It remains to be seen whether Donald Trump’s second term as U.S. president marks, as he proclaimed last week, the start of a “golden age for America” and “a revolution of common sense.”
But to the delight of the majority of Coastal Georgian voters who cast their ballots for Trump in November, the torrent of executive orders, directives and declarations that followed his swearing in left no question about his determination to “drain the swamp” (a Ronald Reagan phrase), root out the “deep state,” and excise what he described as “all of the cancer . . . caused by the Biden administration.”
Whether Trump’s initiatives pertained to the environment, health care, or education, following are a few of the things that caught our eye in his first whirlwind week that could have a broad impact in our region:
- In a statement that no doubt sent shudders down the spine of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and other state and county officials who rely on the Federal Emergency Management Administration for disaster aid, Trump said, “We’re looking at the whole concept of FEMA,” adding that he’d like to see the states — not the federal government — “take care of disasters.”
- Trump ordered a freeze on some work and communications at government health agencies. That prompted fears of a broad, anti-science agenda by the administration. “We have just seen a complete rejection of science,” said Darya Minovi, a senior analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
- So-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs were closed to across the government. Federal workers have been ordered to report colleagues who may seek to “disguise” DEI efforts by using “coded language.” Trump also directed federal agencies to each identify “up to nine” major companies, universities or nonprofits to investigate over DEI practices. One DEI-related undertaking has survived the ban: The U.S. Air Force said on Sunday it will resume instruction of trainees using a video about the first Black airmen in the U.S. military, known as the Tuskegee Airmen. The video had passed review to ensure compliance with Trump’s ban on DEI initiatives, it said.
- As part of a wide-ranging effort to roll back environmental measures put in place by the Biden administration, Trump eliminated a team of White House advisors whose job it was to ensure the entire federal government helped communities located near heavy industry, ports and roadways. Trump also eliminated the “Justice40” initiative the Biden administration had created. It required 40% of the benefits from certain environmental programs go to hard-hit communities.
- The White House on Friday night fired about 17 inspectors general — independent agency watchdogs responsible for identifying fraud, waste and corruption — i.e., the “swamp.” Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) acknowledged Trump might have acted illegally by firing a dozen inspectors general, saying in a statement he wants further explanation from Trump, as current law dictates the president must give Congress 30 days’ notice, including a “substantive rationale,” before dismissing agency watchdogs.
- Finally, Trump’s long promised crackdown on illegal immigration appeared to get underway over the weekend, with “immigration enforcement actions” reported in the Atlanta area.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said it made 956 arrests nationwide on Sunday and 286 on Saturday. While some of the operations may not have been unusual, the agency averaged 311 daily arrests in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.
Georgia law bans so-called sanctuary cities, but there’s no single definition of what a sanctuary city is. Also, local governments appear to have some leeway over the extent to which they cooperate with ICE in dealing with undocumented immigrants.
The Georgia Budget and Policy Institute reported in 2020 that roughly one-third of Georgia’s 1 million immigrants are undocumented.
