Donald Trump signed a flurry of executive orders hours after being sworn in as the nation’s 47th president on Monday, in line with his repeated promises to enact sweeping changes once he returned to office. The orders include withdrawing the United States from the Paris agreement on climate change, ordering federal workers back to the office and cracking down on illegal immigration.
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Executive orders are regularly used by incoming presidents to kick off their administrations. The orders – the most formal type of “executive actions,” which derive their power from Article II of the Constitution – are official statements from the president about how U.S. federal agencies are to use their resources, within the parameters set by Congress and the Constitution.
Executive orders can also be issued from the president to the U.S. military because of the president’s position as commander in chief.
But executive orders have limitations, and they are not always lasting – many of Trump’s executive orders Monday revoked those enacted by President Joe Biden, just as Biden did when taking over from the Trump administration in 2021. Their implementation can also be slowed down or halted by legal challenges or hurdles from Congress.
Here’s what to know about executive orders and actions.
When do executive actions take effect?
In some cases, the effect of presidential actions is almost immediate. Trump on Monday signed a proclamation pardoning almost all of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol rioters, and ordered those still incarcerated to be released from federal prison as soon as Monday night. Some – such as the directive for federal agencies to address the cost of living – are broad and could take time to implement. Others face potential legal challenges.
Can executive orders be overturned?
Incoming presidents regularly overturn orders made by their predecessors. In 2020, Biden ran a campaign focused on reversing course from Trump’s first presidency. He did so in part by pushing through a barrage of executive actions in his first few weeks in office. (Some of Trump’s orders Monday, such as withdrawing from the Paris agreement, revived his first-term initiatives that Biden had reversed.)
Executive orders don’t require the approval of Congress, and they can’t be directly overturned by lawmakers, according to the American Bar Association. However, Congress could block them by withholding funding, or by passing measures that make it difficult to carry out the order. Trump may be able to overcome most political hurdles, however, because Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the presidency.
Orders can be subject to legal challenges. In 1952, when President Harry S. Truman attempted to take over the nation’s steel mills via executive order to avert a workers’ strike during the Korean War, the Supreme Court ruled that he did not have the authority to seize private property without an act of Congress.
Trump on Monday signed an executive order to halt a ban on TikTok for 75 days. But legal experts said companies that host or distribute TikTok still could be held liable for violating the ban, which was passed into law by Congress and upheld by the Supreme Court. Another Trump order ending birthright citizenship is also expected to face legal scrutiny.
Which U.S. president has signed the most executive orders?
Trump signed 220 executive orders during his first term in office, according to a tally maintained by UC Santa Barbara’s American Presidency Project. That’s more than the 162 signed by Biden – but both those numbers are dwarfed by the 3,721 executive orders that President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed across his four terms in office, from March 1933 until his death in April 1945. (The two-term presidential limit was formally set by the 22nd Amendment, which was ratified in 1951. Trump has suggested several times that he wants to stay on for more than two terms.)
What are executive orders vs. executive actions?
Executive orders are one type of executive action available to the president. The others include presidential proclamations and administrative orders such as memorandums and notices.
Presidential memorandums are a step below executive orders and outline the administration’s position on a policy issue. They and other administrative orders – such as notices, letters and messages from the president’s office – are used to manage administrative matters of the federal government.
Proclamations are presidential statements communicating information to the public, such as declaring holidays and ceremonial events; formally announcing information, such as Biden’s statement on the death of former president Jimmy Carter; and announcing decisions that fall under the remit of the president’s powers, such as some trade and foreign affairs policies. They are also used to announce pardons.
How are executive orders different from laws?
Executive orders have the force of laws, like regulations issued by federal agencies, though they only require presidential authority to be enacted. Laws originate as legislation introduced in Congress and must pass the House and the Senate before being signed by the president.