7:30 a.m. ET, Jan. 21

Trump's Day 1 Executive Orders

by Jacob Burg & T.J. Muscaro / The Epoch Times

President Donald Trump signed a barrage of executive actions hours after his inauguration on Jan. 20.

He signed orders to rescind dozens of executive actions from former President Joe Biden, improve border security and clamp down on illegal immigration, ramp up energy production, federally define gender, and give the social media platform TikTok 75 days to find a U.S.-based buyer before yielding to a federal ban.

While many of the president's orders will likely be challenged in court, including one that ends birthright citizenship, others are more symbolic. Overall, the policies throughout demonstrate a clear break from the Biden-era, and in many, callbacks to the first Trump administration.

Here are some of the orders Trump signed on his first day as the 47th president.

Immigration and Border

• A proclamation declaring that "an invasion is ongoing at the southern border," guaranteeing states' protection against such invasion, and invoking executive powers related to the surge of illegal immigration.
• An executive order entitled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” in response to “the unprecedented admission of illegal aliens” at the southern border.
• Ordering the securing of the southern border by various methods, including building a border wall and ending the CBP One app.
• A declaration of a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border.
• A realignment of the U.S. Refugee Admission Program “to better align with American principles and American interests.”
• An executive order ending birthright citizenship.
• Restoration of the death penalty for the killing of federal agents or law enforcement.
• Declaring cartels as terrorist organizations.
• Protections from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats related to the southern border.

Federal Workers

• An order to reform hiring in the federal government based on merit.
• A change in policy to make it easier to fire poor performers among the federal workforce.
• An order to hold former government officials accountable for election interference and unlawful disclosure of sensitive information, referring to the national security officials who co-signed a letter suggesting Hunter Biden's laptop was Russian disinformation.
• A memorandum to ensure career senior executive service officials in the federal government implement the president's agenda or they are removed.
• A regulatory freeze to prevent bureaucrats from issuing any more regulations until the administration has full control of the government.
• A federal hiring freeze, except for the military and other exempted categories, until the new administration takes control and the government’s objectives are understood.
• A requirement for all federal employees to return to full-time in-person work immediately.

Gender and DEI

• A federal policy that defines male and female as the only two genders.
• An executive order ending diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and policies in the federal government.

Energy and the Environment

• An executive order to maximize development and production of natural resources in Alaska to make the state a resource reservoir for the nation to ramp up fossil fuel extraction.
• The declaration of a national energy emergency.
• An order unleashing energy production, easing the permitting processes and other regulatory systems to ensure efficient energy production.
• A memorandum to improve Southern California’s water access by routing "more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to other parts of the state" for use in wildfire mitigation.
• A temporary withdrawal of all offshore wind leasing and an order to review government leasing and permitting practices for wind-power projects.
• An official withdrawal of the Paris Climate Accord, which Trump’s team said would save the United States $1 trillion.
• A formal notice to be sent to the United Nations saying that the United States will put "America First" in international environmental agreements, including the Paris Climate Accord, while also directing the federal government to do the same.

Military and National Security

• An order to reevaluate and realign U.S. foreign aid.
• An order asking the Department of Defense to come up with plans to protect the United States' territorial integrity and sovereignty by targeting drug trafficking, human trafficking, illegal immigration, and other criminal activities.
• A memorandum to immediately grant 6-month interim security clearance to certain personnel hired by the Trump administration so that they can access the White House regardless of a clearance backlog Trump said was left from the Biden administration.
• An “America-First Policy Directive to the Secretary of State” to champion American-focused interests in foreign policy.
• An order defining “Organization of the National Security Council and Subcommittees.”

Taxes and Tariffs

• Creating an “America First Trade Policy” that prioritizes American workers and companies while also establishing an “External Revenue Service (ERS) to collect tariffs, duties, and other foreign trade-related revenues.”
• A memorandum declaring the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) Global Tax Deal has no force or effect in the United States.

Federal Government Changes

• Creation of a presidential advisory commission called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
• The undoing of 78 of former President Joe Biden’s executive actions, executive orders, and presidential memoranda.
• A directive for every federal government department and agency to address the cost of living crisis.
• A government-wide directive to prevent government censorship against free speech.
• A directive for the federal government to end the "weaponization of government" against “the political adversaries of the previous administration.”

Other Executive Actions

• Giving social media platform TikTok 75 days to find a U.S.-based buyer before facing a federal ban.
• A full pardon for roughly 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants and 14 commutations for prisoners.
• The withdrawal of the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), after Trump did so previously in 2020.
• A Martin Luther King, Jr. Day proclamation.
• A memorandum “Promoting Beautiful Federal Civic Architecture.”
• An executive order restoring the name Mt. McKinley after President Barack Obama renamed it Mt. Denali in 2015, and changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

21:00 p.m. ET, Jan. 20

President Donald Trump took more executive actions in his first hours at the Oval Office, including:

Pardoning 1,500 Jan. 6 prisoners including Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders

Commuting remaining sentences for 14 Jan. 6 prisoners

Granting TikTok a 75-day extension to remain operational in the US

Withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO)

Establishing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk

7:15 p.m. ET

Trump said at Capital One Arena that he would pardon Jan. 6 prisoners tonight.

"Tonight, I'm gonna be signing on the J6 hostages pardons to get them out. And as soon as I leave I'm going to the Oval Office and we'll be signing pardons for a lot of people. A lot of people," he said.

6:58 p.m. ET

Trump signed the following executive orders at the Capital One Arena on:

Rescinding 78 Biden executive actions

Regulatory and hiring freeze

Requiring federal workers to return to in-person work immediately

Directive to every federal agency to address the cost of living crisis

Withdrawal from the Paris climate treaty

Directive to the federal government requiring freedom of speech and ending censorship

Directive to the federal government ending the weaponization of government

6:52 p.m. ET

Senate confirmed Macro Rubio to be Trump's Secretary of State by 99-0.

There are 99 Senators now with JD Vance vacancy.

Rubio is the first Trump nominee who got confirmed by the Senate.

Meanwhile, Senate Homeland Security Committee sent two more Trump nominees to the Senate floor, Kristi Noem by 13-2 and Russell Vought by 8-7.

5:25 p.m. ET

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted unanimously to send Marco Rubio’s nomination to the floor.

The Senate Armed Services Committee also voted on party lines by 14-13 to report Pete Hegseth, Trump's pick as the Defense Secretary, out of committee and to the floor.

The Senate Intelligence Committee voted 14:3 to send the nomination of John Ratcliffe, Trump's pick as the CIA director, to the full Senate for approval.

5:22 p.m. ET

The White House posted out Trump's full inauguration address.

5:10 p.m. ET

President Trump is expected to sign executive orders on Day 1 of his presidency at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC.

4:55 p.m. ET

Some attendees of Trump's inauguration disclosed what is inside the gift bags: a set of crystal glasses.

4:45 p.m. ET

Trump just officially sent his Cabinet nominations to the Senate. This allows committees to begin voting on the nominees who have already had confirmation hearings.

4:40 p.m. ET

Vivek Ramaswamy won't serve in Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency.

From the Associated Press:

“Vivek Ramaswamy played a critical role in helping us create DOGE," Anna Kelly, a spokesperson for the commission, said in a statement. "He intends to run for elected office soon, which requires him to remain outside of DOGE, based on the structure that we announced today. We thank him immensely for his contributions over the last 2 months and expect him to play a vital role in making America great again.”

4:20 p.m. ET

President Trump and bipartisan Congressional leaders reviewing troops at a ceremony at the Capitol.

3:44 p.m. ET
The New White House website is actively updated with new information.

Trump's first five executive orders have been posted, including one designating all acting leaders:

Gary Washington
Secretary of Agriculture

Jeremy Pelter
Secretary of Commerce

Robert Salesses
Secretary of Defense

Mark Averill
Secretary of the Army

Terence Emmert
Secretary of the Navy

Gary Ashworth
Secretary of the Air Force

Denise Carter
Secretary of Education

Ingrid Kolb
Secretary of Energy

Dorothy Fink
Secretary of Health and Human Services

Benjamine Huffman
Secretary of Homeland Security

Matthew Ammon
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

Walter Cruickshank
Secretary of the Interior

James McHenry
Attorney General

Vincent Micone
Secretary of Labor

Lisa Kenna
Secretary of State

David Lebryk
Secretary of the Treasury

Judith Kaleta
Secretary of Transportation

Todd Hunter
Secretary of Veterans Affairs

James Payne
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

Everett Woodel
Administrator of the Small Business Administration

Matthew Vaeth
Director of the Office of Management and Budget

Stacey Dixon
Director of National Intelligence

Juan Millan
United States Trade Representative

Thomas Sylvester, Jr.
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency

Charles Ezell
Director of the Office of Personnel Management

Stephen Ehikian
Administrator of General Services

Michelle King
Commissioner of Social Security

Brian Driscoll
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation

Jason Gray
Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development

Janet Petro
Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Caleb Vitello
Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

3:20 p.m. ET
Acting Defense Secretary and Attorney General

The Pentagon on Monday swore in Robert G. Salesses as the acting secretary of Defense while President Trump’s nominee Pete Hegseth awaits Senate confirmation.

Also, Justice Department's acting officials:
Acting Attorney General is James R. McHenry III, a veteran of the agency
And the acting Deputy Attorney General is Emil Bove, who was one of Trump’s defense lawyers in New York hush money case.

2:48 p.m. ET

From the White House:

President Trump's America First Priorities

MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN

President Trump will take bold action to secure our border and protect American communities. This includes ending Biden’s catch-and-release policies, reinstating Remain in Mexico, building the wall, ending asylum for illegal border crossers, cracking down on criminal sanctuaries, and enhancing vetting and screening of aliens.

President Trump’s deportation operation will address the record border crossings of criminal aliens under the prior administration.

The President is suspending refugee resettlement, after communities were forced to house large and unsustainable populations of migrants, straining community safety and resources.

The Armed Forces, including the National Guard, will engage in border security, which is national security, and will be deployed to the border to assist existing law enforcement personnel.

President Trump will begin the process of designating cartels, including the dangerous Tren de Aragua, as foreign terrorist organizations and use the Alien Enemies Act to remove them.

The Department of Justice will seek the death penalty as the appropriate punishment for heinous crimes against humanity, including those who kill law enforcement officers and illegal migrants who maim and murder Americans.

MAKE AMERICA AFFORDABLE AND ENERGY DOMINANT AGAIN

The President will unleash American energy by ending Biden’s policies of climate extremism, streamlining permitting, and reviewing for rescission all regulations that impose undue burdens on energy production and use, including mining and processing of non-fuel minerals.

President Trump’s energy actions empower consumer choice in vehicles, showerheads, toilets, washing machines, lightbulbs and dishwashers.

President Trump will declare an energy emergency and use all necessary resources to build critical infrastructure.

President Trump’s energy policies will end leasing to massive wind farms that degrade our natural landscapes and fail to serve American energy consumers.

President Trump will withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord.

All agencies will take emergency measures to reduce the cost of living.

President Trump will announce the America First Trade Policy.

America will no longer be beholden to foreign organizations for our national tax policy, which punishes American businesses.

DRAIN THE SWAMP

The President will usher a Golden Age for America by reforming and improving the government bureaucracy to work for the American people. He will freeze bureaucrat hiring except in essential areas to end the onslaught of useless and overpaid DEI activists buried into the federal workforce. He will pause burdensome and radical regulations not yet in effect that Biden announced.

President Trump is announcing an unprecedented slate of executive orders for rescission.

President Trump is planning for improved accountability of government bureaucrats. The American people deserve the highest-quality service from people who love our country. The President will also return federal workers to work, as only 6% of employees currently work in person.

President Trump is taking swift action to end the weaponization of government against political rivals and ordering all document retention as required by law. President Trump is also ending the unconstitutional censorship by the federal government. No longer will government employees pick and require the erasure of entirely true speech.

On the President’s direction, the State Department will have an America-First foreign policy.

BRING BACK AMERICAN VALUES

The President will establish male and female as biological reality and protect women from radical gender ideology.

American landmarks will be named to appropriately honor our Nation’s history.

2:23 p.m. ET
Trump signs executive orders at a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol.

The first batch of executive orders include:
FIRST: Cabinet appointments
SECOND: Sub cabinet appointements
THIRD: Acting designations
FOURTH: Chairman appointments
FIFTH: Flags shall be flown at full staff for all future inauguration Days.

1:50 p.m. ET
Trump to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement again as he did in his first term.

1:47 p.m. ET
Former President Joe Biden boarded a government airplane at Joint Base Andrews and left the Capitol area.

1:40 p.m. ET
Lawsuits filed against Trump's DOGE

The Politico reported:

Within minutes of Trump taking the oath of office, at least three lawsuits were filed in federal court in Washington, seeking to shut down Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” until it complies with transparency rules related to governmental advisory entities.

The lawsuits allege that the project Trump announced to target government waste violates the Federal Advisory Committee Act by giving private individuals roles in the government decision-making process without the public access the law requires.

1:37 p.m. ET
Former President Joe Biden giving his departure speech at the airport.

1:30 p.m. ET
Trump addressing the overflow crowd.

Former President Joe Biden departed Washington D.C..

1:11 p.m. ET
Trump ends CBP One.

From the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website:

Effective January 20, 2025, the functionalities of CBP One™ that previously allowed undocumented aliens to submit advance information and schedule appointments at eight southwest border ports of entry is no longer available, and existing appointments have been cancelled.

12:39 p.m. ET

Trump finished his inauguration speech.

He said he will declare a national emergency at our southern border, end practice of catch and release, send troops to southern border, reinstate my remain in Mexico policy, and designate cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.

Here are some quotes from his speech:
"If we work together, there is nothing we cannot do and no dream we cannot achieve. Many people thought it was impossible for me to stage such a historic political comeback. But as you see today, here I am. The American people have spoken."
"We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars."
"My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier. That's what I want to be."
"A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America."
"As of today, It will henceforth be the official policy of the United States Government that there are only two genders, male and female."
"Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich foreign countries, we will tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens."
"First I will declare a National emergency at our Southern Border."
“I will send troops to the southern border.”

12:05 p.m. ET
The New White House website lists the Trump-Vance Administration Priorities:
End Inflation and Lower Costs
Tax Cuts for American Workers
Secure America's Borders
Restore Peach Through Strength
American Energy Dominance
Make American Cities Safe Again

12:10 p.m. ET
President Donald Trump is giving his inauguration speech.

12:00 p.m. ET
The new Trump's White House homepage is up.

12:00 p.m. ET
Donald Trump has officially been sworn in as the 47th president shortly after JD Vance being sworn in as the Vice President.

11:10 a.m. ET
Former President George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and former first ladies arrived at the U.S. Capitol for Trump's inauguration.

11:05 a.m. ET
President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump arrive at the U.S. Capitol for the Inauguration.

10:16 a.m. ET
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden welcome President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump to the White House.