Biden outlines agenda for day one of executive actions



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WASHINGTON (AP) – In his early hours as president, Joe Biden plans to take executive action to overturn some of his predecessor’s most controversial decisions and to deal with the raging coronavirus pandemic, said Saturday his new chief of staff.

The opening salute would herald a 10-day flash of executive action as Biden seeks swift action to redirect the country in the wake of Donald Trump’s presidency without waiting for Congress.

After his inauguration on Wednesday, Biden will end Trump’s restrictions on immigration to the United States from certain Muslim-majority countries, join the Paris climate accord, and impose masks on federal property and during interstate travel. These are among about a dozen actions Biden will take on his first day in the White House, his new chief of staff, Ron Klain, said in a note to senior executives.

Other actions include extending the hiatus on student loan payments and actions to prevent evictions and foreclosures for those struggling during the pandemic.

“These executive actions will bring relief to the millions of Americans struggling with these crises,” Klain said in the memo. “President-elect Biden will take action – not only to reverse the Trump administration’s most serious damage – but also to start moving our country forward.”

“Full achievement” of Biden’s goals will require Congress to act, Klain said, including the $ 1.9 trillion virus relief bill he introduced on Thursday. Klain said Biden would also bring forward a comprehensive immigration reform bill to lawmakers on his first day in office.

The next day, Thursday, Klain said Biden would sign orders related to the COVID-19 outbreak to reopen schools and businesses and expand virus testing. The next day, Friday, action will be taken to provide economic assistance to those suffering the economic costs of the pandemic.

The following week, Klain said, Biden would take further action on criminal justice reform, climate change and immigration – including a directive to speed up the reunification of separated families on the US-Mexico border as part of the process. of Trump’s policy.

More actions will be added, Klain said, once they clarify the legal review.

New presidents traditionally move quickly to sign a series of executive actions when they take office. Trump did the same, but found many of his orders challenged and even rejected by the courts.

Klain argued that Biden should not suffer from similar problems, claiming that “the legal theory behind them is well founded and represents a restoration of an appropriate constitutional role for the president.”

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