well, thanks a lot for having me.

[Rachel Maddow]

Rachel, I'm struck by the stark nature of what you said when you say that President Trump is dismantling America's core advantages in the world, the things that have been our major advantages, the things that make us the power that we are. You describe him as systematically dismantling those things. What are those advantages? And do you see his work against them as being irrevocable?

[Jake Sullivan]

Well, Rachel, I wouldn't say this. I'm not a person who usually speaks in hyperbole. I say it because I genuinely believe it. You ask, what are those advantages? And there are a few. It begins with America's unique system of alliances. No other power in the world has the strong, capable allies the United States has enjoyed for decades. And Donald Trump is intent on busting up those alliances. It's our unique capacity to attract talent from around the world. We can count on the talent of 7 billion people. China can only count on the talent of 1 billion people. But Donald Trump is casting doubt on whether we will be a welcoming place for students and researchers and people who want to come here to start companies. It's about a unique system of scientific research and innovation where the government, the private sector, and, yes, research universities all come together to invent some of the most groundbreaking things of the past century. And yet he's going after basic research funding at nih and he's going after major universities. And finally, it's about our unique capital markets and our currency. And you saw when he did his, quote, unquote, Liberation Day, that the world started to question whether America could really be relied upon for its capital markets and for the dollar. And underpinning all of that, of course, is our unique constitutional system, underpinned by the rule of law, which, as you have quite articulately said, he's put under threat in various ways. These are the things that are distinctively American. And in less than 100 days, President Trump has gone after all of them. I don't believe anything is ever irrevocable, because I believe in the capacity of the American people to reinvent and regenerate. But the damage he has done so far is significant, and it appears that there's probably more to come.

[Rachel Maddow]

If we lose those advantages, which you just, I think, very eloquently and succinctly described. If you take those things away from America, what kind of country are we? Is there another country in the world that has any of the other characteristics that we have as a country, but not those advantages? Is there a country in the world that you think Trump is modeling us on or trying to make us more like?

[Jake Sullivan]

Well, I mean, it certainly is taking us in the direction of a more authoritarian, more normal, more brutal great power. And that starts to look more like a China or a Russia. I mean, if you're sitting in Beijing right now and you're looking at what's happening in the United States, you're saying, huh, we've spent a long time worried about these areas where the United States had a distinct advantage over us. We don't have the allies the US Had. Now it appears the American president's handing them away. We can't attract talent the way the United States does. Now France is going out and saying, hey, come to France, because you're scared to go to the United States. We don't have that uniquely American innovation ecosystem. And yet the President of the United States is going at the basic research foundations and the institutions of higher learning that have set America apart. Amazing. So there is a kind of remarkable way in which our competitors and adversaries have got to be looking at this and saying, what the heck is going on? And we can't believe our luck.

[Rachel Maddow]

When it comes to the conflict in Ukraine. Marco Rubio pulling out of these London talks. President Trump once again attacking Ukraine's president, J.D. vance, essentially presenting the Kremlin's dream of how this war would resolve as America's idea, or at least his idea about what should happen here. I mean, part of what you described in terms of not just America's adversaries, but America's competitors stepping up and taking up some of the space that we used to take up. I wonder if you think that the Europeans and Ukraine's other allies essentially can band together in a strong enough way to supplant the role that we've had. If we're effectively siding with Russia. We're not just getting out of this. We appear to be very much siding with Putin's take in this war. Do you think that Ukraine and its allies will be strong enough to take up that space where we used to be?

[Jake Sullivan]

It's a great question. Let me start by saying that it's really difficult to bring about a just and durable peace in Ukraine. And I will be the first to acknowledge that. But what is amazing to me, and you kind of pointed this out in your opening comments, is the way that the United States has approached this negotiation is to give Russia formal recognition of Crimea, which is sovereign Ukrainian territory, formal recognition of it as Russian territory. Something, by the way, Rachel, China hasn't even done. China doesn't recognize Crimea as part of Russia. And now Donald Trump is saying he's prepared to do that, that to give Russia all of the territory they've illegally invaded and conquered and to give Russia a promise that Ukraine will never be a part of NATO. And to get what exactly in return? Apparently nothing. Nothing. I mean, that is not a credible way to go about a negotiation. This is effectively diplomacy by means of full pressure on Ukraine and a series of giveaways to Russia. And down that path does not lie a just and sustainable peace. I do believe the Europeans have had a rude wake up call and they are going to express themselves. And Ukraine, of course, will express itself, too. But the United States of America has a unique role to play here. And I do hope that before it's too late, this administration changes course in the way that it's approaching these negotiations. But there's no evidence to suggest that they're going to do so.

[Rachel Maddow]

Jake Sullivan, former national Security Adviser to President Biden. I mentioned at the top that you haven't done very many interviews. I know you spoke with the good folks at the Midas Touch and you're here tonight. I would just suggest you've had such a long career in public service. Right now is a time that I think we need to hear more from you. I hope that you'll speak more with the media and do more interviews, make yourself publicly available. I think the country can really benefit from hearing more from you at this time, particularly when things are so chaotic in the international front. It's a real pleasure to have you here, sir.

[Jake Sullivan]

Thank you so much for having me. And thank you for all that you do.

[Rachel Maddow]

All right, thanks. Stay with us.

[Unknown Speaker (Gamma App Advertisement)]

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[Rob Lowe]

Podcast hey everybody, it's Rob Lowe here, if you haven't heard. I have a podcast that's called Literally with Rob Lowe and basically it's conversations I've had that really make you feel like you're pulling up a chair at an intimate dinner between myself and people that I admire like Aaron Sorkin or Tiffany Haddish, Demi Moore, Chris Pratt, Michael J. Fox. There are new episodes out every Thursday, so subscribe please and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Rachel Maddow]

This is something that we showed you a couple of weeks ago on this show. I have not forgot it since we showed it to you. It's just one of these things that really stuck with me and actually we've heard from a lot of you at home that you have not been able to forget it either. People reference this little local news clip that we played all the time. When people get in touch with the show, I'll show it to you here again, it's a short piece of tape. This is local news coverage from Tennessee from WSMV in Nashville.

[Unknown Speaker (Tennessee News Clip)]

Fell in the back of the room. There was Lynn McFarland sitting in wooden budge and standing a few feet away. I heard her say to troopers that she didn't mind being arrested. She said, I'm okay with that. I can't go. I fought for kids and what they're doing here is wrong. So I'm at peace with it.

[Rachel Maddow]

Tennessee State troopers hauling away 80 year old Lynn McFarland, 80 years old and made of sheer determination after she refused to leave a state Senate hearing room earlier this month. They picked her up, they carried her out, they arrested her. It was very hard to forget once you've seen it. We covered it on the show at the time. What Ms. McFarland was protesting was Republican bill in Tennessee that would target immigrant kids in Tennessee elementary schools. Now in Tennessee, Republicans have a trifecta. They got a Republican governor. Republicans control the state Senate and the state House by big marks. Despite that, or maybe because of it, people who were opposed to Tennessee Republicans on this thing. People who were opposed to Tennessee Republicans on this bill targeting little kids, they have shown up again and again and again and again. Lots of them. People showing up over and over again to state House meetings and to state Senate meetings and for every vote, vote and for every, every hearing, every element of the legislative process related to this bill to tell lawmakers no, to say that Tennessee should not do this. Kids themselves have shown up. Hundreds of students have shown up to look lawmakers in the eyes. They considered this bill. Emmy Wilkins is a 10 year old from Chattanooga.

[Unknown Speaker (Gamma App Advertisement)]

She was present for the committee hearing.

[Rachel Maddow]

And knelt in front of Representative William.

[Unknown Speaker (Planned Parenthood Advocate)]

Lamberth and other committee members in protest of the bill.

[Rachel Maddow]

When I, I started shouting, I was just thinking about how many kids deserve to go to school during that time. And every kid deserves an education no matter where they're from. People young and old who oppose this bill have been making the trip to the Tennessee state House, making their voices heard week after week after week. We've covered tons of these protests. Yesterday afternoon, the Tennessee state legislature adjourned for the year. And while the Tennessee State Senate had managed to pass its version of this bill targeting immigrant kids in elementary schools, it turns out the Tennessee House didn't get it done. They didn't do it. General assembly ends without passing student immigration bill. Now, the whole thing could still get revived next year, but for now, it's gone. They stopped it. The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition posting quote Tennessee protects education for all. HB793 will not be voted on this legislative session. As Lynn McFarland herself put it on Facebook after hearing the news, she said she is breathing easier now. Delay is almost always the first step on the way to stopping something. If Tennessee Republicans want to try this again next year, they at least know what kind of pushback they're in for if they want to try for it. All across the country, we are witnessing a protest movement against Donald Trump and his Republican Party and what they're doing in Washington and increasingly what they're doing in the states. And it is a movement that is not just sustained, it is growing and spreading, including the protests that appear to be tanking the image and stock price and profitability of the Tesla car company now ushering Trump's biggest donor, Elon Musk, out of Washington altogether. So what is the state of organizing against the Trump administration now? Because that also is coming up on 100 days. What should we expect next? I know just who to ask. We'll be right back. Amid the wave of protests that we have seen all around the country this past 90 plus days. One of the things that has just paid off is the work of a remarkable coalition in Tennessee that has been protesting a Republican Tennessee specific plan to target immigrant kids in elementary schools. We have seen seniors, people in their 80s. We have seen students, parents, teachers, a huge and very diverse group of people in Tennessee just relentlessly pushing back against this thing in Tennessee. They have turned up again and again and again and again and again at Tennessee's state capitol and at the state legislature as Republicans who overwhelmingly control state government in Tennessee have been debating this thing. We have showed it over and over again on this show in the past couple of weeks, excuse me, in the past couple of months. But now, after that sustained campaign, the payoff, Tennessee Republicans have just shelved that proposal for the year and gone home without doing it. When you go out to protest in Nashville or anywhere, you never know what exact effect you're going to have. But we do know that if you don't turn out, you won't win. And we do know that pressure sometimes does work in unexpected places and in unexpected ways. And we definitely know as we approach 100 days of this Trump administration that the protest movement sparked by Trump and the Republican Party in this era is not going anywhere. Joining us now is someone we like to check in with periodically about this momentum. Ezra Levin is co founder of the grassroots group Indivisible. Ezra, thanks very much for joining us tonight. It's nice to have you back and.

[Ezra Levin]

Great to be here.

[Rachel Maddow]

Rachel, I wanted to check in with you again as we have done sort of periodically to get your sort of gut check, your sense about where the resistance to Trump is heading towards that 100 day benchmark. I feel like the protests are bigger, more widespread, more sustained, more diverse, getting more media attention and starting to get more political effect visible in terms of the response to what's been happening. That's just my view from outside, though. How does it look to you from inside?

[Ezra Levin]

Look, this has been my view from the inside since roughly the week after the election when we joined you to launch the new Indivisible Guide to tell people Trump isn't all powerful, that in fact there are thousands of elected officials all over the country who all have to worry about their constituents. So what do we got to do? We got to organize. I've told you that we've been in a wave moment of organizing, that we've seen just an incredible number of new local volunteers starting indivisible groups every single month since the November election, we've broken each previous month's record in the number of new Indivisible groups. And as you've been showing, this is having a direct impact not just on the vibes out there, but on actual legislation, on actual people's lives. What we've seen from Trump and Musk and from the MAGA movement is they're using the authoritarian playbook. It is a shock and awe campaign. Go as fast as possible, do as much damage as possible. And look, some, some institutions, some elites were shocked, were awed. You look at some law firms, you look at Columbia University, you look at Washington Post, there are folks who were shocked and awed, but who wasn't shocked and odd, the 80 year old in Tennessee or the 10 year old in Tennessee, who organized, who stood up, who said no. And that had a real impact on its own on that bill. But it has another really important impact. Cowardice is contagious. So is courage. When you see a 10 year old and an 8 year old stand up and say, no, I'm not going to go along with this, you know what happens? A lot of other folks see that and say, well, I guess I got to stand up, too. That's what we've been seeing month after month after month, starting with some people demonstrating courage and then other people looking around and saying, wait, I can do that too. It's in my power. I'm not just a victim of world events, I can be a participant. That's what we're seeing right now.

[Rachel Maddow]

Ezra Levin, the co founder of Indivisible. We're heading into what's going to be a really intense period of reflection. People trying to sort of control the narrative about how the Trump administration is doing. What you and other folks at Indivisible have done is going to be a very, very big part of the story of this time in American history. Thanks for helping us understand it.

[Ezra Levin]

Oh, there's a lot more to come, Rachel.

[Rachel Maddow]

I had a feeling you'd say that. We'll be right back. Stay with this. All right, that's going to do it for me tonight. I will see you again tomorrow.

[Unknown Speaker (Gamma App Advertisement)]

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