'Quite unlikely': Analysis exposes key Trump campaign promises as unrealistic — if not 'impossible'

During his 2016 campaign, Donald Trump drew scathing criticism from Democrats as well as Never Trump conservatives because of inflammatory rhetoric about immigrants. Yet part of Trump's message — bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States in big numbers — resonated with enough voters for him to win key swing states like Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Trump was voted out of office in 2020 only to be voted back into office in 2024, and the economy was a major focus of his fourth and most successful presidential campaign (Trump first ran for president in 2000 as a Reform Party candidate but dropped out of the race in February).

In an opinion column published on January 14, the Washington Post's Aaron Blake emphasizes that Trump failed to live up to his 2016 campaign promises and lists some 2024 campaign promises that may also be unrealistic.

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Blake notes that in 2024, Trump promised to "end birthright citizenship."

"Trump might well sign such an order," the Post columnist explains. "But it might well fail to pass legal muster, given the 14th Amendment to the Constitution has long been understood to bestow birthright citizenship — and such a move would require another constitutional amendment."

Blake points out that Trump promised to "increase auto production to record highs" in 2024.

But according to the columnist, "The record year for auto production was more than 13 million in 1999. The country produces about 3 million less than that, meaning it would require a huge, almost instantaneous manufacturing spike that seems quite unlikely."

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Blake argues that although Trump's promised to "stop illegal immigration" to the U.S., "getting illegal immigration to zero is nearly impossible."

Trump, Blake explains, promised to "launch a mass deportation program" on his first day in office, but the columnist notes that "given the procedural and legal issues involved in such a gargantuan effort, having a full plan in place so quickly could prove difficult."

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Aaron Blake's full Washington Post column is available at this link (subscription required).