Response Center

Underway

Updated:

2/14/25

This is some text inside of a div block.

Senior Trump appointees are directed to review civil and criminal law enforcement and intelligence actions believed to be against the Trump administration and its supporters.

The Attorney General (AG) and the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) are directed to review all investigations, prosecutions, civil enforcement actions, and other related actions taken during the Biden administration, and provide recommendations for "remedial actions" for conduct the AG and DNI believe constitute "weaponization" of the federal government. As one example, the EO states that the "Department of Justice has ruthlessly prosecuted more than 1,500 individuals associated with January 6, and simultaneously dropped nearly all cases against BLM rioters" but this review will cover any action perceived to be contrary to the views and policies of the Trump administration and its supporters. This review could undo actions to break up monopolies that hurt consumers, prosecutions of insider trading laws, and prosecutions for police misconduct and discrimination in housing, education, and the workplace, among many other areas. Federal prosecutors, investigators, and intelligence officers, as well as any federal employee who cooperated with the House investigation of the January 6 insurrection, could be demoted, fired, and/or prosecuted for their actions. The final report's recommendations are to be given directly to the White House, breaking long-standing traditions of separating law enforcement decisions from political interference.

This action purports to fire MSPB Board Member Cathy Harris from her role at this independent agency.

The Merit Systems Protection Board is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1978 as part of the Civil Service Reform Act to uphold merit-based standards for the federal workforce and protect federal employees from prohibited personnel practices, including whistleblower retaliation. MSPB members are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate to seven-year terms and can only be removed by the President for "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office." MSPB member Cathy Harris was confirmed by the Senate on May 25, 2022. On February 11, President Trump purported to fire Ms. Harris with a one-sentence email that did not allege any cause for her removal. Harris sued the same day.

This action purports to fire a Senate-confirmed member of the NLRB for the first time in the Board's 90-year history.

The National Labor Relations Board was created 90 years ago as an independent federal agency after Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act to protect employees from unfair labor practices and to adjudicate labor disputes. NLRB members are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate for staggered five-year terms. Gwynne Wilcox was confirmed by the Senate as a member of the NLRB in August 2021 and later designated Board Chair, making her the first Black woman to hold either role. On January 27, 2025, President Trump purported to fire Wilcox via a late-night email. In clear violation of the NLRA, the termination email did not identify any purported neglect of duty or malfeasance and did not provide for notice and a hearing. Without Wilcox, the NLRB lacks a quorum and cannot adjudicate labor disputes.

This order baselessly attributes a January 29, 2025 plane crash in Washington, D.C. to the hiring of FAA employees with disabilities.

On January 29, 2025, American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter tragically collided over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., killing all 67 individuals on board both aircraft. The next day, President Trump issued this memorandum baselessly blaming the crash on federal diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives and particularly singling out employees with disabilities in the Federal Aviation Administration. The memorandum orders the Secretary of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administrator to review all FAA hiring decisions and safety protocol changes made during the last four years and replace anyone who does not meet unspecified qualification standards. FAA employment data from 2023 reflects that 64% of the FAA's air traffic controllers were white men and that less than 1% of the FAA's entire workforce had disabilities considered severe.

This order would end K-12 federal support for schools and programs that teach so-called “divisive concepts" or have gender affirming practices for students.

This order operationally defines six divisive concepts as “discriminatory equity ideology” including, but not limited to, accurate understandings of racism, meritocracy, oppression, and sexism. It directs the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Education (Ed), and Defense (DoD) to develop plans within 90 days to eliminate federal funding or support for any K-12 school that supports or subsidizes these concepts in any curriculum or teacher training, as well as any interference in parental rights to information. The order also directs the Attorney General to coordinate in criminalizing teachers who aid in the social transition of students, and establishes the 1776 Commission to teach so-called "patriotic education." This order will likely have a chilling effect in K-12 schools' ability to educate children accurately on American history, especially the history of marginalized groups. It may lead to material changes in the training and licensure programs of teachers, particularly those which consider how race relations impact school dynamics.

Underway

Updated:

1/30/25

This is some text inside of a div block.

This is some text inside of a div block.

This order creates a process to designate drug cartels or gangs as global terrorists to allow the Administration to use national security tools in immigration and border issues.

This executive order creates a process to designate certain drug cartels and criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations. Such designations could provide a pretext for the Administration to use sweeping national security or military authorities in Latin America, along the border, and in immigration matters – including possibly against American citizens. It could also disqualify many asylum seekers from getting asylum, since it is almost impossible for asylum seekers from Latin America to complete their dangerous journey to the United States without paying a fee to cartels.