After Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States on Jan. 20, students at Kansas State expressed varying opinions about President Trump.
“You can’t change what people have decided,” Hollie Whalen, graduate student in education, said. “You can, however, make the best of it.”
Many people, whether they agree with Trump or not, share a similar mindset going forward with the new commander-in-chief.
“A lot of people didn’t like Obama at the beginning but now don’t think he’s that bad,” Melissa Mahoney, sophomore in education, said. “So give (President Trump) a chance and hope that he does a good job.”
Some students, however, said they are nervous about Trump’s term.
“I’m pretty nervous about this administration,” Mark Neal, sophomore in chemical engineering, said. “There are a lot of times where Trump has contradicted himself and it’s hard to know what he will really do in office.”Related:
Street Talk: Presidential Inauguration
In addition to questions about his platform, Trump’s lack of political experience is another concern for some students.
“(Trump’s presidency) is slightly scary because he has no political background,” Emily Wright, junior in agribusiness, said. “He is only a businessman.”
Even though Wright is nervous about Trump’s qualifications, she said she thinks there may be some positive changes that will occur during the new administration.
“It would be nice to see jobs staying in the United States if we were to put heavy taxes on companies moving to other countries,” Wright said. “Although, it would be bad if those countries also put heavy taxes on us.”
A significant social concern for many people involves LGBT rights.
“I heard that the LGBT rights page was removed from a White House website, so it seems like Trump won’t do a lot for gay rights,” Neal said.
On Jan. 20, the Washington Post reported that the LGBT rights page was removed from the White House’s official website.
According to The Post, it is common for incoming presidents to reformat the website to fit their agendas, but this move is considered especially divisive among the LGBT community.
Despite that concern, Neal said he will still remain hopeful.
“Hopefully though all of the fiscal stuff will get figured out,” Neal said. “I tend to be fiscally conservative, so hopefully the conservative majorities will allow for stuff like military spending to be sorted out.”
