It has been nearly a decade since President Donald J. Trump won the 2016 United States presidential election and his current term looks more focused and aggressive, shaking up the country.
During Trump’s first 100 days in office, he signed 104 executive orders, according to a March 26 CBS News article.
This is more than his first term and the most of any president in their first 100 days in office, according to the same source.
Many of these executive orders and policies target the immigrant population in the U.S., affecting undocumented and international students across the country, including at San José State.
Executive orders that affect immigrant and international students include “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” which tightens and increases the difficulty of the visa application process.
“Protecting the American People Against Invasion” also affects institutions’ funding that help undocumented students, such as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, according to an American Council of Education article.
More than 408,000 undocumented students were enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities as of 2022, according to a 2024 American Immigration Council report.
Last Saturday, thousands across the country protested against Trump’s policies, in the 50501 demonstrations – 50 states, 50 protests and one movement purposefully aligning with the Revolutionary War’s 250th anniversary, according to an April 19 BBC article.
Tomara Hall, a special education teacher in San José, participated in the 50501 demonstration on April 19 at St. James Park, and is heartbroken over students losing their visas and wanted to protest because she believes education is something everyone should have access to.
“I’m devastated for the families, none of that should be happening,” Hall said. “We are telling people to come here and live your dream life and then we tell them you can’t stay here and you get kicked out of the country, that is totally unfair and that’s not right.”
The Trump administration has taken advantage having immigration authorities arrest and detain university-affiliated students, resulting in the American Association of University Professors to file a lawsuit against the administration, according to a March 26, NBC News article.
Trump has targeted key universities like Harvard by freezing $2.2 billion in funding for grants because the university won’t accept the administration’s demands and filed a lawsuit to fight back, according to an April 21, NBC News article.
Stricter policies regarding immigration and international students have already been felt on campus, as on April 9, Michelle Smith McDonald, SJSU senior director of media relations, confirmed 13 student F-1 visa revocations.
In an April 25 email sent to the Spartan Daily, McDonald said that six students had their visas reinstated.
Megan Sweet, SJSU alumna and activist, also participated in the 50501 protest to fight against the SJSU students whose visas got revoked.
“Education is extremely important for anyone in order to have a career, in order to make a living,” Sweet said. “College education transforms your life. It’s essential to move up, so when you take international students from all around the world and take away their visas for things as small as traffic infractions, you strip them of their future.”
On April 10, SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson released a statement stating the administration is actively monitoring the situation to ensure that students are receiving support and guidance and are contacting students impacted by the revocations.
Sweet said the school could be doing more to help.
“How San José State responded was a little bit lackluster, I think they’re really trying to obfuscate how much power they actually have, how big the CSU is and the CSU system,” Sweet said.
On April 22, over 500 college and university presidents, including SJSU President Cynthia, issued a statement over the Trump administration’s overreach and interference enderangering higher education, according to a public statement from the American Association of Colleges and Universities.
Trump’s administration is no stranger to protest, as during one of his first campaign rallies before he got elected in 2016, Downtown San José residents famously hosted a protest that involved viral moments of Trump supporters getting egged and attacked at the convention center, according to a June 3, 2016, San José Inside article.
SJSU students reacted to the election results in 2016 with a peaceful protest and open mics where the crowd would march to City Hall and discuss how Trump would affect their personal lives, according to a Nov. 10, 2016, NBC Bay Area article.
In 2024, San José community organizations and protesters reacted to the second Trump win by gathering near the corner of Story and King road, demanding no attacks on undocumented immigrants, according to a Nov. 18 Fight Back! News article.
Since then, many of Trump’s plans for the economy have started to take effect, including his wide-reaching tariffs.
Tariffs have been a major talking point when it comes to President Trump’s second term, as he has imposed 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada that aren’t compliant with free-trade agreements, a 145% tariffs on Chinese goods, a 25% tariff on cars on top of a 10% tariffs on all U.S. imports, according to a April 18 CNN article.
Robert Wood, a professor of strategic management at SJSU, believes engaging in a tariff war can be dangerous to our economy, but he can see why Trump is doing it.
“Tariffs are very dangerous; the U.S. economy and other economies are very tightly interconnected,” Wood said. “We don’t, in the U.S., have the capacity for making many kinds of auto parts, many kinds of clothing.”
Trump said that these rises in tariffs will correct long-standing imbalances in international trade, ensure fairness, improve competitiveness in every industry, reduce the U.S. trade deficit and bolster economic and national security, according to a Feb. 13 fact sheet from the White House.
“One of the things I noticed in Tokyo reporting was that the U.S. government was not as aggressive in standing up for its businesses, as say the British government, so tariffs are very dangerous but some of the reasons why he’s pushing for it are not unjustifiable,” Wood said.
New Trump appointee Elon Musk has been the subject of criticism based on his role in the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, slashing government spending, resulting in protests against him and his company Tesla, according to a March 31 Associated Press article.
In Trump’s first term, he was inexperienced and hired traditional Republicans who didn’t agree with him, but now his cabinet is filled with many loyalists to his vision, who don’t necessarily have the traditional qualifications, like Elon Musk, according to a Nov. 16, 2024, NPR article.
Trump’s overall support has also grown in his second term as he was the first Republican candidate to win the popular vote in over five election cycles in 2024, according to a Jan. 6, 2025, Fox 9 article.
Current polls found 36% of registered voters support the “Make America Great Again” movement and 71% of Republicans identify as “MAGA” supporters, according to an April 14 NBC News article.
“As his opposition gets bigger, there are also people trying to fit into the boxes he put until it's only wanting white Americans in America,” Sweet said.
Trump was able to get the vote of 56% of young men aged 18-29, which is a 15-point increase compared to his last race, according to a Nov. 8, 2024, NPR article.
Derrick Diaz, a Vietnam veteran, said that he feels those who support Trump are only removing his rights as a veteran.
“They want to take the VA (Veteran Affairs) away, that is one of my rights as a veteran, they want to stop medicare as I’m a retired person, he wants to stop social security, as a retiree I'm on social security, so we have a lot to lose,” Diaz said.
Compared to the start of Trump’s first term, Trump’s second term is looking to be more aggressive with its executive orders and policy, challenging the Supreme Court and the Constitution, making many question his power, according to an April 21 NPR article.
“I'm trying to get connected with more people in the community to make sure that we have a solidified effort, but also talking to the people we know, our friends, our neighbors, our colleagues, and making sure that one person at a time that we're making change,” Hall said.
