Tracking every rollback, reversal, and overreach — and the path back to the America we know.
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned 90 years of precedent in Trump v. Slaughter, granting the president unrestricted power to fire leaders of independent agencies and commissions. The decision eliminates statutory protections designed to insulate agencies like the CFPB, SEC, and FTC from political retaliation. Legal experts warn the ruling enables a "loyalty test" that threatens agency independence and consumer protection.
On September 10, 2020, President Trump signed Proclamation 2020-20855 establishing Patriot Day as an annual observance on September 11. The proclamation directs flags to be flown at half-staff and calls for moment of silence and remembrance activities. The proclamation has no direct operational effect on Americans beyond ceremonial designation and federal flag protocols.
On September 3, 2020, President Trump signed Proclamation 10,483 designating national days of prayer and remembrance. The proclamation calls for Americans to observe days of prayer and remembrance for victims of national tragedies and those who died in service. As a proclamation, it has no binding legal effect and does not change law, policy, or federal operations—it is a symbolic declaration.
On September 2, 2020, the Trump administration signed Memorandum 2020-19963 establishing an order of succession within the General Services Administration. The memorandum designates specific officials to assume the GSA administrator role in case of vacancy or incapacity. This affects the chain of command for the federal agency responsible for managing federal real estate, procurement, and related services.
Executive Order 13934 was signed on July 3, 2020. The order directs federal agencies to inventory and protect monuments and memorials on federal property, and establishes a council to coordinate the building or rebuilding of monuments to American heroes. The order requires agencies to prevent the removal or alteration of such monuments without presidential approval.
On January 29, 2020, President Trump signed a memorandum delegating certain authority under the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute to agency heads. The memorandum transferred specific powers related to labor-management relations from the Federal Labor Relations Authority to individual federal agencies. This action altered the process by which federal employees could pursue labor disputes and grievances, shifting authority away from the independent FLRA to agency leadership.
On November 12, 2019, the Trump administration signed Memorandum 2019-25118 delegating removal authority over the Federal Service Impasses Panel to the Office of Personnel Management Director. This memorandum transferred decision-making power over federal employee labor disputes from an independent panel to a presidentially-appointed official. The direct effect was to shift control of federal labor dispute resolution away from a bipartisan panel toward executive branch authority.
Executive Order 13893 was signed on October 10, 2019, reinstating Administrative PAYGO requirements that mandate federal agencies offset the cost of new regulations by eliminating or revising existing regulations of equal or greater cost. The order requires agencies to identify and remove regulations before implementing new ones, directly affecting the regulatory review process for rules that impact Americans across sectors including environment, labor, and consumer protection.
President Trump signed Proclamation 2019-22215 on October 4, 2019, designating October 6, 2019, as German-American Day. The proclamation recognizes the historical contributions of German Americans to the United States. This is a ceremonial proclamation with no direct regulatory or policy impact on Americans.
President Trump signed Proclamation 9856 on September 10, 2019, designating September 11 as Patriot Day. The proclamation directs the flag to be flown at half-staff on that date and calls for a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time to honor those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks. The proclamation has no direct operational impact on Americans beyond the symbolic observance it designates.