WashPost: Why the First 100 Days Is a 'Ridiculous Standard' for Judging Presidents

When President Donald Trump tweeted that the 100-day measurement for judging a new president was a "ridiculous standard," he was right, a commentary in The Washington Post suggests. 

Instead, The Post on Tuesday offered the idea of using the first year as a predictor of how effective a presidency will be, stating, "The first 100 days simply do not offer enough evidence from which to accurately predict what's still to come."

The article examined the first 100 days of U.S. presidents dating back to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt, explaining that was when the measurement began. If comparisons are important using legislation enacted during the first 100 days, it maintained that Trump could be considered "a fairly typical president."

To summarize the findings, there is this data to consider:

• "Presidents who are legislatively successful during the first 100 days are also relatively successful during the remainder of the term."
• "One-third of these presidents never managed to sign any landmark measures into law in their first term."
• "An equal number of presidents who got off to a slow start ended by rivaling the accomplishments of the quick-to-start presidents."

The article made comparisons of former presidents during their first full term in office as well and came up with additional information, again using legislation passed as a barometer.

It indicated that the type of legislation passed during a new president's first 100 days mattered. For instance, former President George W. Bush's first term saw six landmark acts, but four were a result of the 9/11 terrorist attack.

And, while former President Bill Clinton had no landmark legislation during his first 100 days, he saw four landmark laws enacted by the end of his first term in office.

So, The Post concluded the 100-day time period "should probably be retired by politicians and pundits alike" with a better measure to wait a year to grade Trump, suggesting observers "check back in December" to review his "legislative prowess."

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