Is Donald Trump improving the US government?

Is Trump improving the government? I'll gather recent data on his administration's reforms and their impact.

Whether Donald Trump is improving the U.S. government depends on how "improving" is defined. Supporters and critics point to different metrics.

What the Administration Claims

The White House describes the period since January 20, 2025 as the "most consequential stretch of governing in modern American history", citing:

•Deregulation: The administration revoked the Obama-era Endangerment Finding, described as the single-largest deregulatory action worth $1.3 trillion. A government-wide deregulatory mandate is projected to save the U.S. economy $1.5 trillion in FY2026 alone.

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

•Other Claimed Results: The White House list includes securing the border, driving the murder rate to a historic low in 2025, record domestic oil and gas production, and tax and investment initiatives.

A Council of Economic Advisers report cited by outside groups said 20 major deregulatory actions would save about $220 billion per year and raise real incomes by $3,100 per household per year.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), launched in cooperation with Elon Musk, was central to the efficiency effort. DOGE claimed $215 billion in gross savings.

What Critics and Independent Reviews Report

•Cost and Verifiability of DOGE: DOGE initially aimed to eliminate $2 trillion in waste, later reduced to $150 billion, before claiming $215 billion saved. Independent analyses found less than 40% of the total savings were broken down into individual items and that methodology, such as counting projected contract values rather than actual expenditures, overstated savings. The administration has no plans to do a final accounting.

•Workforce Reduction Costs: The Government Accountability Office found the administration spent $9.5 billion paying federal workers not to work to reduce the workforce, a sixfold increase in paid leave costs compared to 2023. Critics, including Senator Patty Murray, said staffing cuts would lengthen service delays for seniors, veterans, and families.

•Scale of Workforce Cut: While DOGE did reduce the federal workforce by 9% in less than 10 months, marking the largest peacetime workforce cut since the end of World War II, analysts noted most federal expenditures are tied to entitlement programs rather than salaries, so workforce cuts had limited impact on overall spending.

•Public Opinion: Approval polling has declined. Trump began his second term with a 47% approval rating. Throughout 2025 to 2026, the average declined to 36 to 37%. In October 2026 the average across major aggregators was 36.6% approve to 60.9% disapprove. Surveys in October 2026 showed 61% of Americans said the government is headed in the wrong direction and 59% said changes to the workforce will have a negative impact compared to 28% who said positive.

How Different Groups Assess "Improvement"

•Supporters generally evaluate improvement as smaller government, fewer regulations, lower compliance costs, reduced federal workforce, border enforcement, and energy production.

•Critics generally evaluate improvement as maintenance of government services, institutional expertise, accuracy of savings claims, and overall public satisfaction with government performance.

Because of these different criteria, the same actions — such as eliminating 702 existing rules and shrinking the workforce — are described by the administration as historic efficiency gains and by opponents as risks to service delivery.

Citations (3)

1whitehouse.govGovernment
President Trump Delivers Historic Results for the American People in Under Two Years
Backs: “government depends on how "improving" is defined. Supporters and critics point to different metrics. What the Administration Claims. The White House describes the period since January 20, 2025 as the "most consequential stretch of governing in modern American history", citing:”
2ainvest.comNot yet classified
Fiscal Chaos: Trump's DOGE Effort Falls Short of Savings Promise
Backs: “The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), launched in cooperation with Elon Musk, was central to the efficiency effort. DOGE claimed $215 billion in gross savings. What Critics and Independent Reviews Report. Cost and Verifiability of DOGE: DOGE initially aimed to eliminate $2 trillion in waste, later reduced to…”
3wikipedia.orgEncyclopedias and referencequality 0.83
Opinion polling on the second Trump presidency
Backs: “Scale of Workforce Cut: While DOGE did reduce the federal workforce by 9% in less than 10 months, marking the largest peacetime workforce cut since the end of World War II, analysts noted most federal expenditures are tied to entitlement programs rather than salaries, so workforce cuts had limited impact on overall…”