More than most weeks for President Donald Trump, this was one that both riled up his critics and cheered his fans. In other words, it was a week that showed the divide over his actions and antics.
At conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s memorial, he told his truth when he said he admired Erika Kirk’s forgiveness of her husband’s alleged assassin, but said he couldn’t follow suit. Speaking generally, he said, “I hate my opponent and I don’t want the best for them.”
At the United Nations, he bluntly dressed down the leaders for years of failing to solve the world’s wars.
To his own Justice Department, he urged a more aggressive approach to investigating his opponents who spent years trying to dismiss his legacy — and lock him up.
BREAKING: President Trump just said, "Everyday I pinch myself and say, 'You've gotta be kidding.'"
We the People do the same thing, Mr. Best President.
We're so blessed to have you as our President! pic.twitter.com/yY4zOr8MVw
— Bo Loudon (@BoLoudon) September 27, 2025
To his critics, Trump’s actions were over the top. His fans, meanwhile, were cheering.
Conservative grader Jed Babbin gave Trump an “A-” for the week and credited the president for speaking “uncomfortable truths.”
Democratic pollster John Zogby graded the week a hard “F,” blasting “shameful” behavior.
Jed Babbin
Grade: A-
It was a very good week — no, make that an excellent week — for President Donald Trump and his team. There’s the coming government shutdown — aka the “Schumer Shutdown” — his big United Nations speech, and the conviction of Ryan Routh, one of the attempted assassins of Trump.
The coming government shutdown, which could take place on Oct. 1, is clearly the Democrats’ fault. They are demanding that much of the government spending that was cut by Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill be restored. Included in this is tens of billions in Obamacare subsidies and a ban on Medicaid for illegal immigrants. There have been times when the Democrats have been able to blame Republicans for government shutdowns, but not this time.
With the shutdown, Trump is planning on thousands of government firings by “reductions in force” cuts and shutdowns of programs that aren’t mandated by law. This will cut into the bureaucracy massively and with it, the “Deep State.”
Trump’s United Nations speech told a lot of uncomfortable truths about the world body being AWOL in efforts to bring peace to international hot spots such as Ukraine and Gaza. As I wrote in my book Inside the Asylum: Why the U.N. and Old Europe are Worse than You Think, its bureaucracy makes our government look sleek and efficient. The U.N. doesn’t meet any of the criteria on which it was established, and too many nations are supporting terrorism and other aggression. It’s a mockery of what it was established to do.
The one thing that was negative this week was Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s decree that reporters — on penalty of losing their press passes — cannot publish anything that isn’t approved for publication by the Pentagon. I’ve been both a Pentagon official and a columnist/reporter covering the Puzzle Palace. It’s impossible to report on the Pentagon without having confidential sources that will tell you things that aren’t approved for publication. And it’s easy to do without telling the reporters about classified stuff. I probably have some classified stuff in my head, but it will never be published or even talked about among friends or family.
Finally, Ryan Routh’s conviction is a step in the right direction. Now we need a speedy trial for the assassin of Charlie Kirk and a death sentence. In Utah, they use firing squads.
John Zogby
Grade: F
President Donald Trump’s behavior was shameful on a number of fronts this week.
It began with his statement at Charlie Kirk’s memorial that “I hate my opponents. I don’t want the best for them.” It went downhill from there.
He announced that the United States will now require a fee of $100,000 for H-1B visas at a time when Silicon Valley and tech employers are begging for highly skilled workers. He sewed confusion on the issue of Tylenol, pregnancy, and autism. Rather than move to heal a nation after two horrific shootings, he (and his surrogates) automatically blamed the “Left.” His words about Ukraine threatening Russian territory were a radical departure from his past position and too cryptic to grasp.
He publicly pushed to have Attorney General Pam Bondi be more aggressive in punishing his critics, even though she expressed some skepticism about whether there was enough evidence to win a trial. Following the resignation of the lead U.S. attorney in Virginia and others in that office because they did not want to pursue a weak indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, Trump found a loyalist who had never tried a case to issue an 11th-hour indictment before the statute of limitations ran out. This has caused some grumbling in the Justice Department.
He went before the United Nations and insulted our European allies and the rest of the world for weakness on immigration and for participation in the climate warming “hoax.” His secretary of war has called a meeting for next week of over 800 generals and admirals to be held in Virginia. They must leave their posts, including those on ships, with no agenda. It is somewhere between weird and scary — actually, both.
The GDP rose last month at an annualized rate of 3.8%, well beyond expectations.
His polling numbers have remained steady, and he is upside down on some issues. I usually go by the numbers, but for those of us who remember former Presidents Ronald Reagan at Omaha Beach, Berlin, and after the Challenger catastrophe; Bill Clinton at Oklahoma City; George W. Bush with the megaphone at Ground Zero — this was a time for leadership, not vengeance or mockery.
To those who like him, I am only trying to call things as I see them. If you really like him, please talk to him.
Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of former President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on X @jedbabbin.
John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Survey and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His latest book is Beyond the Horse Race: How to Read Polls and Why We Should. His podcast with son and managing partner and pollster Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Follow him on X @ZogbyStrategies.
