What Minnesotans are saying about Trump's first 100 days
President Donald Trump arrives to speak on his first 100 days at Macomb County Community College Sports Expo Center, Tuesday in Warren, Mich.
Alex Brandon | AP
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
Audio transcript
NINA MOINI: President Trump has now been in office for 100 days. He held the first rally of his current tenure last night in Michigan to mark the milestone.
DONALD TRUMP: In 100 days, we have delivered the most profound change in Washington in nearly 100 years. I read an editorial today that this is the most consequential presidency in history. How about that?
NINA MOINI: Here at MPR News, we've been fanning out around the state to take the pulse on what Minnesotans think of Trump's job performance so far. Take a listen.
ZACH JOHNSON: My name is Zach Johnson. I am a sixth generation family farmer from West Central Minnesota. And I'm actually out planting corn right now. Before any of the tariffs were even announced, there was a lot of uncertainty just because the farm economy right now, especially in row crops, is pretty poor.
The input prices, the cost of the fertilizer, and the seed, and the land rent prices, and everything is really high. Ironically, since the tariffs and the threat of tariffs started, actually, the grain markets have gone up some. So in the short term, the current crop is actually looking a little bit better since the tariffs were announced. But the tariffs will likely have an effect on the new crop as we go into the 2025 crop, which is what I'm planting right now.
ANNIE BAXTER: You supported President Trump in the election. Is what's happening causing your support to waver at all? Or is there anything bolstering your support?
ZACH JOHNSON: Yes and no. To me, it seems obvious that he's really just trying to play hardball on negotiating. A lot of it to me, also, seems over the top.
LINDA HERRON: My name is Linda Herron. I live in Duluth. I've been here for about 45 years. My age is 81. I started to get that very heavy, dark feeling way back on November 4.
I knew that we were in for some dark days. I didn't realize it was going to be as quick and rapid destruction of our agencies, our organizations that help people live cleaner, better, happier lives. And it just seemed to me unending.
And it continues day after day. And there are days when I feel I don't know how I can get through another 3 and 3/4 years. I'm concerned about the impacts to Medicare and Social Security.
I know there's all these promises, but I don't have any faith or trust in the government right now. I don't trust it.
BRANDON DOTY: My name is Brandon Doty. I live in Bemidji, Minnesota.
INTERVIEWER 2: Did you vote for President Donald Trump?
BRANDON DOTY: I did all three times. I feel like he's moving pretty quick. They're moving really fast on a lot of things. I do like him canceling a lot of the DEI projects and different things like that-- or race-based things that shouldn't necessarily be there. But a lot of it, it's going to have to play out before I can pass too much judgment on it.
INTERVIEWER 2: And how are you feeling about prices as a consumer?
BRANDON DOTY: They're high, and they're just getting higher. Every time I have to get something done, it seems like it's gone up another $50. I definitely do have to hold back. I am a homeowner.
There's projects that I have to get done. I had to cancel a trip to go see my brother in Las Vegas.
INTERVIEWER 2: Do you feel like, 100 days into it, the way it was going has lived up to your expectations?
BRANDON DOTY: Absolutely. He said he was going to do these things, and now he's doing them. I respect someone who follows through.
BRENNA HEIZER: Brenna Heizer. I'm in St. Paul.
INTERVIEWER 1: How is the economy feeling for you right now? Do you feel like prices are high? Is it getting any better or any worse?
BRENNA HEIZER: No, I feel like they're high-- groceries, mainly groceries. I mean, the cost of living in general, rent, electricity, regular bills, everything. Things seem scary.
I try not to, I don't know, freak out too much about it, but it doesn't seem promising, I guess. I did get laid off in the fall, so that contributes to those feelings.
ANNIE BAXTER: You have a family?
BRENNA HEIZER: Yep. Just my son, him and I. Just thinking about the future-- if we can stay, have to stay. Everything.
NINA MOINI: MPR News editor Annie Baxter spearheaded this effort to collect the voices from across the state you just heard. And she joins me now in the studio to talk about it. Thanks for all that hard work, Annie, and for being here.
ANNIE BAXTER: Hey, no problem. Glad to be here.
NINA MOINI: So we just heard, again, a lot of different voices, different opinions from across the state. What did you hear that surprised you, if anything?
ANNIE BAXTER: I think I was really struck by the amount of economic pain and anxiety that Minnesotans are experiencing. We had gotten some signals from national surveys and stuff. We saw consumer confidence take a big plunge between March and April.
There was a Pew Research Center survey that said that a majority of Americans are disapproving of Trump's handling of the economy, which had long been a strength for him. But it was just very striking hearing Minnesotans tell the specifics of how that's playing out in their lives.
NINA MOINI: Yeah. And what type of specific stories were they telling you?
ANNIE BAXTER: Well, some of the ones that really struck me the most were there was a young man in St. Paul who said he's squeezing every last little drip of shampoo out of the bottle these days because he's really worried about spending more money. He feels like he goes to the grocery store, it's like $20 for three items-- just feels very pinched in a way that was relatively new.
A farmer in North Dakota said he's holding off on buying expensive equipment because he's worried about how things are going to play out with the tariffs. There was an HR professional we spoke to who said she's having to lay people off at the company. And she's very worried about her own finances because she is a single woman.
She's holding a garage sale to try to not just get rid of stuff, but make more money, pinching pennies, trying to drive less to work to save money on gas. And then a couple of business owners were telling us-- one gentleman in Winona saw his business drop off by 30% since January. It's pretty significant.
He blamed the economic uncertainty, the environment. And then a hamburger joint owner in St. Cloud said he's seeing more declined credit cards. So it was really all over Minnesota, Twin Cities, outstate, we were hearing these kinds of stories.
NINA MOINI: And it probably depends on their political views, but are they blaming President Trump for this? Things were expensive even before he took office.
ANNIE BAXTER: That's right. That's right. I will say for sure that there was a cohort of people we spoke to who say he's doing nothing but great stuff. They give him an A-plus, no problems with it. And that matches some of the surveys that say that his die hard supporters are still all in.
But other than that, I would say, it's the swing voters, the new Trump voters, and then, of course, the Democrats, they really did seem very concerned about what Trump was doing. A lot of them said that they think he's doing too much too fast. So one Republican in White Bear Township said that Trump needs to pay more attention to what's happening on the ground and not mess around with things like trying to get Greenland.
He's like, we don't need Greenland. We need to have more stability in our current economy. He was really worried about his retirement account with all the ups and downs of the stock market.
Another business owner said the federal workforce needs to be trimmed, but maybe do it more in the way that corporations do-- more intentionally. You don't want to get rid of your good workers, and you want to maybe offer buyouts. And he just felt like this was a very scattershot approach that was being taken.
We heard in that montage just now one farmer, Zach Johnson, saying Trump seems to maybe be playing hardball a little too aggressively with the tariffs. But I will say, even some of the unhappy Trump supporters are trying to take a wait and see approach and give him some time. But they're feeling the pinch.
NINA MOINI: Sure. And across the board, people are feeling the pinch, which kind of creates an intersection. Were there other topics or areas where you saw people overlapping?
ANNIE BAXTER: Yeah, I would say that there was actually quite a bit of overlap on folks from both sides, I guess, seeing that the immigration system needs to be reformed. They acknowledge problems with border security, but probably disagree pretty strongly on whether Trump is making the right moves right now.
And I did hear a lot of support for trimming back the federal workforce. And, again, it's just a question of the means by which that's done.
NINA MOINI: Annie, thank you. It's really helpful to hear directly from people. Really appreciate it.
ANNIE BAXTER: You're welcome.
NINA MOINI: That's MPR News editor Annie Baxter.
DONALD TRUMP: In 100 days, we have delivered the most profound change in Washington in nearly 100 years. I read an editorial today that this is the most consequential presidency in history. How about that?
NINA MOINI: Here at MPR News, we've been fanning out around the state to take the pulse on what Minnesotans think of Trump's job performance so far. Take a listen.
ZACH JOHNSON: My name is Zach Johnson. I am a sixth generation family farmer from West Central Minnesota. And I'm actually out planting corn right now. Before any of the tariffs were even announced, there was a lot of uncertainty just because the farm economy right now, especially in row crops, is pretty poor.
The input prices, the cost of the fertilizer, and the seed, and the land rent prices, and everything is really high. Ironically, since the tariffs and the threat of tariffs started, actually, the grain markets have gone up some. So in the short term, the current crop is actually looking a little bit better since the tariffs were announced. But the tariffs will likely have an effect on the new crop as we go into the 2025 crop, which is what I'm planting right now.
ANNIE BAXTER: You supported President Trump in the election. Is what's happening causing your support to waver at all? Or is there anything bolstering your support?
ZACH JOHNSON: Yes and no. To me, it seems obvious that he's really just trying to play hardball on negotiating. A lot of it to me, also, seems over the top.
LINDA HERRON: My name is Linda Herron. I live in Duluth. I've been here for about 45 years. My age is 81. I started to get that very heavy, dark feeling way back on November 4.
I knew that we were in for some dark days. I didn't realize it was going to be as quick and rapid destruction of our agencies, our organizations that help people live cleaner, better, happier lives. And it just seemed to me unending.
And it continues day after day. And there are days when I feel I don't know how I can get through another 3 and 3/4 years. I'm concerned about the impacts to Medicare and Social Security.
I know there's all these promises, but I don't have any faith or trust in the government right now. I don't trust it.
BRANDON DOTY: My name is Brandon Doty. I live in Bemidji, Minnesota.
INTERVIEWER 2: Did you vote for President Donald Trump?
BRANDON DOTY: I did all three times. I feel like he's moving pretty quick. They're moving really fast on a lot of things. I do like him canceling a lot of the DEI projects and different things like that-- or race-based things that shouldn't necessarily be there. But a lot of it, it's going to have to play out before I can pass too much judgment on it.
INTERVIEWER 2: And how are you feeling about prices as a consumer?
BRANDON DOTY: They're high, and they're just getting higher. Every time I have to get something done, it seems like it's gone up another $50. I definitely do have to hold back. I am a homeowner.
There's projects that I have to get done. I had to cancel a trip to go see my brother in Las Vegas.
INTERVIEWER 2: Do you feel like, 100 days into it, the way it was going has lived up to your expectations?
BRANDON DOTY: Absolutely. He said he was going to do these things, and now he's doing them. I respect someone who follows through.
BRENNA HEIZER: Brenna Heizer. I'm in St. Paul.
INTERVIEWER 1: How is the economy feeling for you right now? Do you feel like prices are high? Is it getting any better or any worse?
BRENNA HEIZER: No, I feel like they're high-- groceries, mainly groceries. I mean, the cost of living in general, rent, electricity, regular bills, everything. Things seem scary.
I try not to, I don't know, freak out too much about it, but it doesn't seem promising, I guess. I did get laid off in the fall, so that contributes to those feelings.
ANNIE BAXTER: You have a family?
BRENNA HEIZER: Yep. Just my son, him and I. Just thinking about the future-- if we can stay, have to stay. Everything.
NINA MOINI: MPR News editor Annie Baxter spearheaded this effort to collect the voices from across the state you just heard. And she joins me now in the studio to talk about it. Thanks for all that hard work, Annie, and for being here.
ANNIE BAXTER: Hey, no problem. Glad to be here.
NINA MOINI: So we just heard, again, a lot of different voices, different opinions from across the state. What did you hear that surprised you, if anything?
ANNIE BAXTER: I think I was really struck by the amount of economic pain and anxiety that Minnesotans are experiencing. We had gotten some signals from national surveys and stuff. We saw consumer confidence take a big plunge between March and April.
There was a Pew Research Center survey that said that a majority of Americans are disapproving of Trump's handling of the economy, which had long been a strength for him. But it was just very striking hearing Minnesotans tell the specifics of how that's playing out in their lives.
NINA MOINI: Yeah. And what type of specific stories were they telling you?
ANNIE BAXTER: Well, some of the ones that really struck me the most were there was a young man in St. Paul who said he's squeezing every last little drip of shampoo out of the bottle these days because he's really worried about spending more money. He feels like he goes to the grocery store, it's like $20 for three items-- just feels very pinched in a way that was relatively new.
A farmer in North Dakota said he's holding off on buying expensive equipment because he's worried about how things are going to play out with the tariffs. There was an HR professional we spoke to who said she's having to lay people off at the company. And she's very worried about her own finances because she is a single woman.
She's holding a garage sale to try to not just get rid of stuff, but make more money, pinching pennies, trying to drive less to work to save money on gas. And then a couple of business owners were telling us-- one gentleman in Winona saw his business drop off by 30% since January. It's pretty significant.
He blamed the economic uncertainty, the environment. And then a hamburger joint owner in St. Cloud said he's seeing more declined credit cards. So it was really all over Minnesota, Twin Cities, outstate, we were hearing these kinds of stories.
NINA MOINI: And it probably depends on their political views, but are they blaming President Trump for this? Things were expensive even before he took office.
ANNIE BAXTER: That's right. That's right. I will say for sure that there was a cohort of people we spoke to who say he's doing nothing but great stuff. They give him an A-plus, no problems with it. And that matches some of the surveys that say that his die hard supporters are still all in.
But other than that, I would say, it's the swing voters, the new Trump voters, and then, of course, the Democrats, they really did seem very concerned about what Trump was doing. A lot of them said that they think he's doing too much too fast. So one Republican in White Bear Township said that Trump needs to pay more attention to what's happening on the ground and not mess around with things like trying to get Greenland.
He's like, we don't need Greenland. We need to have more stability in our current economy. He was really worried about his retirement account with all the ups and downs of the stock market.
Another business owner said the federal workforce needs to be trimmed, but maybe do it more in the way that corporations do-- more intentionally. You don't want to get rid of your good workers, and you want to maybe offer buyouts. And he just felt like this was a very scattershot approach that was being taken.
We heard in that montage just now one farmer, Zach Johnson, saying Trump seems to maybe be playing hardball a little too aggressively with the tariffs. But I will say, even some of the unhappy Trump supporters are trying to take a wait and see approach and give him some time. But they're feeling the pinch.
NINA MOINI: Sure. And across the board, people are feeling the pinch, which kind of creates an intersection. Were there other topics or areas where you saw people overlapping?
ANNIE BAXTER: Yeah, I would say that there was actually quite a bit of overlap on folks from both sides, I guess, seeing that the immigration system needs to be reformed. They acknowledge problems with border security, but probably disagree pretty strongly on whether Trump is making the right moves right now.
And I did hear a lot of support for trimming back the federal workforce. And, again, it's just a question of the means by which that's done.
NINA MOINI: Annie, thank you. It's really helpful to hear directly from people. Really appreciate it.
ANNIE BAXTER: You're welcome.
NINA MOINI: That's MPR News editor Annie Baxter.
Download transcript (PDF)
Transcription services provided by 3Play Media.