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On Wednesday, President Joe Biden immediately began to undo several of Donald Trump‘s administration’s policies by signing 17 executive orders. Biden started to take action during his first few hours in the office. The 17 executive orders will cover pandemic response, economic recovery, and diversity.
Here’s is a breakdown of Biden’s plan.
COVID-19 PANDEMIC
President Biden signed an executive order appointing Jeffrey D. Zients as the official Covid-19 response coordinator. Zients will report directly to the president. Biden also restored the directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense at the National Security Council.
The orders will place strict requirements on social distancing. All federal employees are required to wear masks, as well as all visitors on federal property. The president is vigorously promoting a “100 days masking challenge”. The campaign strongly encourages all Americans to wear masks. State and local officials will be held responsible for taking all necessary measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The U.S will partner with the World Health Organization. Dr. Anthony Fauci will begin his position as the head of the U.S. delegation to the organization’s executive board this week.
IMMIGRATION
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) protects immigrants from the United States as children from deportation. The new order will require congress to create legislation that will give citizenship to those immigrants.
The order revokes several of the Trump administration’s plans. The U.S will include non-citizens in the census count. The orders will also put a stop to Trump’s harsh policy in regards to finding and deporting unauthorized immigrants. One of the orders will also exempt Liberians living in the United States from deportation.
President Biden also ended the Muslim ban. Citizens of Muslim and African countries will be able to once again travel to the United States. The State Department will progressively address the harm caused to individuals who were banned. America will resume Visa processing for individuals from those countries.
Biden ended the national emergency declaration, the legislation that funded billions of dollars of construction for Trump’s border wall on the southern border. The new order halts construction on the wall while Biden’s administration takes “a close review” of the legality of using federal money to build the wall.
CLIMATE CHANGE
The President will reverse several of the Trump administration’s environmental policies. In 30 days, the U.S will re-enter the Paris Climate Accords. The collaborative consists of 200 countries transitioning from fossil fuels.
Biden will revoke the Keystone XL pipeline permit, protect several national monuments from being downsized, and enforce a temporary moratorium on oil and natural gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
EQUALITY
The President will end the Trump administration’s 1776 Commission. The committee actively uses propaganda to manipulate the accuracy of slavery and United States history. Federal agencies, contractors, and institutions will be required to hold diversity and inclusion training.
Biden’s head of the Domestic Policy Council, Susan E. Rice, will lead a “robust, interagency” effort. All federal agencies must make “rooting out systemic racism” central to their work. Agencies have 200 days to review and report on equity. The overall goal is to end all policy and program opportunity barriers. All Americans will have equal access to federal government assistance and services. A data working group will study new methods to measure equality and diversity in the nation.
The Executive orders will reinforce Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The federal government cannot legally discriminate due to sexual orientation or gender identity.
THE ECONOMY
The Executive orders will extend a federal moratorium on evictions and foreclosures until the end of March. Biden will pause student loan interest and principal payments until September. Some Democratic lawmakers are currently fighting for Biden to do more and cancel $50,000 in student debt per person.
ACCOUNTABILITY
Biden has established a code of ethics. The rules “aim to restore and maintain trust in the government.” All members of the president’s cabinet are required to sign the ethics pledge. The president also placed a halt on all new regulations already in motion under Trump. The Biden administration will closely review the legislation and decided to move forward or not.
