Executive Orders | National Security, Law Enforcement, & Defense
Inauguration Day Executive Orders by President Trump
In a previous article here on Substack we reviewed the 46 Executive Orders published on whitehouse.gov in each of our 12 categories, with links to the actual legal description on Whitehouse website. In this 12 part series, we’re going to break down each category in writing and link the audio files specifically for each EO.
Our first article in the series is on the National Security, Law Enforcement, & Defense category. Below is each EO in this category, links again to the whitehouse.gov official post, and our AI assisted explanation for those of us that don’t clearly understand the legal language of these EO’s.
The executive order titled "Guaranteeing the States Protection Against Invasion" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, essentially addresses the situation at the U.S. southern border by labeling it an "invasion" under Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution.
Invasion Declaration: The order declares that the current situation at the southern border constitutes an "invasion." This is significant because it leverages the constitutional clause that requires the federal government to protect states from invasion.
Suspension of Entry: The President uses his authority to suspend the physical entry of individuals (referred to as "aliens" in legal terms) who are considered part of this "invasion" into the United States across the southern border. This means that people trying to cross the border illegally would be turned away until the President declares the situation resolved.
Asylum Restrictions: It also restricts these individuals from invoking certain rights under immigration law, notably the right to apply for asylum. Asylum seekers usually have the right to claim protection if they fear persecution, but this order suggests that those involved in the "invasion" would not be allowed to make such claims until the situation stabilizes.
Repatriation and Removal: The order directs the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with other departments like State and Justice, to take actions to repel, repatriate (send back), or remove those crossing the border illegally. This could involve immediate actions to prevent entry or to return individuals to their country of origin.
Legal and Constitutional Basis: The order cites both statutory (laws passed by Congress) and constitutional powers (especially those under Article II concerning the President's control over foreign affairs) to justify these actions.
Federal vs. State Sovereignty: It touches on the idea that states, by joining the Union, have agreed to federal protection against invasion, which this order aims to enforce more rigorously.
Implementation: The order ensures that actions taken will comply with existing laws and be subject to available funding, without creating new legal rights or benefits for individuals against the U.S. or its agencies.
This executive order reflects a policy of stringent border control, aiming to manage what is described as an invasion through legal, immediate, and potentially controversial measures.
The executive order titled "Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, aims to address the threat posed by drug cartels and similar criminal organizations through the following actions:
Redefining Threats: This order reclassifies certain drug cartels and potentially other criminal organizations as "Foreign Terrorist Organizations" (FTOs) and/or "Specially Designated Global Terrorists" (SDGTs). This redefinition allows the U.S. government to use counter-terrorism tools and laws against these groups.
Legal and Financial Consequences:
FTO Designation: Being listed as an FTO means that providing material support or resources to these groups becomes a criminal offense in the U.S. It also leads to restrictions on members' travel, bans on financial transactions with U.S. entities, and seizure of assets.
SDGT Designation: Similarly, individuals or entities designated as SDGTs face asset freezes, visa bans, and are subject to sanctions where U.S. persons or entities are prohibited from dealing with them.
Targets:
Cartels: Specifically mentions major Mexican drug cartels like Sinaloa, Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), and others, but also opens the possibility for other criminal organizations to be similarly designated if they pose a significant threat to U.S. national security or public health.
Other Organizations: The order allows for the inclusion of other types of criminal groups involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking, or other crimes that significantly impact U.S. interests.
Implementation:
The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury, is tasked with identifying, designating, and reviewing these organizations for such classifications.
There's an emphasis on using existing laws and frameworks like the Immigration and Nationality Act for FTOs and Executive Order 13224 for SDGTs.
Immediate Effect: The order directs immediate action to begin the process of these designations, ensuring the process is transparent, legally sound, and based on clear evidence of the organizations' activities.
Broader Implications: By treating these criminal organizations as terrorist groups, the U.S. can leverage a more robust set of legal and financial tools to disrupt their operations, funding, and influence, both domestically and internationally.
This executive order signifies a major policy shift in how the U.S. approaches drug cartels and organized crime, equating them with terrorist organizations in terms of legal repercussions and international relations. It's aimed at enhancing the U.S.'s ability to combat these groups by cutting off their financial lifelines and disrupting their operations through increased international cooperation and domestic enforcement.
The executive order titled "Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, aims to enhance national security by focusing on immigration and visa policies. Here's a breakdown in plain language:
Policy Goal: The main goal is to protect Americans from those who might threaten national security, public safety, or advocate for harmful ideologies through immigration.
Visa and Immigration Screening:
Enhanced Vetting: The order directs a significant increase in the scrutiny of individuals seeking to enter the U.S., ensuring they don't pose a threat. This includes re-establishing screening standards from January 19, 2021, suggesting a return to more stringent policies.
Suspension of Entry: It allows for temporary bans on entry from countries where vetting information is deemed insufficient to ensure security.
Identification of Threats: Agencies are tasked with identifying countries with inadequate vetting processes and recommending actions, including potentially suspending immigration from those nations.
Ideological Screening: There's an emphasis on ensuring that those entering the U.S. do not hold hostile views towards American culture, government, or principles, nor do they support terrorism or advocate for violence against the U.S.
First Amendment Rights: While aiming to protect national security, the order also stresses the importance of safeguarding constitutional rights like freedom of speech, but with a focus on preventing those who might use these freedoms to undermine American interests.
Assimilation: The order calls for evaluating how well immigrants are integrating into American society, promoting a unified national identity and attachment to U.S. laws and principles.
Immediate Actions: Within 60 days, key officials must submit a report on countries with vetting issues, potentially leading to policy changes or travel restrictions.
Implementation: The order mandates that these changes be made within legal bounds and with available resources, without creating new rights for legal challenges against the government.
This executive order essentially aims to tighten immigration controls, focusing on security, cultural integration, and the ideological alignment of those entering the U.S., reflecting a policy of prioritizing American safety and values.
The executive order titled "Protecting the American People Against Invasion" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, focuses on immigration and border security with the following straightforward goals and actions:
Invasion Claim: The order declares that there's an "invasion" happening due to illegal immigration, using this as a basis to enforce stricter immigration laws.
Policy Objectives:
Enforce Immigration Laws: It aims to strictly enforce immigration laws against all individuals who are in the country illegally or are not admissible for entry.
Focus on Security Risks: Special attention is given to those who might pose a threat to American safety or security.
Specific Measures:
Revoke Previous Orders: It revokes executive orders from the previous administration that were seen as promoting or allowing illegal immigration.
Prosecution Priority: Directs the Attorney General to focus on prosecuting immigration-related crimes.
Sanctuary Cities: Cuts federal funding to cities or jurisdictions that do not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, known as "sanctuary jurisdictions."
Registration: There's a mandate for registering illegal immigrants, with non-compliance treated as a priority for enforcement.
Border Security: Establishes Homeland Security Task Forces in every state to enhance immigration law enforcement.
Resource Allocation: Reallocates resources towards creating more detention centers and enhancing deportation efforts.
Legal Authority: The order leverages the President's constitutional powers to protect national borders and enforce immigration laws, including using the term "invasion" to justify these actions.
Implementation: Agencies like Homeland Security, Justice, and State are directed to implement these policies, with an emphasis on immediate action.
General Provisions: Like other executive orders, it's to be implemented within legal boundaries and with available funding, without creating new legal rights for individuals against the government.
In essence, this order aims for a significant crackdown on illegal immigration by framing it as an invasion, thereby justifying aggressive enforcement measures, cutting funding for non-cooperative jurisdictions, and focusing on the removal or prosecution of those in the country illegally.
The executive order, Organization of the National Security Council and Subcommittees, signed by President Donald Trump on January 20, 2025, reorganizes the National Security Council (NSC) and its subcommittees. Here's a simplified explanation:
Purpose and Authority:
The order establishes how the National Security Council and its subcommittees will function under President Trump’s administration. It's based on his authority as President to make decisions on national security policy.
National Security Council (NSC):
The NSC is set as the primary body for advising the President on national security issues. It includes high-level officials like the Vice President, Secretaries of State, Defense, and others, with the President himself chairing the meetings. When the President can't attend, the Vice President might preside.
Homeland Security Council (HSC):
Similar to the NSC but specifically for homeland security matters. It operates under the same organizational guidelines as the NSC, with the President or, in his absence, the Vice President, leading meetings.
Role of the National Security Advisor:
This person is crucial in managing the NSC's agenda, ensuring documents are prepared for meetings, and communicating decisions. For HSC meetings, this role is assumed by the Homeland Security Advisor.
Subcommittees and Meetings:
The order outlines the formation of various subcommittees (like the Principals Committee, Deputies Committee) to handle specific aspects of national security policy more efficiently. These groups help coordinate and implement policy across different government agencies.
Membership and Attendance:
The NSC and HSC members are defined, but the order also allows for flexibility in attendance, inviting other government officials based on the topics discussed. This ensures relevant expertise is present.
Operational Directives:
It sets guidelines for how these councils work, including how meetings are run, how decisions are recorded, and how policies are implemented across government agencies. The National Security Advisor has significant leeway in organizing these operations.
Revocation and Superseding:
This new order revokes previous organizational directives on the NSC and HSC, ensuring that the current administration's policies and structure are followed.
In essence, this executive order is about streamlining and controlling how national security decisions are made, ensuring that they align with the President's priorities, and providing a clear structure for policy coordination across various federal departments and agencies.
The executive order titled "Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, deals with the reinstatement and expansion of the use of capital punishment under federal law. Here's how it breaks down in plain language:
Reinstatement of Death Penalty:
The order reverses any previous federal policies or moratoriums that limited or stopped the use of the death penalty, asserting that it's an essential tool for ensuring justice, deterring crime, and protecting public safety.
Expansion of Applicable Crimes:
It expands the list of federal crimes that can be punishable by death. This includes not only traditional offenses like murder but also potentially drug trafficking, terrorism, and crimes related to immigration enforcement (like illegal reentry by certain offenders).
Procedures and Oversight:
New Guidelines: The Attorney General is directed to develop new guidelines for how the death penalty should be applied, ensuring it's used fairly and consistently.
Review of Cases: There's an emphasis on reviewing cases where the death penalty could be applied, especially those involving heinous crimes against law enforcement or other significant public safety threats.
Federal Drug Offenses:
There's a specific focus on using the death penalty for drug-related homicides or when drug trafficking results in deaths, aiming to combat the opioid crisis and other drug-related deaths.
Public Safety Measures:
The order suggests that the threat of capital punishment can act as a deterrent to crime, protecting communities and law enforcement officers.
Legal and Implementation:
The President leverages his authority to direct the Department of Justice and other agencies to implement these changes. This includes revising regulations or policies that might have restricted the application of the death penalty.
The order must be implemented within the law, respecting existing legal frameworks and available funding, without creating new rights for individuals to legally challenge the government on this basis.
In essence, this executive order seeks to reinvigorate the use of the death penalty in the federal system, expanding its application to serve as a deterrent and a tool for public safety, especially in response to crimes seen as particularly egregious or threatening to national security and public order.
The executive order titled "Clarifying the Military's Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States" focuses on enhancing the military's role in border security.
Purpose: The order states that protecting U.S. borders is one of the President's most solemn duties, emphasizing the military's role in safeguarding the nation's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Key Actions:
New Mission for USNORTHCOM: Directs the Secretary of Defense to revise the Unified Command Plan to assign the U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) the mission of sealing the borders. This includes:
Repelling forms of invasion like unlawful mass migration, drug trafficking, human smuggling, and other criminal activities.
Ensuring steady-state security at the southern border.
National Emergency: Declares that a national emergency exists at the southern border due to unchecked illegal immigration and drug trafficking, justifying military involvement.
Military Deployment:
Orders the military to actively participate in border security, including potentially using the National Guard and other forces to support border operations.
Within 10 days, the Defense Secretary must provide a plan on how USNORTHCOM will carry out this new mission.
Continuous Assessment: Requires ongoing evaluations of strategies to protect U.S. territory from unlawful entries and threats to national sovereignty.
Policy:
Officially sets the policy that the U.S. military should prioritize the protection of U.S. borders, aligning this with national defense strategies.
Legal and Practical Considerations:
The order uses the President's authority under the Constitution and U.S. laws to direct these changes, ensuring they align with existing legal frameworks and are subject to available funding.
General Provisions:
It does not aim to impair existing authorities of departments or agencies but rather to enhance coordination and action under the emergency context.
In summary, this executive order significantly expands the military's role in domestic border security, framing illegal activities at the border as threats to national sovereignty, thereby justifying military action to seal and protect U.S. borders.
The executive order titled "Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States":
What is this Executive Order about? This Executive Order, signed by President Donald Trump, declares a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border. The aim is to address what Trump describes as an "invasion" affecting the safety and sovereignty of the United States.
Key Points:
National Emergency Declaration:
Trump declares that the situation at the southern border is an emergency, citing threats like illegal immigration, drug trafficking, human smuggling, and involvement of criminal gangs and cartels.
Military Involvement:
The order directs the Department of Defense to deploy military personnel, including the National Guard, to help secure the border. This includes support like logistics, transportation, and potentially using military forces to directly assist in border control activities.
Revocation of Previous Policies:
It revokes a previous order by the Biden administration that had ended a similar emergency declaration, thereby reversing policies aimed at reducing border wall construction and military involvement at the border.
Border Wall Construction:
The order authorizes further construction of physical barriers (border wall) along the southern border, with the military potentially involved in this process.
Operational Control:
There's a mandate for the Department of Homeland Security to gain "complete operational control" of the border, which includes stopping unauthorized crossings and managing the use of force to ensure the safety of American and military personnel.
Reporting and Strategy:
The Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security are required to report on actions taken and to develop strategies within a set timeframe, including potential recommendations for invoking additional laws like the Insurrection Act for further military deployment.
Legal and Environmental Considerations:
While the order emphasizes immediate action, it also touches on the need to comply with existing laws, including environmental regulations, although there's an implication that these might be less restrictive under emergency conditions.
Humanitarian and Security Concerns:
Trump's language in the order frames immigration as an "invasion," highlighting security threats, drug overdoses, and criminal activities, suggesting these justify the emergency measures.
Implications:
This order allows for bypassing some normal legislative processes to fund and enact border security measures quickly.
It signals a significant policy shift towards more aggressive border enforcement, potentially facing legal challenges due to its use of emergency powers.
There could be implications for civil liberties, environmental concerns, and international relations, especially with Mexico.
This executive action reflects Trump's campaign promises and his administration's approach to immigration, aiming to strengthen border control through military means and construction projects. However, it could also lead to debates on the legality and ethics of such emergency declarations.
The executive order titled "Securing Our Borders" issued by President Donald J. Trump on January 20, 2025, focuses on tightening border security, particularly along the southern border with Mexico.
Purpose: The order aims to address what it describes as a "large-scale invasion" at the U.S. border, citing illegal immigration, drugs, potential terrorists, and other criminal elements as threats.
Key Actions:
Border Wall: Directs the continuation and completion of physical barriers like the border wall to prevent illegal crossings.
Detention and Removal: Enhances policies for detaining apprehended individuals and speeds up their removal from the U.S. if they've entered illegally.
End Parole Programs: Terminates programs that allowed for the parole or release of migrants into the U.S. while their cases were processed, notably mentioning the cessation of using the "CBP One" app for this purpose.
Migrant Protection Protocols: Resumes policies where migrants would have to wait in Mexico while their asylum cases are adjudicated in the U.S., rather than being allowed to enter the U.S. during this process.
Military Involvement:
Authorizes the military to assist in border security efforts, including deploying armed troops and the National Guard to the border.
Policy Shifts:
Ends "catch and release," where migrants are released into the U.S. with a court date, instead focusing on immediate detention or repatriation.
Revokes previous executive orders seen as encouraging illegal immigration or weakening border security.
Legal and Financial Aspects:
Directs agencies to use existing laws and funding to implement these measures without delay.
The order must be implemented within legal bounds and subject to available funding, not creating new rights for legal action against the government.
Additional Measures:
Within 14 days, key officials must recommend further actions to secure the border, showing a push for rapid policy changes.
In essence, this executive order is a comprehensive approach to enhance border security by physical, legal, and policy means. It aims to drastically reduce illegal entries, increase detentions and deportations, and involve the military in border protection efforts, reflecting a hardline stance on immigration control.
That’s it for the category National Security, Law Enforcement, & Defense. We’ll create another post in the coming weeks to review what other Executive Orders or Presidential Actions the Executive Branch of our government has made or will make in the first 30 days of this administration.