Since Trump first took office on Jan. 20, he has signed a whopping 83 executive orders to implement the many promises he made during his campaign. Though not directly listed in the Constitution as a power of the president, executive orders have been an interpretation of the informal powers since George Washington wrote the first one in 1789. No law or article in the Constitution sets a limit on how many a president can write.
In Nov. of 2024, the American people sent a clear message: they are fed up with the progressive policies of the Democratic party and are ready for a president who will lead with common sense. For Trump to deliver on these promises to the American people he had to bypass the tedious system of Congress for the time being by signing these orders, many of which shouldn’t be partisan issues such as keeping our borders secure, slowing the flow of opioids into the country, and declassifying information on the assassinations of the Kennedys and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Even some of his orders that have gained pushback have benefited and protected millions of citizens across the country ,such as his order on Feb. 5 to keep biological men out of women’s sports.
Other than his executive orders, Trump has also been delivering certain promises by using his power to create agencies and appoint heads to them. A notable example is the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) run by Elon Musk. Although many look at Musk as someone who was hired purely for his contributions to Trump’s campaign, it is important to note that Musk is a businessman. Trump clearly knew what he was doing when he appointed the CEO of a billion-dollar company to rid the government of waste. In doing so, Trump has ended the useless spending of taxpayer dollars going towards programs such as Sesame Street in Iraq.
It’s important to remember that there are checks and balances in place to prevent presidents from abusing their power, just as there are with every branch of government. For example, when Trump attempted to end birthright citizenship, it was shut down by the courts for being unconstitutional. The government and the courts are full of people who would leap at the chance to shut down an order put in place by Trump. But since only nine of his 83 orders are even under judicial review, it proves that a majority of his orders are perfectly constitutional and within the law.
Trump has been entrusted with this immense power by the people. They trusted him enough to make the right decisions in hard times and to truly “Make America Great Again.” By no means has Trump abused that power by implementing these executive orders. He is simply giving the voters what they asked for when they voted for him: a safe and functional country.
