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America’s late President Ronald Reagan was often called the Teflon President. Nothing stuck to him, just like food doesn’t stick to a Teflon-coated pan. Numerous scandals rocked the White House during his two terms as president from 1981 to 1989, including the Iran-Contra scandal. This involved secret arms sales to the enemy Iran in exchange for American hostages in Lebanon.
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The White House illegally funneled the arms sales money to the Contra rebels fighting to overthrow the Nicaraguan government. But Reagan’s huge popularity and the West’s Cold War victory sheltered him from the fallout, which only affected his staff.
Donald Trump was like a Teflon President when he began his second term last year. He comfortably defeated Democratic Party challenger Kamala Harris. His Republican Party won control of both Houses of Congress. The Trump-friendly US Supreme Court added to his invincibility in 2024 by granting him immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts.
Flushed with victory, Trump began his term by renewing his campaign promises to lower food and health care costs, reduce inflation, create jobs, and end the Gaza and Ukraine-Russia wars, pledges that won him a second term. But a year on, those promises are turning out to be hollow.
His trade tariffs have driven up consumer prices. Health care costs have risen. Revised 2025 government data show that job creation during Trump’s first year was weaker than initially reported. Latest figures show inflation is not easing. The Ukraine-Russia war is ongoing. The Gaza peace is fragile. A recent Washington Post poll shows Trump’s disapproval rating is 60 percent.
This list of negative news is sticking to Trump. He is no longer the Teflon President after just one year in office. Struggling Americans who believed his promises of affordability and job creation feel duped. His State of the Union speech last week gave him an opportunity to convince Americans that his policies will improve their lives.
But instead of doing that, he boasted he has already ushered in a “golden age of America,” even though many are struggling to pay bills. Americans had wanted Trump to spell out clear policies that would make life more affordable by lowering prices and health care costs. Trump instead mocked and yelled at Democrat legislators listening to his speech in the Congressional chamber, blaming them and his predecessor, Joe Biden, for causing the country’s woes.
It was a speech aimed at rallying his Republican base ahead of November’s mid-term elections as his own popularity plummets. But Democrats, who found themselves in the political wilderness after Trump and his Republican Party won in the last election, are now fired up by polls showing they could win one or both Houses of Congress in November.
They found a winning message in focusing on the high cost of living, Trump’s harsh methods in deporting both illegal and legal immigrants, which have disgusted many Americans, and his broken promise of not starting new wars.
Michael Chugani is a longtime journalist who has worked in Hong Kong, the US, and London
