Fact check: Is Donald Trump keeping his promises to Michigan voters?

• President Trump is acting on many of the promises he made on the campaign trail in Michigan, enacting tariffs and boosting deportations
• His administration is also working to roll back back environmental rules and attempted to freeze funding for electric vehicle chargers
• Critics have challenged the decisions in courts across the country, and some experts warn the economy may be on verge of recession

As President Donald Trump campaigned through Michigan in 2024, he made bold promises to address economic and cultural fears.

The Republican nominee promised to roll back inflation “on Day 1,” cut taxes and raise tariffs to drive job growth in Michigan. He said he’d deport millions of migrants and attack cultural issues like transgender “insanity” and diversity, equity and inclusion programs in schools and universities.

"By the end of my term, the entire world will be talking about the Michigan miracle and the stunning rebirth of Detroit,” he pledged. 

Now, three months into his second term, Trump has taken at least some action on many of his more specific promises — to cheers from much of his base and the chagrin of his opponents and, at times, even some allies.

Bridge Michigan is spending the year tracking the president’s progress on more than 100 promises he made to Michigan voters during numerous campaign stops here last year. 

While there is no doubt the president is speeding through his agenda, he’s also facing legal scrutiny for his unprecedented use of executive power — and the impact on Michigan so far is at best mixed or unclear. 

Related:

• Fact check: Trump promised a ‘Michigan miracle.’ Now comes the hard part
• 100 promises Donald Trump made to Michigan

Since Trump became president, unemployment has risen in Michigan, inflation has eased slightly, his on-again-off-again tariffs have roiled the auto industry and sent the stock market on a roller-coaster. 

The economy, cited by voters as the top issue last year, remains precarious, with gas prices falling but the cost of eggs hitting a record high, $6.22 a dozen, in March.

No doubt, much can change suddenly and many of Trump’s policies could take months — or even years — to lower prices or make other changes.

Here’s a look at his promises, their impact so far and what they mean to Michigan.

Economics

Promise: During stops in Michigan, Trump repeatedly promised to improve the economy and end inflation: “One of my top priorities will be to quickly defeat inflation and make America affordable again. We will quickly defeat it. We have to bring down prices,” he said during an Oct. 10 stop in Detroit.

Actions: Trump has signed numerous executive orders designed to bolster the economy, calling for widespread deregulation, expanding the mining of crucial minerals and the production of fossil fuels. 

The administration recently said it will fast-track permitting for the Line 5 pipeline tunnel project taking Canadian petroleum products under the Straits of Mackinac, utilizing a federal “emergency” designation normally reserved for dramatic events like dam breaks and oil spills.

Results: It could take months to years to realize Trump’s goals because of the length of the business cycle and how corporations plan — and how long it will take to remove or change regulations that Trump says shackle citizens and industry.

Trump himself has backed off claims that prices will fall quickly, saying it’ll take time to tackle inflation and that a recession is both possible and could be worth the cost.

Since the election, consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level since the pandemic, and inflation fears are at the highest levels since 1981.

In March, Michigan’s unemployment rate was the second highest in the nation (behind Nevada at 5.7%)  at 5.5%, well above the national rate of 4.2%.

Tariffs

Promise: Trump promised to revive the auto industry and American manufacturing with steep tariffs. “Tariff,” he  has said, is “the most beautiful word in the dictionary.”

“Come in and build plants in the United States, preferably here,” he said at an Oct. 10 stop in Detroit. “But come in and build your plants in the United States of America. And if you don't, you're not allowed to sell cars here, and we're going to tax you at 150 or 200 percent.”

Actions: Trump has levied tariffs on imported cars and vehicle parts, along with steel and aluminum. He’s also levied new import taxes on products from countries around the world. He’s paused “reciprocal” tariffs in some cases but raised them even higher on China. Goods from Mexico and Canada now face a 25% tariff; Europe has a 10% tariff — and China was hit with a 145% tariff.

Results: It’s too early to tell in part because the tariffs — the ones not paused — only recently took effect. While automakers have not announced any new factories in Michigan, GM has started shifting production to some US-based plants. Other automakers expanded employee-discount programs to all customers to lower prices.

Some automakers halted production, including Chrysler minivans built in Windsor, and Stellantis ordered temporary layoffs in Macomb County. China retaliated with its own tariffs and a ban on exports of key minerals critical to US auto, defense and energy industries. In the short term, the stock market dropped, recovered and then fell again.

Immigration

Promise: Trump was blunt on the campaign trail — his administration would quickly begin deporting millions of migrants who entered the country illegally, people he blamed for rising crime, lower wages and high housing prices. 

“The day I take the oath of office, the migrant invasion ends and the restoration of our country begins,” Trump said in a Warren rally. 

Actions: Deportations started immediately, in sweeps around the country, first targeting those believed to be criminals in the country illegally. Deportation efforts expanded to include international students, with little explanation, and pro-Palestinian student protesters who ran afoul of the Trump administration’s stance supporting Israel, which Secretary of State Marco Rubio has defended as an attempt to stop anti-Semitism.

Results: The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has arrested more people during the first three months of the Trump administration, is detaining more of them in jail and is releasing fewer, ICE statistics show. 

Still, overall deportations are nowhere near the level the administration has predicted — the Washington Post reported a 2025 goal of 1 million. March deportations were actually below how many were deported in March  2024 

The US military is now assisting with border security.The number of people attempting to cross the border is at the lowest level in decades.

In Michigan, the US Customs and Border Protection is reporting the biggest increase in undocumented immigrant arrests “in recent memory” but has not specified exact numbers. 

In Detroit, federal prosecutors had charged 46 people with immigration-related criminal charges in January, February and part of March, according to The Detroit News; in all of 2024 they had arrested 70.

The Trump administration has taken steps beyond illegal immigration: More than 70 international students at 11 Michigan universities have lost their legal status to study in the US. The administration has not explained why those students lost their visas.

Electric vehicles and energy

Promise: Trump said he’d end electric vehicle “mandates” on “day one” of his term, claiming it would save the “Michigan auto industry from extinction.” He also vowed to cut the $7,500 subsidy for buyers of EVs and dramatically expand production of fossil fuels, including coal, oil and natural gas to make energy cheaper.

“Vote for Trump, and the gasoline engine will be here for a long, long time,” he said in a Detroit speech. 

Actions: On his first day in office, Trump rescinded a Biden order that had established a national goal for 50% of all cars in the US to be zero-emissions by 2030, and he directed the Environmental Protection Agency to roll back the mileage targets for US car fleets that he said were a mandate for EVs.

Trump also froze a Biden-era program to build a national network of EV charging stations, including $110 million for Michigan. The administration has expanded where companies can drill and removed Biden-era environmental protections in effort to increase energy production.

Results: Trump's order did not directly revoke Biden-era emissions and mileage standards, which will likely be lengthy processes. He has not ended EV consumer subsidies though lawmakers are considering it.

EV sales declined slightly in February but were up 10% from the prior year. It will take months or longer to see how Detroit automakers fare in coming years as they navigate existing and potential tariffs.

Trump has also sought to claw back unspent funding from Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, leaving between $30 million and $77.2 million in climate and environmental projects in Michigan in limbo, along with nearly $60 million for rehabbing homes and making others more energy efficient.

Taxes

Promise: “As part of this effort, I will pass major tax cuts for workers, including no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and no tax on Social Security benefits for our seniors,” Trump told a Detroit audience.

In Michigan speeches, he also said he’d cut taxes on car loan interest, allow parents to deduct major newborn expenses and increase deductions for some corporate investment and research.

Actions: This promise requires help from Congress; Trump alone cannot cut taxes. Congressional Republicans are currently crafting a bill that would implement many of the cuts, which Trump continues to champion. 

Results: Trump did not “immediately” cut taxes on tips, but time will tell on his broader push. Congressional Republicans are scrambling to renew the 2017 tax cuts approved during Trump’s first term before they expire at the end of the year. They are attempting to do so while also adding the new cuts that Trump wants, including the cuts regarding tips, overtime and Social Security. 

But the massive tax changes face challenges because the total cost — trillions over a decade — could put the bill afoul of limits on how much the bills will add to the federal deficit over a decade. And some Republicans in a slim-majority Congress balked before narrowly approving the legislation at an early stage of the process.

Cultural issues

Promise:  "We will get critical race theory and transgender insanity the hell out of our school. And we will keep men out of women's sports right away, Day 1,” Trump said in Novi.

Actions: The administration has used its power of the purse to threaten universities, including the University of Michigan and Wayne State, over diversity programs, cutting funding because some research focused on “diversity.” 

Every school, from K-12 to colleges and universities, got a letter in February saying federal funding was in jeopardy if race was considered in any aspect of education.

Trump has also ordered that schools ban transgender women from participating in female sports, reversing a Biden-era rule that prevented sex-based discrimination in schools that received federal funding. 

Two Michigan schools, among over 50 nationwide, are also targets of new investigations: Grand Valley State University for “impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation” and the University of Michigan for “race-exclusionary” practices in graduate education.

Results: The University of Michigan dropped its DEI programs, though that didn’t forestall other cuts. The NCAA quickly limited participation to athletes in sports of the gender assigned at birth. The Michigan High School Athletic Association has not altered its policy allowing transgender participation, though it affects just two of an estimated 175,000 athletes in the state.

Some schools in other parts of the country, including Columbia, have agreed to concessions while Harvard this month said it would not agree to demands that accompanied a freeze of $2.2 billion in grants.

In Michigan, K-12 school leaders have been left with trying to determine what programs, policies or activities may violate the new ban on DEI. State Superintendent Michael Rice has not complied with a demand to certify compliance.

In vitro fertilization

Promise: “(A)s part of our efforts to help working families, I'm announcing today in a major statement that under the Trump administration, your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment, fertilization for women, IVF treatment,” Trump said Aug. 29 in Potterville.

Action: In February Trump signed an executive order calling for dramatically lowered costs for IVF treatment. The order directed his administration to suggest policies to make it happen.

Results: Costs were not lowered immediately. Instead, Trump has called for proposals to reduce costs within three months.

End wars

Promises: “I will end the war in Ukraine. Would have never started if I were president,” Trump said Nov. 4 in Grand Rapids. And in Hamtramck in October: “We want peace in the Middle East. We're going to get peace in the Middle East.”

Actions: Trump started Russian ceasefire negotiations without including Ukraine and has pushed for a deal giving US access to rare minerals in Ukraine in exchange for continued support. A special US envoy has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin three times. 

As for the Middle East, the US has backed Israel in its ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. In February, Trump suggested the US could take over Gaza and move the Palestinians to another country, a “good, fresh, beautiful piece of land.” 

Results: Both wars have continued. 

Though the US pushed for a 30-day ceasefire, Ukraine and Russia agreed on a more limited break in fighting. Attacks are still occurring, including a Russian missile launch in mid-April. 

The Trump administration’s posture toward Russia and Ukraine, highlighted by an Oval Office visit in which Trump and Vance angrily criticized Zelenskiy, has caused European allies to realize they must unify in support of Ukraine and spend far more on defense. 

In the Middle East, a temporary ceasefire reached days before Biden left office expired March 18. Israel resumed attacks in Gaza, and negotiations are continuing to free all of the hostages taken by Hamas during its 2023 terror attack that prompted the war. 

Voting changes

Promise: “And ideally, we go to paper ballots, same-day voting, proof of citizenship, very big, and voter ID, very simple, very simple,” Trump said in a speech near Lansing in August, echoing the GOP platform.

Action: In late March Trump signed an executive order calling for dramatic changes in how elections are conducted, including requiring people to prove their citizenship when registering to vote. His order aims to prohibit counting mailed-in ballots received after election day.

Results: The executive order outlines broad changes, but states decide how elections are conducted. The order calls for the Election Assistance Commission, an independent bipartisan agency, to change the federal voter registration form to require government-issued documentary proof of citizenship. 

Multiple states, including Michigan, have already filed lawsuits challenging the order, arguing it’s an “unconstitutional attempt to seize control of elections.” 

Trump's order conflicts with some voting rights for military members and overseas voters written into the Michigan Constitution. The state already uses paper ballots.