Opinion – In 230 Executive Orders, Trump Has Reshaped America – The New York Times

Opinion

Drafting A New America

Photographs and Text
by Taryn Simon

In his first year back in office, Mr. Trump put his signature on more presidential directives than he did in his entire first term. On the first day of his second term, at the Capitol and before a crowd of cheering supporters, he set the agenda for his incoming administration, issuing executive orders, proclamations and memorandums that mirrored the talking points of his campaign: identifying government waste, ending D.E.I. programs and birthright citizenship, restoring TikTok, pardoning Jan. 6 protesters and defending the American flag. 

These orders are at the center of Mr. Trump’s presidency. He often gives his own custom pens to people who witness him signing the documents. On Inauguration Day in 2025, he spontaneously threw pens to his audience. 

After turning a spotlight on the 2024 election, the photographer Taryn Simon has trained her focus on the significant details and intended outcomes of the documents that bear Mr. Trump’s name.

“Executive orders are a privileged override switch accelerating change without any legislative intervention,” she said. “One by one, in a carousel of documents, a nation is pointed in a new direction.”

Executive Order 14347

Restoring the United States
Department of War

George Washington established the Department of War in 1789. It was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949 following a reorganization by President Harry S. Truman. 

Almost two months after Mr. Trump returned to office, Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense, conducted a poll on X to gauge public support for changing the name back to the Department of War. The Department of War received more votes.

At the signing by Mr. Trump, Mr. Hegseth said, “This name change is not just about renaming. It’s about restoring. Words matter.” 

While waiting for approval from Congress for the change, the gift shop at the Pentagon is already selling merchandise with Department of War branding, including a glass tumbler.

 Editor’s Note: Read online is best, a long but valuable listing with images. These are the non-Congress, non-approved by anyone, changes Trump has made so far. Altered the fabric of American society, and Democracy, and weakened both. –DrWeb

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