'Illegal stuff': Experts warn Trump’s 'day one' plans are 'blatantly unconstitutional'

21 September 2024

On the 2024 campaign trail, former President Donald Trump has made more than 200 promises about what he'll do on day one of a second term — famously promising to act as a "dictator" immediately upon taking the oath of office. And some experts are cautioning that many of those promises fly in the face of the U.S. Constitution and federal statutes.

The Washington Post reported that, by its count, Trump has made 82 education-related Day One promises, 74 related to immigration, 41 ties to energy policy, 25 about transgender issues and 33 other promises. Some of those are about his signature border wall proposal and vows to eliminate the teaching of racial and LGBTQ+ curriculum in schools. But others, according to experts, disregard longstanding federal law.

"A lot but not all of what Trump says he wants to do on day one is going to be illegal or impractical," Georgetown University constitutional law professor Steve Vladeck told the Post. "But even the illegal stuff might go into effect for some time, and he might actually succeed in pushing the law in his direction."

Among the more controversial day one immigration-related promises Trump has made is his call to abolish birthright citizenship, which guaranteed in the 14th Amendment. While that would typically require a new constitutional amendment, the Post reported Trump could feasibly issue an executive order affecting how states issue birth certificates.

“There are a bunch of ways you could try it,” Omar Jadwat, who is the director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Immigrant Rights Project, told the Post. “but it’s impossible to imagine any court allowing something so blatantly unconstitutional to happen.”

The former president would also run afoul of federal law if he tried to enact his education agenda via executive order. He has, on numerous occasions, vowed to cut funding for public schools that teach students about issues pertaining to race, gender and sexual orientation. But the Post reported that this would intrude on Congress' role, which has discretion over the federal budget.

Karoline Leavitt, who is a spokesperson for Trump's 2024 campaign, maintained that the ex-president's day one plans are consistent with what he did in his first term in the White House and that they are the natural progression of his agenda.

"[Trump] delivered on his first term promises to build the wall, rebuild the economy, and make America respected again on the world stage — and he will deliver on his promises in a second term as well," Leavitt said.

Some of the ex-president's other campaign promises are relate to undoing executive orders President Joe Biden signed. On the campaign trail, he has referenced electric vehicle "mandates," which are actually just fuel emission standards and incentives to promote additional manufacturing of electric vehicles.

Vladeck said reversing executive orders entirely within a president's purview. He noted that this is considered "low-hanging fruit" for a new administration, and "the easiest thing a president can do on his first day."

Click here to read the Post's report in full (subscription required).

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