Trump Administration Faces Multiple Challenges as Second Term Begins
Washington D.C. – President Donald Trump's second term is facing a confluence of challenges, ranging from economic concerns and domestic unrest to international competition in artificial intelligence. The first month of 2025 has been marked by significant events impacting the nation's financial stability, social order, and technological advancement.
Economic issues took center stage as the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report on January 28 detailing the substantial cost of deploying federal troops to U.S. cities. According to the CBO, mobilizing National Guard and active-duty Marine Corps personnel to six major American cities between June and December 2025 cost approximately $496 million. The report, requested by Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), highlighted the ongoing financial burden, estimating recurring costs of $93 million per month if troop levels remain consistent.
Adding to the economic discourse, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell addressed concerns about the Fed's independence during a press conference on Wednesday following the decision to hold interest rates steady. "We haven't lost it. I don't believe we will. I certainly hope we won't," Powell stated, referencing recent grand jury subpoenas served to the Federal Reserve by the Justice Department regarding his June 2025 congressional testimony on the $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed's headquarters, according to Fortune. Powell's comments also come amid President Trump's continued criticism of the Fed's interest rate policies, which he views as hindering economic growth.
In an effort to bolster the financial future of American children, President Trump rallied business leaders to support "Trump Accounts," a new initiative providing $1,000 to every American child born between 2025 and 2028. Time reported that at an event in Washington, D.C., the President promoted the accounts, describing them as a "beautiful nest egg" to be invested in the S&P 500, with funds inaccessible until a later date. "Even people that truly hate me are making this investment," Trump said.
Simultaneously, the administration faced growing social unrest following fatal shootings by federal agents in Minneapolis. Activists organized a nationwide general strike on January 30, calling for "no school, no work and no shopping" to protest President Trump's immigration policies, Time reported. The "National Shutdown" campaign gained momentum after an ICE officer shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good earlier in the month, leading to mass demonstrations and business closures in the Twin Cities. "The people of the Twin Cities have shown the way for the whole country – to stop Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s reign of terror, we need to SHUT IT DOWN," the campaign's website stated.
On the international front, the U.S. is engaged in an increasingly competitive race with China in the field of artificial intelligence. Time noted that on January 20, 2025, the same day as Trump's inauguration, a Chinese firm called DeepSeek released R1, an AI model hailed as a "Sputnik moment" for China's AI industry. "Whether we like it or not, we're suddenly engaged in a fast-paced competition to build and define this groundbreaking technology that will determine so much about the future of civilization," Trump said later that year, announcing his administration's AI action plan, titled "Winning the Race." According to AI policy researcher Lennart Heim, the competition involves deploying AI systems in the economy, building robots, and creating new technologies.
Discussion
Join the conversation
Be the first to comment