What Makes An Order Executive?

Civics on the Rocks

Okay, so it’s not our best show title, but you get what it’s about don’t you? Yep, we’re jumping headfirst into the chaos machine. Won’t you join us?

REFERENCES

There have recently been a whole bunch of executive orders:

Federal Register. “2025 Donald J. Trump Executive Orders.” National Archive. https://www.federalregister.gov/presidential-documents/executive-orders/donald-trump/2025

If you didn’t get the weather map joke:

Stracqualursi, Veronica. “Washington Post: Trump Was the One Who Altered Dorian Trajectory Map With Sharpie.” September 6, 2019. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/06/politics/trump-sharpie-hurricane-dorian-alabama/index.html

They began numbering the executive orders after the Federal Register Act was passed:

McKinney, Richarch J. “A Research Guide to the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations.” September 16, 2019. Law Librarians’ Society of Washington, DC. https://www.llsdc.org/fr-cfr-research-guide

The first president to issue an executive order was George Washington:

Statutes and Stories. “George Washington’s First Executive Order.” February 1, 2021. https://www.statutesandstories.com/blog_html/george-washingtons-first-executive-order/

Powers and duties under Article II:

Constitution Annotated. “ArtII.1 Overview of Article II, Executive Branch.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artII-1/ALDE_00000243/

When Biden issued an executive order saying that the Equal Rights Amendment was properly ratified and is part of the Constitution:

Megerian, Chris; Superville, Darlene; and Savage, Claire. “Biden Says the Equal Rights Amendment Should Be Considered Ratified.” January 19, 2025. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-equal-rights-amendment-era-16b554dfe913797a52f894b72684bc45

The archivist of the United States was just fired by the Trump administration:

Watson, Kathryn. “Trump Fires Archivist of the United States, Official Who Oversees Government Records.” February 7, 2025. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-fires-archivist-of-the-united-states-colleen-shogan/

In Trump’s first term, when the EPA issued the permit for the pipeline they initially rejected:

National Association of Counties. “Trump Administration Issues Executive Order Making It Harder for States to Block Oil and Gas Pipeline Projects.” April 16, 2019. https://www.naco.org/blog/trump-administration-issues-executive-order-making-it-harder-states-block-oil-and-gas-pipeline

Obama did not actually issue an executive order about marijuana but rather several guidance memoranda:

Lampe, Joanna R. “Does the President Have the Power to Legalize Marijuana?” [PDF]. Updated November 4, 2021. Congressional Research Service. http://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB10655

Trump made comments about DE&I policies being responsible for a plane crash while signing an executive order about air safety:

Associated Press. “Trump Signs Aviation Order to Assess ‘Damage’ Done to Air Safety by Diversity Policies” [Video]. January 30, 2025. PBS News. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-trump-signs-aviation-order-to-assess-damage-done-to-air-safety-by-diversity-policies

The executive order Trump issued on birthright citizenship:

Oliphant, J. Baxter and Copeland, Joseph. “Trump’s Executive Order on Birthright Citizenship Draws More Disapproval Than Approval.” February 21, 2025. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/02/21/trumps-executive-order-on-birthright-citizenship-draws-more-disapproval-than-approval/

John McCain, he was born in the Panama Canal Zone:

Farley, Robert. “Was McCain Born in the USA?” May 12, 2008. Politifact. https://www.politifact.com/article/2008/may/12/born-usa/

Ted Cruz was born in Canada:

Siddiqui, Sabrina. “Where Was Ted Cruz Born and Does It Matter for His Presidential Bid?” January 12, 2016. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/12/where-was-ted-cruz-born-citizenship-presidential-debate

In case you don’t know who Mike Lee is and why Mack thinks he likes Ted Cruz:

Svitek, Patrick. “Mike Lee Gives Ted Cruz First U.S. Senate Endorsement.” March 10, 2016. The Texas Tribune. https://www.texastribune.org/2016/03/10/mike-lee-gives-cruz-first-us-senate-endorsement/

The Supreme Court that said he’s a king:

Delahunty, Robert and Yoo, John. “The Presidential immunity Decision.” October 7, 2024. Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. https://journals.law.harvard.edu/jlpp/the-presidential-immunity-decision-robert-delahunty-john-yoo/

What’s been happening with the USAID:

Knickmeyer, Ellen and Kinnard, Meg. “What USAID Does, and Why Trump and Musk Want to Get Rid of It.” February 4, 2025. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/usaid-foreign-aid-freeze-trump-peter-marocco-8253d7dda766df89e10390c1645e78aa

The firing of the FAA people:

Copp, Tara. “Some of the 400 Jobs That Were Cut at the FAA Helped Support Air Safety, A Union Says.” February 19, 2025. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/faa-firings-trump-doge-safety-airlines-27390c6a7aac58063652302df5a243d3

The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order:

National Archives. “The Emancipation Proclamation.” Reviewed January 28, 2022. https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured-documents/emancipation-proclamation

If you aren’t familiar with the movie scene, here’s a transcript:

American Rhetoric. “Lincoln (2012).” https://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechlincoln13thamendmentdefense.htm

The Thirteenth Amendment:

Constitutional Annotated. “Thirteenth Amendment.” https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-13/

An executive order from FDR in 1941:

National Archives. “Executive Order 8802: Prohibition of Discrimination in the Defense Industry (1941).” Reviewed June 25, 1941. https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/executive-order-8802

We referenced curfews. Here’s an interesting article about them:

Gainty, Caitjan. “Curfews Have a Dark History: No Wonder People Are Resisting Them in the Pandemic." February 2, 2022. King’s College London. https://www.kcl.ac.uk/curfews-have-a-dark-history-no-wonder-people-are-resisting-them-in-the-pandemic

Blackouts in World War II:

Wright Museum of World War II. “How the Home Front Became a Light During World War II Blackouts.” https://wrightmuseum.org/how-the-home-front-became-a-light-during-world-war-ii-blackouts/

Steve isn’t the only one phrasing it as a coup:

Stone, Peter. “‘This is a Coup’: Trump and Musk’s Purge is Cutting More Than Costs, Says Experts.” February 17, 2025. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/17/trump-musk-government-cost-cutting-coup

The election of 2020 when Trump would not concede:

Freking, Kevin. “Trump Seems to Acknowledge Biden Win, But He Won’t Concede.” November 15, 2020. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-elections-coronavirus-pandemic-f76f7c7c7182be4033151457ca81a9f7

And then he pardoned all of them:

Mangan, Dan. “Trump Draws Anger for Praising Police After He Pardoned Jan. 6 Rioters.” March 4, 2025. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2025/03/04/trump-blasted-jan-6-capitol-riot-pardons-congress-police.html

One person who was getting a little pissed with having to comply with FAA regulations:

Federal Aviation Administration. “FAA Proposes $633,009 in Civil Penalties Against SpaceX.” September 17, 2024. https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-proposes-633009-civil-penalties-against-spacex

Why some people can’t wait to get rid of OSHA:

Ducharme, Jamie. “What is OSHA and Why Do Some Republicans Want to Disband It?” February 6, 2015. Time. https://time.com/7213433/what-is-osha-republicans-disband/

The safety cages that Steve was talking about:

Braun, John. “Ladder Cages Are No Longer the Right Solution.” Simplified Safety. https://simplifiedsafety.com/blog/ladder-cages-are-no-longer-the-right-solution/

Anne was incorrect when she implied that the Trump administration had to roll back the firing of the inspectors general. That lawsuit is ongoing:

Whitehurst, Lindasy. “Government Watchdogs Fired by Trump Sue His Administration and Ask a Judge to Reinstate Them." February 12, 2025. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/watchdogs-trump-mass-firing-inspectors-general-5b4629fb34a168322bf61170286efb76

The division within the FBI that handles counterintelligence for foreign influence:

Dilanian, Ken. “Pam Bondi Ends FBI Effort to Combat Foreign Influence in U.S. Politics.” February 6, 2025. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/bondi-ends-fbi-effort-combat-foreign-influence-us-politics-rcna191012

In case you want to brush up on the concept of rule of law:

United States Courts. “Overview: Rule of Law.” https://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/overview-rule-law

Rob Roy, the first official podcast drink:

https://www.liquor.com/recipes/rob-roy/

There are a lot of drinks out there described as a London Fog. Mack gives his recipe in the show, but this recipe is pretty close to what we drank:

https://www.diffordsguide.com/cocktails/recipe/1186/london-fog

In case you are having trouble following along with Mack’s squirrel:

Tour Texas. “San Antonio Map.” https://www.tourtexas.com/texas-maps/interactive-map-san-antonio

The weekly column by Garret Graff that Steve mentioned:

Graff, Garrett M. “Doomsday Scenario” [Series]. https://www.doomsdayscenario.co/?fbclid=IwY2xjawI62eFleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHfE4AwRIBQR7IabdTuQZ5jM_7DrGcp4Yn7-kSOrdEhWaAXIA7tPlVHks3g_aem_knprGJGfFdjUhEhpIapvZQ

A traditional gin and bitters:

https://www.thespruceeats.com/pink-gin-classic-cocktail-759332

Angostura Bitters are made in Trinidad and Tobago (a country in the Caribbean):

Angostura Bitters. “Our Story.” https://angosturabitters.com/our-story/

A much more accurate description of how Columbus Day came into being than Anne provided:

Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Columbus Day.” Updated February 6, 2025. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Columbus-Day

But seriously, Columbus was a jackass:

Lee, Alicia. “Why Cristopher Columbus Wasn’t the Hero We Learned About it School.” June 12, 2020. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/12/us/christopher-columbus-slavery-disease-trnd/index.html

There are so many executive orders and so many people fighting them, it’s hard to keep track, but here is one forum that is doing their darndest:

Just Security. “Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.” https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/

One of the executive orders that was rolled back within 24 hours:

Copp, Tara and Izaguirre, Anthony. “Trump Administration Tries to Bring Back Fired Nuclear Weapons Workers in DOGE Reversal.” February 16, 2025. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/nuclear-doge-firings-trump-federal-916e6819104f04f44c345b7dde4904d5

There was the hiring freeze of all these VA nurses:

Heckman, Jory. “VA Exempts 300,000 Health Care Positions From Governmentwide Hiring Freeze.” January 23, 2025. Federal News Network. https://federalnewsnetwork.com/hiring-retention/2025/01/va-exempts-300000-health-care-positions-from-governmentwide-hiring-freeze/

They cut spending to the Department of Public Transportation:

Roads & Bridges. “Trump Announces Executive Order on IIJA.” January 22, 2025. https://www.roadsbridges.com/funding/news/55262700/trump-announces-executive-order-on-iija

If you didn’t get the “big ball” reference, good for you. Please don’t read this explanation, it will just make you sad for the state of our country:

Kamp, Majlie de Puy. “Recording Reveals New Details on Controversial DOGE Employee.” February 22, 2025. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/21/politics/doge-musk-edward-coristine-invs/index.html

If you are going to join a protest:

Human Rights Campaign. “Tips for Preparedness, Peaceful Protesting, and Safety.” https://www.hrc.org/resources/tips-for-preparedness-peaceful-protesting-and-safety

The people who did it the first time, all wrote books:

Five Books. “Resistance & Rebellion.” Updated February 6, 2025. https://fivebooks.com/books/resistance-revolution/

If you aren’t familiar with what Steve Bannon said:

Aitken, Peter. “Steve Bannon’s ‘Flood the Zone’ Strategy Explained Amid Trump Policy Blitz.” February 6, 2025. Newsweek. https://www.newsweek.com/steve-bannon-flood-zone-strategy-explained-trump-policy-blitz-2027482

And Regina George and the Plastics wore pink on Wednesdays in the movie Mean Girls. But you already knew that.