Fox News Digital spoke to two political analysts on where President Trump stands grade wise with the American public on some of the top issues heading into his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.
Rob Bluey, president and executive editor of the Daily Signal, and Julian Epstein, longtime Democratic operative, attorney, and former chief counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, gave Trump grades of A-F on some of the top issues he is expected to touch on in his speech.
BLUEY: A
‘Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and border czar Tom Homan are among the most visible members of the Trump administration,’ Bluey told Fox News Digital.
‘Their work is paying off. Customs and Border Protection is encountering a record-low number of illegal aliens at the southern border. Thanks to combination of increased enforcement and the threat of deportation, President Trump is delivering on his promise to end illegal immigration. He’ll need more resources from Congress to finish the job and finally secure the border.’
EPSTEIN: A
‘Promises made, promises kept, the public is strongly behind him on this, and Democracies don’t survive too long under the Biden open borders approach,’ Epstein said.
BLUEY: B
‘President Trump promised to end the war between Russia and Ukraine in 24 hours. That’s proving to be more difficult, mostly because of Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s unrealistic demands,’ Bluey said. ‘After Friday’s blowup in the Oval Office, it’s unclear when peace talks will resume. In the Middle East, Trump is hoping to replicate the success of the Abraham Accords negotiated during his first term. Trump set the tone with his ultimatum for Hamas to release hostages, although there are approximately 59 still in captivity. With the first phase of the ceasefire coming to an end, it’ll take more U.S. diplomacy to get a deal done.’
EPSTEIN: B
‘The Zelenskyy Presser meltdown didn’t make anyone look good on the global stage, Epstein said. ‘Rule #1: get your act together before you go public. And where are our hostages in Gaza? On the other hand, Trump is playing three-dimensional chess in each theater, where Biden was playing checkers and never made much meaningful progress.’
Bluey: A+
‘Using his executive powers, President Trump ordered an end to DEI throughout the federal government—and exposed its deep roots across the bureaucracy,’ Bluey told Fox News Digital. ‘By eliminating DEI jobs, he’s ensuring that taxpayers no longer subsidize this Marxist idea. He also signed an executive order banning men from women’s sports, an iconic moment with young athletes cheering him on. His confrontation with Maine Gov. Janet Mills over the issue shows he’s serious about enforcing it.’
Epstein: A
‘The American people never wanted the cultural revolution that the far left was trying to impose on race and gender, the president will have a super majority of public support on this,’ Epstein said.
Bluey: A
‘Elon Musk and the DOGE team are on the hunt to save taxpayers $1 trillion, which would cut the budget deficit in half,’ Bluey told Fox News Digital. ‘They’ve already found $65 billion and showcased the results on a public website. But that represents just 6.5% of Musk’s goal, revealing what a daunting task it will be. Fortunately, there’s finally someone in Washington with the guts to cut spending and bring accountability to federal agencies. Musk shows no signs of slowing down, buoyed by recent polls showing support for spending reductions.’
Epstein: B+
‘Trump, must, will have public support to rid the bureaucracy of all its flab, self dealing and cultural revolutionary ideology,’ Epstein said. ‘But they’re acting like they are in a breathless race against father time on this, when in fact they have time to make sure they don’t cut off important things like cancer research.’
Bluey: B
‘President Trump acknowledged that inflation will be hard to tame, placing the blame on his predecessor,’ Bluey explained. ‘It’s true that the Biden administration’s spending spree got us into this mess. And it doesn’t help that Trump is also facing a bird flu outbreak causing a spike in egg prices. Voters, however, expect Trump to deliver on his promise to help with the cost of living. His efforts to reduce regulatory burdens and provide tax relief are important steps. He’ll need to keep a watchful eye on Americans’ views of their personal finances to measure his success.’
Epstein: B
‘Biden made a lot of mistakes and did a lot of dumb things, probably the dumbest was back shelving inflation,’ Epstein said. ‘For all of the whirlwind, we’ve seen very little in the way of Trump tackling inflation in the first month. This has to change.’
Trump will address Congress on Tuesday night in a speech expected to tout his accomplishments to date while previewing his agenda in the months and years ahead.
