Tracking Trump's executive actions by category
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President Trump has signed more than 75 executive orders, memos and proclamations during his first few weeks in office at a pace that surpasses his most recent predecessors'.
The big picture: The executive actions reflect much of Trump's rhetoric on the campaign trail: reducing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives; cracking down on immigration; and formalizing "America First" foreign policy.
- Trump's executive actions — many of which have direct links to Project 2025 — have already had far-reaching impacts, triggering a rapid shakeup of the federal bureaucracy.
- Earlier this month, his administration froze humanitarian programs across the globe by empowering the new Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency to take control and make cuts.
- The orders Axios has identified and grouped illuminate how the Trump administration is carrying out its agenda, though his actions have raised constitutional questions about the reach of his authority that courts will now weigh in on.
What they're saying: "President Trump has taken bold action to fulfill the promises that earned him a resounding mandate from the American people," spokesperson Harrison Fields told Axios in an emailed statement.
- "With every decision, President Trump is putting Americans first – and he's just getting started," he added.
Here are some of the most notable categories:
Foreign policy
Trump's foreign policy approach in his early days in office centered around tariff threats, shirking international agreements and bringing much foreign aid to a halt.
- Critics say his foreign policy approach may leave a vacuum for U.S. adversaries as Trump touts his "America First" agenda.
- Much of his dealmaking diplomacy has been done through threats of tariffs, a favorite tool of Trump's that economists warn could be passed on to U.S. consumers.
What we're watching: Trump has also floated expansionist ideas like making Canada a state, a "take over" of Gaza, and seizing control of Greenland and the Panama Canal.
DEI
Trump issued a sweeping executive order revoking decades of federal diversity and affirmative action practices.
- While the order makes a commitment to equality, it scraps the federal government's historical approaches to root out discrimination and guarantee equal opportunity, particularly among the federal contractors that employ about 3.7 million people.
- It mandates that federal agencies identify companies, foundations and schools that have diversity programs, and target them for civil enforcement actions.
Trans rights
Trump has moved to radically reshaping trans people's rights in the U.S, from sports to accessing gender-affirming health care and joining the military.
- He declared on Day 1 in office that the federal government would only recognize two sexes, male and female.
- He later signed an executive order banning federal funding or support for youth gender-affirming care for those under 19 and a separate an executive order banning trans women and girls from participating in female sports in federally-funded schools.
Immigration/national security
Trump pledged to curtail immigration and has declared an emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, vowing to deploy troops to the region, including the National Guard.
- He instructed the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to construct additional border barriers.
- Trump reinstated the "Remain in Mexico" policy, which ends a program that released asylum seekers into the U.S. while their cases were considered.
- He took aim at ending "birthright citizenship" for those born to undocumented immigrants, which quickly got ensnared in the courts.
Reshaping federal government
The Trump administration has swept through the federal bureaucracy during his first three weeks in office, eliminating DEI offices, reshaping the federal workforce and obstructing the flow of funding.
- In a day one executive order, Trump reinstated a policy that could strip protections from from thousands of civil servants, effectively bringing back his controversial first-term Schedule F employment category.
- He established his Department of Government Efficiency, an unofficial Elon Musk-led body that sought the disbanding of the U.S. Agency for International Development, slashing the workforce of the government's lead humanitarian aid arm.
- Trump also ordered federal employees to return to in-office work and mandated a hiring freeze on all executive branch positions, excluding the military and other categories like national security, public safety and immigration enforcement.
- He also signed an executive order asserting presidential authority over boards and commissions meant to operate largely independently from the White House, like the like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Energy/climate
Trump on Day 1 declared a national "energy emergency" and has moved to walk back a number of Biden-era regulations and made good on his promise to "drill, baby, drill" with orders aimed at expanding fossil fuel production
- He repealed the Biden administration's Justice 40 Initiative and federal procurement targets for EVs, clean energy and more.
- He's walked back EPA tailpipe emissions rules and moved to restart liquified natural gas terminal approvals.
Finance/technology
Trump revoked former President Biden's artificial intelligence guardrails and has since signed executive orders aimed at bolstering the country's competitiveness in AI and tech.
- His early actions, such as his executive order establishing a working group on digital asset markets, have also signaled a friendly approach to crypto.
Declaring holidays/months
On day one, Trump ordered the American flag be flown at full-staff every Inauguration Day. After the death of former President Jimmy Carter in January, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and some Republican governors ordered half-staff flags to be raised for Trump's inauguration.
- He also declared February as American Heart Month and as Career and Technical Education Month.
- He also recognized February 9, 2025, as the first ever Gulf of America Day after renaming the body of water from Gulf Of Mexico.
Reality check: The U.S. does not exclusively control the gulf and doesn't have full say over what it's called.
Other
- Trump signed an order to declassify files related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. in the name of "transparency and truth."
- He also issued an order aimed at expanding access to in vitro fertilization, calling for his domestic policy assistant to make recommendations to reduce out-of-pocket and health plan costs for IVF.
What we're watching: The Trump administration has flooded the zone with a flurry of sweeping actions, some of which have been blocked by courts across the country.
- He's stretched — and in some cases, seemingly overstepped — the barriers of executive authority. While Democrats have chided some steps as unlawful, the MAGA majority on Capitol Hill keeps blowing wind in Trump's sails.
- But Trump does not seem intent on slowing down, with his barrage of executive actions piling up through his first three weeks in office.
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