US

Executive orders: Trump’s first acts as new president

Donald Trump has signed a raft of executive orders within hours of returning to the White House as he reversed some of his predecessors Joe Biden’s policies.

The new president told supporters at an inauguration parade event at a sports arena in Washington DC that he would revoke “80 destructive and radical executive actions of the previous administration”.

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Among Mr Trump’s first acts after being sworn in as the country’s 47th president on Monday were:

January 6

:: Pardons for about 1,500 Trump supporters who have been charged over the January 6 2021 riot at the US Capitol.

The action also cuts short the sentences of 14 members of the far-right Proud Boys and Oath Keepers organisations, including some who were convicted of seditious conspiracy.

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Climate

:: Withdrawing the US from the Paris climate agreement. The announcement further threatens the central goal of the agreement to avoid a rise in global temperatures of 1.5C.

Energy

:: Mr Trump repealed a 2023 memo from Mr Biden that barred oil drilling in 16 million acres in the Arctic. The new president declared a national energy emergency, promising to fill up strategic oil reserves and export US energy all over the world.

“We will be a rich nation again, and it is that liquid gold under our feet that will help to do it,” the American leader said.

Illegal immigration

:: Mr Trump declared illegal immigration at the US-Mexico border a national emergency as he plans to send US troops to help support immigration agents and restrict refugees and asylum.

Free Speech

:: The president signed a document “ending weaponisation” of government against political opponents.

The order directs the attorney general to investigate the activities of the federal government over the last four years, including at the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission during the previous administration.

It said the government will “identify and take appropriate action to correct past misconduct by the federal government related to the weaponisation of law enforcement and the weaponisation of the intelligence community”.

TikTok

:: Mr Trump signed an executive order to keep TikTok operating for 75 days, a boost for the social media platform’s users even as national security questions remain.

TikTok’s China-based parent company ByteDance was supposed to find a US buyer or be banned on 19 January. Mr Trump’s order could give ByteDance more time to find a buyer.

“I guess I have a warm spot for TikTok,” Mr Trump said.

Return to office

:: Ordering federal workers to return to the office five days a week.

:: The return-to-office order comes alongside a hiring freeze and the creation of an advisory body – the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) – aimed at reducing the federal government’s size.

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