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For many people, the Trump administration has amounted to a barrage of headlines, each bringing news of something that would have been a major scandal in administrations past. With such a fast-paced news cycle, it can be difficult to keep track of everything that's actually happened during the time that Donald Trump has occupied the Oval Office. That's why statistics on Trump's presidency can be helpful in reflecting on what's already happened — and wondering what might happen next.
Trump, for example, often makes false or misleading claims, according to a number of reports. In fact, fewer than 30 percent of Americans believe Trump about numerous claims that he frequently makes, according to a Washington Post poll. However, when you learn that the Washington Post Fact Checker blog has counted more than 7,600 lies and false or misleading statements that Trump has made during his time as president, it really puts the magnitude into perspective.
Statistics can also help when it comes to, for example, the number of people from the Trump administration who have resigned or been fired, or how many open investigations there are into Trump and his campaign. You've likely heard multiple times about Trump's "unprecedented" manner of governing — and here are five statistics that put that into perspective.
1
More Than 7,600 False And Misleading Claims
The Washington Post's Fact Checker started Trump's term by counting 492 false or misleading claims in his first 100 days in office, and the pace has only sped up since then. As the Post explained, though, 2018 has seen a significant uptick in Trump's pace in making these claims — and now he averages more than 15 false or misleading claims every day. On just one day in October 2018, Trump said 83 things that weren't true, as CNN noted. The Post explained that Trump said more and more untrue things as the midterms drew closer — so this pace could continue as the 2020 presidential elections start to appear on the horizon.
2
41 Firings And Resignations From Trump's Administration
Trump got an early start on making changes to the original cast of characters in his administration, firing National Security Advisor Michael Flynn only 24 days after his inauguration. According to a recent New York Times recounting of Trump's firings and resignations since then, the number is now up to 41. Of these, 26 were either fired or forced out of the administration. And as the Times wrote, this is far more turnover than any of Trump's presidential peers ever witnessed.
3
17 Investigations Related To Trump & His Campaign
Although it wasn't known publicly at the time, Trump's campaign first found itself under an FBI counter-intelligence investigation in July 2016, as CNN wrote. Now, as Wired summed up in December 2018, there are at least 17 separate ongoing court cases and investigations related to Trump, his campaign, and various current and former members of his administration. The investigations are also happening at several different levels of government — local, state, and federal. Even in addition to those 17 court cases known publicly, though, there are also numerous congressional inquiries, and it's entirely possible that Robert Mueller's special counsel investigation will lead to still more court cases.
4
36 Charges From The Special Counsel
In under two years, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued charges of numerous crimes to 36 people and entities, according to The New York Times. Of these, 26 are Russian nationals and three Russian companies, none of which are ever likely to end up in an American court to face those charges, as Vox wrote. In addition to those charges that came directly from the special counsel's investigation, the Times listed another five people charged in related cases.
5
10 Guilty Pleas Or Convictions Stemming From Mueller's Probe
Of those 36 charges issued directly by Mueller, the Times wrote that seven ended in guilty pleas or convictions, in addition to three guilty pleas in the related investigations. And of those, four people have ended up with jail time. Among the individuals sentenced to time behind bars are Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal lawyer, who was recently sentenced to three years in prison, and George Papadopolous, a former Trump campaign advisor. Another three people closely connected to Trump and his campaign still await sentencing: former campaign advisor Rick Gates, former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.
Trump often talks about the special counsel's investigation as a "witch hunt," but the justice system has found a significant amount of wrongdoing from several close contacts of Trump's.
Looking at these statistics, it's almost hard to believe that Trump isn't even a full two years into his first term as president. At the end of 2019, who knows what these numbers will look like.
