If there’s one thing Donald Trump promised ahead of his second term as President of the United States, it was ruthless efficiency as it pertains to fulfilling the promises that got him elected.
As such, it can hardly come as a surprise that Trump – who was sworn in just two days ago, on Monday, January 20 – has already moved to sign into effect several executive orders.
The 78-year-old officially became the US’s 47th president earlier this week, having previously held the position between 2017 and 2021. And while much can be said regarding Trump’s policies and attitude towards… well, just about anything, no one can accuse him of resting on his laurels.
A whole host of executive orders – those which aren’t required to be approved by Congress – have already been signed, including one focusing on the death penalty.
Since the Biden administration took over from Trump in 2021, a moratorium on federal executions has been in place. Just three defendants remained on federal death row when former president Joe Biden converted 37 sentences to life in prison.
Yet in a new executive order, Trump blamed his predecessor for “commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 most vile and sadistic rapists, child molesters, and murderers on Federal death row: remorseless criminals who brutalized young children, strangled and drowned their victims, and hunted strangers for sport.”
The new order issued by Trump states that ‘capital punishment is an essential tool for deterring and punishing those who would commit the most heinous crimes and acts of lethal violence against American citizens’.
It’s worth remembering that during Trump’s first term in office (2017-2021) his administration carried out 13 federal executions – more than under any president in modern history.
Trump’s executive order
Trump’s new executive order on the death penalty reads: “Before, during, and after the founding of the United States, our cities, States, and country have continuously relied upon capital punishment as the ultimate deterrent and only proper punishment for the vilest crimes.
“Our Founders knew well that only capital punishment can bring justice and restore order in response to such evil. For this and other reasons, capital punishment continues to enjoy broad popular support.
“Yet for too long, politicians and judges who oppose capital punishment have defied and subverted the laws of our country.
“At every turn, they seek to thwart the execution of lawfully imposed capital sentences and choose to enforce their personal beliefs rather than the law.”
It continues: “The Government’s most solemn responsibility is to protect its citizens from abhorrent acts.
“And my Administration will not tolerate efforts to stymie and eviscerate the laws that authorize capital punishment against those who commit horrible acts of violence against American citizens.”
As per reports, the order also instructs that the Attorney General ‘shall take all necessary and lawful action to ensure that each state that allows capital punishment has a sufficient supply of drugs needed to carry out lethal injection’.
The deluge of executive orders signed by the new president also includes a policy recognizing only “two genders”, a policy to leave the World Health Organization, pardons for many of those involved in the insurrection at the Capitol in January, 2021, a move to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America (though this will not change how it’s named globally), and a policy classifying drug cartels as terrorist organizations, among others.
Do you think Donald Trump will live up to his promises? Let us know your expectations for the incoming administration in the comments box.
