ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
This afternoon, it became official. President Trump was sworn into office, and he vowed to immediately get to work.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Today, I will sign a series of historic executive orders. With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense.
SHAPIRO: And tonight, he began to do that with a barrage of executive actions rolling back the policies of now former President Joe Biden. It's a dramatic move straight out of the gate reflecting Trump's desire to make the most of these first few critical months in office. NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordo帽ez is at the White House, Hi, Franco.
FRANCO ORDO脩EZ, BYLINE: Hey, Ari.
SHAPIRO: What do these first executive actions do?
ORDO脩EZ: Well, I mean, he really made a show of these first set of actions. I mean, he sat down at this small desk in the center of Capital One Arena, where he began to sign dozens of executive actions in front of thousands of supporters who were there for his indoor parade. He started off by launching a full-scale assault on Biden's legacy, revoking nearly 80 executive actions that were taken by the Biden administration.
He then drove to the White House, where he signed several more in the Oval Office. Those included pardons for 1,500 people related to the January 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. He also signed an order designating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. And he signed one creating the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, of course, led by Elon Musk.
SHAPIRO: So the big topic here is clearly immigration, which we'll talk about more in another part of the show. But what's the significance of him doing all of this today, right away?
ORDO脩EZ: Well, I mean, it really shows how far Trump is willing to go to make up for basically lost time and expand his presidential powers. I mean, he declared a national emergency on the border as well. And he also signed an order to end birthright citizenship for the children whose parents are here in the country without legal status. Some of these steps, like birthright citizenship, will no doubt face legal challenges.
SHAPIRO: Since it is, of course, protected by the Constitution. In his inaugural address, we heard him call for a revolution of common sense. What did he mean by that?
ORDO脩EZ: Yeah, I mean, that is how he describes his agenda. But when it comes to executive orders, he's really leaning into the culture wars that were a big part of his campaign.
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TRUMP: I will also end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life.
ORDO脩EZ: And he promised to roll back protections for transgender people. He's going to sign an executive order stating that it's policy for the U.S. to recognize two biologically distinct sexes, male and female. And an incoming White House official actually told us that the government will use these definitions for official documents like passports and employee records.
SHAPIRO: You've been talking about a lot of domestic agenda items. Are there foreign policy moves as well?
ORDO脩EZ: Yeah. I mean, a theme of the campaign has been about the U.S.' position in the world. Trump did say he still intends to put tariffs on Mexico and Canada, but is looking in February as a target date. He also promised an executive order that signals America's place as, quote, "the greatest, most respected nation on Earth."
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TRUMP: A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
SHAPIRO: He had some other name changes too. What happens now that he has signed these executive actions. Do they immediately take effect?
ORDO脩EZ: Well, I mean, some will take effect immediately. Others will face legal challenges. For example, you can expect a court challenge against Trump's plan to reclassify tens of thousands of federal workers so that they can basically be more easily fired and replaced with loyalists. Ari, no question there's a lot to be hashed out, but a lot of changes.
SHAPIRO: NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordo帽ez on Day 1 of the Trump presidency. Thank you.
ORDO脩EZ: Thank you, Ari. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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