The president on his first day in office rescinded nearly 80 executive orders and memoranda issued by President Joe Biden.
President Donald Trump has revoked 19 additional executive orders and actions issued by his predecessor.
The White House on March 14 released the
list of Biden-era actions that Trump has rolled back.
“I have determined that the following additional rescissions are necessary to advance the policy of the United States to restore common sense to the Federal Government and unleash the potential of American citizens,” Trump’s
order states.
The president on his first day in office
rescinded nearly 80 executive orders and memoranda issued by former President Joe Biden.
Trump’s latest action reverses Biden’s 2021 executive
order that raised the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 per hour. According to Biden, the order promoted efficiency in the federal government.
By contrast, Trump has worked to pare down the federal workforce as part of his efforts to cut government waste. Trump established the Department of Government Efficiency, a special commission and advisory panel, vowing to cut billions of dollars from the federal budget.
Trump also eliminated Biden’s use of the Defense Production Act, which he said the former president had invoked to push his energy transition agenda, including the addition of mandates for electric heat pumps and solar panels.
In June 2022, Biden invoked the Defense Production Act to boost supplies to U.S. solar manufacturers and declared a two-year tariff exemption on solar panels from Southeast Asia as part of his climate agenda.
Trump also repealed Biden’s 2024 executive order aimed at improving labor standards. The “Good Jobs” executive
order promoted “strong labor standards such as family-sustaining wages, workplace safety, and the free and fair opportunity to join a union,” according to the Biden White House.
The White House stated that Biden’s actions forced “radical labor policies and apprenticeship mandates onto American businesses and government agencies.”
Trump also removed Biden’s directive to prioritize union-driven policies that imposed unnecessary regulations on industries.
The White House also revoked Biden’s executive order that “funneled federal resources into radical biotech and biomanufacturing initiatives under the guise of environmental policy.”
In September 2022, Biden signed the order to invest more government funds in the U.S. biotechnology industry. Biden launched the National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative with the intent of strengthening supply chains, improving health outcomes, and reducing carbon emissions, according to the Biden White House.
Trump also rescinded Biden’s executive action that “elevated radical gender ideology” in U.S. diplomacy and foreign aid. The president has worked to defend women from gender ideology, signing a day one executive
order recognizing only two sexes. He also signed another executive order protecting female athletes and banning men from participating in women’s sports.
Additionally, the president terminated Biden’s proclamations that established new national monuments across nearly 1 million acres of land. Trump said a vast amount of land is being “locked up” rather than being used for economic development and energy production.
The White House stated that Trump is fulfilling a campaign pledge to reverse the “disastrous policies” of the Biden administration and “put America back on a path to prosperity, security, and strength.”
“In just two months, Trump has rescinded more executive actions than the total number of executive orders President Biden signed in his entire first year,” the White House stated in a
post on the social media platform X.
Within hours of being sworn in for his second term, Trump
directed his staff to compile lists of additional executive actions, proclamations, and memoranda issued by the previous administration that should be rescinded.
When he signed his first executive orders, Trump said his actions were only the beginning of his efforts to undo his predecessor’s “disastrous” policies.
“The revocations within this order will be the first of many steps the United States Federal Government will take to repair our institutions and our economy,” the White House
stated at the time.
Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the year when President Joe Biden invoked the Defense Production Act. The Epoch Times regrets the error.
