Sign up to Gransnet Daily
Our free daily newsletter full of hot threads, competitions and discounts
Subscribe
Thought it would be useful to list his actions, without hyperbole or superlatives đ
Issued pardons for people involved in the January 6 attack
What happened: Trump issued pardons for about 1,500 people who were involved in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, shocking even some of his allies.
Those pardoned include more than 250 people who were convicted of assault, some of them having attacked police officers with makeshift weapons.
What it means: Far-right, racist factions will feel emboldened, and their online chat groups have been full of celebratory chatter in recent days.
After his release, one of the most serious offenders tied to the insurrection, Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the Proud Boys, indicated he had rejoined the all-male group and sought âretributionâ.
âIâm happy that the presidentâs focusing not on retribution and focusing on success, but I will tell you that Iâm not going to play by those rules,â he said.
Left the World Health Organization and suspended foreign aid
What happened: The Trump administration announced the US would leave the World Health Organization (WHO) and suspended all foreign aid for three months.
What it means: The move puts critical humanitarian work in jeopardy and threatens the global fight against infectious diseases. Washington is the single biggest financial backer of the UN global public health agency.
Lawrence Gostin, a professor of public health law at Georgetown University, said Trump âcould be sowing the seeds for the next pandemicâ.
Backed âbiblicalâ Israeli claims to Palestinian land
What happened: Trumpâs nominee for US ambassador to the UN endorsed Israeli claims of âbiblical rightsâ to the entire occupied West Bank. When New York congresswoman Elise Stefanik was asked on Tuesday if she backed the far-right Israeli âbiblicalâ claims to Palestinian territory it occupied, she responded: âYes.â
What it means: The view is a wholesale acceptance of claims based on religious interpretations that would leave millions of Palestinians stateless and landless. Israel is fighting accusations of genocide against Palestinians in an international court.
Trump has also rescinded US sanctions on far-right Jewish settler groups and individuals accused of involvement in violence against Palestinians. His nominee for ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, previously laid a ceremonial brick in an Israeli settlement and said he might one day buy a âholiday homeâ there.
Withdrew from the Paris climate agreement
What happened: On his first day back as president, Trump signed an executive order in front of supporters at an arena in Washington to quit the Paris
climate agreement for a second time. It will take about a year for the withdrawal to be formalised. Officials also plan to fast-track permits for new fossil fuel projects.
What it means: The US is the worldâs second-biggest emitter of planet-heating pollution. The Paris agreement seeks to prevent the world hitting temperatures that would result in disastrous heatwaves, floods, storms and fires, such as those that have been ravaging Los Angeles.
Launched a war on immigrants â and their children
What happened: Trump declared a ânational emergencyâ related to immigration, paving the way to send US troops to the southern border with Mexico.
The president also targeted people already in the country by seeking to cancel automatic citizenship for some US-born children, known as birthright.
What it means: A legal challenge has already been launched as birthright citizenship is protected under the 14th amendment. The executive order is the subject of several lawsuits by civil rights groups, and on Thursday a federal judge in Seattle blocked the administration from implementing the order, calling it âblatantly unconstitutionalâ.
The attorney general of California, Rob Bonta, said Trump had âoverreached by a mileâ.
Cancelled travel for refugees, including those approved to resettle in US
What happened: One of Trumpâs first actions as president was to suspend a refugee admissions programme for people who have fled war and persecution.
What it means: Thousands of refugees who had gone through a sometimes years-long vetting process to start new lives in the US are now stranded at various locations worldwide. Some already had flights booked.
The programme included more than 1,600 Afghans who assisted the US war effort there, as well as the relatives of active-duty US military personnel.
Recommitted to the death penalty
What happened: Trump has committed to pursue federal death sentences and pledged to ensure that states had sufficient supplies of lethal injection drugs for executions.
What it means: The order promises the attorney general will seek capital punishment for âall crimes of a severity demanding its useâ.
Experts say the order is filled with vague rhetoric, and that it could be unconstitutional, infringe defendantsâ rights and intrude on state laws.
Ignited fear when Elon Musk appeared to make fascist salutes
What happened: Elon Musk, Trumpâs closest billionaire backer and Tesla owner, ignited controversy when he gave back-to-back, fascist-style salutes during inauguration celebrations.
Musk later responded to criticisms of his behaviour on X, tweeting: âFrankly, they need better dirty tricks. The âeveryone is Hitlerâ attack is soo tired.â
What it means: The salutes caused domestic and international alarm, especially in Germany, where Musk has backed the far-right Alternative fĂŒr Deutschland party in next monthâs federal elections.
Got told off by a bishop
What happened:
The bishop of Washington, the Right Rev Mariann Edgar Budde, looked Trump in the eye on Tuesday and appealed directly to him to âhave mercy uponâ communities across the country targeted by the new administrationâs immigration and LGBTQ+ policies.
What it means: Budde was praised for confronting Trump directly when many others have kept silent.
After the sermon, the president attacked Budde online, labelling her a âTrump haterâ and describing her tone as ânastyâ.
Budde told reporters she would not apologise for her remarks. âI donât hate the president, and I pray for him,â she told NPR.
Warned Joe Biden he should have pardoned himself
What happened: In an interview with Fox News, the US president said Joe Biden should have pardoned himself â a lightly veiled threat that he would go after the former president.
âJoe Biden has very bad advisers. Somebody advised Joe Biden to give pardons to everybody but him ⊠Joe Biden had very bad advice,â Trump said.
What it means: Biden used the last day of his presidency to issue pre-emptive pardons to politicians, public servants and even his family members to guard against what he said were âthreatsâ by the incoming administration.
The outgoing president said there was a threat of ârevengeâ through criminal prosecution. But he left himself off the list of people being pardoned.
Put anti-discrimination government staff on leave
What happened: Federal employees in departments that work to halt discrimination were put on paid leave.
Under the executive order, the White House said it would scrap all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices, positions, plans, actions, initiatives or programmes within 60 days.
The Trump administration also fired the US Coast Guard commandant, Adm Linda Lee Fagan, the first female uniformed leader of an armed forces branch.
What it means: Over the past few years, the DEI issue has become a culture war flashpoint. During his presidential campaign, Trump echoed conservative attacks against DEI, saying there was âa definite anti-white feeling in this countryâ.
The move will halt progress in efforts to tackle racial and gender-based discrimination.
Denied transgender rights (and banned flags)
What happened: Federal agencies issuing passports, visas and other official government documents have been ordered to only allow male and female as options.
âAs of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female,â the new president said during his inaugural address on Monday.
What it means: Rights advocates say the DEI and transgender rights rollbacks will stall hard-fought policies and undermine progress made to address systemic failures that have deprived equal opportunities for marginalised groups for decades.
In a related move, the US Department of State has banned consular posts from flying any flags other than that of the US. A cable seen by the Guardian titled âOne flag policyâ appears to target several instances when gay pride and Black Lives Matters flags were flown at embassies abroad.
Changed a couple of names
What happened: In his inaugural speech, Trump repeated his intention to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
He also said he would change the name of Denali, a 20,310ft mountain in Alaska and the highest peak in North America, to Mount McKinley, as it was called before Barack Obama changed it in 2015.
What it means: In theory, Trumpâs action would be sufficient to change the names in official documents within the US, but other countries would not be obliged to follow suit.
At the very least, it will frustrate US cartographers.
Grateful thanks to
The Guardian 25/01/25
Whitewavemark2
maizie Iâm not bothered tbh. Posts criticising grammar or spelling tend to go completely over my head as it is the subject matter I am usually most interested in.
Well, someone seems to have put it right 
Sorry for derailing s;lightly đŠ
Bea65
Barleyfields
Itâs useful to see the whole picture in one post Bea. Rather concentrates the mind.
Don't need my mind "concentrating " Have a good picture as my nearest and dearest are living there!
But for those of us who don't have family living there (and that's probably quite a few of us), it is - as Barleyfields said - useful to see the whole picture.
If you know it all and don't need to read the summary, well, good - but why object?
Transwomen in prison, hospitals, and in other public places will now be at massive risk of attack and worse.
If anyone has a child, partner, friend, granson, relative- who is transgender, they must be terrified now of what could happen to them- as the mob has been given approval.
As?! đ€Ł
A simple error in spelling adds to sloppy thinking?
What world do you live in. Accurate spelling as nothing to do with real intelligence, analysis or intelligent thinking.
His policywith immigration has led to 3 Americans being caught up in ICE raids . One was a vet .
Went to LA and is most likely still looking for the faucet that turns the water up north to bring the water down south đ
Galaxy
Trump could declare there are two genders or 45. It makes no difference to the actual reality that there are 2 sexes. Many of the issues announced by Trump in relation to trans issues are already in place in this country - consequently lots of people see Wes Streeting, etc as transphobic
It seemsvxour transphobia is all you can talk about .
Claremont
MaizieD
Whitewavemark2
The bum was to summery!
I'd suggest you see if Gnet would change the spelling in the thread title for you. Otherwise the replies will mostly be 'haven't actually read the thread clever clogs' telling you you've spelled 'summary' wrong
Honestly, in such dire and dangerous times- who cares one jot about spelling or an apostrophe!
Who cares? Well, that's how sloppy thinking begins. Nobody wants sloppy thinking in these times. Alertness and accuracy matter and caring about the written word is something we'll all need to pay more attention to as the right wing takes over our world. It's all connected, dearie.
Barleyfields
Itâs useful to see the whole picture in one post Bea. Rather concentrates the mind.
Don't need my mind "concentrating " Have a good picture as my nearest and dearest are living there!
Thank you WWM. I wish that I could say that knowledge is power, but in this case, knowledge is just ..scary.
Thank you for the summary Whitewave It's good to see it all in one place. I found it depressing reading.
I feel Trump has put the US back many years, maybe to mid twentieth century or before by some of his actions.
shocking descriptions.
Has anyone seen the footage of what seems like an unofficial army in blue jackets, brown trousers and white face masks.
Looks as near to the Sturmabteilung or brown shirts as you can get.
An article written by Alexandra Hall Hall - diplomat and ambassador.
Of all the shocking actions taken by Trump since he became President for the second time, the most egregious is his mass pardon of over 1,500 people found guilty of involvement in the January 6 2021 attack on the US Capitol, including those convicted of assaulting police officers. He also commuted the sentences of fourteen other participants, found guilty of the most serious charges, such as seditious conspiracy.
Four people died during the riots, and five police officers afterwards. Four of those officers took their own lives, and one died of a stroke following injuries sustained at the scene.
Trumpâs pardons covered prominent ringleaders of the violence, including former Proud Boys leader, Enrique Tarrio, and Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, both serving lengthy sentences due to their prominent roles in the insurrection. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Proud Boys are a âgeneral hateâ group, while the Oath Keepers, founded in 2009, is one of the largest anti-government, far-right organisations in the US.
Immediately upon his release from federal prison in Maryland, Rhodes travelled to Washington DC to show support for fellow rioters being released from there. Other supporters of the âJ6 Hostagesâ, as Trump has recently been describing them - in a grotesque insult to genuine hostages - were also gathered there en masse. Speaking to reporters, they hailed the convicted rioters as American âpatriotsâ, who were at the Capitol on that fateful day, merely to exercise peacefully their first amendment right of free speech. Many tried to argue that the violence had been instigated by planted FBI agents, or antifa activists.
Another prominent figure to be pardoned was Jacob Chansley, the so-called âQAnon Shaman,â who immediately declared upon leaving jail that he was going to buy some guns, writing on X âNOW I AM GONNA BUY SOME MOTHA Fââ GUNS!!! I LOVE THIS COUNTRY!!! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!â
By releasing such violent criminals back onto the streets, Trump is not just trying to whitewash away the appalling events of January 6, as nothing more than an innocent protest by peaceful patriots. He is also sending a signal that he has the back of his most ardent supporters, who can rely on him to shield them from future criminal sanctions, if they break the law again whilst claiming to act in his defence.
Trump has effectively created a cadre of loyal foot soldiers, who can be trusted to do his bidding, even if it involves active violence. He can unleash them to facilitate round-ups of illegal immigrants, to intimidate political opponents or critics in the media, and generally pressurise influential figures or groups in the executive, judiciary, legislature, and private sector to fall into line.
Latest -
The US State Department has issued a halt to nearly all existing foreign assistance and paused new aid, according to an internal memo sent to officials and US embassies abroad
The leaked notice follows President Trump's executive order issued on Monday for a 90-day pause in foreign development assistance pending a review of efficiencies and consistency with his foreign policy.
The United States is the world's biggest international aid donor spending $68bn in 2023 according to government figures
, external
. The State Department notice appears to affect everything from development assistance to military aid.
It makes exceptions only for emergency food aid and for military funding for Israel and Egypt. The leaked memo's contents have been confirmed by the BBCâ
It means all other current projects underway to be halted.
Hegseth:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/12/pete-hegseth-military-comments
"Pete Hegseth decried out gay troops in US military as part of Marxist agenda"
On women in the military
"He also said he supported âall women serving in our militaryâ â despite previously arguing that their presence led to an âerosion in standardsâ.
Hegseth repeatedly took issue with the concept of female combatants in a chapter of his latest book titled âThe (deadly) obsession with women warriorsâ.
âIâm going to say something politically incorrect that is perfectly commonsensical observation,â he wrote. âDads push us to take risks. Moms put the training wheels on our bike. We need moms, but not in the military, especially in combat units.â
In another provocative passage, he wrote: âIf you train a group of men to treat women equally on the battlefield then you will be hard pressed to ask them to treat women differently at home.â"
So far, I see no positives.
9 hours ago Pete Hegseth was confirmed (controversially) as Defence Secretary and wishes to ban gay people serving in the military
(He also had a beef against several leading military commanders, I presume they are not politically correct enough for him as to what the military can be used for?)
Trump could declare there are two genders or 45. It makes no difference to the actual reality that there are 2 sexes. Many of the issues announced by Trump in relation to trans issues are already in place in this country - consequently lots of people see Wes Streeting, etc as transphobic
Annodomini Heads of State are not usually invited to inaugurations. None have been there in the past. I agree with the rest of your post though
MaizieD
Whitewavemark2
The bum was to summery!
I'd suggest you see if Gnet would change the spelling in the thread title for you. Otherwise the replies will mostly be 'haven't actually read the thread clever clogs' telling you you've spelled 'summary' wrong
Honestly, in such dire and dangerous times- who cares one jot about spelling or an apostrophe!
Can't see any positives either. Many saw some positives to Hitler's plans for Germany in 1933, it didn't end well.
Day by day, the new US administration takes the executioner's axe to democracy and develops a dictatorship. Hello Kim Jong Un whom Trump once described as 'a smart guy'.
Goodbye to our much vaunted 'special relationship'.Our PM's absence from the inauguration was a calculated snub to the UK It's time KS opened his eyes to this uneasy divorce.
maizie Iâm not bothered tbh. Posts criticising grammar or spelling tend to go completely over my head as it is the subject matter I am usually most interested in.
I think the question is balancing any positives with negatives, and then decide whether the positives were sufficient to persuade yourself if you could have voted for him
Me?
I canât see a single positive.
I do agree the immigration needs sorting, but certainly not with the authoritarian way Trump is approaching it.
The Financial Times are reporting a 'fiery' phone call Trump has with the Prime Minister of Denmark where he is demanding that Denmark give Greenland to USA. It did not go down well.
Registering is free, easy, and means you can join the discussion, watch threads and lots more.
Register now »Already registered? Log in with:
Gransnet »Get our top conversations, latest advice, fantastic competitions, and more, straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily newsletter here.
