It has been a busy first week back for President Donald Trump, who wasted no time undoing the policies of his predecessor and taking full control of the executive branch. Let’s take a closer look at what he has done so far:
“The golden age of America begins right now.”
In a scaled-back inauguration ceremony, held inside the U.S. Capitol Rotunda due to the cold, the dawn of a new era took hold. For the second time, Donald J. Trump took the presidential oath of office, becoming the 47th president of the United States.
In an inaugural speech wherein he refused to thank his predecessor unlike past addresses, Trump declared the beginning of his second term the start of a “golden age”, and promised to do good on his plans to crack down heavily on illegal immigration and fix the economy. One line that drew a lot of cheers from his supporters who were watching the inauguration from a nearby stadium was his promise to end the government’s DEI initiatives and recognize only two genders: male and female.
Trump delivers his second inaugural address. Source: AFP via Getty Images
Trump’s speech echoed the same populist themes that had swept him into power. He said that the government faces a “crisis of trust”, and promised to end the “vicious, violent, and unfair weaponization” of the Justice Department, which had attempted to prosecute him over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. The new president criticized the “radical and corrupt establishment” which he claimed took power and wealth from the American people. Despite these anti-establishment themes, Trump’s inauguration ceremony was notably populated with billionaires whose combined net worth amounted to more than a trillion dollars. Big Tech billionaires such Tesla’s Elon Musk, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos took seats in front of the President’s cabinet nominees. LVMH founder and chairman Bernard Arnault and members of his family took seats just behind former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. Other billionaires in the room included Rupert Murdoch, the former Fox News chairman, and Apple’s CEO Tim Cook. They had some of the best seats in the room, and their presence as the representatives of the very establishment Trump railed against in his speech is a contradiction in and of itself.
Billionaires at Trump’s inauguration. Source: Reuters
Trump outlined more promises in his speech, such as declaring national emergencies on energy and at the southern border, reducing asylum-seekers’ rights, and reopening federal land for energy extraction. He repeated a pledge to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America”, which is a ridiculous thing to do considering no one else in the world would recognize it. Trump also falsely claimed that China was running the Panama Canal and overcharging U.S. chips, leading to his promise to seize the Panama Canal.
A more familiar version of Trump emerged when he gave unscripted remarks to supporters following the inaugural ceremony itself. He said that the 2020 election was “rigged”, claimed that former Speaker Nancy Pelosi was responsible for the January 6th attack, claimed he won by a landslide and said he only grudgingly agreed to talk about unity in his inaugural speech.
Executive Orders
Following the inauguration, in truly Trumpian fashion, the 45th and 47th president of the United States went to the Capitol One Arena in Washington, D.C. and signed some of his first initial executive orders before an adoring crowd of Trump supporters. These EOs included:
- Rescinding 78 Biden-era executive orders
- A return to in-person work for government workers
- Temporarily freezing federal government hiring
- Directing U.S. government agencies to address the cost-of-living crisis
- Withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accords
Trump preparing to sign executive orders. Source: Getty Images
Donald Trump immediately proceeded back to the White House and signed more executive orders. The president would go on to sign 35 executive orders, a record for any president in one week. Here is a list of other notable executive orders Trump has enacted this past week:
- Delaying the TikTok ban for 75 days
- Withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization
- Declaring a national emergency at the southern border
- Declaring a national energy emergency
- Ending government DEI programs
- Recognizing only two genders: male and female
- Renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and Denali to Mount McKinley
- 90-day pause on foreign aid to U.S. allies
- Suspending refugee admissions
- Resumption of the federal death penalty
- Calling for the immediate removal of all illegal immigrants in the U.S.
- Declassifying government records related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Ordering a plan to construct a missile defense iron dome that would protect the entire U.S.
- Banning transgender individuals from serving in the military
- Curtailing gender transitions for people under 19 years of age
Two executive actions that caused a lot of controversy were Trump’s decision to issue a blanket pardon and commutation for the rioters at the January 6th attack and another order that would effectively end birthright citizenship. The pardons were significant as they also covered those who assaulted police officers during the riots at the Capitol. This pardon certainly constitutes a slap on the face of the brave men and women who sought to protect the Capitol on that day.
Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship would have denied citizenship to future children of non-U.S. citizens or non-permanent residents in the country. This runs contrary to the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which clearly states that “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside”. Accordingly, a federal judge appointed by President Ronald Reagan would shortly thereafter block the enforcement of this executive order, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional”. The Trump administration has vowed to appeal this decision, meaning there is likely to be a lengthy legal fight in the days and weeks to come.
The Cabinet
Trump’s Cabinet nominees have been confirmed by the Senate at a relatively slow pace. After a week in office, only five of Trump’s Cabinet officials have been confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Four of them were easily confirmed by the Senate: Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The latter was even confirmed unanimously.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gives a speech following his swearing-in ceremony as Vice President J.D. Vance looks on. Source: NYT
However, it was Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s nomination that created much controversy. Hegseth had been dogged by allegations of sexual misconduct, domestic abuse, and public drunkenness (charges Hegseth denies) prior to the confirmation. As a result, Hegseth became only the second Cabinet nominee (after Trump’s education secretary Betsy DeVos in 2017) to be confirmed with the Vice President’s tie-breaking vote (the vote was 51-50, with Republicans Susan Collins, Mitch McConnell, and Lisa Murkowski voting with all Democrats against the nomination; Vice President JD Vance voted in the affirmative to break the tie and confirm Hegseth). Hegseth’s confirmation is unfortunate. Although he had served in the military, his personal conduct and lack of experience related to being able to manage the world’s most powerful military (Hegseth was most recently a Fox News TV host and veterans group director) make him unfit to be Secretary of Defense.
No Mercy
On January 21st, during a prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, an Episcopal bishop made a direct to appeal to President Trump, who was in attendance, to have mercy on migrant workers who are here in the U.S. illegally. In return, Trump called the bishop a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater” and demanded an apology. The president of the United States clearly has no time for mercy.
Thus, on the third full day of his presidency, Trump made good on his promise to carry out mass deportations. Thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents began to descend upon the United States, detaining and deporting hundreds of illegal immigrants.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem accompanies ICE agents on a raid in New York City. Source: CBS
Chicago, New York City, Miami, Denver, and Los Angeles were listed as prime targets for deportations. President Trump took the deportation efforts one step further, revoking an Obama-era directive that prohibited ICE agents from marching into hospitals, schools, and places of worship. The Trump White House has been particular in boasting about their accomplishments, highlighting the arrest of a “suspected terrorist”, four gang members, and several convicted of sex crimes against minors.
There have been some issues. Following a raid on a local establishment in Newark, New Jersey, the city’s mayor claimed that alongside the arrested illegal immigrants were U.S. citizens, including a veteran, who were arrested without a warrant. Another mini issue was when Colombia’s president Gustavo Petro refused to let two military planes carrying deported Colombian nationals land. Trump and Petro proceeded to threaten each others’ countries with tariffs, but the U.S. eventually came on top, with the White House saying Colombia allowed the flights to land.
The tougher enforcement of immigration laws this time around Trump shows that Donald Trump is no longer messing around. So far, more than 3,000 illegal immigrants have been arrested. For better or for worse, Trump is making good on his promise to carry out mass deportations.
The Next Four Years
The initial actions that Trump has taken thus far reveal that this will be a far darker and tougher presidency than it had been during the first Trump presidency. Donald Trump is showing his willingness to crack down harder than ever before and use the full power of the presidency to transform and bend the executive branch to his will. This is a more disciplined and beholden Donald Trump we are seeing. The next four years are set to be interesting times for America and the rest of the world.
Emil Ordonez, a rising college freshman, is the founder and editor-in-chief of Polinsights. He has been deeply passionate about politics and history since learning every U.S. President at the age of five. He was compelled to start this blog after meeting many people who were misinformed or had become apathetic about how society worked. He hopes to provide factual knowledge and insights that will encourage people, especially the young, to get more engaged in their respective communities. In his free time, he edits for Wikipedia and makes maps for elections. He aspires to work in Congress or even the White House in the future.
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