Every decision, on the record
193 documented decisions of the second Trump administration, newest first, backed by 1084 cited sources. Open any entry for the full record: what happened, its impact on the United States, and every source.
September 2026 · 5
- Federal Government
$810 million canceled without a vote
Five days before the fiscal year ended, the White House used a pocket rescission - a tactic GAO calls illegal - to let bipartisan funding lapse.
- Environment & Energy
EPA scraps carbon limits on power plants
A September 2026 rule repeals most of the 2024 carbon standards for coal and gas plants, and a companion proposal would end federal power-plant climate rules entirely.
- Rule of Law
A grand jury aimed at the president's investigators
DOJ's Florida 'grand conspiracy' probe kept subpoenaing ex-officials like John Brennan even as its lead prosecutor, Trump ally Joe diGenova, quit with no charges.
- Foreign Policy
Iran war drains arsenal; allies told to wait years
After the war drew down large shares of US missile stocks, allies were warned that key weapons deliveries could slip by up to five years.
- Civil Rights
Federal investigators sent to probe voting before midterms
ICE's investigative arm launched a nine-state 'voter fraud surge' of field interviews through mid-October, including checks on naturalized citizens' voting histories.
August 2026 · 4
- Rule of Law
The president's family crypto firm gets a bank charter nod
A federal regulator conditionally approved a trust bank for World Liberty, 38% owned by an entity affiliated with Trump and his family, to issue its USD1 stablecoin.
- Health & Science
Order trims universal child vaccines to 11 diseases
An August 2026 executive order re-asserts schedule cuts a federal judge had blocked and calls for splitting the MMR shot into three.
- Immigration
A second try at birthright limits, five weeks later
After losing at the Supreme Court, Trump signed a narrower order denying citizenship to some US-born children, and a judge blocked it.
- Federal Government
OPM becomes the judge of federal layoff appeals
New rules move layoff, suitability and probationary appeals from the independent MSPB into OPM, with no court review of RIF appeal decisions.
July 2026 · 15
- Media & Institutions
Federal warning signs outside the Smithsonian
EO 14416 orders Park Service signs disputing the American History museum and directs agencies to use 'any and all available authorities' against what it calls ideological capture there.
- Economy & Trade
Forced-labor tariffs replace the expired global surcharge
As the Section 122 surcharge expired, 10-12.5% forced-labor tariffs took effect on 60 economies that supply 99.4% of US imports.
- Economy & Trade
A 1930 law revived for 50% tariffs on Canada
The first tariffs expressly imposed under Section 338 put 50% duties on Canadian goods, with no USMCA exemption, and Canada hit back on US$20 billion of US exports.
- Civil Rights
A federal push for one national voter file
DHS threatened prison for election officials who 'choose not to participate' as DOJ sued 30 states and D.C. for voter rolls for a federal citizenship check.
- Rule of Law
Trump declassifies election intel in a primetime address
Trump declassified election documents, directed DOJ and intelligence agencies to investigate how intelligence was withheld, and pushed the 'SAVE America Act.'
- Civil Rights
Turning 'far-left' into a terrorism designation
Rubio convened ~65 nations and rolled out visa bans targeting 'far-left' groups, as Treasury pledged to scrutinize nonprofits' funding.
- Immigration
Two killed, then the President overruled the safety pause
After ICE fatally shot two men during traffic stops, DHS paused the tactic - Trump reversed it within a day.
- Economy & Trade
A 25% tariff on Brazil, round two
After the Supreme Court struck down his IEEPA tariffs, Trump hit Brazil again under Section 301, effective July 22.
- Media & Institutions
Clearing the way for national TV consolidation
FCC Chair Carr moved to scrap the 39% national ownership cap - which Commissioner Gomez said only Congress can change - and the FCC repealed it 2-1 on August 6, 2026.
- Federal Government
Troops in the capital, through the whole term
The DC National Guard deployment was extended to January 2029 and peaked at ~5,000 troops in a summer 2026 surge, despite studies finding little effect on violent crime.
- Environment & Energy
Three million acres, un-protected
Trump shrank Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante by more than 90% and disbanded tribal co-management.
- Health & Science
The CDC's global HIV awards, set to lapse
As the State Department takes more control of PEPFAR, ~120 CDC HIV awards serving a reported 8.7M+ patients were set to expire in September 2026.
- Civil Rights
Counterterror grants tied to election changes
DHS withheld 20% of homeland-security grants until states adopted its election rules, including SAVE citizenship checks; a judge ruled the withholding unauthorized.
- Media & Institutions
Federal agents at reporters' front doors
The DOJ subpoenaed four New York Times journalists in a leak probe over Air Force One reporting; some were served at home.
- Foreign Policy
The ceasefire lasted three weeks
On July 8, 2026 Trump declared the June deal 'over' and the Iran war resumed - strikes, a blockade, and an oil spike.
June 2026 · 5
- Federal Government
Supreme Court ends FTC commissioners' removal protection
In Trump v. Slaughter, the Supreme Court overruled a 91-year-old precedent, letting the president fire FTC commissioners at will.
- Environment & Energy
Cutting the safeguards on public-land drilling
Interior proposed slashing cleanup bonds, dropping pre-sale comment periods and cutting the protest window on federal leases from 30 days to 10.
- Foreign Policy
War ends in a memo pledging $300B to rebuild Iran
The administration says no US taxpayer money funds the $300B - regional partners would, with the mechanism unresolved.
- Civil Rights
Civil-rights enforcement, handed to the DOJ
The Education Department's Office for Civil Rights handed its investigative and enforcement work to the DOJ Civil Rights Division.
- Immigration
A second $69.5B for immigration enforcement
Signed June 10, 2026, the Secure America Act adds ~$69.5B on top of the ~$170B in the 2025 megabill - nearly $240B in under a year.
March 2026 · 2
- Civil Rights
An order to control who gets a mail ballot
EO 14399 orders federal citizen lists for every state and limits USPS ballot delivery; the Supreme Court let the lists proceed while parts of the Postal Service rule stay blocked.
- Economy & Trade
Iran-war oil shock has cost US drivers $100B+
Gas hit $4.56 in May, eased after the June ceasefire, then climbed back to $4.48 in September. Americans have paid over $100B extra for gasoline and diesel.
February 2026 · 4
- Foreign Policy
Months-long US war with Iran shuts the Strait of Hormuz
A war of more than three months and a 66-day naval blockade choked Hormuz shipping; a Harvard expert says it will cost over $1 trillion all-in.
- Economy & Trade
Supreme Court strikes down IEEPA tariffs
Court ruled tariffs are reserved to Congress, invalidating the basis for most 2025 tariffs.
- Environment & Energy
Vehicle greenhouse-gas standards repealed
Repeal forgoes EPA-projected $6,000 per-driver savings and up to 2,500 prevented deaths in 2055.
- Environment & Energy
EPA rescinds greenhouse gas Endangerment Finding
Rescinding the GHG Endangerment Finding repealed all federal vehicle greenhouse-gas standards.
January 2026 · 1
December 2025 · 1
November 2025 · 4
- Immigration
Nationwide asylum freeze imposed
After a DC shooting, USCIS halted Afghan processing and paused all asylum nationwide; courts vacated the freeze in June 2026.
- Environment & Energy
EPA abandons stronger PM2.5 soot standard
EPA asked a court to strike the tighter PM2.5 limit its own 2024 analysis credited with preventing up to 4,500 deaths in 2032; the court refused.
- Foreign Policy
Leaked Ukraine plan tilts toward Russia
Draft framework would require Kyiv to cede Donbas and renounce NATO.
- Economy & Trade
DOJ investigates Federal Reserve Chair Powell
A criminal probe that Powell said was meant to pressure the Fed on rates was dropped in April 2026, before his term as chair ended.
October 2025 · 5
- Rule of Law
Trump pardons Binance's CZ
Clemency for the crypto founder whose company took a $2 billion investment paid in the Trump family venture's stablecoin.
- Media & Institutions
Reporters surrender Pentagon badges over press pledge
New rules demanded reporters not publish unclassified information without approval, prompting a mass walkout.
- Federal Government
Longest shutdown in US history
A 43-day lapse left 1.25 million workers unpaid and food aid delayed for tens of millions.
- Environment & Energy
$7.5B in clean energy grants canceled
DOE canceled $7.56B for 223 clean-energy projects concentrated in states that backed Harris.
- Civil Rights
White House offers universities a funding compact
The White House offered preferential funding in exchange for commitments on admissions, enrollment, tuition and campus viewpoints.
September 2025 · 10
- Rule of Law
DOJ indicts Trump's political foes
Installed prosecutor charged Comey and James; a judge dismissed both, DOJ is appealing, and Bolton took a plea deal.
- Economy & Trade
Tariffs hit drugs and furniture
New Section 232 levies span pharmaceuticals, trucks, furniture, and chips.
- Health & Science
White House pushes Tylenol-autism claim
Trump and RFK Jr. told pregnant women to stop using acetaminophen, contradicting major medical bodies.
- Civil Rights
Antifa labeled domestic terrorist group
An executive order directs federal investigation of a diffuse movement; legal scholars say US law has no domestic-terror designation mechanism.
- Immigration
$100,000 fee added to H-1B
A proclamation conditioned new H-1B petitions on a $100,000 payment; courts blocked it in 2026, but it was extended to 2027 and a $103,265 fee was proposed by rule.
- Media & Institutions
Kimmel pulled off air after FCC pressure
ABC suspended a late-night host hours after the FCC chair threatened license action over his remarks.
- Media & Institutions
Trump's billion-dollar suits target press
A string of massive defamation actions pressures newsrooms; the NYT and WSJ suits were dismissed and refiled.
- Civil Rights
Visas, jobs lost over Kirk posts
Federal officials revoked visas and backed firings over comments about Charlie Kirk's killing, prompting First Amendment suits.
- Immigration
ICE kills immigrant and US citizen
ICE officers fatally shot a Mexican immigrant and a US citizen amid disputed official accounts.
- Foreign Policy
US boat strikes kill 200+; campaign widens to Venezuela
Lethal strikes on alleged drug boats, begun before Congress was notified, escalated into a direct Venezuela intervention.
August 2025 · 10
- Economy & Trade
Duty-free package exemption ends
The $800 de minimis break ended for all countries, adding fees to cheap imports.
- Health & Science
CDC director ousted, deputies quit
Susan Monarez was removed weeks after confirmation after, she testified, refusing to pre-approve RFK Jr.'s vaccine panel recommendations.
- Economy & Trade
Trump moves to fire a Fed governor
A bid to fire a Fed governor and reshape the board.
- Civil Rights
Texas redraw challenged as diluting minority votes
A DOJ-prompted mid-decade redraw shifted up to five Democratic-held, largely minority seats toward the GOP; a federal panel blocked it as a likely racial gerrymander, but SCOTUS reinstated it via an unsigned shadow-docket order.
- Rule of Law
Troops sent to US cities; most pulled, DC stays
Courts ruled against the Chicago and Los Angeles deployments and troops were pulled from those cities and Portland; the DC deployment continued.
- Economy & Trade
401(k)s opened to crypto, private equity
An executive order eases alternative assets such as private equity and crypto into retirement plans.
- Civil Rights
Trump seeks census without undocumented
Trump directed a new census excluding people in the country illegally; a September 2026 proposed rule would exclude them from the decennial count.
- Foreign Policy
India tariff doubled to 50% over Russian oil
A penalty tariff strained a key Indo-Pacific partner before being lifted.
- Health & Science
HHS cancels $500M BARDA mRNA contracts
Terminating mRNA contracts undercut pandemic preparedness while H5N1 remains an active threat.
- Economy & Trade
Trump fires BLS jobs-data chief
Commissioner ousted after a weak report, after Trump said she had "faked" the numbers.
July 2025 · 15
- Economy & Trade
2025 tariffs cost average household $2,400
Yale Budget Lab found the burden is about three times larger as a share of income for the lowest-income households than for the highest.
- Civil Rights
Grant freezes coerce university settlements
Brown and Cornell settled to unfreeze funds; UCLA refused and beat the freeze in court.
- Foreign Policy
Ukraine intel restricted from Five Eyes
A DNI memo reportedly barred sharing Ukraine peace-talk intelligence with the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
- Environment & Energy
EPA shutters research office
The agency's independent science arm was eliminated amid mass layoffs.
- Foreign Policy
Foreign service loses 25% in 2025
1,100+ civil servants and 246 foreign service officers received layoff notices in July 2025.
- Foreign Policy
Brazil tariff over Bolsonaro trial struck down
Trump's 50% tariff, explicitly tied to Bolsonaro's prosecution, was vacated by the Supreme Court in Feb 2026; a new 25% Section 301 tariff took effect July 22, 2026.
- Immigration
Reconciliation law funds $45B ICE detention buildout
$45B for detention could fund at least 116,000 beds, and ICE's detention budget rises 308% to $14B+ a year.
- Health & Science
Largest SNAP cut in history: ~$186 billion
Expanded work requirements and a first-ever state cost-share shrink food assistance for millions.
- Health & Science
Reconciliation law projects leaving 10M uninsured
The largest Medicaid cut in history imposes work requirements and eligibility redeterminations.
- Federal Government
Student loans overhauled; Grad PLUS ended
New borrowing caps and a single repayment plan cut federal spending by ~$284B (CBO) by shifting costs onto borrowers.
- Environment & Energy
Reconciliation law eliminates most IRA clean-energy credits
Congress ended the EV credit, solar credit, and wind production credits ahead of schedule.
- Economy & Trade
"Big Beautiful Bill": $4.5T tax cuts, +$3.4T deficit
Tax cuts weighted to top earners, paid for partly by Medicaid and SNAP cuts, adding ~$3.4T to the debt.
- Immigration
Florida's Everglades detention camp
A state-run camp for federal immigration detainees drew reports of inhuman conditions; it was emptied and demobilized in June 2026 at an estimated $1.2B total cost.
- Media & Institutions
Paramount pays Trump amid merger review
A $16M settlement preceded FCC merger approval, a late-night cancellation, and a pulled "60 Minutes" segment at CBS.
- Environment & Energy
Methane compliance deadlines delayed 18 months
EPA extended compliance deadlines, forgoing 3.8 million tons of methane reductions.
June 2025 · 9
- Immigration
Migrants sent to unrelated nations
After the Supreme Court lifted notice rules, the US deported migrants to South Sudan, Eswatini, and Ghana.
- Environment & Energy
Roadless forest protections targeted
USDA moved to open about 58.5 million acres of roadless national forest to logging and roads.
- Foreign Policy
US strikes Iran's nuclear sites; ceasefire
Iran's enriched uranium stockpile location remains unaccounted for after the strikes.
- Immigration
DOJ prioritizes stripping citizenship
A June 2025 memo directs attorneys to maximally pursue civil denaturalization of naturalized Americans.
- Health & Science
RFK Jr. fires 17 ACIP advisors
Replacements made hepatitis B birth dose optional before courts reversed their actions.
- Rule of Law
LA military deployment ruled unlawful
A Posse Comitatus Act injunction barred troops from civilian arrests and searches.
- Immigration
Travel ban hits dozens of countries
A June 2025 ban on 19 countries expanded to roughly 39 nations by January 2026.
- Immigration
Farm groups say ICE raids are keeping workers away
Farm groups said raids kept workers from the fields; a preprint modeled billions in crop losses in Oxnard.
- Economy & Trade
Tariffs add measurable inflation in summer
Import-exposed goods such as video equipment and floor coverings posted record price jumps in June 2025.
May 2025 · 10
- Foreign Policy
US funding cuts force UN peacekeeping cut
Withheld dues and arrears triggered a 25% global force reduction.
- Health & Science
Routine COVID shot advice dropped for kids, pregnancy
A secretarial directive bypassed the advisory-committee process before a court restored the prior schedule.
- Environment & Energy
Retiring coal plants forced open
DOE emergency orders kept retiring fossil plants running, with the costs passed to ratepayers.
- Health & Science
MAHA report cites fake studies
RFK Jr.'s flagship child-health report cited studies that do not exist, with AI-hallucination hallmarks.
- Rule of Law
Qatar's $400M jet accepted without approval
Accepting a foreign government gift without congressional approval drew Emoluments Clause objections.
- Environment & Energy
PFAS water limits targeted for rollback
EPA moved to scrap limits for four 'forever chemicals' and delay cleanup deadlines.
- Federal Government
Library and copyright chiefs fired
The Librarian of Congress and Copyright Register were ousted days apart, following the archivist's removal.
- Environment & Energy
Energy Star targeted for elimination
The threatened elimination was averted; Congress funded the program and management moved to DOE.
- Immigration
ICE arrests inside courthouses nationwide
ICE arrested people at their immigration hearings, driving absenteeism and lawsuits, until a federal judge vacated the policies nationwide.
- Media & Institutions
Congress defunds CPB; public-broadcasting funder dissolves
Congress rescinded ~$1.1B in CPB funding and the corporation voted to shut down.
April 2025 · 15
- Environment & Energy
FEMA cancels disaster-prevention grants
The $3.6B BRIC program was scrapped, then a court ruled the cancellation unlawful and ordered it reinstated.
- Economy & Trade
Manufacturing sheds jobs in Trump's first year
Payrolls fell after Liberation Day, with durable-goods makers hit hardest.
- Economy & Trade
US GDP contracts 0.6% in Q1
The first contraction since 2022 reflected a pre-tariff import surge and slowing spending.
- Environment & Energy
Climate Assessment authors dismissed
All roughly 400 scientists writing the mandated US climate report were let go.
- Federal Government
AmeriCorps cut, then partly restored
A move to cut ~90% of staff and ~$400M in grants disrupted national-service programs nationwide.
- Civil Rights
ABA drops law-school diversity standard
After federal pressure, the legal accreditor repealed its law-school diversity requirement.
- Environment & Energy
Habitat loss excluded from ESA harm
A final rule effective Sept. 14, 2026 removed the definition that let habitat destruction count as harm.
- Civil Rights
Harvard $2.2B+ federal funding frozen
Research funding was frozen hours after Harvard rejected government demands; a judge ruled the freeze unconstitutional retaliation.
- Immigration
Military takes control of 800+ miles of border
National Defense Areas placed border territory under Pentagon control, enabling civilian arrests.
- Rule of Law
Judge finds noncompliance after 9-0 Supreme Court order
After a 9-0 ruling, a judge found the government had failed to comply and accused it of bad faith; he was returned two months later.
- Economy & Trade
US-China tariffs escalate to 145%
A near-total tariff barrier coincided with US imports from China falling to about half of 2024 levels; the de minimis exemption for China also ended.
- Economy & Trade
Liberation Day tariffs trigger $6T+ selloff
Tariffs on nearly every trading partner set off a market selloff that brought the S&P 500 near bear-market territory.
- Health & Science
CDC lead program cut during crisis
HHS eliminated the CDC's childhood lead program and declined Milwaukee's request for help, then reinstated the team two months later.
- Health & Science
HHS cuts gut mine-safety research
Roughly two-thirds of NIOSH was laid off, halting black-lung surveillance for coal miners.
- Environment & Energy
60+ power plants exempted from mercury rule
Two-year exemptions were followed by a 2026 repeal of the stricter Biden-era mercury and air-toxics limits.
March 2025 · 25
- Health & Science
FDA loses leadership and top reviewers
After February layoffs left reviewers with doubled workloads, HHS announced 3,500 more FDA job cuts.
- Health & Science
HHS eliminates 10,000 health agency positions
Simultaneous cuts to FDA, CDC, NIH, and CMS disrupted drug reviews and disease surveillance.
- Federal Government
Union rights stripped at most agencies
A 'national security' order ended collective bargaining for about two-thirds of federal workers.
- Media & Institutions
Smithsonian ordered to remove 'race-centered ideology'
An executive order directed the Vice President to work to remove 'improper ideology' from Smithsonian museums, and the White House ordered a content review of eight museums.
- Economy & Trade
25% tariff on all imported autos
Analysts projected new-vehicle price increases of $2,000 to $12,000; GM estimated at least $4B in 2025 tariff costs.
- Rule of Law
Proof-of-citizenship voting requirement blocked
An executive order imposing documentary citizenship requirements on federal voter registration was permanently enjoined.
- Immigration
Parole ended for 532,000
DHS ended humanitarian parole for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans; about 532,000 had been paroled under the programs.
- Rule of Law
Dozens of officials' and critics' clearances revoked
What experts called an unprecedented, partisan sweep targeted former officials, impeachment witnesses, and prosecutors.
- Federal Government
Education Department ordered to dismantle itself
An executive order put administration of $1.6T in student loans and services for 7.5 million disabled students at risk.
- Rule of Law
Deportation flights continued despite a judge's halt order
Continuing flights after a court halt prompted a Chief Justice rebuke and a contempt fight that is still live.
- Immigration
Abrego Garcia wrongfully deported to CECOT
A man with legal protection was deported; the Supreme Court unanimously ordered return.
- Immigration
Venezuelans deported to CECOT without hearings
Flights went ahead despite a court order to halt them; the 252 held at CECOT were sent to Venezuela in a July 2025 prisoner swap.
- Foreign Policy
Yemen strike plans shared in Signal chat with a journalist
Hegseth shared F-18 launch timelines in a chat that included a news editor.
- Foreign Policy
Order guts Voice of America broadcasts
Voice of America went mostly silent; a court-ordered restoration is on hold pending appeal.
- Media & Institutions
Library funding agency targeted for elimination
An EO to eliminate IMLS was reversed by settlement in April 2026.
- Rule of Law
Judge threats surge; one judge convicted
400 federal judges faced serious threats in 2025, up 78% in four years, amid presidential calls for impeachment.
- Environment & Energy
EPA shuts EJ offices, ends $2.8B grant program
EPA closed its environmental-justice offices and ended the $2.8B EJ block-grant program; a judge later ruled the termination unlawful.
- Environment & Energy
EPA launches 31-rule deregulatory sweep
What EPA called the largest deregulatory action in US history placed air, water, and climate standards under review at once.
- Economy & Trade
China tariffs cost US farmers $14.9B
China's countermeasures cut US farm exports by $14.9B, about 41% more than the 2018-19 trade war's annualized losses.
- Civil Rights
Columbia pays $221M after $400M cut
To restore $400M in federal funding, Columbia agreed to pay $221M, overhaul protest rules and adopt the IHRA antisemitism definition.
- Rule of Law
Executive orders target major law firms
Courts struck down every order firms challenged; nine firms instead pledged $940M in free legal work.
- Foreign Policy
US suspends military aid to Ukraine
A nearly week-long intelligence blackout coincided with a Russian strike on Odesa's port.
- Immigration
6,000+ student visas revoked; SEVIS records restored
Abrupt visa revocations - many for alleged infractions, a subset tied to campus protests - disrupted studies; SEVIS terminations were reversed, visa revocations were not.
- Health & Science
Signs of a US scientific brain drain
75% of US scientists answering a Nature poll said they were considering leaving; the EU allocated €500M to recruit them.
- Civil Rights
Education civil rights office guts enforcement
Seven of 12 regional offices closed; about 90% of resolved complaints were dismissals.
February 2025 · 24
- Health & Science
NIH terminates 2,291 active research grants
The mass grant cancellation disrupted 383 clinical trials with more than 74,000 enrolled participants.
- Foreign Policy
Trump and Vance confront Zelensky publicly
The televised confrontation derailed a planned minerals-deal signing and preceded US military aid suspension; the deal was ultimately signed in April 2025.
- Environment & Energy
Weather Service enters disaster season understaffed
About 600 of ~4,200 Weather Service positions were lost by spring 2025, ahead of hurricane and tornado seasons.
- Federal Government
GSA pushes to shed federal leases and buildings
A DOGE-driven push to shed federal office space that critics said outran planning and risked selling public assets short.
- Foreign Policy
Trump fires top military leaders and JAGs
Joint Chiefs chairman, Navy chief, and service JAGs fired without cause.
- Rule of Law
DOJ drops Adams case for cooperation
Dismissal was tied to the mayor's help on immigration; seven prosecutors quit.
- Health & Science
CDC cuts ~1,300 in DOGE wave
About 1,300 CDC staff, mostly probationary, were cut on February 14, 2025, ahead of deeper April program eliminations.
- Foreign Policy
NATO Article 5 commitment publicly questioned
Sustained pressure on allies came alongside public questioning of the mutual-defense guarantee.
- Federal Government
~25,000 probationary employees fired; judge rules it unlawful
OPM directed mass firings using 'performance' justifications a judge found pretextual.
- Economy & Trade
Steel and aluminum tariffs reinstated globally
25% tariffs on all countries raised US input costs and triggered allied retaliation.
- Media & Institutions
AP stays barred from White House pool after appeals court stay
A district judge ordered AP reinstated, but the D.C. Circuit stayed that order and the exclusion continues.
- Rule of Law
Pardons for fraudsters and corrupt pols
Clemency for people convicted of corruption and fraud, many with donor or political ties, erased repayments a California estimate puts near $2 billion across both terms.
- Federal Government
CFPB effectively shuttered; 1,700 jobs targeted
The primary consumer-finance regulator was ordered closed, halting enforcement of lending and debt-collection laws.
- Health & Science
NIH indirect-cost cap blocked by courts
A flat overhead cap that would have cut an estimated $5.2B a year from university research was permanently enjoined.
- Federal Government
Three oversight watchdogs fired at once
Removing the OSC, MSPB, and FLRA heads disabled the bodies protecting whistleblowers and fired workers.
- Foreign Policy
US sanctions ICC prosecutor and judges
An executive order authorized sanctions on Court personnel in response to warrants for Israeli leaders.
- Foreign Policy
US exits UN rights bodies, defunds UNRWA
An executive order pulled the US from rights and cultural institutions.
- Foreign Policy
Trump proposes displacing ~2M Gaza residents
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and UAE all rejected the plan within hours.
- Economy & Trade
China tariffs hit 145% in 2025
Initial fentanyl tariffs doubled by March 2025; Liberation Day later drove rates to 145%.
- Immigration
TPS stripped from 1.5 million residents
TPS terminations for Venezuela, Haiti and other countries affected more than 1.5 million people with legal work authorization.
- Federal Government
~3,800 NIH/NSF grants cut or frozen; $3B affected
Grant cancellations disrupted biomedical research with the Supreme Court allowing DEI terminations.
- Federal Government
DOGE reached Treasury systems before vetting was done
DOGE staff, some before background checks were complete, reached a payment system holding records of nearly every American; a court blocked them, then later allowed access under conditions.
- Economy & Trade
25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico
Tariffs on the two largest US trading partners were projected to raise prices (Brookings) and triggered retaliation.
- Media & Institutions
Kennedy Center board replaced; artists boycott
Political takeover triggered 20+ show cancellations and a blocked attempt to rename the venue.
January 2025 · 29
- Federal Government
75,000 federal workers accept resignation buyout
Mass simultaneous departures created agency knowledge gaps at a paid-leave cost GAO estimated at $6.7B for 2025.
- Rule of Law
DOJ fires prosecutors; FBI leadership ousted
DOJ fired career prosecutors who worked on Trump-related cases, saying their employment 'hindered' the president's agenda, and ordered eight senior FBI executives out.
- Federal Government
17 inspectors general fired without notice
A single night of firings left major agencies without independent watchdogs during DOGE cuts.
- Rule of Law
~1,500 January 6 defendants pardoned
The clemency order voided the largest criminal prosecution in DOJ history, which ranged from trespass to seditious conspiracy.
- Immigration
170+ US citizens wrongfully detained
Database errors and mass enforcement led to detention of US citizens and children.
- Immigration
Record 33 deaths in ICE custody
Deaths tripled from 2024 as detention population surged 70% and inspections fell 36%.
- Immigration
ICE arrests surge; 290,000 removed
Most people in ICE detention in November 2025 had no criminal conviction; removals ran only 7% above FY 2024.
- Immigration
Refugee admissions suspended; cap at 7,500
The suspension forced resettlement-agency layoffs and left pre-vetted families stranded.
- Immigration
Supreme Court rules against birthright-citizenship order
An order denying citizenship to US-born children whose parents are neither citizens nor permanent residents was blocked within days.
- Health & Science
Worst US measles outbreak since 2000
More than 5,900 cases across 2025-2026 put measles-elimination status at risk for the first time since 2000.
- Foreign Policy
US exits the World Health Organization
The exit ended US participation in WHO flu surveillance and cut off disease data other countries share for early pandemic warning.
- Federal Government
National Parks lose 24% of permanent staff
Ninety parks reported staffing impacts by July 2025, from shorter visitor-center hours to degraded emergency response.
- Federal Government
Appropriated funds withheld; GAO finds violations
GAO cited multiple Impoundment Control Act violations as spending control shifted to the executive.
- Federal Government
SSA loses 7,500 workers; benefits delayed
The largest SSA staffing cut degraded service for 75 million beneficiaries.
- Federal Government
IRS loses 31% of auditors nationwide
Buyouts and firings cost the IRS nearly a third of its auditors, the agents who typically handle wealthy and corporate taxpayers.
- Federal Government
USAID shut down; aid cuts tied to 9.4M projected deaths
The US eliminated its development agency, which had provided aid in more than 100 countries.
- Federal Government
Schedule F strips ~8,000 workers' protections
At-will reclassification covers senior policy-role civil servants across regulatory agencies.
- Federal Government
DOGE created with sweeping data access
The order opened agency systems to DOGE while Elon Musk, whose companies hold billions in federal contracts, served in the White House as a special government employee.
- Environment & Energy
Federal lands opened to expanded oil leasing
BLM approved the most drilling permits in 15 years while royalty rates on public oil and gas were cut.
- Environment & Energy
$34.8B in clean-energy investment canceled
For the first time since 2022, cancellations outpaced new clean-energy announcements nearly 3-to-1.
- Environment & Energy
Five offshore wind projects halted mid-construction
Suspensions were reversed by courts within weeks; all five projects resumed construction in early 2026.
- Environment & Energy
Energy emergency expedites fossil-fuel permitting
Emergency declaration fast-tracked oil and gas while excluding wind and solar.
- Environment & Energy
US exits Paris climate accord again
The US left the accord in January 2026; the order also revoked the US international climate-finance plan.
- Civil Rights
Over $3B in university research disrupted
NIH and NSF grant terminations disrupted labs, cut PhD admissions and paused hiring.
- Civil Rights
Federal DEI offices eliminated; courts clear the orders
Executive orders closed diversity offices; an appeals court vacated the block on private-sector provisions.
- Rule of Law
$TRUMP memecoin creates foreign-access conflict
Top token holders, most likely foreign per House Democrats, won a private dinner with the president; the SEC dropped its Coinbase case.
- Foreign Policy
US threatens to take Greenland, Panama Canal, Canada
Threats toward allies strained relations while Canada retaliated against US tariffs.
- Media & Institutions
FCC probes broadcasters for political bias
Targeted broadcast probes threatened licenses; the CBS-Skydance merger cleared after a $16M Trump settlement.
- Civil Rights
DOJ Civil Rights Division loses 70%
Mass departures and redirected priorities sharply reduced traditional enforcement of voting, housing and policing law.