President Joe Biden signed 17 Executive Orders on his first day in office, which included a number of controversial actions that took political aim at erasing as much of President Donald Trump’s presidency.
The move by Biden comes after he repeatedly called for “unity” during his inaugural address on Wednesday afternoon.
One of the most controversial Executive Orders that Biden signed “unilaterally eviscerate[d] women’s sports,” author and women’s rights activist Abigail Shrier wrote on Twitter. “Any educational institution that receives federal funding must admit biologically-male athletes to women’s teams, women’s scholarships, etc. A new glass ceiling was just placed over girls.”
The order states in part:
Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or whom they love. Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports. Adults should be able to earn a living and pursue a vocation knowing that they will not be fired, demoted, or mistreated because of whom they go home to or because how they dress does not conform to sex-based stereotypes. People should be able to access healthcare and secure a roof over their heads without being subjected to sex discrimination. All persons should receive equal treatment under the law, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Biden signed another executive order that forced the U.S. to rejoin the Paris Agreement, a move that was quickly slammed by Heritage Foundation Senior Advisor Mike Howell, who wrote:
That will be cheered by environmental alarmists and those who envision a world with the United States subservient to international organizations as their preferred model.
The Paris agreement was—and always has been—a sham. And it’s an expensive sham for Americans, projected to cost 400,000 jobs, an average income loss of more than $20,000 for families of four, and a $2.5 trillion hit to the nation’s gross domestic product.
Biden also axed the Keystone XL pipeline, an energy project that was beneficial for the United States and quickly triggered negative reactions from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who said that he was “disappointed.”
Biden also canceled the Trump administration’s 1776 Commission, which sought to undue damage in from propaganda like The New York Times’ flawed “1619 Project” and to promote patriotism.
Victor Davis Hanson, who was on the commission, wrote the following about it:
The unanimously approved conclusions focused on the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the historical challenges to these founding documents, and the need for civic renewal. The 16-member commission was diverse in the widest sense of the word. It included historians, lawyers, academics, scholars, authors, former elected officials, and former public servants.
Whether because the report was issued by a Donald Trump-appointed commission, or because the conclusions questioned the controversial and flawed New York Times-sponsored 1619 Project, the Left almost immediately criticized it.
Biden also signed a slew of orders related to immigration, including eliminating the Trump administration’s travel ban from areas that are known terrorist hotspots, eliminating construction of effective border barriers on the southern border, extending deferrals for deportations, undoing Trump’s expansion of immigration enforcement inside the U.S., and providing protections for DACA recipients. Biden also signed an Executive Order that requires non-citizens to be counted in the Census.
Former Trump administration senior adviser Stephen Miller responded to the moves by writing on Twitter: “Today, @POTUS pledged to be a president for all Americans. It’s unclear how all Americans are served by opening travel from terror hot spots, proposing a giant amnesty, or halting the installation of security barriers along the Southwest border.”
Today, @POTUS pledged to be a president for all Americans. It’s unclear how all Americans are served by opening travel from terror hot spots, proposing a giant amnesty, or halting the installation of security barriers along the Southwest border.
— Stephen Miller (@StephenM) January 20, 2021
CNN noted that Biden also launched a 100-day mask mandate that requires people to wear masks on federal property, which is something that Biden appeared to violate last night while at the Lincoln Memorial.
Biden also stopped the U.S. from withdrawing from the World Health Organization after the Trump administration moved to leave the WHO last year following its highly controversial handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Biden also created a “COVID-19 Response Coordinator,” which is something that the Trump administration also essentially had on their Coronavirus Task Force. Biden also extended a pause on student loan payments and extended a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures until at least March 31.
CNN added that Biden also signed a Executive Order that “requires executive branch appointees to sign an ethics pledge barring them from acting in personal interest and requiring them to uphold the independence of the Department of Justice.” The order comes as Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, is under federal criminal investigation over his business dealings.