Putin, Canada, tariffs and more: Donald Trump's fiery 100-day interview with ABC; key takeaways

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US President Donald Trump reflected on his first 100 days in office, discussing a wide range of topics including the economy, immigration, executive authority, and foreign affairs.

In an Oval Office interview with ABC News anchor Terry Moran, Trump emphasised his immigration policies and aimed to reassure Americans about the state of the economy.

When questioned about America’s global standing, Trump rejected the notion of diminished reputation, stating, “I think it’s gone way up, and I think we’re a respected country again. We were laughed at all over the world.”

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‘Well, they did sign up for it’

Responding to Terry Moran’s query about voters’ concerns regarding increased tariff costs, Trump maintained he had fulfilled his campaign promise to reduce prices.

When Moran noted, “There is a lot of concern out there,” and mentioned voters saying, “I didn’t sign up for this,” Trump responded, “Well, they did sign up for it, actually. And this is what I campaigned on.”

Trump elaborated, “I said that we’ve been abused by other countries at levels that nobody’s ever seen before … I could’ve left it that way, and at some point, there would’ve been an implosion like nobody’s ever seen. But I said, ‘No, we have to fix it.’ I’ve — I’ve wanted to do this for many years.”

‘Eggs, eggs, eggs’

He claimed responsibility for reduced prices of petrol and groceries, particularly eggs, which became significant during the 2024 campaign.

“They hit me the first week, ‘Eggs, eggs, eggs,’ like it was my fault. I said, ‘I didn’t cause this problem. This problem was caused by Biden. What’s the problem with eggs?’ And they said, ‘They’ve doubled it.’ Well, eggs are down 87% since I got involved,” Trump stated.

‘They came in illegally’

Regarding immigration, Trump defended his policies despite concerns about wrongful deportations. “Well, they seem to work,” he said about his border control measures.

He added, “Well, they get a process where we have to get ’em out, yeah,” and “If people come into our country illegally there’s a different standard. These are illegal. They came in illegally.”

President Trump the First 100 Days: The Interview in the Oval Office

Do you trust Putin?

In a weekend social media statement, Trump questioned Putin’s recent actions, noting “there was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days.”

He suggested Putin might be misleading him, proposing potential solutions through “Banking” or “Secondary Sanctions,” expressing concern over casualties.

During his conversation with Moran regarding Putin’s actions, Trump acknowledged the possibility of being misled. When asked about Putin’s intentions, Trump stated, “Yeah, that’s possible. Sure. He could be tapping me along a little bit. I would say that he would like to stop the war. I think that.”

“You believe that?” Moran jumped in. “If — if it weren’t for me, I think he’d want to take over the whole country, personally,” Trump continued.

Trump expressed his belief that his involvement had influenced Putin’s willingness to cease hostilities, adding that, “And because of me, I do believe that — he’s willing to stop the fighting.”

Do you trust Putin? Moran asked. Trump responded firmly: “I don’t trust you. I don’t trust a lot of people.”

‘That’s Canada’s prerogative’

Following Canada’s election of a fourth consecutive Liberal government under Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has criticised Trump’s tariff policies and annexation rhetoric, Trump remained unmoved.

When Moran mentioned Canadian anger over Trump’s statements about making Canada the “51st state,” Trump simply responded, “That’s their prerogative.”

‘DOGE had saved the country billions’

Regarding DOGE’s reduction in foreign food programmes and medical research, Trump defended the cuts, citing billions in savings and uncovered fraudulent activities.

Trump said, “no,” saying DOGE had saved the country billions. “We also found tremendous waste, fraud, and abuse, as you know. We found a lot of fraud. There was a lot of fraud,” Trump said. “Fraudulent things were taking place, and we ended that, and those people are gonna be suffering–“

He also confirmed that fraud referrals were made to the Justice Department.

‘Biden is grossly incompetent’

The interview featured consistent criticism of former President Joe Biden, with Trump citing incompetence and blaming various administrative challenges on his predecessor.

When Moran questioned Trump, if “that gives you the right to go after your political opponents with the powers of this office?”

“I don’t go after — I don’t go — I’m going after — all I’m doing — hey, Biden did something to me — and I did something to Biden. And you know why I did it? ‘Cause he’s grossly incompetent,” Trump said.

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