US news channels described it as a “flood” of executive orders. Avalanche might be a better word.
The Issued over 100 executive orders by President Donald Trump on Day One will drastically change the political landscape.
They cover a wide range of policy areas – from justice to immigration, from climate to health, from gender to the ban on TikTok.
In his inaugural speech Mr. Trump hailed “a golden age for America.”
Words quoted by Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer as he pardoned those involved in the January 6 raid on the Capitol.
Follow the latest on Trump's first day as the 47th president
Mr. Trump reacts as he signs an executive order during the inaugural parade at Capital One Arena. Image: Reuters
“Donald Trump is ushering in a golden age for people who break the law and try to overthrow the government,” Schumer said.
Declaring a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border to justify mass deportations sits well with his base.
By reclassifying public sector jobs to hire and fire federal workers, Mr. Trump can argue that he is dismantling the “deep state.”
But the scope and immediacy of the orders are fueling the debate about the balance of power between the White House and Congress.
His bypassing of the legislative process raises fears that such unilateral measures could undermine democratic norms.
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The possibility of a legal challenge underscores the tug of war between Mr. Trump's ambitions and constitutional constraints.
But it is America's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization that is sending a signal worldwide.
America is returning to the future, back to the isolationist “America first” position he took during his first term in the White House.
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Image: Reuters
Image: Reuters
As usual, a lot was about the optics – the signing of executive orders on a stage to thunderous applause, the Oval Office desk was littered with many other things.
“This is a big deal,” he repeated over and over again before signing each of the documents one by one in his inimitable style – a bold, flowing signature.
There's a lot of tradition associated with an inauguration, but the 47th President of the United States is anything but conventional.
Unfiltered, without a script, always the showman, not particularly interested in the norms of politics at home or abroad.
He delivers a truckload of orders to remind us that he is both completely predictable and completely unpredictable.