378combined years those two-week deadlines are overdue
In his own words
“Let ’em take out Los Angeles”
“It’s a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe. … They can take out a city. Let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay.”
October 5, 2026 · Campaign rally for Sen. Pete Ricketts, Pinnacle Bank Expo Center, Grand Island, Nebraska.
Context
Trump was answering for the cost of the Iran war, which began on Feb. 28, 2026. He called the fuel prices it had produced “artificial” and “a little bit high,” then called them “a small price to pay.” The Los Angeles and San Diego lines followed, and the crowd cheered. Regular gasoline had reached $4.29 a gallon by mid-September.
In the same speech he said the war was “going to be over with very soon.” He has been promising a quick end since March, when he said the U.S. would be out in “two weeks, maybe three.”
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said on X that the reaction was “not rooted in reality” and that Trump “was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn’t been stopped.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Trump is “deranged and dangerous.” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said, “The role of a president is to protect the country, not to actively threaten it and encourage attacks on American lives.” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said, “San Diego is not collateral damage. We are not expendable. And we are never a ‘small price to pay.’”
“Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time! [paired with the threat that] a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”
· Truth Social posts and remarks, setting a hard deadline of 8:00 p.m. ET on April 7, 2026
· ×4
Deadline Apr 7, 2026 · 5 months overdue
Hours before the deadline Pakistan's prime minister publicly asked Trump for a two-week extension. Trump said the US was in 'heated negotiations' and then agreed to suspend attacks for two weeks in exchange for Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz; Iran's Supreme National Security Council accepted and oil posted its biggest one-day drop since 2020. When the two weeks expired around April 21, 2026 Trump extended again and the arrangement became open-ended. On May 18, 2026 he posted that 'we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow.'
“[paraphrase] The core strategic objectives are nearing completion — we'll be out in two weeks, maybe three.”
· Remarks to reporters ahead of a planned address to the nation
· ×5
Deadline Apr 14, 2026 · 5 months overdue
The war did not end on that timeline. Fighting continued, petrol topped $4 a gallon, and a ceasefire only arrived on April 7, 2026 — itself only two weeks long and then repeatedly re-extended. By June 2026 Trump was touting 'complete victory' while the two-week framing recurred; by August 2026 the US-Iran memorandum of understanding had expired and collapsed, and on August 18, 2026 he was threatening to bomb Oman. At an Oct. 5, 2026 rally in Grand Island, Nebraska, more than six months after the 'two weeks' remark, he said again that the war was 'going to be over with very soon.'
“I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES.”
· Truth Social post
· ×3
The pause was extended before it ran out. On March 26, 2026 Trump posted that he was 'pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days,' moving the deadline to April 6, and on April 5 he moved it again to 8:00 p.m. ET on April 7.
“If Iran doesn't FULLY OPEN [the Strait of Hormuz]... the United States will hit and obliterate their POWER PLANTS.”
· Truth Social post during the 2026 Iran war (Operation Epic Fury)
· ×6
Deadline Mar 23, 2026 · 6 months overdue
The 48 hours expired and the strikes were postponed rather than executed. It was the first in a chain of at least six short deadlines Trump set and then let pass during the 2026 Iran war, catalogued by ABC News in May 2026 under the headline 'Trump's series of unenforced deadlines.'
“[paraphrase] You have one week to leave Venezuela with your family, for any destination of your choosing.”
· Private phone call from Trump to Nicolas Maduro, lasting under fifteen minutes, first reported by Reuters
Maduro demanded full amnesty plus sanctions relief for more than 100 officials and Trump refused most of it. The November 28 deadline passed with no departure and no immediate action beyond Trump declaring Venezuelan airspace closed. The resolution came five weeks later: on January 3, 2026 US forces executed Operation Absolute Resolve, striking Venezuela and capturing Maduro and his wife.
“[paraphrase] The health care plan will be unveiled Monday.”
· Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the plan would be revealed that week; the Monday rollout was then scrapped
· ×12
Deadline Nov 5, 2025 · 10 months overdue
The Monday rollout of the 'Healthcare Price Cuts Act' was scrapped after congressional Republicans revolted at a two-year ACA subsidy extension one lawmaker called 'Obamacare-lite.' 'The Great Healthcare Plan' finally appeared on January 15, 2026 as a legislative framework rather than a bill. Forbes wrote on February 2, 2026 that it 'isn't more than a brief conceptual outline,' echoing his 2024 'concepts of a plan,' and it still requires Congress to act.
In his own words
Companion files: what only he could fix, what he knew better than anyone, what he said about China, what he gave Putin, who paid the family, and what he called women, immigrants, countries and cities.
“But what we're doing is because we've done so well, and because our country is making so much money that only I can make this promise to you, and here is my promise. If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the United States Senate, both of them, because of our economic—tremendous economic success—in history, we've never had anything like what's happening, but because of our tremendous strength and success economically, I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000.”
· Night one of the 2026 Republican Midterm Convention, Dallas, Texas
PolitiFact found no formal proposal existed and that the payout would cost about $1.2 trillion a year ($5,000 times roughly 240 million adult citizens, per the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget), would require congressional approval, and could add about 1.5 points to inflation. Two earlier promised payouts, a 2025 "DOGE dividend" of $5,000 and a $2,000 tariff dividend, never materialized; tariff collections totaled about $363 billion from January 2025 to April 2026, with refunds under way after a Supreme Court ruling. The midterms had not yet been held as of September 2026.
“And he said, 'Sir, I need your help.' And he said why, whatever it was. And I said, 'Well, you came to the right place. I'm the only one that can help you.' I said, 'Here's the deal. Give the United States of America 10% of Intel.'”
· Night one of the 2026 Republican Midterm Convention, Dallas, Texas
The help came in exchange for equity. On August 22, 2025, he posted that "The United States of America now fully owns and controls 10% of INTEL," saying the stake was acquired at no cost, valued at about $11 billion, and negotiated with CEO Lip-Bu Tan. A May 18, 2026 White House release said the government's position had "surged in value to more than $50 billion" in eight months.
“Inflation is way down. That means prices are coming way down, and we're doing a great job. And remember that for the midterms, I say to that camera. Remember that. Because nobody else could do it. Prices are way down.”
· Oval Office remarks before a meeting with Prime Minister Ali Falih Kadhim al-Zaydi of Iraq
The BLS report released that day showed the CPI-U fell 0.4 percent in June 2026, the largest one-month drop since April 2020, but was still up 3.5 percent over 12 months (food up 3.0 percent, shelter up 3.3 percent). The August 2026 report (released September 11, 2026) showed prices up 0.4 percent for the month and 3.4 percent over the year. PolitiFact found that overall prices had risen about 4.3 percent since he began his second term, with groceries up 3.4 percent and gasoline up 31 percent.
“I'm the one that created MAGA, and I know what MAGA wants better than anybody else.”
· White House Correspondents' Association dinner, Washington, D.C.
In the same speech he said "I'm getting very good at running for President" and, on wind energy, "I really do know that subject well." The remark came during the 2026 midterm campaign; on September 22, 2026 Roll Call ran the headline "Voters to Republicans: Fix the Biden economy."
“I know more about that museum than the people that built it.”
· Opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, Medora, North Dakota
Trump made the claim after a tour of more than two hours of the newly opened library. In the same remarks he said of Roosevelt's time in North Dakota, 'I know what it takes to do that. It's tough,' and of the Panama Canal, 'I've studied it long and hard.'
“Nobody else knows the answer to that, BUT I DO!!!”
· Post on Truth Social
The post revisited the June 27, 2024 CNN debate and asked whether Trump's performance made Biden 'choke' and lose the election or whether other factors were responsible, before asserting that only Trump knows the answer. The post did not state what that answer was.
“First, they show that over a period of years, starting during the 2020 election cycle, the People's Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history, resulting in China's illicit acquisition of 220 million U.S. voter files.”
· Address to the nation on election reforms, White House
FactCheck.org reported that state voter files are mostly publicly available, with most states placing no restrictions on who can buy them, and that an April 2020 intelligence assessment, declassified in October 2022, had already said Chinese intelligence officials analyzed state voter registration data. PBS News reported that one of the released documents said the data "is publicly available for download from the commercial websites." Nextgov/FCW reported that the documents do not show that China altered voter rolls, manipulated ballots or changed the outcome of the 2020 election. Two months later Trump hosted Xi for a state visit at the White House.
“If Governor Carney thinks he is going to make Canada a "Drop Off Port" for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken. China will eat Canada alive, completely devour it, including the destruction of their businesses, social fabric, and general way of life. If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100% Tariff against all Canadian goods and products coming into the U.S.A.”
· Post on Truth Social (@realDonaldTrump)
Eight days earlier, asked about the agreement Canada had just signed in Beijing, Trump said, "it's a good thing for him to sign a trade deal. If you can get a deal with China, you should do that." That agreement lowered Canadian tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles in return for lower Chinese import taxes on Canadian farm products. Prime Minister Mark Carney said on January 25 that Canada had "no intention" of pursuing a free trade deal with China. In May 2026 Trump made his own state visit to Beijing, where the White House announced Chinese purchase commitments and new U.S.-China boards of trade and investment.
“But we need that, because if you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyers. There are Chinese destroyers and bigger. There are Russian submarines all over the place. We're not going to have Russia or China occupy Greenland, and that's what they're going to do if we don't.”
· Meeting with oil and gas executives, White House
CBS News reported that Greenland's minister of business, Naaja Nathanielsen, said she was "not aware" of any Russian or Chinese ships or submarines around Greenland, and that public ship-tracking data showed no Russian- or Chinese-flagged commercial vessels there. On January 17, 2026 Trump wrote that "China and Russia want Greenland" and announced tariffs of 10 percent, rising to 25 percent on June 1, on eight European countries until a deal for the "Complete and Total purchase of Greenland." On January 21 he said he would not impose the tariffs, citing a "framework of a future deal" reached with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
“Well, I don't know that they're enabling. I mean, I will tell you that President Xi said he will not partake, and President Putin said the same thing. I think—you know, I trust them.”
· Oval Office, exchange with reporters at a nuclear energy event; Truth Social
On July 21, 2026 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told the Senate Appropriations Committee that both Russia and China were 'enabling' Iran's war effort against the United States 'at different levels.' On July 24 Trump posted that Putin 'told me that he would not sell Weapons to Iran' and that the two countries were 'in my opinion, not participating,' and told reporters he trusted both leaders' assurances, adding 'I don't think they'd want to have me disappointed.' The Independent reported that Moscow and Beijing had supplied intelligence and technical help to Tehran, including satellite reconnaissance imagery used for targeting. On July 27, asked about Zelensky's statement that Russia was giving Iran satellite imagery of U.S. bases, he said 'I'll ask Putin about it' and 'I don't think they've been doing it. Certainly not at a high level.' His post also said he did not sell weapons to Ukraine but to NATO countries and had 'no idea' how they were distributed.
“And I want to thank Vladimir Putin. He was very neutral. They could have made it much more difficult for us. And I want to say it.”
· News conference at the G7 summit, Évian-les-Bains, France
Closing the G7 summit in Évian, he thanked Xi Jinping and Putin for staying 'neutral' during the U.S. war with Iran, saying Russia 'could have made it much more difficult for us.' The Kyiv Independent noted this contradicted multiple reports, including a statement by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, that Russia had been aiding Iran with intelligence and weapons. He spent under two minutes on Ukraine, describing a June 14 call with Putin and a 'very, very good conversation' with Zelensky, and said 'they both want to do something. They just don't know how to do it.' A planned second meeting with Zelensky at the summit did not take place. Asked the same day whether sanctions on Russia would be reimposed, he said 'we are looking at that' and tied it to the price of oil.
“I am pleased to announce that there will be a THREE DAY CEASEFIRE (May 9th, 10th, and 11th) in the War between Russia and Ukraine. The Celebration in Russia is for Victory Day but, likewise, in Ukraine, because they were also a big part and factor of World War II.”
· Truth Social and White House statement
In early May 2026 Russia's defense ministry demanded that hostilities cease on May 8 and 9 so that Moscow could hold its Victory Day parade, threatening a 'massive missile strike on the centre of Kyiv' if not, while Zelensky offered an open-ended ceasefire from May 6 and said Russia feared 'drones may buzz over Red Square.' On May 8 Trump announced a three-day ceasefire for May 9 to 11 and a swap of 1,000 prisoners each, saying the request 'was made directly by me' and that both Putin and Zelensky 'agreed' to it 'readily.' Asked why he had asked Zelensky 'for a ceasefire that Putin wanted,' he said 'everyone is happy.' Both sides accused each other of violations, and the pause was described as a humanitarian one rather than a settlement. He said he would like 'a big extension'; the war continued, with about 25,000 soldiers a month killed by his own account.
to World Liberty Financial (Trump family crypto venture)
“No one at World Liberty works for the U.S. government and there are no conflicts of interest” David Wachsman, World Liberty Financial spokesperson
· Reported by The Wall Street Journal; statement to CNBC
The Wall Street Journal reported on August 27, 2026 that Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE's national security adviser, and co-investors are behind StringZ Holding RSC, which owns 49% of WLTC Holdings, the holding company for World Liberty Financial's planned bank; an entity affiliated with Trump's family owns another 38%, according to CNBC's account of the report. Earlier in August 2026 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted World Liberty preliminary conditional approval to establish a federally chartered national trust bank, which must meet further conditions before opening. CNBC reported that the administration had approved chip sales to G42, a UAE state-backed AI company controlled by Tahnoon, and in July 2026 eased limits on how many chips it could buy. World Liberty spokesman David Wachsman said the company neither seeks nor receives special treatment and did not address the reported ownership structure. A person familiar with the investment told the Journal it was never discussed with Trump, and the White House has denied any conflict of interest.
to Donald Trump (Trump National Golf Club Bedminster)
· Reported by USA Today and Front Office Sports
LIV Golf held its New York event at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey beginning August 6, 2026; the league had confirmed the venue on January 23, 2026 after dropping Trump National Doral from its schedule. Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and LIV's former board chairman, stood alongside Trump ahead of the final round on August 9, Front Office Sports reported. The fund had announced in April 2026 that it would stop funding LIV after the 2026 season, and Front Office Sports reported that it would still have to approve any new investor. A White House official confirmed to USA Today that Trump planned to attend. The sources cited here do not state how much LIV paid the club.
hundreds of thousands of dollars (as reported by ProPublica)to Donald Trump Jr.
“I have no idea who Umar is, never heard of him, and he didn’t pay for Don and Bettina’s wedding, which took place at a totally different location, and on a different day from the wedding. It was an ‘afterparty’ given in their honor. Not a big deal! I was not present at the party”
· Statement to NBC News, September 14, 2026
ProPublica reported on September 14, 2026 that Umar Kremlev, the Russian head of the International Boxing Association, covered hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses for Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding weekend in the Bahamas on May 22 to 24, 2026, including the rental of a private island and a fireworks display, paid through a Dubai entity affiliated with the association. It reported that President Vladimir Putin gave Kremlev the Order of Friendship the month before, that the association had been financed by the state-owned Gazprom, and that Ukraine has sanctioned Kremlev citing his closeness to Putin; he is not on public U.S. sanctions lists, and ProPublica said it was unclear whether he acted in coordination with the Russian government. Guests included Eric Trump and Jared Kushner, who was helping lead U.S. negotiations with Russia over Ukraine. Trump Jr. and his wife confirmed that Kremlev "very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations" after the ceremony and called it a gift from a friend; his spokesperson said the two have no business relationship. Kremlev's press office said he has never discussed political matters with Trump Jr. Representative Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, opened an investigation and asked Trump Jr. for records.
“Here are people, they came over here, they had nothing. They came from a government that doesn't exist. They come from a part of the world that only knows how to kill each other.”
· Midterm political rally, Youngstown, Ohio
Trump spoke at a rally for Ohio Republican candidates Jon Husted and Vivek Ramaswamy. He said 'members of the Somalian community have looted tens of billions of dollars from Minnesota welfare programs' and called them 'low-IQ people.' He said 'Somalia bandits, Third World gangs and jihadist sympathizers do not belong in Ohio.' Of Springfield's Haitian residents, he said 'they're being taken out' and 'we're giving the town back.' The crowd chanted 'Deport.' No independent news coverage of this rally was checked for this entry.
“I am looking to see if the Federal Government has any legal right to avert this disaster, before it is too late, for the millions of people who cherish New York and want to see it thrive, as opposed to becoming a filthy, crime ridden, decrepit place of mockery and scorn.”
· Truth Social
The post attacked New York City's proposed pied-a-terre tax and congestion pricing, which he said would 'destroy what was once a great City.' He called the city's leaders 'Radical Left Jihadists' and said 'Financial, and then Social, RUIN, is a 100% certainty.' He said New York was 'a place I once loved.'
“Canada's nasty. They are. They're nasty. People think Canada -- they're nasty people. I love the people, but they're nasty, nasty leadership.”
· Speech on the economy and tax policy, Las Vegas
The remark came while Trump was defending his tariffs. He had earlier told Fox News on June 29, 2025 that 'Canada is very nasty to deal with,' citing its dairy tariffs, and in an October 2025 meeting called Prime Minister Mark Carney a 'nice man, but he can be nasty.'
“Here is my promise: If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the United States Senate, I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000.”
Announced Sept. 9-10, 2026, the pledge drew immediate bipartisan pushback. The payments would cost roughly $1.2 trillion against about $154.5 billion of tariff revenue in the first ten months of fiscal 2026, and they require congressional approval Trump does not control. It repeats the pattern of the unpaid $2,000 tariff dividend and the unpaid $5,000 DOGE dividend before it.
“[paraphrase] Gas prices are going to come way down — you're going to see it very soon.”
· White House remarks on Project 47 energy initiative
· ×3
MS NOW noted this was the rare specific, checkable promise Trump almost never makes. Prices went the other way: regular gasoline hit a record $4.15 a gallon over Labor Day weekend 2026, up 30% year over year, and reached $4.29 by mid-September 2026. Trump shifted to framing $3 gas as an acceptable cost of the Iran war. At an Oct. 5, 2026 rally in Grand Island, Nebraska, he called war-driven fuel prices 'artificial' and 'a small price to pay for keeping the world safe,' then said of Iran: 'Let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego. This is a very small price to pay.'
“Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time! [paired with the threat that] a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”
· Truth Social posts and remarks, setting a hard deadline of 8:00 p.m. ET on April 7, 2026
· ×4
Deadline Apr 7, 2026 · 5 months overdue
Hours before the deadline Pakistan's prime minister publicly asked Trump for a two-week extension. Trump said the US was in 'heated negotiations' and then agreed to suspend attacks for two weeks in exchange for Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz; Iran's Supreme National Security Council accepted and oil posted its biggest one-day drop since 2020. When the two weeks expired around April 21, 2026 Trump extended again and the arrangement became open-ended. On May 18, 2026 he posted that 'we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow.'
“[paraphrase] The core strategic objectives are nearing completion — we'll be out in two weeks, maybe three.”
· Remarks to reporters ahead of a planned address to the nation
· ×5
Deadline Apr 14, 2026 · 5 months overdue
The war did not end on that timeline. Fighting continued, petrol topped $4 a gallon, and a ceasefire only arrived on April 7, 2026 — itself only two weeks long and then repeatedly re-extended. By June 2026 Trump was touting 'complete victory' while the two-week framing recurred; by August 2026 the US-Iran memorandum of understanding had expired and collapsed, and on August 18, 2026 he was threatening to bomb Oman. At an Oct. 5, 2026 rally in Grand Island, Nebraska, more than six months after the 'two weeks' remark, he said again that the war was 'going to be over with very soon.'
“I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES.”
· Truth Social post
· ×3
The pause was extended before it ran out. On March 26, 2026 Trump posted that he was 'pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days,' moving the deadline to April 6, and on April 5 he moved it again to 8:00 p.m. ET on April 7.
“If Iran doesn't FULLY OPEN [the Strait of Hormuz]... the United States will hit and obliterate their POWER PLANTS.”
· Truth Social post during the 2026 Iran war (Operation Epic Fury)
· ×6
Deadline Mar 23, 2026 · 6 months overdue
The 48 hours expired and the strikes were postponed rather than executed. It was the first in a chain of at least six short deadlines Trump set and then let pass during the 2026 Iran war, catalogued by ABC News in May 2026 under the headline 'Trump's series of unenforced deadlines.'
What this is
Donald Trump has been promising things "in two weeks" since at least 2011, when he said investigators in Hawaii would soon reveal what they had found about Barack Obama's birth certificate. The phrase became a running joke during his first term, from Infrastructure Week to the health care plan that was always a fortnight away. In his second term it has been applied to Vladimir Putin, Iran, the Epstein files, and grocery prices.
This site keeps count. Each entry records what was promised, when, where, the deadline as stated, and what actually happened, with links to the reporting. It also catalogues the larger body of promises without a stated deadline that were never delivered. Read the methodology.