Is Donald Trump improving the US government?

I'll search for current measures of how the Trump administration is reshaping the government.

Whether Donald Trump is improving the US government depends on the metric used, and the record as of late 2025-2026 is mixed with competing claims and assessments:

What the Administration Claims as Improvement

The White House says in less than two years President Trump has driven "the most consequential stretch of governing in modern American history" including sealing the border, driving violent crime to historic lows, unleashing energy, cutting taxes, and focusing on merit.

Specific claims include:

•Deregulation: $211.8 billion in cost savings in Fiscal Year 2025 — a level "never before achieved" with a projected $1.5 trillion in FY2026. An independent analysis by the American Action Forum found $129.7 billion in net regulatory cost savings and 50.9 million hours in paperwork reductions in 2025, making it the most deregulatory calendar year recorded.

•Government efficiency and workforce: The Administration claims efficiency reforms have saved an estimated $215 billion — about $1,335 per taxpayer — and shrunk the federal workforce to its lowest level since 1966.

•Border, crime and energy: Claims include ending catch-and-release, negative net migration in 2025 for the first time in half a century, murder rate falling to historic low in 2025, and record domestic oil and gas production in 2025.

•Economy: The White House asserts GDP growth for 2025 "smashed" Federal Reserve, CBO and IMF predictions despite a shutdown drag.

What Independent Audits, Economic Data and Polls Show

•DOGE savings not verified: The Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress' non-partisan audit agency, found "there's little evidence to support the $110 billion in savings claimed by Elon Musk and Trump" for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). GAO said "DOGE did not use its stated methodology to calculate the majority of savings" and for grants "did not provide sufficient information to verify the method used to calculate 96 percent", and that 40% of claimed savings were from leases previously terminated.

•Costs of workforce cuts: The Trump administration spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave for federal workers in 2025 as part of its plan to shrink the government, a sixfold increase compared to 2023, according to GAO.

•DOGE dissolved: The Office of Personnel Management confirmed DOGE is no longer a "centralized entity", despite its original mandate to operate until July 2026.

•Government shutdown: The US experienced the longest shutdown in history at 43-44 days in fall 2025. Growth in the fourth quarter slowed to 1.4%, with the shutdown cited as a drag, though Congress expects the effect to largely cancel out over time.

•Public trust and approval:

•Early 2025 Pew polling found the public evenly divided: 41% said Trump's administration will improve the way the federal government works, and 42% said it will make things worse.

•By September 2026, multiple polls put approval at 32-33%, described as a record low and .

•Trust in the federal government itself stood at just 27% in 2026, while 64% said the government's management is headed in the wrong direction.

•Gallup reported 89 percent of Americans now believe corruption is widespread in government, the highest in 20 years.

Independent Assessment

One fact-check summary concluded the administration has produced measurable outputs — legislative package, reported deportation figures, large drug seizures — but simultaneously a government shutdown and allegations of politicized use of federal agencies create "substantial counter-evidence about governance quality".

The same review noted the record "lacks independent, comprehensive assessments needed to conclude definitively that the country is overall 'improved' since 2025".

In short, supporters point to deregulation, tax cuts, border enforcement, and reported cost savings as improvements in efficiency and policy direction, while critics and audit agencies point to unverified savings claims, the long shutdown, low public trust, and low approval ratings as evidence of degraded governance quality.

Citations (4)

1whitehouse.govGovernment
President Trump Delivers Historic Results for the American People in Under Two Years
Backs: “Whether Donald Trump is improving the US government depends on the metric used, and the record as of late 2025-2026 is mixed with competing claims and assessments: What the Administration Claims as Improvement. The White House says in less than two years President Trump has driven "the most consequential stretch of…”
2americanactionforum.orgNonprofits and think tanks
2025: The Year in Regulation - AAF
Backs: “Deregulation: $211.8 billion in cost savings in Fiscal Year 2025 — a level "never before achieved" with a projected $1.5 trillion in FY2026. An independent analysis by the American Action Forum found $129.7 billion in net regulatory cost savings and 50.9 million hours in paperwork reductions in 2025, making it the…”
3wcia.comNot yet classified
GAO: Trump and Musk's DOGE lacked evidence for billions in savings
Backs: “DOGE savings not verified: The Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress' non-partisan audit agency, found "there's little evidence to support the $110 billion in savings claimed by Elon Musk and Trump" for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). GAO said "DOGE did not use its stated methodology to…”
4factually.coLow provenance
has the trump administration improved anything in the ...
Backs: “Gallup reported 89 percent of Americans now believe corruption is widespread in government, the highest in 20 years. Independent Assessment. One fact-check summary concluded the administration has produced measurable outputs — legislative package, reported deportation figures, large drug seizures — but simultaneously…”