12 Trump Promises and How He Could Fulfill Them

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Here’s what the president-elect would have to do to make good on these campaign vows.

Hillary Clinton

Donald Trump said he would put her in jail, accusing her of mishandling classified emails as secretary of state.

How would Trump be able to do that? To start, he would have to appoint his attorney general and then order the attorney general to select a special prosecutor to look into the matter. The special prosecutor would have to agree with Trump that Clinton violated federal law pertaining to the handling of classified information. Even then, Clinton would still be allowed a trial, at which the prosecutor would have to contend with the fact that the FBI investigation of Clinton found insufficient evidence to bring a case against her. FBI Director James B. Comey said in July that “no reasonable prosecutor” would bring a criminal case against Clinton.

Time frame: Trump could get the process started as soon as he comes into office if he appoints an attorney general willing enough to go after Clinton.

Obamacare

Trump has pledged to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with a set of new health-care programs.

Trump benefits from the fact that House and Senate Republican leaders share his goal. Congress probably can readily rescind parts of the ACA that involve federal spending, through a method called budget reconciliation — a strategy that produced a bill early this year that President Obama vetoed but Trump would sign. This method requires 50 Senate votes — one fewer than the GOP majority in the next Senate — and could be used to eliminate federal subsidies for ACA health plans, the requirement that most Americans have insurance, and other important elements. Because it would require 60 Senate votes to avoid a filibuster, Trump might have more trouble winning passage of some of his health-care proposals. They include converting Medicaid from an entitlement program to state block grants, allowing insurance companies to sell policies across state lines and letting individuals take tax deductions for their insurance costs, as businesses already do.

Time frame: Quickly for portions of the ACA to be abolished through reconciliation — as soon as the House and Senate scheduled votes. Unclear for the rest.

Waterboarding

Harsh interrogation tactics such as waterboarding, Trump said, should be used again.

Trump would have to appoint a team of lawyers to come up with a law that could win court approval. Trump would probably have to restart the program under a massive amount of public and congressional scrutiny. Former CIA director Michael Hayden has said repeatedly that the agency would not waterboard again, saying Trump would need “his own damn bucket.” Waterboarding had been a key part of the U.S. military’s Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape program and was used on trainees in controlled environments. In the early 2000s the CIA hired two clinical psychologists to create an interrogation program that incorporated aspects of SERE.

Time frame: Unknown. Trump would need to appoint a CIA director willing to direct his personnel to waterboard, as well as a defense secretary willing to do the same.

Find out the other 9 Promises HERE.

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