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Domestic policy of the second Donald Trump administration
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This article encompasses the domestic policy of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States.
Prospective policies for Trump's second presidency were proposed in Agenda 47, a collection of his formal policy plans.[1][2]
Abortion
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Before being elected, Trump had declared that abortion should be delegated to states in April 2024.[3][4] Trump criticized the Arizona Supreme Court's ruling in Planned Parenthood Arizona v. Mayes (2024), in which the court upheld an 1864 law criminalizing abortions except to save the life of the mother, stating that he would not sign a federal abortion ban.[5][6]
After the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in LePage v. Center for Reproductive Medicine (2024) that frozen embryos are living beings, Trump instead positioned himself in favor of in vitro fertilisation (IVF).[7][8]
On January 24, 2025, Trump reinstated the Mexico City policy ("global gag rule"), which had been rescinded by the Biden administration. Since the Reagan administration in the 1980s, this rule has been put in place during Republican administrations and rescinded during Democratic administrations.[9]
In May 2025, the Trump administration asked that Missouri v. FDA, a lawsuit filed by Missouri, Idaho and Kansas in the Northern District of Texas before Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, be dismissed arguing the states did not have standing. The suit sought to restrict access to Mifepristone including by prohibiting telehealth prescriptions.[10][11][12]
In June 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services rescinded guidance requiring that hospitals provide emergency abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act.[13][14][15]
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Climate and environment
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On his first day in office, Trump declared a "national energy emergency" despite the U.S.'s producing more oil and exporting more natural gas than any other country, and, for a second time, made the U.S. the only country to withdraw from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.[16] By the end of its fourth month, Trump's second administration had reduced staffing at several major federal environmental agencies; reduced regulations against air pollution; stopped tracking major sources of greenhouse gases that cause global warming and climate change; expedited approvals for fossil fuel projects; expanded logging permits in national forests; dismissed scientists working on the Congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment; purged the phrases "climate crisis" and "climate science" from government websites; and transferred some responsibility for disaster management to the states despite there having been 27 billion-dollar disasters in 2024 (versus 3 such disasters in 1980).[16]
At a private dinner at Mar-a-Lago in April 2024, Trump encouraged fossil fuel companies to donate to his campaign, saying that he would roll back environmental regulations if elected.[17] Trump's transition team for climate and the environment was led by David Bernhardt, a former oil lobbyist who served as interior secretary, and Andrew R. Wheeler, a former coal lobbyist who led the EPA under Trump. The team withdrew from the Paris Agreement for a second time (the only country in the world to do so[16]), expand drilling and mining on public land, and dismantle offices working to end pollution. Trump pledged to redraw the boundaries of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monuments as he did in his first term, end a pause on new natural gas export terminals that began under President Joe Biden, and prevent states from setting their own pollution standards.[18]
Upon taking office, Trump appointed oil, gas, and chemical lobbyists to the Environmental Protection Agency to roll back climate rules and pollution controls.[19] Trump ordered the pause on disbursement of climate-related funds issued by the IRA and BIL, and falsely conflated the funds with the "Green New Deal".[20] In February 2025, the FBI, Treasury Department, and EPA requested that Citibank freeze bank accounts of nonprofit organizations that received funding under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, created by Congress in 2022 as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Citibank froze the accounts. The FBI also asked Citibank to freeze accounts of Habitat for Humanity, United Way, the Colorado Clean Energy Fund and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Three nonprofit organizations challenged the actions in court.[21] In April 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14260 (Protecting American Energy From State Overreach) which directs the attorney general to "identify and take action against state laws and policies that burden the use of domestic energy resources and that are unconstitutional, preempted by federal law, or otherwise unenforceable".[22][23]
In July 2025, the Trump administration exempted more than 100 plants from pollution limits established by the Biden administration. The limits reduce the releases of toxic chemicals, including cancerogenic. One of them reduce cancer risks of people living within 10 kilometers of a chemical plant by 96%. 4 proclamations were issued. One exempts about 40 medical device sterilizing plants from requirements to reduce by 90% of the emissions of cancer-causing ethylene oxide. The second exempts more than 50 chemical companies and oil refineries from requirements to reduce emissions of toxic chemicals including ethylene oxide and another cancer-linked chemical called chloroprene. A third exempts 8 producers of taconite iron ore, from reducing mercury emissions linked to brain and nervous system damage by about 33%. The fourth exempts 6 coal plants from reducing release of mercury, nickel, arsenic, and lead, which can cause developmental delays in children, as well as heart attacks and cancer.[24]
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Criminal justice and law enforcement
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Trump entered office following 2024's 50-year record-low level of violent crime.[25][26] The Associated Press reported that despite historic drops in crime, many voters felt unsafe due to "misleading campaign rhetoric".[27] Upon taking office, Trump issued an executive order promoting capital punishment; the order instructed the Justice Department to resume and pursue executions at the federal level, to challenge Supreme Court precedent restricting the use of the death penalty, and to supply lethal injection drugs to states that retained the death penalty.[28] The Justice Department put a freeze on civil rights cases and signaled it would roll back consent agreements with police departments two days after Trump took office.[29] The National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (which kept disciplinary records of federal law enforcement officers) was deactivated in January 2025; it was proposed by Trump in 2020 and created by Biden in 2023.[30] Trump also eliminated the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which had been created by the Biden administration and cut federal funding for Gun violence prevention.[31] Separately, Elon Musk's private bodyguards were assigned as special deputies by the United States Marshals Service in February 2025.[32][33]
The United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division moved to dismiss lawsuit against the Louisville and Minneapolis police departments. The division also worked to close investigations into, and retract findings of constitutional violations on the part of the police departments of Phoenix, Trenton, Memphis, Mount Vernon, Oklahoma City, and the Louisiana State Police.[34][35]
Presidential pardons and commutations
During the transition period, Trump was expected to end the Department of Justice's prosecutions against him in Washington, D.C., and Florida. According to The Washington Post, Special Counsel Jack Smith considered ending his prosecutions early and submitting a final report to Attorney General Merrick Garland before Trump was inaugurated.[36] The final report was submitted on January 7, 2025, with no charges being brought to trial against Trump.[37]
Upon assuming the presidency again on January 20, 2025, Trump issued a blanket mass pardon for those charged with the January 6 Capitol Riot,[38] which he had repeatedly promised on his campaign.[39][40][41][42] The pardon commuted the prison sentences of 14 people by name, effected the release of over 200 others also in prison, and pardoned the more than 1,550 people who had been criminally charged.[43] 500 people had been sentenced to prison terms and 1,358 had been criminally charged. Following Trump's grant of clemency to all January 6 rioters, on January 22, House Speaker Mike Johnson announced a formation of a panel to investigate the January 6 committee in what the Associated Press described as "an effort to defend Trump's actions that day and dispute the work of a bipartisan committee that investigated the siege two years ago".[44]
In May 2024 at the Libertarian National Convention, Trump said that he would commute Ross Ulbricht's sentence on his first day in office.[45] Since 2015, Ulbricht had been serving a life sentence for charges related to creating and operating the darknet market website Silk Road, which operated as an onion service on the Tor network and facilitated the sale of narcotics and other illegal products and services.[46][47] On January 21, 2025, Trump issued a full and unconditional pardon to Ulbricht, fulfilling a campaign promise.[46][48]
On January 23, 2025, Trump granted pardons to 23 anti-abortion protestors. Among the 23 pardoned were Lauren Handy and 9 of her co-defendants, who were involved in the October 2020 blockade of a Washington, D.C., abortion clinic, and later convicted in violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.[49][50] Trump has also floated or hinted at issuing potential pardons for Julian Assange, Hunter Biden and Peter Navarro; media outlets have also speculated that Trump may issue pardons for Eric Adams and Todd and Julie Chrisley.[51] In March 2025, Trump wrote on social media that President Joe Biden's pardons of lawmakers who investigated the January 6 attack were now "void, vacant, and of no further force of effect", as Trump stated that these pardons were signed by autopen. In 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that pardons do not have to be in writing.[52]
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Race and DEI
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Trump attributed societal problems to diversity, equity, and inclusion and wokeness.[54] Equating diversity with incompetence,[54] he reversed pro-diversity policies in the federal government,[55][56] and downsized divisions working on civil rights.[57] He displayed hostility towards and rolled back enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and reoriented civil rights protections and affirmative action to protect white men to combat alleged "anti-white racism", previously stating during his campaign that there was "a definite anti-white feeling in this country."[58][59] He reoriented remaining civil rights divisions to target state and local officials, companies, and colleges for "illegal DEI", which became a buzzword in his administration.[60] Trump's firings of senior military officers were disproportionately women,[61] and as part of Trump's efforts to root out "DEI" initiatives in the federal government, agencies with the highest planned workforce reductions and dismissals were also those with the highest percentages of women, minority, and Black employees.[62] His policies were described as politics of "white grievance" and resulting from backlash to the Black Lives Matter movement and George Floyd protests,[63][64] and attempting to purge American culture of anything deemed "woke" or promoting diversity.[65] His administration launched worldwide investigations into companies, cities, and institutions for alleged "DEI" programs.[66] Based on claims of DEI overreach and Antisemitism, Trump threatened cultural institutions[67] and sixty universities,[68] and forced law firms to capitulate to his political agenda.[69]
In response to anti-DEI executive actions and against what the administration called "improper ideology",[70] numerous agencies and websites altered or removed material related to women, racial minorities, and transgender individuals. The National Park Service removed mentions of transgender individuals from its website on the Stonewall riots, changed "LGBT" to "LGB", and removed the word "queer".[71] The National Cryptologic Museum papered over portraits of women and racial minorities in their Hall of Honor, including those of Elizebeth Smith Friedman, Washington Wong, and Ralph W. Adams Jr.[72] The portraits were restored after news of the actions began circulating online.[72][73] Pictures that celebrated women in science were removed from NASA buildings.[74] Some removed content deemed "DEI" relating to Jackie Robinson, the Tuskegee Airmen, the Enola Gay, and the Navajo Code Talkers were later restored.[75]
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Economy
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Trump inherited a resilient economy from the Biden administration, with increasing economic growth, low unemployment, and declining inflation by statistics.[a] When Trump assumed office in January 2025, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4%, and the inflation rate, measured by the Personal Consumption Expenditure price index, was projected to range between 2.2% and 2.4% for 2025.[81][82] The New York Times and Economic Policy Institute described the economy as "in better shape than that bequeathed to any newly elected president since George W. Bush came into office in 2001".[83][84] However, polls found that many Americans still felt the impacts of the 2021–2023 inflation surge, which partly contributed to Trump's reelection.[80][85]
In a March 2025 media interview, Trump was asked if he expected a recession to occur in 2025, to which he answered: "I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition, because what we're doing is very big."[86] By that month, the Trump administration shut down the Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee and the Bureau of Economic Analysis Advisory Committee, both of which calculated economic data and had operated for over 20 years.[87] On March 13, 2025, the S&P 500 index entered into a correction, dropping 10% from its peak on February 19, 2025.[88] The drop came amidst what the Associated Press called "historic" jumps in public anxiety caused by Trump's tariff threats, with large drops in consumer sentiment and increased expectations of higher inflation rates among consumers and Wall Street economists.[89]
Markets dropped substantially in early April 2025 following Trump's imposition of tariffs on nearly all countries, prompting retaliation from trade partners that triggered a stock market crash.[90][91] The crash triggered what The Associated Press described as a "freak" sell-off in the bond market. The sell-off was attributed to a loss of confidence among investors in the United States as a safe, stable place to store money.[92] In May 2025, Trump said of the American economy: "I think the good parts are the Trump economy and the bad parts are the Biden economy".[93]
Taxation and deficits
In January 2025, Republicans began considering cuts for various social programs in order to pay for the proposed tax cuts.[94][95][96] The Congressional Budget Office estimated in January 2025 that extending the 2017 Trump tax cuts could increase deficits by more than $4 trillion over 10 years, if not offset by spending cuts. Trump's campaign proposals to exempt Social Security benefits, tip and overtime income from taxation would further increase deficits. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated that all of Trump's tax cut proposals together would reduce federal tax receipts by $5 trillion to $11 trillion over a decade, if not offset. Some congressional Republicans argued the tax cuts would not increase deficits.[97][98][99] Trump, with the help of Elon Musk, launched a campaign to reduce the federal workforce by thousands of employees, primarily focusing on probationary staff, to streamline government operations. This has sparked criticism over the potential disruption of vital services and raised concerns about employee rights, with legal challenges and internal dissent emerging.[100]
"Big, Beautiful" Budget Bill
Much of Trump’s economic agenda was encapsulated in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025. The Bill’s primary focus is a $4 trillion tax cut that permanently enshrined many tax cuts included in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, while also creating a Medicaid work requirement for all childless able-bodied adults and banning Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood, eliminating tax credits for clean energy created by the Inflation Reduction Act, increasing the age at which the SNAP work requirement is eliminated from 54 to 64 and extending it to individuals with children between the ages of 7 and 18, and increasing military spending by $150 billion and spending to support Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts by $175 billion.[101] The original House version was passed on May 22, 2025.[102]
After being sent to the United States Senate, the Bill was subject to renegotiation, and ultimately came to include a variety of changes, including an increase in the debt limit by $5 trillion, as opposed to the initial $4 trillion, while softening the SNAP work requirement to solely extending to parents with children aged 14-18, extending the Medicaid work requirements to parents with children aged 14-18, and eliminating an excise tax on wind and solar energy.[103] The Senate Bill was passed 51-50 on July 1, 2025, with Vice President J.D. Vance casting a tie-breaking vote in support of the bill, after Republican Senators Rand Paul, Thom Tillis, along with all Democrats, refused to support it, while Senator Lisa Murkowski was persuaded to support the bill, despite her misgivings about Medicaid cuts.[104] The bill was returned to the House of Representatives, where House Speaker Mike Johnson secured final passage on July 3, 2025, persuading many fiscally conservative holdouts in the House, to support it.[105] Critics have charged that the bill’s tax cuts, including corporate tax write-offs for the cost of for equipment and Research and development and increasing the SALT tax deduction from $10,000 to 40,000, would benefit the wealthy, while cuts to Medicaid and SNAP would disproportionately harm lower-class Americans.[106] An estimated 11.8 million Americans may lose health insurance as a result of the bill,[107][108][109] while an estimated 5 million Americans are at risk of losing some or all of their SNAP benefits.[110]
Tariffs policy
President Donald Trump is a staunch proponent of tariffs and has been described by some academics as a mercantilist.[111] During his 2024 campaign, Trump promised to impose higher tariffs on all countries, especially China.[112] On November 25, 2024, following his election victory, Trump said he would sign an executive order placing 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and impose an additional 10% tariff on China.[113]
Threats to BRICS nations over currency
On November 30, 2024, Trump threatened to impose a 100% tariff on BRICS nations if they tried to create a new BRICS currency or promote another currency to replace the U.S. dollar as the global reserve currency.[114]
February 1 tariffs and one month pause
On February 1, 2025, Trump signed three executive orders imposing a 25% tariff on all goods from Mexico and Canada (although energy imports from Canada were only to be taxed at 10%[115]), and a 10% tariff on China, originally due to take effect on February 4.[116]
In response to the higher tariffs, representatives from Mexico and Canada announced intentions to impose retaliatory tariffs on the United States, which if implemented could have led to an increase in tariff rates in accordance with a clause included in the orders signed by Trump.[117][118] On February 3, Trump announced that the tariffs on both Mexico and Canada would be paused for one month after the countries agreed to take further steps to prevent the trafficking of drugs into the United States.[119][120]
Without this pause, Trump's executive order would have raised American tariffs to the highest in the world, with the new tariffs being the highest since the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act of 1930.[citation needed] According to Kim Clausing of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the proposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China would represent the "largest tax increase [in the United States] since the 1990s."[121]
April 2 "Liberation Day" and stock market declines
On April 2, a day Trump nicknamed "Liberation Day", Trump announced a 10% universal import duty on all goods brought into the US and even higher rates for 57 trading partners.[122] In response, markets sunk sharply lower.[123][124][125]
In large part as a response to the new tariffs, on April 17 the European Central Bank announced it was reducing interest rates on loans by a quarter of one percent to a rate of 2.25% (2-and-a-quarter percent). European inflation seemed to be settling towards 2%, and the bank's governors expressed concern over economic growth. They said that "the adverse and volatile market response to the trade tensions is likely to have a tightening impact on financing conditions."[126][127]
Tariff loophole on $800 and less expires on May 2
On May 2, a tariff loophole expired which previously exempted duties on packages $800 or less. This change is expected to directly affect customers of the large Chinese retailers Shein and Temu. In addition, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will be responsible for the inspection of millions of new packages. On April 30, President Trump described this loophole as "a big scam going on against our country, against really small businesses."[128]
May 12 deal with China
On May 12, the United States and China announced that tariffs would be reduced for a period of 90 days. U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods would be reduced from 145% to 30% and Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods would be reduced from 125% to 10%.[129][130] However, this 30% is still more expensive for consumers in the United States compared to the state of affairs before Trump's initial tariffs.[131]
Steel tariffs doubled and sale (with protections) of U.S. Steel to Nippon
In late May, Trump announced that he was doubling tariffs on steel from 25% to 50%.[132]
Additionally, whereas the Biden administration had not approved the sale of U.S. Steel to the Japanese conglomerate Nippon, the Trump administration was approving this same sale with protections. For example, the majority of the U.S. Steel board of directors will be Americans including some members appointed by the U.S. government with its "golden share" in the company. Even so, U.S. Steel will be a "wholly owned subsidiary" of Nippon Steel North America. The United Steelworkers expressed opposition and doubts about the sale, saying that Nippon had a "long and proven track record of violating our trade law."[132]
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Education
Emergency management
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Just before the Los Angeles fires were contained, the United States Army Corps of Engineers started releasing water from federal reservoirs in California's Lake Success and Lake Kaweah via the Schafer Dam and Terminus Dam respectively, for a total of 2.2 billion gallons of water per local authorities.[133] The Army Corps initially stated that the water was for California to "respond to the wildfires", following an executive order by Trump.[134] However, the Army Corps later stated that the released water "could not be delivered to Southern California directly", that other government agencies said they "likely could not utilize the additional water with such short notice", and that the water release was stopped after "elected officials expressed concerns from their constituents about potential flooding of downstream lands".[135]
In February 2025, Trump signed a pair of executive orders blocking FEMA funds from being used to help undocumented immigrants in "sanctuary cities." This had the consequence of freezing billions of dollars in disaster grants, which were funding rebuilding efforts for communities struck by Hurricane Helene.[136] In April 2025, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) under Trump has denied North Carolina's request to extend the full reimbursement period for Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. The Trump administration also turned down a request from Georgia governor Brian Kemp for a second deadline extension to apply for relief from the state following Hurricane Helene in March 2025.[137]
Tornadoes hit the state of Mississippi on March 14 and 15, and were especially damaging to Tylertown in southern Mississippi. Approximately two weeks later on April 1, Governor Tate Reeves (Republican) requested that FEMA issue a major disaster declaration for parts of his state. David Richardson, FEMA's new acting-administrator since early May, has said regarding potential policy changes that there could be "more cost-sharing with states" and that FEMA might coordinate federal assistance "when deemed necessary."[138]
On May 23, the Trump administration approved disaster aid for areas within 8 states including Mississippi. The other 7 states with areas are Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.[139]
The previous director of FEMA, Cameron Hamilton, was appointed by President Trump in January and fired by the administration in early May, a day after he disagreed with the idea to shut down FEMA which is an idea President Trump has hinted at in describing FEMA as "very slow" and "very bureaucratic."[138]
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Federal government and executive power
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![Thumb](#/media/File:Donald_Trump_"Long_Live_the_King".png)
The second Trump administration has pursued a maximalist interpretation of the unitary executive theory.[141][142] It has been noted for making sweeping assertions of executive authority, and challenging several Congressional laws and parts of the Constitution restraining presidential power.[143][144][145] He issued an executive order to take control of independent federal agencies such as the FCC, FEC, and SEC, attacked journalists and media organizations whose coverage he disliked, placed loyalists in charge of the military and FBI, used the Department of Justice to promote his political interests, and suggested defying court orders and impeaching justices who ruled against him.[146]
On February 15, 2025, Trump wrote on Truth Social and X: "He who saves his Country does not violate any Law", which the White House later reposted on X that day.[147][148] Shortly afterward on February 19 in a post about congestion pricing in New York, Trump compared himself to a king by saying "LONG LIVE THE KING!".[140] Later that month, Trump told the governor of Maine, Janet Mills, to "comply" with his executive order banning transgender athletes from women's sports, or he would withdraw "any federal funding" because "we are the federal law".[149]
Screenshots from the leaked Signal chat showing "Pete Hegseth" discussing plans for American military operations against the Houthis in Yemen
Also in February 2025, Elon Musk declared that "all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week ... Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation"; within hours federal employees received an email from the United States Office of Personnel Management demanding their response, within two days, on work done last week.[150][151]
In March 2025, senior Trump administration officials used the Signal private messaging service to discuss imminent military operations against the Houthis in Yemen, which led to the United States government group chat leak when Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of the American magazine The Atlantic, was added to the chat by Michael Waltz, the national security advisor.[152] The Atlantic reported on and published details of the chat, showing that defense secretary Pete Hegseth used the chat to share details of the impending strikes, including the launch times of F-18 aircraft, MQ-9 drones and Tomahawk missiles, as well as the time when the F-18 aircraft would reach their targets, and the time when the bombs would land.[153][154] Some of the chat's other members were Vice President JD Vance, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and CIA director John Ratcliffe.[152] The incident raised several issues, including the Trump administration officials' use of a non-government communication system and the potential transmission of classified information on it, as well as Signal's automatic deletion of chat logs contradicting with the requirement to preserve government records.[155]
DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency)
The Trump administration established the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a temporary organization with Elon Musk as its administrator,[156] and renamed the United States Digital Service to the United States DOGE Service to function as a parent agency. DOGE is a unit tasked with recommending cost-cutting measures, and according to the executive order that established it, its formal purpose is to "modernize federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity".[157][158][159]
In late January 2025, Wired reported that the top ranks of the human resources-focused United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) had been filled by new hires who had formerly worked for either Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, Republican politicians or right-wing media outlets, while Musk's allies were installed into the technology-focused General Services Administration and planned massive spending cuts.[160][161] On January 28, the OPM offered a "deferred resignation" scheme to federal government employees to announce their resignation by February 6, while stating that employees who resigned would still receive salary and benefits until September 30, 2025.[162] The offer made was similar to Elon Musk's notice to employees after he took control of Twitter.[163][164] On January 31, Trump added that he would nullify federal employee union contracts, specifically including one with the Education Department, that had been agreed to late in Biden's term.[165] Musk also gained access to the Treasury's payment system.[166] Two OPM officials told Reuters that Musk's allies locked some OPM officials from accessing OPM data systems, with one official saying this enabled Musk's allies to use the systems without oversight.[167] It was reported that this gave DOGE "full access" to the major U.S. Treasury database controlling the expenditure of 6 trillion dollars, as well as "the sensitive personal data of millions of Americans as well as details of public contractors who compete directly with Musk's own businesses." It was reported that the previous top civil servant who was associated with the database was placed on leave and then resigned after objecting to DOGE's access. It was reported that this access could allow Musk to block payments by the U.S. government to many federal programs. Senator Ron Wyden stated that this access was a "national security risk."[168]
On March 21, Elon Musk visited the Pentagon. This was originally scheduled to be a non-classified briefing on China with the Joint Chiefs. However, seemingly after The New York Times reported the previous day on possible Musk conflicts-of-interest due to business interests in China, this was changed to a meeting with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on efficiency. President Trump said, "Elon has businesses in China, and he would be susceptible perhaps to that. But it was such a fake story."[169][170][b] Musk said he wants to find those who leaked details about this meeting ahead of time.[169][171]
Mass layoffs
Trump oversaw mass firings of federal workers at various agencies, many of them described as breaking with precedent or federal law and with the intent to replace them with workers more aligned with Trump's agenda.[172][173][142][174] On January 24, 2025, less than a week into Trump's second presidency, he fired 17 independent inspectors general at federal agencies, which appeared to violate federal law that requires advance notice of dismissals to both chambers of congress with reasons given 30 days in advance.[175] Trump also fired all Democratic but not Republican members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, which would prevent the board from meeting quorum and functioning.[141] Trump also fired members of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, National Labor Relations Board, over 160 members of the National Security Council for not aligning with his agenda, and 56 senior officials at USAID for allegedly attempting to thwart his priorities.[172]
The New York Times reported in January 2025 that the White House might be hoping the firings would be challenged in court, ultimately the Supreme Court, as test cases to invoke the unitary executive theory to give the president exclusive control of the executive branch. The Republican-appointed supermajority on the Court had in recent years indicated support for the theory, which had also been promoted by Project 2025.[176][177] On the first day of his second term in January 2025, Trump named a Republican as acting chair of the United States Merit Systems Protection Board. In February 2025, Trump removed a Democratic member of the board, Cathy Harris, who had served three years of her term, and demoted the other Democratic member.[178] Harris then sued the Trump administration, alleging that her removal was illegal.[179] On March 4, 2025, a U.S. district judge, citing U.S. Supreme Court cases from 1933 and 1953, entered a permanent injunction ordering that she be reinstated.[180]
Lawsuits
On March 13, federal judge William Alsup of San Francisco ordered that fired employees must be re-hired at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, Department of Interior, and Department of Treasury. He ruled that blanket claims of poor performance cannot be used as a "gimmick" to get around the Reduction in Force Act, and stated that "it is a sad day when our government would fire some good employee and say it was based on performance when they know good and well that's a lie."[181][182] The Ninth Circuit Court rejected the Trump administration's appeal for them to stay Alsup's ruling, with the appeals court stating that a stay "would not preserve the status quo. It would do just the opposite — it would disrupt the status quo and turn it on its head".[183]
In a second lawsuit also on March 13, federal judge James Bredar of Maryland issued a broader order that the Trump administration must re-hire workers who had been fired from 12 departments and 6 agencies. This was the result of a lawsuit brought by 19 states and the District of Columbia that they had not been given the legally-required advance notice of large layoffs. And that the reason of "performance" was not true. Judge Bredar wrote, "There were no individualized assessments of employees. They were all just fired. Collectively."[182][184]
The Trump administration is both appealing this second decision and complying with it in the meantime. Twenty-four thousand employees are in the process of being re-hired, with most being placed on administrative leave with full pay and benefits as the in-between step. The re-hires include 6,400 employees at the IRS, 5,700 employees at the Department of Agriculture, 3,200 employees at the Department of Health and Human Services, and 1,700 employees at the Department of Veteran's Affairs, with all these numbers being rounded to the nearest hundred.[185] Judge William Alsup wrote in a brief follow-up order that re-hired employees must be placed back in their former posts, and not merely placed on administrative leave.[186] On April 8, the U.S. Supreme Court halted the injunction aspect of Judge Alsup's order of immediately re-hiring. However, the Supreme Court didn't rule on the merits of this case as it more slowly and normally works its way through the courts.[187]
Federal funding freeze
On January 27, 2025, the Trump administration's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released memo M-25-13, which ordered the federal government to take action the next day to "temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by [Trump's] executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the Green New Deal".[188] The memo continued that this would allow the Trump administration to "determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and [Trump's] priorities", while "Medicare or Social Security benefits" were exempted from being affected.[189] 2,600 federal programs were selected for review.[190] The memo sparked considerable uncertainty among government employees, lawmakers and nonprofit organizations.[191]
On January 28, 2025, the Medicaid payment portal shut down across the United States before returning online later that day; the Trump administration said that the shutdown was not related to the funding freeze.[192] Nonprofit organizations reported being unable to enter federal government systems to receive federal funds.[191] The OMB released an additional statement declaring several programs (Medicaid, SNAP, "funds for small businesses, farmers, Pell grants, Head Start, rental assistance", student loans, and "any program that provides direct benefits to Americans") to be exempt from the federal funding freeze.[193][194] After several organizations sued, the OMB memo was blocked by United States District Judge Loren AliKhan before the freeze began, with the block to expire on February 3.[195]
On January 29, the OMB withdrew memo M-25-13, but White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that this did not nullify the federal funding freeze.[188] On February 1, after 22 states and the District of Columbia sued, District judge John J. McConnell Jr. ordered the Trump administration to temporarily stop the federal funding freeze in those states, as "no federal law would authorize the executive's unilateral action here".[196][197] McConnell took action after concluding that the withdrawal of the "wide-ranging, all-encompassing, and ambiguous" OMB memo was "in name-only and may have been issued simply to defeat the jurisdiction of the courts".[198][199] On February 10, McConnell cited the suing states as providing "evidence" that the Trump administration "in some cases have continued to improperly freeze federal funds and refused to resume disbursement of appropriated federal funds", causing "irreparable harm to a vast portion of this country"; hence McConnell ordered the Trump administration to "immediately restore frozen funding".[200]
Response to judges
After federal district judge Paul Engelmayer ruled in February 2025 to block DOGE from accessing United States Treasury payment systems, Trump responded that "no judge should, frankly, be allowed to make that kind of a decision", while Vance commented that "judges aren't allowed to control the executive's legitimate power."[201] After multiple federal judges ruled against the Trump administration's actions, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt in February 2025 denied that there was a "constitutional crisis taking place here at the White House", instead saying that the "judges are acting as judicial activists" and "the real constitutional crisis is taking place within our judicial branch."[202][203] Meanwhile, Musk proposed "an immediate wave of judicial impeachments".[204] In March 2025, when Judge William Alsup ordered the Trump administration to rehire probationary federal government employees they had fired, with Alsup stating that firings needed to follow a lawful process, Leavitt declared Alsup's decision to be "absurd and unconstitutional", as she stated: "If a federal district court judge would like executive powers, they can try and run for President themselves."[181]
Deportation of Venezuelans under the Alien Enemies Act
On March 15, 2025, the American Civil Liberties Union and Democracy Forward filed suit against the Trump administration in anticipation of Trump invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which Trump did later the same day.[205] Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a temporary restraining order that any foreigners in the Trump administration's custody could not be deported under the act, pending further judicial rulings in the legal case. Boasberg also made the verbal order: "Any plane containing these folks that is going to take off or is in the air needs to be returned to the United States".[206] Despite Boasberg's order, the Trump administration used three planes to deport around 250 people, alleged to be Venezuelan gang members, to El Salvador.[207] Amnesty International USA has stated that these flights are "yet another example of the Trump administration's racist targeting" of Venezuelans "based on sweeping claims of gang affiliation".[208]
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated, "The administration did not 'refuse to comply' with a court order."[208] Leavitt expressed doubts about "whether a verbal order carries the same weight as a written order", while the Trump administration argued in court that "an oral directive is not enforceable as an injunction".[209] The Trump administration also stated that plane was already airborne and outside United States airspace.[208] Trump's border czar Tom Homan said that the Trump administration completed the deportations despite the court order because Boasberg's order was made when the planes were above international waters after departing the United States; Homan also declared regarding deportations: "Another flight every day. ... We are not stopping. I don't care what the judges think."[210] White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Boasberg's order "had no lawful basis ... A single judge in a single city cannot direct the movements of an aircraft carrier [commercial jet] full of foreign alien terrorists who were physically expelled from U.S. soil."[207]
Judge Boasberg gave the Trump administration until March 18 to provide details of the timing of the flights. He stated he would not issue another ruling until a hearing scheduled for March 21.[208] Trump criticized Boasberg as "crooked" and called for him to be impeached, leading John Roberts, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, to rebuke Trump, saying "impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision".[211] Attorney General Pam Bondi said on March 19 regarding Boasberg: "this judge has no right to ask those questions" regarding details about the deportation flights, and has "no power" to order the Trump administration to stop the deportation flights, as Bondi declared that judges are "meddling in our government".[212] The family of one deported man stated he had been a tattoo artist for 10 years and was not a gang member. The families of five other deported persons made similar claims.[213] In a 5–4 decision issued on April 7, in a case pertaining to alleged Venezuelan members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration may deport persons under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. However, persons who are detained must be provided notice "within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief."[214]
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Health
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On November 14, Trump announced that he would nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Health and Human Services Secretary. This was controversial given Kennedy's repeated endorsement of anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, with the director of the American Public Health Association stating that Kennedy "already caused great damage in health in the country" and that he is also "a person without a health background".[215] In December, Trump revealed he was discussing ending childhood vaccination programs with Kennedy and promoted the scientifically debunked claim of a link between vaccines and autism.[216] After January 20, 2025, the Trump administration ordered a freeze on all communications and reports from HHS and sub-agencies, unless approved by a political appointee.[217] On January 22, DHS announced that ICE would start arresting illegal immigrants in hospitals, if necessary.[218]
On February 18, Trump signed an executive order, that called for the policy recommendations for reducing the out-of-pocket costs of IVF, or In Vitro Fertilisation, and recommendations on removing any legislation that "exacerbate" the costs.[8][219] A fact sheet published by the White House also stated that the administration was going to look into expanding health care coverage for IVF.[220] On February 25, Trump signed an executive order to improve healthcare cost transparency.[221]
By late April, the Trump administration had placed on leave and then temporarily rehired federal employees in the NIOSH, or National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, who had been involved in monitoring for black lung disease. The employees are rehired through June. The administration plans to instead run the black lung surveillance program out of a new bureau called the Administration for a Healthy America.[222]
On June 9, Kennedy fired all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices. He claimed that it had "become little more than a rubber stamp for any vaccine." Senator Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), who is a medical doctor, said "now the fear is that the ACIP will be filled up with people who know nothing about vaccines except suspicion." These firings came before a scheduled June 25 meeting in which the committee was expected to issue new recommendations for vaccines including COVID-19.[223][224]
In January 2025, it was reported that a CDC official had ordered all CDC staff to stop working with WHO, or World Health Organization.[225] Around January 31, 2025, several CDC websites, pages, and datasets related to HIV and STI prevention, LGBT and youth health became unavailable for viewing.[226][227] Shortly thereafter, the CDC ordered its scientists to retract or pause the publication of all research which had been submitted or accepted for publication, but not yet published, which included any of the following banned terms: "Gender, transgender, pregnant person, pregnant people, LGBT, transsexual, non-binary, nonbinary, assigned male at birth, assigned female at birth, biologically male, biologically female."[228]
Also in January 2025, due to a pause in communications imposed by the second Trump administration at federal health agencies, publication of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) was halted, the first time that had happened since its inception in 1960. The pause in communications also caused the cancellation of a meeting between the CDC and IDSA about threats to public health regarding the H5N1 influenza virus.[229]
On February 14, 2025, around 1,300 CDC employees were laid off by the administration, which included all first-year officers of the Epidemic Intelligence Service.[230] The cuts also terminated 16 of the 24 Laboratory Leadership Service program fellows, a program designed for early-career lab scientists to address laboratory testing shortcomings of the CDC.[231] In the following month, the Trump administration quietly withdrew its CDC director nominee, Dave Weldon, just minutes before his scheduled Senate confirmation hearing on March 13.[232]
In April 2025, it was reported that among the reductions is the elimination of the Freedom of Information Act team, the Division of Violence Prevention, laboratories involved in testing for antibiotic resistance, and the team responsible for determining recalls of hazardous infant products.[233] Additional cuts affect the technology branch of the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics, which was established during the COVID-19 pandemic.[233]
On June 25, 2025, Kennedy announced that the U.S. was stopping its donations to the Gavi vaccine alliance, until Gavi can better demonstrate vaccine safety.[234][235] The United States had been providing approximately 13 percent of Gavi’s budget.[236]
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Immigration
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Trump has indicated intent to expand and revive immigration policies imposed during his first presidency, including a travel ban on Muslims, expulsion of asylum seekers by asserting that they carry infectious diseases, deputization of police officers and soldiers to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement in mass deportations, and establishment of sprawling detention camps, according to The New York Times.[237] After his win, Trump said "there is no price tag" to carry out these deportations.[238] On November 10, 2024, Trump announced that Tom Homan would be joining the incoming administration as the "border czar",[239] writing that "Homan will be in charge of all deportation of illegal aliens back to their country of origin."[240] While border crossings reached record highs during the first half of the Biden presidency, they reached lower levels near the end of his term and continued into Trump's second presidency.[241]
Shortly after he became president on January 20, 2025, the Trump administration ended services for the app of CBP One and reinstated the national emergency at the southern border and reordered the armed forces to draft plans for deployment,[242][243] and declared actions to move towards labeling Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations.[244] Trump increased deportation authorities for the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Marshals Service.[245] He gave ICE the power to deport immigrants who came to the United States legally under Biden administration programs,[246] and established daily deportation quotas to ICE offices.[247] Trump also signed an executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship for children of unauthorized immigrants as well as immigrants legally but temporarily present in the United States. At least nine lawsuits have been filed challenged the order on constitutional grounds, and as of February 2025[update], four federal judges have issued preliminary injunctions blocking its implementation and enforcement nationwide.[248][249][250]
On January 22, Trump revoked guidance from 2011 prohibiting immigration arrests in sensitive areas such as courthouses, schools, churches, and hospitals, or during funerals and weddings.[251] NPR reported that a "growing number" of Democrat and Republican officials in cities, states, police departments, school districts and other local governments stated they would not assist in migrant raids citing public safety, civil rights, and administrative capability concerns.[252] On January 29, Trump signed the Laken Riley Act into law, the first legislation of his second term.[253][254] On the same day, he signed a presidential memorandum to begin expansion of the Guantanamo Migrant Operations Center to house up to 30,000 migrants under detention, separate from the high security military prison at Guantanamo Bay. On February 6, U.S. Border Patrol chief Michael W. Banks claimed that illegal border crossings were already down almost 90% since Trump's inauguration, and that criminal prosecutions of those apprehended were up more than 50%.[255] On February 25, Trump announced that the US would launch "Gold Card" residency permits for wealthy immigrants for a price of US$5 million, with an estimated release near the end of March 2025.[256] Trump deported 37,660 people during his first month in office.[257]
In response to injunctions countering his deportations, Trump considered suspending habeas corpus.[258] Stephen Miller in May 2025 said regarding immigration cases that "habeas corpus can be suspended in a time of invasion", and that the Trump administration was "actively looking at" carrying out such a suspension, depending on "whether the courts do the right thing or not"; Article One of the United States Constitution forbids such a suspension "unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it."[259]
On July 10, the Department of Health and Human Services announced they would be restricting undocumented immigrants from enrolling for Head Start, a federally funded U.S. preschool program.[260]
Honduran mother deported with two American children
On April 25, 2025, a Honduran mother was deported with her two American children. The Department of Homeland Security says she was given a choice whether to take her children, including a 4-year-old boy being treated for kidney cancer. However, her advocates state that she was denied contact with her family and lawyer in the days she was in detention pre-deportation. She had been arrested and released in February for speeding, driving without insurance, and driving without a license.[261] The administration's border czar Tom Homan said, "We're keeping families together. What we did was remove children with their mothers who requested the children depart with them. There's a parental decision." However, a judge involved in the case said he had "strong suspicion" that the youngest child at age 2 had been sent out of the country with "no meaningful process".[262]
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LGBTQ rights
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In his 2024 campaign, Trump detailed a range of proposals aimed at reversing recent LGBTQ-related policies and reshaping federal guidelines on gender identity and transgender rights. He stated that on "day one", he would reverse the Biden administration's Title IX expansion, which protects transgender students' rights to use bathrooms, locker rooms, and pronouns that align with their gender identity. He also pledged to cut federal funding to schools promoting "critical race theory, transgender insanity, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content".[263] His proposed policies would significantly limit gender-affirming care, including calling for a federal ban on such care for minors and blocking Medicare and Medicaid funding for doctors providing gender-affirming services. Trump also proposed forbidding federal agencies from "promoting" gender transitions and plans to task the Justice Department with investigating potential long-term effects of gender-affirming treatments.[264]
In his inauguration speech, Trump stated "it will be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female".[265] Later that day, he issued the first LGBTQ-related executive order of his second term.
Trump signed orders including:
- On January 20, "Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government" defined sex as binary. It does not include any exceptions for intersex people for whom a sex may not be clearly assigned at birth immediately.[266][267][268] As a consequence of the order:
- The State Department froze all applications for US passports with the non-binary 'X' marker and announced that passports would only reflect a person's sex assigned at birth.[269]
- Federal employees were ordered to adjust their email signatures to cease listing personal pronouns aligned with their gender identity.[270]
- In February, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission moved to dismiss six of its own pending cases alleging gender identity discrimination.[271]
- On January 27, "Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness" rescinded inclusion of transgender members of the US military.[272][273][274] (On March 27, however, a district court issued a preliminary injunction.)[275]
- On January 28, "Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation" threatened the federal funding of any medical institution that provides gender-affirming care for a person under 19.[276] (On February 13, however, a judge blocked it.)[277]
- On January 29, "Ending Radical Indoctrination in K–12 Schooling" threatened the federal funding of any school that recognizes a child's gender transition, including name or pronoun changes.[278]
- On February 5, "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" attempted to ban transgender women and girl athletes from participating in women's and girls' sports.[279]
- On February 6, "Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias" referred to certain recognitions of sexual orientation and gender identity as examples of "anti-Christian government".[280]
- On March 14, "Additional Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions" rescinded Biden's 2021 "Memorandum on Advancing the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Persons Around the World". In that memo, Biden had pledged the US to "pursue an end to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics" and "lead by the power of our example in the cause of advancing the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons around the world."[281]
- On March 20, "Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities" ordered organizations funded by the Department of Education to comply with Trump's policies, including by ending DEI or any "programs promoting gender ideology".[282]
- On March 25, "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections" imposed new requirements to prove identity when registering to vote. The required forms of identification contain gender markers, which had become increasingly difficult or impossible to change following Trump's original order on the topic (January 20, "Defending Women").[283] However, on June 13, a federal district judge blocked the March 25 order from taking effect.[284]
Trump ordered all DEI programs shut down by January 22, placed all employees of such programs on immediate leave, and demanded federal employees report on their colleagues attempting to "disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language".[285] Trump rescinded Executive Order 11246 signed by former president Lyndon Johnson forbidding employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion and national origin, and establishing affirmative action.[286] He attempted to impose more restrictive "red state" social policies onto "blue states" by threatening to cut off federal funding in what was described as an escalation of a culture war.[287]
On May 4, the New York Times reported that nearly half of the 669 grants "canceled in whole or in part" by the NIH had been related to LGBTQ health, amounting to the cancellation of "more than $800 million worth of research into the health of L.G.B.T.Q. people", including dozens of HIV studies.[288]
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Military
In November 2024, Trump's transition team was reportedly compiling a list of military officials involved in the withdrawal from Afghanistan, and investigating whether they could be court-martialed. They were also considering creating a commission to investigate the withdrawal, including whether some officials could be eligible for treason.[289] During his campaign, Trump promised to use the military on American soil to fight "the enemy from within" which he described as "radical left lunatics" and Democratic politicians such as Adam Schiff.[290][291] Upon taking office, Trump was described as politicizing the military and introducing culture war topics.[292] Charles Q. Brown Jr., who was originally nominated by Trump, became the first African American to lead a branch of the United States Armed Forces.[293] Trump abruptly dismissed Brown as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on February 21, 2025.[294] Trump subsequently announced that Brown would be replaced with John D. Caine.[295][296]
Religion
Trump's 2024 presidential campaign took on the symbols, rhetoric and agenda of Christian nationalism.[297] He wove Christian religious imagery into his ideology, characterizing it as a "righteous crusade" against "atheists, globalists and the Marxists".[298] Trump has been critical of what he has characterized as a persecution of Christians.[299] On February 6, following the National Prayer Breakfast, he signed an executive order to create a task force to "immediately halt all forms of anti-Christian targeting and discrimination within the federal government, including at the DOJ, which was absolutely terrible, the IRS, the FBI — terrible — and other agencies."[300][301] Trump appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead the task force and appointed Paula White to direct the White House Faith Office.[299]
Science
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Perspective
In response to executive orders, there were freezes in scientific funding and purges of data related to LGBTQ issues, gender, climate change, and racial diversity.[302][303] There were also mass firings across federal scientific agencies. The National Science Foundation (NSF) ceased paying out grants to researchers.[304] After a court order on February 2, the NSF funds were unfrozen.[305] On February 4, 2025, the NSF announced that it would lay off 25% to 50% of its workforce.[306]
The Trump administration ordered a suspension of National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant funding on January 27.[307] The order was blocked by courts after legal challenges but continued when the government exploited a loophole in which they refused to publish the agency's meeting plans in the Federal Register.[307] The NIH announced on February 7 that it would cap support for indirect costs in grants to institutions at 15% of a grant's value.[308] Indirect costs cover expenses that are not directly related to research but are necessary to support it, such as rent for facilities, utilities like heat and electricity, or janitorial and administrative staff.[309][310] Indirect costs typically range from 30% to 70%, and the cuts represent "tens to hundreds of millions of dollars" in lost funding for research institutes.[310] In response, 22 state attorneys general filed a lawsuit and the cuts were paused on February 10.[311] The cuts have led to universities pausing or reducing admissions for graduate biomedical research and medical school programs and hiring of postdoctoral researchers.[312][313] Reports in mid-March stated that the NIH was expected to fire 3,400 to 5,000 people from its 20,000 person workforce.[314]
The Center for Disease Control's (CDC) social vulnerability index and environmental justice index, which measured disparities in health risks, were removed from the organization's website, and on January 31, the data portal was taken completely offline in response to Executive Order 14168, which mandated that federal agencies use "sex" instead of "gender" and that they only recognize male and female sexes.[302] Census web pages about sexual identity and orientation were taken offline, and CDC pages about HIV and LGBTQ+ youth also disappeared.[315] About 750 CDC employees were fired over the weekend of February 15 with leadership stating that 10% (1,300) would be notified of their termination.[316] The Food and Drug Administration purged online material on clinical trial diversity that encouraged drug developers to test the effects of medical treatments on different populations.[317] After a court order, many web pages were restored. The administration added a disclaimer to the restored websites that notes the administrations opposition to what it terms "gender ideology", claiming it is "inaccurate".[318]
Layoffs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began on February 27, 2025, when 880 employees (approximately 5% of the organization) were fired.[319] In some cases, the government attempted to rehire scientists. Members of the technical staff at the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration, which oversees the nuclear arsenal, were fired on February 13; attempts to contact them for rehiring failed because their emails had been disconnected.[311][320] The Department of Agriculture fired several scientists working on the ongoing avian flu outbreak over the same weekend and attempted to rehire them.[321] Members of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service were told their positions were eliminated, but the decision was reversed after an outcry.[320]
Social Security
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Perspective
On March 18, 2025, the Social Security Administration said that they would be implementing tighter identity verification requirements starting March 31.[322][323] On March 26, the implementation date was pushed to April 14. The policy requires individuals to appear in-person at a field office when applying for retirement benefits, survivors benefits, or auxiliary benefits if they are unable to apply online, removing the option to verify identity by telephone.[324] Applications for SSDI, Medicare, or SSI are exempted from in-person verification requirements, along with benefits applicants subject to extreme situations "such as terminal cases or prisoner pre-release scenarios."[324] This new policy comes at a time the Trump administration is closing some field offices and laying off some Social Security employees.[325]
In late March, Wired reported that DOGE is putting together a team to migrate the Social Security base code from COBOL to a more modern programming language, with the goal of achieving this in a matter of months, whereas most experts say it should take several years to do and test this safely.[326][327] It was reported in mid-April that the Trump administration had placed on the "Master Death File", renamed the "Master Ineligible File", more 6,000 legal immigrants whom officials claimed were either on a terrorism watch list or had an FBI criminal record. However, the White House did not provide evidence for this claim.[328]
In late April, District Judge Ellen Hollander halted DOGE access to individual Social Security records citing privacy law. The Appeals Court for the 4th Circuit decided not to lift this injunction. In early May, the Trump administration appealed this case to the Supreme Court.[329]
Social Security will "clawback" money from a disabled or retired person's monthly payments in cases in which overpayments are discovered. Overpayments can either be the fault of Social Security or of the recipient, for example, a person on SSDI disability not reporting monthly work income over a certain amount. The Biden administration had capped the clawback rate at 10%, but this expired on March 27, 2025, and the clawback rate reverted to 100%. On April 25, the Trump administration reduced this clawback rate to 50%.[330]
See also
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References
Notes
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