A rain of decrees fell on the United States during the first week in power of its 47th president, inaugurated on January 20. In just a few days, Donald Trump signed more than 42 decrees, notably triggering a policy more hostile than ever against immigrant populations, withdrawing from the main global health agency, and once again declaring the exit from the Paris agreement on the climate crisis… Not to mention all the excessive declarations that he is accustomed to making. Narrative.
Monday: the signing of 26 decrees
“I was saved by God to make America great again,” Donald Trump said during his inauguration speech. Immediate demonstration of his renewed power: the 47th President of the United States rushed, after two rallies and a press conference, to sign 26 presidential decrees during the day. Among them, the granting of presidential pardons to more than 1,500 participants convicted for the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, which he himself had encouraged. A first radical decision which was widely celebrated online by the far right, reports the British daily The Guardian, but which shocked some of his allies. Among these convicts, 250 had been found guilty of attacks, including against the police.
On Monday, Donald Trump also announced the departure of the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), even though Washington is its largest donor. A decision which endangers humanitarian work and weakens the fight against epidemics and infectious diseases. And as during his first term, the Republican also withdrew his country from the Paris global climate agreement, signed in 2015 by 195 states. Although it will take about a year for the withdrawal to be formalized, Donald Trump has already announced future relief on environmental laws that limited gas and oil exploration.
His return to the White House was also marked, from the very first hours, by the declaration of a war against immigrant populations. The billionaire declared a national state of emergency on the Mexican border, paving the way for sending American troops to the area… And in the process changing the name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” . Flights for thousands of refugees granted asylum in the United States to flee war and persecution have also been suspended. Among them, 1,600 Afghans who had helped the war effort in the United States.
Another minority targeted by the new president: the LGBTQ + and transsexual communities. Two Joe Biden orders aimed at preventing discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation have been revoked. They were replaced by a decree recognizing only 2 sexes – man and woman – which can no longer be changed. A very busy day politically. And that was without taking into account the controversy sparked by his Minister of Government Efficiency, also boss of X and Tesla, Elon Musk, accused of having performed a Nazi salute on stage during the inauguration ceremony.
Tuesday: the end of diversity and inclusion programs
Continuing his attack on immigrants, Donald Trump ordered, Tuesday, January 21, that all US government personnel working on diversity, equity and inclusion programs (DEI programs, which aim to promote participation on workplaces by people from different backgrounds) be immediately placed on paid administrative leave, before the offices and programs in question are closed within the next 60 days.
In the corresponding decree, he called these programs “dangerous, humiliating and immoral”, explains the BBC. In his inaugural speech, he pledged to “forge a color-blind, merit-based society.”
Wednesday: pressure on Russia and Joe Biden
While he had promised to end the war in Ukraine, Donald Trump began his diplomatic dialogue with Vladimir Putin with an offensive resembling an ultimatum. “Settle this now, and STOP this ridiculous war,” he said via his Truth Social social media. He threatened to impose high tariffs and other sanctions on Russia. In response, the Kremlin said it remained “ready for equal dialogue, mutually respectful dialogue” but that those signals had “not yet arrived.” According to Donald Trump, a telephone exchange is planned “very soon” between the two heads of state, recalls the BBC.
In an interview given to Fox News the same day, Donald Trump said that his predecessor, Joe Biden, should have pardoned himself, implying that he could be prosecuted. “Joe Biden has very bad advisors. Someone advised Joe Biden to give pardons to everyone except him…” he said. The former president actually used the last day of his presidency to grant preemptive pardons to certain politicians and officials, reminds Politicobut also to members of his family, to protect themselves against what he said were “threats” from the administration incoming.
Thursday: new threat of an increase in customs duties
For the moment, the large-scale increase in customs duties desired by Donald Trump has not yet been implemented. But “countries around the world are preparing for those that Mr. Trump announced for the month of February,” notes the New York Times following the president’s announcements at the Davos Forum. In recent months, he has already threatened to impose customs duties of up to 60% on Chinese products, and 25% on items from Mexico and Canada. This time, he also plans to increase customs duties for his trade ally, the European Union. “My message to every business in the world is very simple: Come make your product in America, and we will give you some of the lowest taxes of any nation on earth,” he warned. Before mentioning (again) the idea of Canada integrating its country: “If you became a state, we would not have a deficit.”
In the States precisely, the first counterattacks are being heard. In Seattle (Washington), a federal judge blocked the new presidential decree which now prohibits children of immigrants, but born on American soil, from being considered American. He called the decision “blatantly unconstitutional.” A legal battle is underway, as birthright citizenship is protected by the 14th Amendment. In addition to this judge, the order has already been the subject of several lawsuits filed by civil rights groups. California Attorney General Rob Bonta also said that Donald Trump “actually has too much.”
Friday: first refugee expulsion flights
The consequences of the decisions at the start of the week were quick to be felt. On Friday, January 24, the first military deportation flights of the Trump presidency, carrying hundreds of undocumented and “criminal” migrants, landed in Guatemala and Mexico, according to the White House and local authorities. Three military planes respectively arrived at the first, and four at the second. The previous days, the American administration had announced that it had arrested thousands of people in two days, judging that “the largest mass deportation operation in history is well advanced.”
The same day, President Trump also boarded a plane, reports the daily USA Today, towards territories affected by natural disasters: North Carolina, victim of flooding, and California, where devastating fires are still underway in Los Angeles. He also suggested the closure of the federal crisis management agency, believing that this responsibility should fall to the States themselves.
Saturday: proposal to move all Palestinians from Gaza
Addressing ever more sensitive issues, the President of the United States raised, this Saturday, January 25, the idea of a plan aimed at “cleaning up” the Gaza Strip. The solution, according to him: the movement of Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and Jordan. “We’re talking about 1.5 million people, and we’re just sorting that out. You know, over the centuries, this site has seen a lot of conflict. And I don’t know, something has to happen. pass,” he told journalists, comparing the Palestinian territory to a “demolition site” after fifteen months of war with Israel.
Earlier in the week, Donald Trump’s nominee for US ambassador to the United Nations endorsed Israeli demands for “biblical rights” to the entire occupied West Bank, reports the Guardian. Will his second week in the Oval Office be just as intense?