Consider This from NPR - Trump is back and ready to change America

Episode Date: January 21, 2025

Donald Trump returns to Washington newly empowered. The Republican party has remade itself in his image. The Supreme Court has granted him sweeping immunity for his official actions. And, unlike last time, he narrowly won the popular vote.And Trump is prepared to exercise his new power almost immediately. He's pledged to sign an unprecedented wave of executive actions – many of which will be challenged in court.These actions include one making it U.S. policy to recognize only two biologically distinct sexes – male and female. And his administration would end birthright citizenship — a right explicitly protected by the Constitution.President Donald Trump's executive actions could make fundamental changes to some of the foundations of American government.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

After he took the oath of office, President Trump spent some of his inaugural address reflecting on just how unlikely his return to the White House once seemed. 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. All of his living predecessors were there to witness it, despite the attacks Trump launched on them over the course of his political career. President Clinton, whom Trump has called a sexual predator. President Bush, Trump has said he didn't seem smart.

President Obama, Trump spent years pushing the lie that Obama was not born in the U.S. President Biden, Trump still doesn't acknowledge that he lost to Biden in 2020. And perhaps the biggest symbol Trump's comeback is complete? The venue. Bitter cold here in Washington forced the ceremony indoors into the Capitol Rotunda, the same place Trump supporters rioted four years ago in an attempt to keep him in office. Trump survived his second impeachment trial in the Senate for his role leading up to that attack and he survived a federal investigation, as he alluded to in his address.

The journey to reclaim our republic has not been an easy one, that I can tell you. Those who wish to stop our cause have tried to take my freedom. Trump returns to Washington with more power than he had in his first term. The Republican Party has remade itself in his image. The Supreme Court has granted him sweeping immunity for his official actions. And unlike last time, he narrowly won the popular vote. My recent election is a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal and all of these many betrayals that have taken place and to give the people back their faith,

their wealth, their democracy, and indeed their freedom. And Trump prepared to exercise his new power almost immediately. As we're recording this Monday evening, a desk stocked with pens at a stack of folders sits on stage at a packed Capital One arena. Trump has pledged to sign an unprecedented wave of executive actions, many of which will be challenged in court, including one making it U.S. policy to recognize only two biologically distinct sexes, male and female, and another that would end birthright citizenship, a right explicitly protected by the Constitution. With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense. of common sense. Consider this.

Trump's Day One executive actions could make fundamental changes to some of the foundations of American government. From NPR, I'm Ari Shapiro. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things in other currencies. Sending or spending money abroad? Hidden fees may be taking a cut. With Wyse, you can convert between up to 40 currencies at the mid-market exchange rate. Visit Wyse.com.

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Listen to the 1A podcast from NPR. President Trump has promised a barrage of executive action covering immigration, the federal workforce, and the economy. It's a dramatic move straight out of the gate, reflecting Trump's desire to make the most of these critical first few months in office. NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordonez is here to talk about it. Hi there. Hey, Ari. What more can you tell us about the executive actions he's expected to sign? Yeah, I mean, we're expecting he'll sign some at the Capitol, Capitol One arena, where

he's meeting with supporters very, very shortly. But there are dozens in play today, as many as 100 to 200, according to some accounts. I mean, they fall largely in three buckets, border security, energy and government reform. I mean, he's basically sweeping aside many of President Biden's policies, reinstating those from his first term in office and then going much, much further. He's also saying that he's going to pardon at least some of those arrested for their role in the riot at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The big focus here obviously is immigration. We'll be talking about that in more detail

later in the show. But what is the significance of him taking these actions today, right away? I mean, what it shows is how far Trump is willing to go to make up for basically lost time and expand his presidential powers. I mean, just as an example, he plans to launch the largest deportation operation in history. He also wants to end birthright citizenship for the children who are here illegally. And some of these steps, like birthright citizenship, will no doubt face challenges in court and potentially in Congress.

Since it is protected in the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. In the inaugural address today, we heard Trump call for a revolution of common sense. What did he mean by that? I mean, that is how he describes his agenda, of course. But when it comes to these executive orders, he's really leaning into the culture wars

that were a big part of his campaign. I will also end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life. Now, he's promised to roll back protections for transgender people. He's going to sign an executive order stating that it's the policy of the US to recognize two biological distinct sexes, male and female. An incoming White House official told reporters that the government will use these definitions

for documents like passports and employee records. Is the focus just on domestic policy today or are there elements of his foreign policy in play also? I mean, another theme on the campaign has been that the U.S. is being taken advantage of by countries around the world, and he's promising an executive order that signals America's place as, quote, the greatest, most powerful, most respected nation on earth. A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to

the Gulf of America. He talked about other name changes as well, but does signing these immediately make them policy? You said some are likely to be challenged in court. I mean, some of these are likely to be proclamations or recommendations to various agencies, but some will take effect immediately. Others for sure are going to face legal challenges. I mean, just in this example, you

can expect court challenges against Trump's plan to reclassify tens of thousands of federal workers so that they can more easily be fired and replaced with loyalists. I mean, there is a lot to be hashed out, but regardless, there is gonna be a lot of changes ahead. White House correspondent, Franco Ordonez, thanks for walking us through this.

Thanks, Ari. As we mentioned, we're gonna look a little more closely now at Trump's immigration-related executive actions. Those are the first steps in a sweeping immigration agenda he's laid out for his second term, and NPR's Joel Rose has been following that. Hi, Joel. Hey, Ari.

What more can you tell us about what these executive actions will be? Trump said in his inaugural address that he will declare a national emergency at the southern border and that he will send US troops there. He pledged to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to arrest and deport immigrants with criminal records, which could happen

basically anytime. Trump also said he would designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. All of this is part of an ambitious agenda that could reshape border security and immigration policy in the US for a very long time, and it goes well beyond what Trump tried to do in his first term. But like in that first term, much of this agenda will likely encounter legal challenges. Which pieces of the agenda do you think are most likely to be challenged? Incoming White House officials say the president will sign an executive action to end birthright

citizenship for children who were born to immigrants who are in the U.S. without legal status. Many legal scholars say that is unconstitutional. So I would say that change is very likely to be challenged in court. Trump officials also say the administration will try to cut off illegal entry at the southern border even for people who are seeking asylum, many of whom are fleeing violence and war and oppression. That's also likely to be challenged. And we're expecting some other executive actions that might be familiar from Trump's first

term, for example, restarting construction of the border wall, suspending refugee resettlement programs, and reinstating the policy called Remain in Mexico, which forced migrants to wait south of the border while their asylum claims were heard. These promises on immigration and border security were so central to Trump's campaign, you could argue they were central to his victory. So what has the reaction been from his supporters? NPR spoke to a number of Trump supporters who came to Washington, DC for the inauguration today, who told us they were not happy with record levels of illegal immigration during the first part of the Biden administration. For example, Ethan Zhang, who is himself an immigrant from Western China.

He is a green card holder and works in marketing in New York. Zhang said his neighborhood in Queens deteriorated during the last four years. And he blames immigrants who are here with no legal status. I used to live in Queens. My neighborhood used to be quiet. And when they got in, they played music very loud and they just don't respect anything, you know. And Joel, what are advocates for immigrants saying today?

I talked to Carrie Talbot with the nonprofit immigration hub. She says the breadth and cruelty of these executive actions is what stood out for her. Talbot noted that the Biden administration had already restricted asylum at the border last year and that illegal crossings have already fallen to some of their lowest levels in years. No, it's not an emergency right now. You know, the Trump administration is just using that language to scare people and to justify really extreme actions. Reporting there from NPR's Joel Rose. Thank you, Joel. You're welcome.

This episode was produced by Connor Donovan. It was edited by Courtney Dornig. Our executive producer is Sammy Yenigan. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Ari Shapiro. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Ari Shapiro. What's in store for the music, TV, and film industries for 2025? We don't know, but we're making some fun, bold predictions for the new year. Listen now to the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR. On the Embedded podcast from NPR, what is it like to live under years of state surveillance? So many people have fear of losing their families.

For years, the Chinese government has been detaining hundreds of thousands of ethnic Uyghurs. This is the story of one family torn apart. Listen to The Black Gate on the Embedded Podcast from NPR.