President-elect Donald Trump has made more than a dozen promises over the past two years on the campaign trail about what he would do on his first day in office.
Trump's sweeping first-day plan calls for mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, sweeping tariffs that economists warn could have serious harmful effects on the U.S. economy and pardons for those killed in the Jan. 1 attack on the U.S. Capitol. accused of the charge. 6, 2021.
On the first day of his last term, Trump signed just one executive order targeting Obamacare. Here are some of Trump's most notable first-day promises.
As he has done in previous campaigns, Trump has made immigration a centerpiece of his 2024 campaign speeches, repeatedly vowing to deport undocumented immigrants. On October 27, just days before the election, Trump reiterated at a rally in New York City, "On Day One, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get criminals out of the country." According to federal estimates , the number of undocumented immigrants living in the United States in 2022 is close to 11 million, but the exact number is unclear.
When asked in November about the cost of the mass deportation plan, Trump told NBC News, "It's not about the price tag." That same month, Trump confirmed a post by another "Truth Society" user who wrote that the Trump administration would "prepare to declare a national emergency and will use military assets" for the deportation plan. Trump shared the post, writing: "Really!!!"
Anyone born in the United States is automatically granted citizenship, a right under the Fourteenth Amendment. Trump wants to change it, a logistically difficult move that will almost certainly lead to legal trouble. In December, on NBC News' "Meet the Press," host Kristen Welker asked Trump if he still planned to end birthright citizenship from day one. "Of course," Trump said.
Trump has launched a broad pushback against President Joe Biden's immigration policies and vowed to use his first days in office to "end every open border policy of the Biden administration." Trump also said at a campaign event in New Hampshire in October that he would "use Title 42," a public health law put in place at the start of the Covid-19 crisis to allow the White House to expel immigrants more quickly. The law continues under the Biden administration but ends in 2023.
Trump has repeatedly said he would quickly pardon those convicted of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. When NBC News' Welker asked Trump in December Regarding his timetable for a pardon, he said, "I'm looking at Day 1." He further said in a Time magazine interview published last month: "I would be looking at J6 early on, maybe the first nine minutes." At a press conference in January, Trump was asked whether he planned to pardon defendants charged with violent crimes on January 6. "We're looking at it," Trump said, adding that he intended to issue a "major pardon."
In the investigation on January 6, more than 1,580 defendants were charged and more than 1,270 people were convicted on charges ranging from illegal demonstrations to seditious conspiracy. More than 700 defendants have either been sentenced to sentences that do not include jail time or have already served their sentences, meaning Trump could theoretically pardon hundreds of defendants on January 6 without much practical impact.
Only a handful of the January 6 defendants remain in pretrial detention under a federal judge's order, while all other January 6 defendants who were incarcerated were sentenced to prison after conviction, at which time they either admitted to committing the crimes with which they were charged, Or get jailed. When a judge or jury finds them guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
One of Trump's boldest promises was that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office — or even before.
"This is a war that needs to be solved. I'm going to fix it before I become president," Trump said during a September debate with Vice President Kamala Harris in Philadelphia.
"I know (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelensky very well, and I know (Russian President Vladimir) Putin very well. I have a good relationship, they respect your president, well, they respect me. They No respect for Biden," Trump added.
Speaking to the media at Mar-a-Lago in January, Trump was asked when he planned to meet with Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Trump said it would be inappropriate to hold the meeting before the Jan. 20 inauguration.
Weeks after being elected, Trump promised to sign an executive order imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, the United States' two largest trading partners.
"On January 20, as one of my first many executive orders, I will sign all necessary documents to impose a 25% tariff on all products from Mexico and Canada entering the United States," Trump said in a post. And ridiculous open borders,” on Truth Social on November 25.
Trump had previously proposed sweeping 10% tariffs, but his comments to the two U.S. allies in November went further. During the campaign, Trump called tariffs "the most beautiful word in the entire dictionary."
Economists warn that consumers may bear the brunt of sweeping tariffs, which could lead to higher prices. Companies can respond to tariffs by buying products in the United States instead of from other countries, or they can raise prices for consumers to offset the cost of the tariffs. University of Michigan economist Alan Dierdorf previously told NBC News that Trump's tariffs are "like a sales tax, in the sense that consumers around the world end up footing the bill."
In 2021, Biden signed an order setting a national goal for 50% of new cars and trucks sold to be zero-emissions by 2030. In March, the Environmental Protection Agency finalized tailpipe emissions limits, and electric vehicles are expected to help meet the goals. California also has a law requiring all new car sales in the state to be zero-emission by 2035.
Trump has described all of this in general terms, calling it an "electric vehicle mandate," even though no one is required to buy a specific car. In November, at a campaign event in Houston, he reiterated his pledge, saying: "The day I take office, I will take away Crafty Joe's electric vehicle mandate."
One of Trump's most frequent promises, repeated in nearly every campaign speech, is a pledge to increase U.S. oil drilling.
In December, during a town hall interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Trump said he would not be a dictator "except on day one" and clarified that he intended to Use this power to "close borders" and "drill, drill, drill." "On his first days in office. Trump frequently claimed that increasing U.S. oil production would significantly lower energy costs.
Last month, incoming Trump press secretary Carolyn Leavitt told Fox News that he would begin working on the matter within seconds of arriving in the Oval Office.
Levitt promised that the government would "expedite permitting for drilling and fracking across the country so we can immediately lower the cost of living."
U.S. energy production exceeded consumption by a record high in 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Trump said during September rally "A vote for President Trump means the future of cars will be made in America." He predicted the auto industry will be "powered by American energy," "sourced by American suppliers" and built by American workers. He added: "It's going to happen, we're going to do it. Day one."
Major auto companies have laid off thousands of employees in recent years, even as General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. in January reported their best domestic auto sales since 2019.
Trump has repeatedly referred to transgender women as men and has vowed to his supporters that he will ensure that transgender women cannot compete in women's sports. In an October speech in West Palm Beach, he said, "I will remove men 100 percent from women's sports immediately on day one." In the same speech, he vowed to sign an executive order on his first day in office. order, cutting federal funding to schools that “promote critical race theory, transgender madness, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content to our beautiful children.”
Trump also frequently opposes gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy. During the Biden administration, the White House has provided resources and guidance to ensure access and information about care options. "From day one, I will repeal Joe Biden's cruel policies on so-called 'gender-affirming care,'" Trump said in a video posted to his campaign website on February 1, 2023.