- Trump has promised to do a variety of different things on “Day One” of his second term.
- Much of his agenda will take time to implement, but there are things he could start immediately.
- Among the first items could be pardons for January 6-related offenses.
President-elect Donald Trump has outlined clear plans on how he plans to spend his first day back in the White House.
He plans to spend his first few hours signing executive orders rolling back some of President Biden’s policies, considering pardons for a number of people convicted of January 6-related offenses, and launch his mass deportation program.
Some of the early items on Trump’s list are already crossed off. Trump no longer has to fire special counsel Jack Smith, who has moved to dismiss his criminal cases against Trump. Speculation that the president-elect might fire FBI Director Christopher Wray is also moot. Wray announced he would resign before Trump is sworn in.
Other aspects of Trump’s agenda, particularly his promises to eliminate taxes on tips, overtime, and Social Security benefits, will require Congress to act.
Trump has also conceded that some of his pledges, like “ending inflation,” may be difficult to fulfill. Fellow Republicans are also pressuring the president-elect to expand his agenda to include items like nixing the IRS’ free direct tax-filing tool.
Tariffs: Trade wars are likely to return
The president-elect made clear just before Thanksgiving that he intends to use tariffs much like he did during his first term.
In a series of posts, Trump pledged to levy a 25% tariff on all products coming into the US from Mexico and Canada. Chinese imports would get an additional 10%.
He said the tariffs would be among his first actions after being sworn in — meaning he’ll likely return to his reliance on a law that allows a president wide discretion to impose tariffs in the event of a national emergency.
Trump said the tariffs are needed to take migration and fentanyl more seriously. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum quickly retorted that her nation may be forced to impose its own retaliatory tariffs.
During his first term, Trump repeatedly threatened to use tariffs as a cudgel, though he did not always follow through.
Executive orders: Immigration and likely legal challenges
Some of Trump’s most readily achievable promises are related to immigration, an area where the White House and Executive Branch have a significant say. In the closing days of the campaign, Trump underlined his commitment to getting to work right away on building “the largest deportation force” in the nation’s history. The American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations have said they would challenge Trump’s actions in court, meaning that anything begun on Day One will only be the beginning of a potentially long legal fight.
Trump also repeatedly promised to curtail parole, which allows immigrants to temporarily live in the US, often for humanitarian reasons. He also pushed debunked claims about secret “migrant flights,” which he also promised to ban on day one.
Trump has promised to issue several executive orders when he takes office, though some of them are likely to be challenged in court.
For example, Trump has pledged to sign an executive order revoking birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution.
During the Republican primary, he pledged to take executive action “banning schools from promoting critical race theory or transgender insanity.”
It’s likely that such an action could mirror an executive order President Joe Biden revoked after taking office, which at the time prohibited the federal government and federal contractors from conducting workplace trainings on “divisive concepts.” A federal judge later blocked prohibitions on certain trainings.
Pardons and personnel decisions: January 6 rioters could get immediate pardons
Trump said he could take action on January 6-related pardons “within the first nine minutes.”
He has long maintained that some people arrested or convicted of offenses related to the Capitol riot were overcharged. Trump is likely to avoid any personal legal consequences at the federal level for his efforts to overturn the election. Smith’s 2020-charges against Trump were dismissed in a way that would allow them to be refiled once the president-elect leaves office in 2029.
In an interview with Time Magazine, Trump said his focus is on non-violent offenders and that he will weigh potential pardons on a “case-by-case” basis.
“We’re going to look at each individual case, and we’re going to do it very quickly, and it’s going to start in the first hour that I get into office,” Trump said to the publication during a wide ranging interview. “And a vast majority of them should not be in jail. A vast majority should not be in jail, and they’ve suffered gravely.”
Some of Trump’s promises are more simple and involve firing government officials he does not like.
At a Bitcoin conference in July, Trump also pledged to fire Gary Gensler, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, on “day one” and appoint a replacement. Gensler has angered many in the cryptocurrency community, which Trump and his campaigned courted ahead of the 2024 election. Gensler, too, has headed off a potential showdown by announcing he will resign before Trump’s inauguration
Trump has also pledged to pardon January 6 rioters “if they’re innocent,” which he would be able to do as soon as his first day in office.
“Day One” promises that Trump may not be able to fulfill
Some “day one” commitments are simply not possible.
At times during the campaign, Trump pledged to “end inflation” just hours after taking office. No one, including the president, can single-handedly lower broad price levels set across the entire US economy.
Prices reached record highs earlier in the Biden administration, but since then inflation has continued to cool. Many economists are concerned that Trump’s protectionist trade policies could exacerbate inflation. He has repeatedly rejected this view, but conceded lowering grocery prices will be difficult.
“Look, they got them up,” Trump said to Time. “I’d like to bring them down. It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up. You know, it’s very hard. But I think that they will. I think that energy is going to bring them down. I think a better supply chain is going to bring them down.”
