The Great Comeback: How Donald Trump Made America Again… surprised (the main thing from the first decrees)

Donald Trump’s inauguration last night was arguably the biggest show since his own TV show, The Apprentice. Back at the White House, the 45th and 47th president of the United States wasted no time rocking out. His first decrees were intended to immediately remind of a unique approach to the leadership of the country: here is the exit from the Paris Agreement, and the pardon of the participants in the events of January 6, and even the correction of the position of the flags to solemnly say goodbye to Jimmy Carter … or rather, to raise them to the appropriate level in honor of the new president. It would even be interesting to watch it from a safe distance, say in the format of a series on Netflix. But reality, unfortunately, does not allow you to just watch and eat popcorn. It seems that America is once again on the threshold of the “Age of Trump” and the show for the whole world is just beginning.

Immediately after the inauguration, under the enthusiastic gaze of supporters, Trump signed a series of executive orders repealing 78 executive orders passed by the Biden administration.

End aid that harms America’s prosperity

President Donald Trump has already begun to make America “safer, stronger and more prosperous.” At least this is how he commented on the taboo on foreign aid of the United States, which does not agree with his foreign policy vision. Trump is one of the first signed executive order temporarily suspending US foreign aid programs for 90 days to assess their effectiveness and compliance with his foreign policy goals. According to it, all responsible agencies should immediately stop new commitments and payments under development programs.

It is currently unclear, he writes Reuters, which programs, countries, or organizations will be covered by the decision, as funding for many programs has already been approved by Congress. The move was not new, in fact it mirrored Trump’s approach during his first term, when he proposed major cuts to the diplomacy and aid budgets, which met with resistance from Congress.

It is currently unknown whether this decree will affect aid to Ukraine. Along with that Associated Press (AP News) writes that Donald Trump has long been opposed to foreign aid, although it usually makes up only about 1% of the federal budget, except for emergencies, such as, in particular, large-scale military support for Ukraine. It is known that he repeatedly criticized the significant amount of aid aimed at strengthening Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression.

Funding for various UN agencies, including peacekeeping, human rights and refugee organizations, has traditionally been a target of Republican administrations that have tried to reduce its funding. The US previously withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council, and as of March 2024, the United States can no longer fund the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

“We will drill, baby, drill”

Trump also signed a decree on the repeated withdrawal of the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement. This decision, as well as the first withdrawal from this agreement during the presidency in 2017, he justified by the need to preserve the energy independence of the United States, as well as protect the country’s economic interests.

It will be recalled that the Paris Agreement, concluded in 2015, is a key international agreement aimed at limiting global warming to a level of no more than 2°C compared to the pre-industrial period. It provides for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the development of renewable energy sources and international cooperation for adaptation to climate change.

Trump criticized this agreement, calling it “unfair” for the United States. He argues that the commitments in the deal restrict American companies, hurt industry and lead to job losses. In his opinion, participation in the Paris Agreement allows other countries, in particular China and India, to gain competitive advantages at the expense of lower environmental restrictions.

Returning to the agreement, initiated by the administration of Joe Biden in 2021, Trump considers a mistake that harmed the national interest. According to his vision, the US should focus on developing its own energy resources, such as oil, gas and coal, instead of depending on international agreements. Everyone remembers him expression, which went viral: “We will drill, baby, drill”.

However, Trump’s decision to withdraw from the agreement has drawn criticism both at home and abroad. Climate experts warn that the decision will complicate global efforts to curb climate change, as the US is one of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases. The economic implications are also up for debate, as a growing green energy market opens up opportunities for investment and job creation that the U.S. could lose by withdrawing from the deal.

With this decision, Trump continues his policy of national priority while provoking new discussions about the balance between economic development and the fight against climate change.

Exit from the WHO, which failed to cope with COVID-19

Trump made another odious exit. He signed executive order withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), citing its inadequate response to the COVID-19 pandemic and political bias. What is the fault of WHO? Trump accused the organization of “mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic that originated in Wuhan, China, and other global health crises.” It is also noted that the organization failed to carry out the necessary reforms and demonstrate independence from the political influence of member states.
Trump was also outraged by the fact that the WHO “continues to demand unfairly burdensome payments from the United States, which are significantly disproportionate to the accrued payments of other countries.” In particular, it is noted that China, with a population of 1.4 billion people, pays almost 90% less than the United States. What will be the next steps? The US Secretary of State shall immediately inform of the UN Secretary General, the relevant depositories and WHO management about the intention of the US to withdraw from the organization.
The decision could have major implications for the global health system, as the US is one of the WHO’s largest financial donors, and its withdrawal could affect funding for important programs such as the fight against tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and other emergencies. According to the data Political that’s hundreds of millions of dollars in funding. At the same time, experts note that the absence of the United States in the WHO can create a political vacuum that can be filled by another country, in particular China. Trump’s decision to withdraw from the WHO is part of his “America First” policy, which involves reducing US financial obligations to international institutions and abandoning agreements that he believes do not sufficiently benefit the United States.

Attack on migrants

After taking office, Trump promptly signed executive order suspending refugee and asylum programs, citing the need to strengthen immigration control and national security. According to the decree, are stopped all refugee and asylum programs, including those involving Afghans who have cooperated with US forces.
As written “Ukrainian Pravda”, the order canceled flights for nearly 1,660 Afghans who had been cleared to resettle in the U.S., including family members of active-duty U.S. military personnel.
Human rights organizations and veterans expressed concerns about the consequences of this decision, stressing that it could endanger the lives of those who cooperated with the US in Afghanistan.
The US government is expected to conduct a review of existing programs and procedures to ensure they meet new security and national interest requirements.
The decision is part of Trump’s broader policy to tighten immigration controls and ensure national security, which also includes withdrawing from the Paris climate accord and reversing other executive actions of the previous administration.

On the new website of the White House specifiedthat trump”temporarily halts refugee resettlement as local communities have been forced to host large and poorly adapted groups of migrants, creating security and resource challenges“.

The Democratic minority in the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives criticized this decision, saying in publications on X: “Republicans spent 4 years unfairly punishing Biden for “abandoning our Afghan allies.” But this is what abandonment looks like. Leaving tried and tested Afghan allies at the mercy of the Taliban is shameful…”

And a lot more shocking

What else did Trump manage to do on the first day of the second term of his presidency? Renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of Mexico, pardoned the 1,500 who stormed the Capitol, revoked birthright citizenship, reclassified federal employees as salaried employees so they could be fired more easily, created a policy that recognized only two articles, etc.

As we can see, Trump has not yet fulfilled the most important promise for Ukraine, although he joked that he still has half a day to fulfill it. It is significant that in the inaugural speech, Trump did not mention Ukraine once, instead he promised to stop wars started without the participation of the United States.