From Liminal to Criminal
Donald Trump's first day of executive orders
Scarcely more than a week into his second term, Trump has handed down a stupefying array of executive orders from the Oval Office. Many were expected, such as pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Accords (again) or opening up vast swaths of protected lands to oil and gas drilling—after all, Trump is a climate denier who spouted “drill, baby, drill” repeatedly on the campaign trail.
Other EOs have been a bit more of a surprise, such as withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization (WHO) and ordering the Department of Health & Human Services to cease public communications. Many of Trump’s orders are already being held up in the courts, thanks to lawsuits being filed all across the country. It remains to be seen which of them will be struck down, and which will eventually be implemented.
Below, I attempt to enumerate and summarize Trump’s first day of executive orders.
Day 1:
Trump began on Jan. 20, Inauguration Day, by signing EO 14147, “Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government,” which basically reclassifies the prosecution of crimes by the Biden administration as politically-motivated, at least in those cases which were brought against Trump and his allies.
Trump then proceeded to EO 14148, which revokes 67 executive orders signed by Joe Biden. These “Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions” included rolling back racial equity measures, Census accuracy rules, COVID-19 guidelines, sex and gender discrimination prevention, ethics rules for Executive Branch appointees, science-based climate and public health policy, and immigration enforcement priorities—just to name the rescinded EOs from day one of the Biden presidency. Of course, the EO also undid Biden’s undoing of several EOs from Trump’s first term.
Next up was EO 14149, “Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship,” in which Trump directed the federal government not to interfere with citizens First Amendment rights—something the First Amendment already prohibits the government from doing. Unsurprisingly, there was also language suggesting the Biden administration had engaged in censorship, and would be investigated accordingly.
Then there was EO 14150, a cryptic order directing the Secretary of State to advance an “America First” foreign policy. It is unclear how this order will be executed by incoming secretary Marcio Rubio, but it could be related to Trump’s megalomaniacal aspirations to acquire Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal.
EO 14151, or “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” was pretty self-explanatory: It effectively removes government approval for DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) departments, programs, and rules.
In a boldly hypocritical move, Trump signed EO 14152, “Holding Former Government Officials Accountable for Election Interference and Improper Disclosure of Sensitive Governmental Information.” Putting aside the fact that Trump himself was indicted for each of these transgressions, the order revokes security clearance for John Bolton and a number of intelligence officials who did not go along with the Hunter Biden conspiracy theory.
Next came EO 14153, “Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential,” which removes restrictions on drilling and mining that the Biden administration had imposed. The related EO 14154, “Unleashing American Energy,” removes Biden-era restrictions on energy development, calling for “energy exploration and production on Federal lands and waters.” It also guts regulations that promote electric vehicles and energy-efficient appliances.
Trump also signed EO 14155, “Withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization.” If you think this big-brain move is something, just wait until former environmental lawyer and current antivax nutjob Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is confirmed to run the Department of Health and Human Services.
EO 14156 declares a “National Energy Emergency.” The order claims a lack of energy production poses an “extraordinary threat” to U.S. security, yet fails to include solar or wind power in the definition. Like EOs 14153 and 14154, the order is aimed at increasing oil and gas production, as well as building pipelines.
Next was EO 14157, or “Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.” This directive would see Secretary Hegseth recommend organizations to designate as terrorist organizations, in order for the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to be deployed against them.
Trump’s EO 14158 establishes and implements the “Department of Government Efficiency.” The order grants fake gamer, nazi saluter, and richest man in the world Elon Musk the authority to make recommendations regarding the federal budget. Surely Musk’s many government contracts will not present conflicts of interest.
In EO 14159, “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” Trump orders the removal of all immigrants without legal status. The order would criminalize unauthorized entry into the U.S. and expand the Department of Homeland Security. It also calls for an increase in detention facilities. Millions of citizens and non-citizens in the U.S. now fear the imminent deportation of themselves or their loved ones.
The last order from Jan. 20 that has so far been processed and enumerated was EO 14160, or “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.” The order seeks to undercut the 14th Amendment of the Constitution by eliminating birthright citizenship. Under the order, children born to parents who are not citizens or lawful permanent residents would not be granted U.S. citizenship.
There were also at least a dozen additional orders from Jan. 20 that have not yet been added to the Federal Register.
Trump applied the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications (PAFACA?) Act to TikTok, which delayed the recent law banning the platform from taking effect—presumably so that one of the Trump’s tech broligarch buddies can have a shot at buying it.
“Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” increases screening requirements for asylum seekers and other immigrants. According to NPR, the order “foreshadows the suspension of all immigration from certain countries and encourages immediate removal of non-U.S. citizens.”
“Securing Our Borders” is Trump’s latest attempt to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety” revokes Biden’s moratorium on executions.
“Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program” suspends refugee applications by implementing a freeze on the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program.
“Clarifying the Military’s Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States” directs the U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) to seal the southern border.
“Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid” freezes all foreign aid, while the administration tries to figure out just what the hell is going on. Unclear whether this includes Biden’s recent $8 billion arms package to Israel, but I would bet it does not.
In one of the more comical orders, “Restoring Names that Honor American Greatness,” Trump gives the secretary of the interior 30 days to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” and Denali “Mount McKinley.”
“Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government” seeks to erase transgender and non-binary people by federally recognizing gender in terms of the male/female sex binary.
“Reforming the Federal Hiring Process and Restoring Merit to Government Service” is aimed at removing hiring policies that take into account race, sex, or other diversity considerations.
“Restoring Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions Within the Federal Workforce” effectively removes the civil service protections from federal employees, allowing the administration to fire them at will. Remember how Trump loves to fire people?
Lastly, “Putting America First in International Environmental Agreements” defeats the very purpose of international environmental agreements by withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris climate accord and Biden’s U.S. International Climate Financing Plan. Burn, baby, burn.
That wraps up the first day of Trump’s executive orders. You can read these and more as they come here.
-Just Mason