SULAIMANI (ESTA) — U.S. President Joe Biden signed 15 executive actions shortly after being sworn on Wednesday, dismantling Donald Trump’s legacy on his first day in office.
Signing several actions in front of reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon, Biden said there was “no time to waste” in issuing the executive orders, memorandums and directives, according to Reuters.
“Some of the executive actions I’m going to be signing today are going to help change the course of the COVID crisis, we’re going to combat climate change in a way that we haven’t done so far and advance racial equity and support other underserved communities” said Biden.
“These are just all starting points,” he added.
Reuters cited aides as saying that the actions included a mask mandate on federal property and for federal employees, and an order to establish a new White House office coordination the response to COVID-19.
With the stroke of a pen, Biden ordered a halt to the construction of Trump’s U.S.-Mexico border wall, ended the ban on travel from some Muslim-majority countries, declared his intent to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organization (WHO) and revoked the approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, AP cited aides as saying.
He declared that he would “press forward with speed and urgency” in coming weeks.
“For we have much to do in this winter of peril and significant possibilities — much to repair, much to restore, much to heal, much to build and much to gain,” he said.
The Day One plans were just the start of a flurry of executive actions Biden would take soon after entering office, said his press secretary, Jen Psaki.
“In the coming days and weeks, we will be announcing additional executive actions that confront these challenges and deliver on the president-elect’s promises to the American people,” Psaki said.
Reuters reported that further actions would include revoking the ban on military service by transgender Americans, and reversing a policy that blocks U.S. funding for programs overseas linked to abortion.
On the economic front, Biden asked the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to extend a moratorium on evictions until the end of March, and the Department of Education to suspend student loan payments until the end of September.
