(NewsNation) — President-elect Donald Trump will be stepping into several simmering issues that will require his administration to get right to work.
Trump has vowed to take swift action on various policies, but five issues appear to loom heavier.
Ceasefire Negotiations
The Biden administration sealed a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas less than one week before Trump was set to take office, but much of the logistics surrounding carrying out that deal will need to be undertaken by Trump.
“This deal was developed and negotiated under my administration, but its terms will be implemented for the most part by the next administration. And these past few days, we’ve been speaking with one voice,” Biden said.
Trump celebrated the deal on Truth Social, taking credit for its success and saying it would not have happened if he had not won in November.
“This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November, as it signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
Ceasefire deal timeline: What officials say will happen next
He also thanked his special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who also traveled to Qatar for discussions.
When asked how much he credits the Trump team, Biden said, “I told my team to coordinate closely with the incoming team to make sure we’re all speaking with the same voice because that’s what American presidents do.”
Last week, Trump warned all hell would break loose if Hamas didn’t release the Israeli hostages before his inauguration, though it’s unclear how much that threat tipped the scale.
He is expected to carry out the terms of the ceasefire deal.
Economy
Trump ran his campaign largely on big economic promises that were billed to bring unprecedented prosperity.
But he’s walked back on some of those promises since being elected.
In an interview with Time magazine, Trump said it would be “hard” to bring down grocery prices.
“Look, they got them up. I’d like to bring them down. It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up. You know, it’s very hard,” he said in the interview.
The Federal Reserve has said that it sees inflation as staying stubbornly elevated as it has become cautious about further interest rate cuts planned for next year. Trump faces a budget deficit that has become less sustainable with higher interest rates and will likely push to renew his 2017 tax cuts that are set to expire after next year.
US President-elect Donald Trump speaks to members of the media following a meeting with Republican Senators at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. A faction of Trump’s allies is harboring doubts about Republicans’ chances of passing a sweeping tax bill in 2025 amid party infighting and strategy disputes. Photographer: Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Stocks initially climbed on the prospect of tax and regulatory cuts after Trump’s win, but he still faces a skeptical public.
The rising price of paying the national debt is a risk for Trump’s promises on growth and inflation
Only about 2 in 10 Americans are “extremely” or “very” confident that Trump will be able to make progress on lowering the cost of groceries, housing or health care this year, according to a survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, while about 2 in 10 are “moderately” confident.
Confidence in Trump’s ability to handle the broader economic situation is also fairly low. Only about a third of Americans are “extremely” or “very” confident in his ability to handle the economy and jobs.
These figures make it even more imperative for Trump to deliver on his promises.
Border Enforcement
Trump ran a campaign in part largely focused on immigration and the border, saying he would order the largest mass deportation in American history of people who crossed illegally as well as seal the border.
He will now need to carry out this massive undertaking, which will likely be lengthy as civil rights groups could challenge Trump’s actions on immigration policy.
Trump will face considerable logistical and financial hurdles if he attempts to sharply increase the number of people arrested, jailed and removed from the country by ICE, The Washington Post reported.
Who is Trump’s new border czar Tom Homan?
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported the highest number of people in a decade during fiscal year 2024, the last full fiscal year of Biden’s term, the outlet reported.
Trump will install his incoming border czar, Tom Homan, who has already revealed several plans he will undertake to tackle the border crisis.
This includes overriding sanctuary city roadblocks and starting deportations with a focus on those with criminal records.
Russia-Ukraine War
While campaigning, Trump said he would end the Russia-Ukraine war, but that will prove to be challenging.
Since then, he’s hedged on what realistically could happen in the region.
“I think that the Middle East is an easier problem to handle than what’s happening with Russia and Ukraine. OK, I just want to say that upfront,” he told Time magazine.
Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the day after the election that Trump would bring the Russian and Ukrainian leaders to the negotiating table on Day 1.
Russia’s top diplomat praises Trump’s views on Ukraine conflict
Trump has said Russia had it “written in stone” that Ukraine’s membership in NATO should never be allowed, but the Biden administration had sought to expand the military alliance to Russia’s doorstep.
In its final days, the Biden administration is providing Kyiv with as much military support as it can, aiming to put Ukraine in the strongest position possible for any future negotiations. The U.S. also introduced new sanctions on Russia’s oil industry.
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin reach to shake hands before a meeting in Helsinki, on July 16, 2018. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
Trump has not been as open with this financial support.
Russia’s top diplomat has said that Moscow is open to talks with Trump and praised him for pointing to NATO’s plan to embrace Ukraine as a root cause of the nearly three-year conflict.
Jan. 6 Pardons
Trump has the power to pardon the people accused of crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and he has said before that he planned to do just that.
More than 1,500 people were charged, and nearly 170 were charged with crimes causing serious bodily harm to officers. More than 300 pleaded guilty to felonies.
Four years ago, his supporters stormed the Capitol in protest of the 2020 election results.
In an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” last month, Trump said he would begin pardons on his first day in office.
“I’m going to look at everything. We’re going to look at individual cases,” Trump said. “I’m going to be acting very quickly … first day.”
NewsNation’s Ashley Soriano and the Associated Press contributed to this story.
