{"id":1269,"date":"2021-01-28T13:52:32","date_gmt":"2021-01-28T18:52:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/?p=1269"},"modified":"2021-01-28T13:52:32","modified_gmt":"2021-01-28T18:52:32","slug":"white-house-news-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/white-house-news-2\/","title":{"rendered":"White House News"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Biden Unleashes Blizzard of Executive Actions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his first few days in office, President Joe Biden signed 30 executive orders, actions, and memorandums, with many of them seeking to dismantle President Trump\u2019s policies. Below is a brief roundup of President Biden\u2019s most significant early actions as president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rejoining Paris Climate Agreement<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On his first day in office, Joe Biden fulfilled one of his top campaign promises by committing to putting the United States back in the Paris Climate Agreement. The Obama-era agreement is an international pact aimed at cutting down on the level of carbon emissions being spewed by the countries in the deal, which scientists say are contributing to global warming. President Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement in 2017, saying that the deal disproportionately affects American businesses and taxpayers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Halt to Approval of Trump Rules<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden signed a memorandum freezing the approval of rules that were passed in the final days of the Trump administration. According to the memorandum, all new and pending rules from the Trump administration are subject to review by department and agency heads, and a decision on whether to implement them will be made later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Action to Fight COVID-19<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Biden took a number of steps in an attempt to assist in the response to COVID-19. He signed a mandate requiring anyone on federal property to wear a mask and observe social distancing guidelines. The president doesn\u2019t have the authority to issue a nationwide mask mandate, but he said that requiring masking on federal property would \u201cencourage masking across America.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden came under almost immediate fire after signing the order, after he was seen celebrating his inauguration on federal property without wearing a mask. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki tried explaining away the inconsistency in Biden\u2019s messaging by saying that he wasn\u2019t wearing a mask because he was \u201ccelebrating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Biden also signed an executive order to promote safety while traveling. In an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19, Biden mandated everyone to wear masks on all forms of public transportation, including on planes, trains, buses, and boats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden also directed his secretary of health to increase support for research into coronavirus treatments as well as to increase support for facilities hardest hit by the pandemic, including nursing homes. Additionally, the president directed all department and agency heads to \u201cfacilitate the gathering, sharing, and publication of COVID-19-related data\u201d so that his administration can make the most informed decisions relating to the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another memorandum, Biden directed his secretaries of defense and homeland security to support the decision by some governors to deploy the National Guard in their efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19, and for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to fully fund those efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another order, Biden requested the heads of various departments to assess the nationwide availability of resources necessary to distribute coronavirus tests and vaccines, and to develop a manufacturing strategy for necessary supplies in \u201cfuture pandemics and biological threats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The president also established the COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force, which is intended to address social inequalities that have been made worse by the pandemic. The task force will give recommendations on how to allocate resources and funding to combat disparities in COVID-19 outcomes due to race, ethnicity, and other factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden also ordered the Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services, to develop guidance for schools \u201cin deciding whether and how to reopen and how to remain open for in-person learning, and in safely conducting in-person learning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another executive order, Biden ordered the Department of Labor to give new guidance to employers to promote the health and safety of workers during the pandemic, which would include mandating mask wearing in the workplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expanded Food Assistance<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Biden signed an executive order to extend the 15-percent increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and to allow states to increase their allotments for emergency SNAP benefits, as well as to increase benefits under the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer, a program that gives students money to buy food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fortified DACA<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden also signed a memorandum fortifying the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, first instituted by President Obama and which President Trump later tried undoing. The DACA program shields millions who were brought as children to the United States from deportation. The memorandum signed by President Biden is intended to ensure that DACA recipients remain shielded from deportation during his tenure as president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pulling of Funds for Border Wall, Revised Immigration Enforcement<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biden ended the construction of a wall on the US-Mexico border\u2014one of the top priorities of President Trump\u2014by blocking funding for the program. In a statement, the Biden administration said that \u201cbuilding a massive wall that spans the entire southern border is not a serious policy solution. It is a waste of money that diverts attention from genuine threats to our homeland security.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joe Biden signed an order revoking the Trump-era policy to crack down on \u201csanctuary cities\u201d\u2014communities that shield undocumented immigrants from deportation. The new president promised to \u201cprotect national security\u201d and \u201caddress the humanitarian challenges at the southern border\u201d while at the same time loosening immigration enforcement policies. Biden also signed an order to count undocumented immigrants in the national census, overturning President Trump\u2019s attempt to exclude them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cancellation of Keystone XL Pipeline<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with a handful of actions to \u201cadvance environmental justice,\u201d President Biden revoked a permit given by the Trump administration for the Keystone XL pipeline, a 1,200-mile pipeline intended to deliver crude oil to the US from Canada. Critics of the pipeline say it cuts through the land of indigenous Americans and is unacceptable, but supporters say the pipeline would decrease America\u2019s dependence on oil from the Middle East and would help create tens of thousands of high-paying jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The memorandum signed by Biden also pauses the government\u2019s leasing of oil and gas reserves in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Biden Unleashes Blizzard of Executive Actions In his first few days in office, President Joe Biden signed 30 executive orders, actions, and memorandums, with many of them seeking to dismantle President Trump\u2019s policies. Below is a brief roundup of President Biden\u2019s most significant early actions as president. Rejoining Paris Climate Agreement On his first day […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1236,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[21],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1269"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1269"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1269\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}