Breaking down the 500 tweets Donald Trump has sent in his first 100 days as president
Analysis by The Independent shows former real estate mogul falling back on campaign favourites as he sends 93 tweets with capitalised words such as 'BAD', 'SAD!' and 'FAKE NEWS' since 20 January
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s bullish social media strategy became the bedrock of his 2016 election campaign, as he lambasted his rivals as "crooked" and pledged to "make America great again." Nearly 100 days into the former real estate mogul's presidency, there have been few signs to suggest a change of tack is on the horizon.
Analysis carried out by The Independent found few marked differences in tone between the billionaire's campaign tweets and the presidential messages shared with his 28 million followers, despite suggestions the US President would soften his tone after taking office.
Bournemouth University's political communications professor Dr Darren Lilleker told The Independent that Mr Trump's no holds barred approach has helped create an image of the Republican leader as championing the ordinary American.
“There is perceived authenticity in his ordinariness, saying what he wants when he wants. His style since becoming President hasn’t really changed - it should have obviously - his comments about North Korea for example, it’s not your normal way of dealing with diplomacy,” he said.
“Previous presidents would perhaps go to a press briefing, make a serious, measured statement - with Trump it’s 140 characters and that's it.”
Despite guarantees he would be tweeting less after taking office, Mr Trump has sent almost 500 tweets from his personal @realDonaldTrump account, and a further 300 from the official @Potus account since his inauguration on 20 January. That amounts to almost 5 personal tweets a day, and combined with his official account - which is albeit mostly managed by his staff - the figure reaches 7.5.
Here’s what the US President has been tweeting about in his first 100 days:
Making "America Great Again"
Mr Trump has tweeted the slogan championed as his official campaign message during the 2016 election nearly 40 times since taking office.
North Korea
The billionaire's approach to foreign diplomacy has been hailed by his supporters as a sign of a “straight talking” president who puts America first. However, his critics have called the attacks highly dangerous - and none more so than his barbed jibes at North Korea.
Since taking office, Mr Trump has sent six personal tweets attacking the country, accusing leaders of “behaving badly” and “asking for trouble.”
Sad! Bad! Terrible!
Mr Trump signed off so many tweets with “Sad!” during the 2016 election campaign, the exclamation continues to be parodied worldwide.
While Mr Trump has relied less on the “[statement of satisfaction] + !” formula since taking to the White House, the US leader has fallen back on the old favourite in 13 tweets since taking office. "Sad!" was his preferred adjective but “Terrible!” and “Dishonest!” were also referenced three times respectively.
His use of capitals - part of his trademark style for adding emphasis - has also withstood his first 100 days. He has sent 93 tweets with capitalised words such as “BAD”, “GREAT” and “FAKE NEWS” since 20 January.
Fake news media
In February, the former real estate mogul claimed any negative polls were "fake news". He has made 39 references to “fake news” since 20 January, singling out the New York Times over 15 times and CNN eight times. He has made over 40 attacks on individual news sources, such as Washington Post, ABC and CBS.
Fox News
Media relations between the White House and the international press have been fraught under Mr Trump. However, the President has been vocal in his support of Fox News, tweeting eight times in a positive light about the channel since 20 January.
Bad people
The world reacted with incredulity when reports claimed Mr Trump had threatened to send US troops into Mexico to deal with the “bad hombres down there.”
However, the statement was undeniably characteristic of the president’s language. The billionaire has made eight separate references to “bad people” on Twitter since his inauguration.
Building a wall
Relations between the US and its southern neighbour Mexico have felt the strain of Mr Trump’s protectionist language.
One of his key campaign promises was to build a wall with Mexico - that Mexico would pay for - to combat illegal immigration and crime, something Mexico has repeatedly refused to do. Nevertheless, he has made nine references to building the wall since his inauguration, denying in his most recent he had changed his position.
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