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AFP
WASHINGTON
A PILE-UP of controversies, sliding poll numbers, splinters within his own camp and a stinging setback in the courts: Donald Trump probably dreamed of a more triumphant debut in the White House.
The 70-year-old businessman and political novice wrapped up his third week in the Oval Office with a bruising defeat after the courts upheld a freeze on his travel ban targeting refugees and travelers from seven mostly-Muslim nations -- his most emblematic measure to date.
Trump's shoot-from-the-hip approach to high office has fired up a despondent political opposition with a new sense of purpose as huge segments of US society rally in"resistance"to his presidency.
Millions of Americans have filled the streets in protest at his plans to"make America great again,"while his brash forays into global diplomacy have rattled key allies from Australia to Germany.
When Trump delivered his election victory speech in November, it seemed -- for a fleeting moment -- he would work to pull the country back together after a bitterly divisive campaign.
It has since become clear that Trump has chosen to speak to the loyal base of Americans who backed his insurgent bid for the White House -- and to them alone.
That decision is grounded in the unflinching support Trump still enjoys among his core supporters, even as his approval rating among Americans at large sits at record lows.
As political strategies go, it's a risky one -- all the more so since he is now locked in what is sure to be an arduous legal battle over his clampdown on immigration in the name of national security.
Thursday's decision by an appellate court in San Francisco, upholding a lower court suspension on the controversial decree, was a major blow to the president.
The case is now likely to wind up before the Supreme Court.
