Today is January 14. Donald Trump will be inaugurated as the 47th President of the US on Monday, January 20. For those of you who may be math-challenged, that’s six days from now, or as we used to say in the Navy, “five days and I wake up.” Six days until we cleanse ourselves of the Wokers. Six days until we rid ourselves of all the DEI BS. Six days until we begin to drain the swamp. Six days until, to paraphrase former President Gerald Ford, “the long national nightmare will be over.” Six days until the day of reckoning for America’s enemies. Six days until we have a real country again with real borders. Six days until we begin to expel all the drug dealers, criminals, spies, psychos, and other interlopers that have infested our country. Six days until we begin to “drill, baby, drill.” Six days until we will take back our country. On November 5, 2024 the “deplorables” spoke loudly and clearly. In six days, America will once again be a democracy.
Based on multiple media reports Trump has compiled some 100 executive orders that he plans to sign on Day 1 and implement asap. One hundred may seem like a lot, but other presidents have signed more, many more. For example, FDR signed 3,021 during his tenure.
An executive order (EO) is a written directive from the President of the United States that has the force of law and directs and empowers the members of the Executive Branch of the federal government to take certain actions. EOs are based on the President’s power and authority derived from Article II of the Constitution. EOs have the effect of law and do not require action by Congress.
EOs can be controversial. Some people deride them as a means for the president to govern by bypassing Congress. However, EOs are legal as long as they do not “”make new law.”
Much of the damage Biden perpetrated was via EOs, for instance, summarily halting the use of the Keystone Pipeline, so Trump should be able to undo them just as easily. Indeed, Trump has declared “I can undo almost everything Biden did through EOs, and on Day 1 much of that will be undone.”
That said, voters will have to be patient. It will not be possible to enact all changes on Day 1 or even Week 1. Some may require the consent of Congress. Others, such birthright citizenship and transgender issues will likely face legal challenges. But the voters gave Trump a strong mandate, and he can be very persuasive and persistent. I expect most of them to get done eventually.
Below please find a sample of the pending EOs. Most of these are already well into the planning stage and will be ready to be implemented on Day 1:
- Secure the border. This will include finishing the border wall, reinstituting travel bans and the remain in Mexico policy, mass deportations of criminals, drug dealers, suspected terrorists, spies, migrants who commit crimes, and other undesirables. Contrary to what many Dems are saying ICE will not be snatching people off the street or separating families. The focus will be on the low hanging fruit as described above. It is estimated that there are several hundred thousand such persons, plenty enough to keep ICE busy.
- Rein in sanctuary jurisdictions. These entities are breaking the law, and the Federal government has the power to stop them. For example, the Feds could suspend funding for these jurisdictions and/or prosecute those who adamantly refuse to cooperate.
- Resume oil and gas drilling and reopen the Keystone Pipeline. I have discussed this issue many times in previous blogs. The US has access to massive amounts of oil and gas in the ground and offshore. We have enough to not only supply our needs but also much of the world’s. There is a plethora of positive ramifications of this action, such as restoring energy independence, adding good paying jobs, and reducing the price of oil and the rate of inflation, in general, to name just a few of the obvious ones. Additionally, it would confer upon us the ability to impair the economies of Iran and Russia who currently are making fortunes from oil. An ancillary benefit would be to severely diminish Iran’s ability to fund terrorism and Russia’s ability to continue to prosecute its war with Ukraine. You may recall that by the end of Trump’s first term Iran was virtually bankrupt.
- Pardon some January 6 prisoners. There are some 1,500 protesters who were convicted of crimes related to January 6. Most of the convictions were for non-violent crimes (or maybe even bogus crimes). Trump has pledged to direct the DOJ to review these on a case-by-case basis.
- End the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas Wars and secure the return of the hostages. Trump will employ his influence, strength, toughness, persistence and powers of persuasion. Don’t bet against him.
- Terminate the electric vehicle mandate and curtail excessive Green New Deal policies. Many of these are unworkable, unpopular and of dubious benefit.
- Ban transgender individuals from competing against women in sports. These policies constitute wokeism run amok. They are extremely inappropriate and dangerous and only favored by a small sliver of voters.
Conclusion
I expect the Trump Administration to hit the ground running. His designated cabinet members and other members of his Administration have already commenced working on their respective programs and policies. Congressional hearings on his proposed Cabinet members have already begun. Some will sail through; others will face some difficulties. Legitimate questioning is appropriate. Lies, innuendo and besmirchment are not.
Yes, the voters gave Trump a strong mandate, but governing is not always easy. In order to fully implement his program, he will have to deal with Congress. Many senators and congressmen will have their own agendas and can be contentious, and the GOP only has slim majorities, especially in the House. The voters will not be patient. They will expect tangible results quickly.
According to former Speaker-of-the-House Newt Gingrich, some of Trump’s policies, such as the continuation of the so-called Trump Tax Cuts, must be approved by mid-2025 in order to have an impact on the economy by the 2026 midterm elections. If the voters do not perceive improvement by then it could be problematic for the GOP to retain its control. History shows that the ruling party often loses many seats in the midterm elections. All in all, 2025 figures to be a very interesting year.
We Built It Blog by Larry Jacob 