Card 12: What Trump’s Executive Orders Mean

Reduced Prices? A Booming Economy That Benefits You?
What Trump’s Executive Orders Mean.

All presidents use executive orders (EOs) to direct agencies and implement policies. Trump has issued many EOs, dissolving entire departments, a power reserved for Congress, and reversing programs established by the Biden administration. EOs are not laws and can be challenged in court. There are about 220 active lawsuits against Trump’s EOs.

How Trump Is Using Executive Orders

Trump froze programs and projects established under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, laws passed by Congress. 

●   Under the IRA, Medicare had the authority to negotiate reduced drug prices for seniors. Those negotiations are currently on hold. The $2 copay for generic drugs is also on hold, negatively impacting most seniors. 

●   The well-paying jobs created by both the IRA and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act are vanishing as road and bridge repairs, broadband internet projects, and construction of manufacturing plants for solar panels and computer chips are suspended indefinitely. Other jobs will disappear as suppliers for these projects lose their contracts.

●   Trump is imposing tariffs on all goods imported into the U.S., with higher tariffs on specific products such as steel, aluminum, and copper, as well as on products from Canada, China, and Mexico. In response, those countries are not importing products such as soybeans, corn, beef, and pork from the U.S., causing substantial harm to U.S. farmers.

●  Tariffs are taxes companies pay when they import goods into the U.S., typically at the time the goods are unloaded from the dock. This tax is passed on to us when we buy these products in our stores. No matter what Trump says, tariffs don’t make regular Americans richer.   

●   Mexico supplies the U.S. with two-thirds of our fresh fruits and vegetables, including tomatoes, and car parts, tires, electronic components, electric motors, and piston engines. From Canada we import cars, trucks, and automotive parts; electricity; and crude oil and other petroleum products.   

●   Trump ordered the deportation of all immigrants who have committed crimes. However, this order now also applies to anyone who is not a U.S. citizen, including the spouses of U.S. citizens. Deportations without due process are a crime and violate the Constitution.

●   Thousands of immigrants fill essential jobs in agriculture, food processing, construction, and caregiving—jobs often refused by American workers. Deportations will lead to higher prices due to labor shortages in harvesting crops, food processing, home building, road repair, and caregiving.   

Trump’s executive orders are at a critical point, influenced by political lobbying, public sentiment, protests, and lawsuits. These executive orders have a profound effect on our everyday lives and the economy, impacting aspects ranging from industry regulations to job creation and living standards. Call your representatives today at (202) 224-3121 and urge them to prioritize the Constitution over Trump.