Beyond the Ballot: The Inauguration
“Beyond the Ballot” is a column presented and created by the PHHS Politics Club. This column will explore electoral information, congressional controversies, and senatorial stories! Stay tuned for biweekly updates from your brand-new news source.
Welcome back to another Beyond the Ballot article! It’s definitely been a while, but given the winter break and the timing of the inauguration, we deemed it fitting that the 10th article we released was released for possibly the biggest political event in the 2020s. This article will describe the inauguration of the 47th President, Donald Trump, and his subsequent changes and executive orders. This will strive to cover as much as possible and analyze the potential effects of his orders.
The first orders he signed at his desk following the official inauguration were a bevy of immigration-related orders. Immigration has and will continue to dominate Trump’s party platform and has become a large issue among citizens thanks to him. Notably, he designated the current crisis at the border as an “invasion” and delegated responsibility to the executive branch to oversee the prosecution and removal of the aliens involved.
Because he has designated the border crisis as a national security threat, he has allowed US military forces to become part of the force fighting and detaining illegal aliens. Next, he has suspended refugee arrivals and the U.S Refugee Admission Program for 90 days, while waiting for guidance from the Department of Homeland Security.
Trump also seeks to redefine birthright citizenship under the 14th amendment to exclude those where both parents are illegal immigrants or otherwise not American citizens. This order has already been challenged by a multitude of Democratic states and the case is pending Supreme Court judgement. While this may seem like a typical Trumpian overreach in executive power, there is a legitimate case for both sides.
On one hand, it is possible and quite easy to argue that this order is a serious breach of the 14th Amendment and seeks to overturn the Constitutional norms. On the other hand, the argument offered is that the original purpose of the 14th Amendment circa Reconstruction no longer applies.
For some background, the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause was made to broadly grant freed slaves citizenship, while also strengthening the rights of citizens as a whole. This was because those who were already born in America – the slaves – needed a concrete way to stay in the country as a citizen, and the birthright clause fit that need. However, the circumstances have changed, and birthright is being extended to all born in America regardless of their parent’s civilian status. Thus, it can be surmised that the order was made to try and cut down on so-called “Birth Tourism,” which places the burden on American social support systems.
There are even more orders to be discussed regarding immigration, but the general conclusion is that a) the legal system becomes more strict and has greater government oversight; b) “catch-and-release” is now forbidden; c) designate foreign cartels as foreign terror groups. These orders will create waves across the southern border and American society in general, as the war on the border continues to rage.
Next, is economics. Trump has made a broad executive order ordering executive agencies to focus on cutting costs and also to lower prices. This may result in the deconstruction of agencies like FEMA, which was just recently brought up and is pending review. In addition, he has directed economic branches of the government to find out where, why, and how America is experiencing a trade deficit abroad.
A part of this is a proposal for up to a 25 percent tariff on select Mexico-Canadian imports effective February 1st, but this is pending approval. He has also threatened up to a 60 percent tariff on select Chinese goods, but this is unlikely to happen soon due to the breadth of the Chinese-American trade apparatus.
Finally, he decided to pause the U.S. ban for 75 days until a suitable buyer arises or until the security threats have been addressed.
Additionally, Trump has pulled out of both the Paris Climate Agreement and the WHO. While he is a fervent supporter of drilling (“drill, baby, drill”), the main motivation for pulling out of these two organizations is not a commitment to the end of the world and the spread of disease, rather, it is a desire to avoid American entanglements with costly alliances that often costs America a greater amount. Of course, this is not to say that the Trump administration is not a supporter of bypassing climate restrictions. Notably, Trump has repealed a Biden order that prioritizes the creation and sale of electric vehicles.
Socially, the first executive orders promise two big things: the removal of DEI and the definition of two genders, male and female. These two are huge decisions that will impact the future of America’s social fabric, and thus critical decisions must be made. Both of these are hard to fight in court, as DEI may have a losing stance given the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Discrimination includes positive discrimination, as favoring certain races over others in office and employment positions would fall under the purview of the CRA.
To the point of the gender debacle, this will have little effect directly as it is simply the “position of the US” and will have little effect on the day-to-day life of Americans. However, this will have resounding effects on governmental support of transgender or otherwise queer organizations which have received support in the last administration. While groups have been protesting this change, there is very little indication yet of the potential ramifications of the order.
Finally, he has orders that generally promote the America First narrative he has been spouting for the last eight years. He has also begun creating new boards and departments like the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk & Vivek Ramaswamy.
BBRecapTM:
The second Trump presidency is sure to be fascinating. The feat of achieving a second non-consecutive term after one of the biggest political failures in history (Jan 6.) is an astounding testament to the “mandate” people had for change. As Trump seeks to effectively undo the middle phase of the Trump era (Biden), the impact will be huge and will go global in a manner never seen before.
His policies are distinctly his therefore he must exercise caution to ensure that his legacy and the Republican party benefit from his 2nd term. Given the controversy he has become known for, his best chance is to become a Jacksonian figure. Controversial and even inflammatory for his time, but regarded favorably as a positive force in the march of history. But, only time will tell. For Mr. Trump, the weight of the world is definitely on his shoulders.
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