Trump Day One, Immigration, January 6 Pardons

Summary

Up First from NPR: "Trump Day One, Immigration, January 6 Pardons" – January 21, 2025

Hosts: Leila Fadel, Steve Inskeep, Michel Martin, A Martinez, Ayesha Rascoe, Scott Simon
Release Date: January 21, 2025
Duration: 14 minutes

NPR's Up First delivers a comprehensive and engaging summary of the day's most significant news in just ten minutes. In this episode, the focus is on former President Donald Trump's return to the White House, his immediate policy actions, particularly concerning immigration, and the sweeping pardons related to the January 6 Capitol attack.

Trump's Immediate Executive Actions

Leila Fadel opens the episode with the announcement of Donald Trump's return to the White House:

Leila Fadel [00:03]: "Donald Trump is back."

Donald Trump makes a brief declaration:

Donald Trump [00:05]: "Here I am. The American people have spoken."

Within hours of his inauguration as the 47th President, Trump wasted no time in enacting his agenda. Franco Ordonez details the flurry of executive orders signed by Trump:

Franco Ordonez [00:05]: "Within hours in the White House, he signed a flurry of executive orders to roll back President Biden's policies and implement his own."

These actions include a promised crackdown on immigration, which Trump describes as the "complete restoration of America" and a "revolution of common sense" (Trump [00:26]). However, some of these moves are pushing the boundaries of legality and constitutional authority.

Executive Orders and Policy Overhauls

On his first full day in office, Trump signed numerous executive orders, actions, and proclamations, utilizing his signature Sharpie marker (Leila Fadel [02:20]: "He wasted no time undoing President Biden's policies... using his trademark Sharpie marker"). The rapid succession of these orders underscores Trump's intent to swiftly dismantle Biden's legacy and establish his authority.

Franco Ordonez provides insight into the nature of these orders:

Franco Ordonez [03:01]: "He pardoned 1500 people who were involved [in the Capitol riots], signed a series of orders on immigration, and reclassified tens of thousands of career civil servants..."

These actions are likely to face legal challenges due to their controversial nature and potential overreach of presidential powers.

Immigration Policy Overhaul

Immigration is at the forefront of Trump's agenda, reflecting a core component of his campaign and resurgence to power. Ximena Bustillo, NPR's immigration policy reporter, elaborates on the specific measures taken:

Ximena Bustillo [06:38]: "Trump signed executive actions aimed at increasing border security and reducing pathways for legal migration... reinterpreting the 14th Amendment... resuming border wall construction and pausing refugee resettlement."

One of the most contentious actions is the reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment to negate birthright citizenship, a move currently being challenged in courts:

Ximena Bustillo [07:36]: "A coalition of civil rights and civil liberty groups filed a lawsuit in New Hampshire saying Trump's decision was unconstitutional."

Moreover, Trump has signaled intentions to deploy the military and National Guard to the southern border, though details on implementation remain unclear.

Legislative Response

In response to Trump's immigration policies, Congress has also moved to shape the landscape. Ximena Bustillo reports on bipartisan efforts:

Ximena Bustillo [08:51]: "12 Democrats joined Republicans to pass the Lake and Riley Act, lowering the bar for ICE agents to detain and deport individuals based on crimes like theft or assault against law enforcement."

This legislation faces significant implementation challenges, including an estimated $26 billion needed in the first year to support enforcement and processing efforts.

January 6 Pardons and Commutations

One of Trump's most controversial actions on his first day is the issuance of pardons and commutations to individuals convicted in connection with the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack. Tom Dreisbach, NPR's correspondent, provides a detailed breakdown:

Tom Dreisbach [10:15]: "Almost every single defendant got a full unconditional pardon... more than 400 people charged or convicted of violent assaults on law enforcement are being pardoned."

Additionally, 14 individuals received commutations, allowing them to leave prison while retaining their felony records. This move has sparked significant backlash, particularly from law enforcement officers and their families who were victims of the January 6 assault.

Tom Dreisbach highlights the broader implications:

Tom Dreisbach [12:06]: "Federal law enforcement declared January 6th an act of domestic terrorism... Trump has essentially undone all of that with the stroke of a pen."

The pardons have been criticized as an endorsement of political violence, potentially emboldening extremist groups like the Proud Boys. This development raises concerns about the message it sends regarding political dissent and the rule of law.

Reactions and Future Implications

The immediate actions taken by Trump have set a contentious tone for his presidency. Franco Ordonez notes the administration's willingness to expand presidential powers and confront legal boundaries:

Franco Ordonez [03:43]: "It's a full-scale assault on President Biden's legacy... a sign of how Trump plans to expand his presidential powers."

With key cabinet positions still being confirmed and critical support structures like Homeland Security under Governor Kristi Noem awaiting Senate approval, the full scope of Trump's policy implementation remains to be seen. The administration's actions are expected to incite further legal challenges and political friction in the coming weeks.

Conclusion

This episode of Up First provides a thorough examination of Donald Trump's first actions as President, emphasizing the immediate and far-reaching impacts of his executive orders on immigration and the controversial pardons related to the January 6 Capitol attack. Through insightful reporting and expert analysis, NPR underscores the significant legal, political, and social implications of Trump's swift policy shifts as he seeks to redefine the American political landscape.

---

For more in-depth coverage, consider subscribing to Up First+ for sponsor-free listening and additional features at plus.npr.org/upfirst. Support local NPR journalism by donating at donate.npr.org.

Transcript

[Leila Fadel]

Donald Trump is back.

[Donald Trump]

Here I am. The American people have spoken.

[Franco Ordonez]

Within hours in the White House, he signed a flurry of executive orders to roll back President Biden's policies and implement his own.

[Leila Fadel]

I'm a Martinez. That's Leila Fadel. And this is up first from NPR News. His executive orders paved the way for his promised crackdown on immigration.

[Donald Trump]

With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense.

[Leila Fadel]

But some of the moves pushed the bounds of the law and the Constitution.

[Franco Ordonez]

Trump also issued sweeping pardons and commutations for everyone convicted in connection with the attack on the Capitol, including those who beat police officers with bats and poles. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

[Cook Unity Ad]

This message comes from Cook Unity. Choose from hundreds of restaurant quality meals prepared by award winning chefs, delivered straight to your door. Just heat and eat. Flexible commitment, free subscriptions. Skip deliveries. Pause or cancel anytime. Subscriptions start as low as $11 per meal. Reset your routine with convenient mouth watering meals crafted with local ingredients by award winning chefs. Go to cookunity.com first or enter code first before checkout for 50 off your first week. This message comes from HubSpot. As a marketer, you have to generate leads, create content, and make your brand go viral. It's a lot. Thankfully, there's Breeze, HubSpot's suite of AI tools. Now you can turn one piece of content into all the assets you need, find the best leads and beef up your reporting all in one place. Visit HubSpot.com marketers to see how companies like yours are generating 110% more leads in just 12 months. This message comes from HubSpot, where you can create content fast, get better leads, and crush reporting all in one place. Visit HubSpot.com marketers to see how companies like yours are generating 110% more leads in just 12 months.

[Franco Ordonez]

President Trump begins his first full day at the White House today.

[Leila Fadel]

So let's catch up because yesterday was a lot. After being sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, he wasted no time undoing President Biden's policies and starting to implement his own, all while using his trademark Sharpie marker.

[Donald Trump]

So this is a big one.

[Leila Fadel]

That was the sound of Trump signing one of dozens of executive orders, actions and proclamations on his first night back in power.

[Franco Ordonez]

Here with us to break down all that's already happened in the Trump presidency is White House correspondent Franco Ordonez. Good morning, Franco.

Good morning, Layla.

Okay, so you were at the White House As Trump signed these actions in the Oval Office, what really stood out to you?

Yeah, I mean, I think clearly it's the pardons of those involved in the riots of the U.S. capitol on January 6th. I mean, he pardoned 1500 people who were involved, a really big number. He also signed a series of orders on immigration. He took a big step toward his own stated goal of overhauling the federal government. Doing so, he signed an order reclassifying tens of thousands of career civil servants so that they can be easily replaced with basically loyalists who are more willing to carry out his agenda. I'll just note that's likely to face legal challenges.

Okay, so not even a full day in office and he's signing all these orders, including things, as you point out, that will likely be contested in court. Why the hurry? What's the message here?

Well, I mean, on the one hand, it's a full scale assault on President Biden's legacy. Trump revoked nearly 80 executive actions taken by the Biden administration on issues like climate, energy and diversity programs. On the other, it's a sign of how Trump plans to expand his presidential powers. I mean, a number of these orders will be challenged in the courts, like you said, but Trump and his team just do not seem to care. I mean, they've made it very clear they're willing to be creative when interpreting and applying these old laws and new ways to fulfill his agenda. It also shows how Trump is willing to get back at people who he feels wronged him. I mean, just as an example, one executive order, there was a measure revoking the security clearance of his former National Security advisor, John Bolton. Bolton, of course, wrote a book that Trump was unfit to be president.

Were his orders and actions generally focused on domestic issues?

Overall, I mean, it was kind of a mix of domestic and foreign, long list. And as he signed, he actually took questions from reporters who were in the pool in the room about his plans to do in office. I mean, one of them asked when he'll talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine. Here's what Trump said.

[Donald Trump]

I have to speak to President Putin. We're going to have to find out. He can't be thrilled. He's not doing so well. I mean, he's grinding it out. But most people thought that war would have been over in about one week. And now you're into three years, Right? So he can't be. He can't be thrilled. It's not making him look very good.

[Franco Ordonez]

So we'll be watching to see when some of these Calls with Putin and other foreign leaders start to take place.

Okay, so that all happened like in hours, not even a full day in office. So today is actually his first full day in office. What should we expect?

I mean, he's already busy. You know, he posted on social media this morning that he was removing more than a thousand of Biden administration appointees like celebrity chef Jose Andreas and retired General Mark Milley. And my colleague Deidre Walsh confirmed that House Speaker Mike Johnson is planning to come to the White House today. But really beyond that, we don't know much more.

NPR's Franco Ordonez. Thank you, Franco.

Thank you, Leila.

Immigration is at the center of Trump's first moves as president, a key part of his campaign message and rise back to power.

[Donald Trump]

Commander in Chief, I have no higher responsibility than to defend our country from threats and invasions, and that is exactly what I am going to do. We will do it at a level that nobody's ever seen before.

[Leila Fadel]

He signed a handful of actions tied to immigration yesterday evening and rescinding other Biden administration policies on asylum and the border. Some, though, push the legal bounds of the law and the Constitution.

[Franco Ordonez]

NPR's immigration policy reporter Ximena Bustillo has been covering all of this and joins me now. Hi, Ximena.

[Ximena Bustillo]

Good morning.

[Franco Ordonez]

Good morning. So Trump has made some very specific promises around immigration. What actions did he take?

[Ximena Bustillo]

Yesterday, Trump signed executive actions aimed at increasing border security and reducing pathways for legal migration. Some included his boldest promises, like reinterpreting the 14th Amendment to mean that those born in the US do not get automatic citizenship, as has been the most common interpretation. Trump also brought back some policies from his first term, resuming border wall construction and pausing refugee resettlement. A A few other things happened yesterday as well. He shut down the CPB1 app. This was something President Joe Biden created, which allowed migrants to schedule appointments at ports of entry along the U. S. Mexico border. This created immediate impact at the southern border. People who had waited months to be able to schedule an appointment suddenly lost that chance.

[Franco Ordonez]

Is everything he's signing legal and constitutional? I'm thinking of birthright citizenship. I mean, can he just end it? The 14th Amendment of the Constitution says all persons born in the United States are citizen.

[Ximena Bustillo]

This is something that he has long promised to do, though this is already being challenged in courts. Last night, a coalition of civil rights and civil liberty groups filed a lawsuit in New Hampshire saying Trump's decision was unconstitutional and goes against congressional intent and long standing Supreme Court precedent. And others are looking into this too. And There's a lot of unknowns generally about the ability to implement many of these actions. For example, Trump says he wants to send the military and National Guard to the border, but there's no clarity on who would go, how many, or to do what.

[Franco Ordonez]

I mean, and just a reminder, I mean, Trump's been in power for not even a full day yet. That starts today. But he does have some of his cabinet in place, like Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Does he have his immigration team assembled?

[Ximena Bustillo]

Trump selected South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to lead Homeland Security, but she has not been confirmed yet by the Senate. There are also key posts at the Defense Department that may need to be in place to deploy resources to the southern border. And agencies like DHS do need congressional funding to scale up their operations. And while there is interest in having border security be a part of the next budget related measure, that's still several weeks away, if not months.

[Franco Ordonez]

And speaking of Congress, I mean, lawmakers did actually take action on immigration last night. What did they do?

[Ximena Bustillo]

12 Democrats joined Republicans to pass the Lake and Riley Act. This is a bill that would lower the bar for who the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents can detain and deport based on their crimes, such as theft or assault against law enforcement. The bill now goes back to the House, which is expected to pass it. And this could reach Trump's desk as the first legislation that he signs in his second term. But it might be pretty hard to implement. I got an internal memo from Immigration and Customs Enforcement that said that they'd need $26 billion in just the first year to comply with the order, to house those they detain and to hire more people to process them.

[Franco Ordonez]

NPR's Jimena Bustillo. Thank you, Jimena.

[Ximena Bustillo]

Thank.

[Franco Ordonez]

As we mentioned earlier, President Trump issued pardons and commutations to every single defendant charged and convicted in connection with the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

[Leila Fadel]

Yeah, that includes people convicted of assaulting police on that day with bats, poles, pepper spray and other weapons. More than 140 officers were injured on January 6, and their injuries included crushed spinal discs, traumatic brain injuries, and a heart attack.

[Franco Ordonez]

NPR's Tom Dreisbach has been covering the attack and the pardons, and he joins me now. Good morning.

[Tom Dreisbach]

Good morning.

[Franco Ordonez]

So take us through the pardons and the commutations that Trump issued.

[Tom Dreisbach]

Right. So almost every single defendant got a full unconditional pardon. That means their conviction is forgiven if they're locked up, they get released. If they were convicted of a felony, they get their gun rights back and that group includes more than 400 people charged or convicted of violent assaults on law enforcement. Driving a stun gun into an officer's necks, for example, beating officers with a bat. And then just 14 people are getting these commutations. So they still have a felony on the record, but they are getting out of prison. And all of those people are linked to the far right groups involved in January 6, the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys. Most of that group were convicted of seditious conspiracy. But I should say the headline here is everyone charged in connection with January 6, whether they pleaded guilty or lost at trial, whether they assaulted cops or not, whether they were found to be violent extremists or not, they are all getting relief from Trump.

[Franco Ordonez]

I mean, it's not a surprise, right, that Trump has. Trump had promised pardons for January six rioters for years, but were you surprised by the scope?

[Tom Dreisbach]

Well, yeah. Members of the incoming administration had said this would not happen. Vice President J.D. vance told Fox News earlier this month that, quote, obviously they should not pardon people who assaulted police. In fact, Trump has embraced, however, even the violent January six defendants for years. At his rallies, he featured a song with the January six defendants recorded on a jailhouse phone singing the Star Spangled Banner. He calls them hostages, says they were treated unfairly. And even rioters were attending inaugural events, including a rioter named Timothy Hale Cuzinelli, who prosecutors described as a Nazi sympathizer. And he once went to work at a naval base with a Hitler mustache, compared Orthodox Jews to a plague of locusts. And he actually posted his invite to the inauguration on social media.

[Franco Ordonez]

Wow. Where does this leave the January six cases?

[Tom Dreisbach]

Well, federal law enforcement said that January 6th and the attack then was an act of domestic terrorism, and they launched the largest single criminal investigation in the history of the Justice Department. In response, Trump has essentially undone all of that with the stroke of a pen. And for police officers who were hurt, their families, this was the worst case scenario. They are watching people who assaulted them or their family member get out of prison. Of course, many defendants, on the other hand, are celebrating today. Jacob Chansley, the rioter many people know as the Qanon shaman, the guy with the horns that was seen in the Capitol. He said he's going to buy some guns now that he can legally. And then there's the larger concern. I've heard from counterterrorism experts, extremism experts, that this essentially is an endorsement of political violence by the incoming Trump administration, as long as that violence is against Trump's opponents, The proud boys have kept a much lower profile since January 6, but they were actually back out on the streets in D.C. on Inauguration Day. And given their history of violence, that has a lot of people worried.

[Franco Ordonez]

That's NPR's Tom Dreisbach. Thank you so much for your reporting.

[Tom Dreisbach]

Thanks, Layla.

[Franco Ordonez]

And that's up first for Tuesday, January 21st.

[Leila Fadel]

I'm Layla Falding and Mae Martinez. Make your next listen. Consider this the team behind NPR's All Things Considered goes deep into a single news story in just 15 minutes. Listen now on the NPR app or wherever you go. Get those podcasts.

[Franco Ordonez]

Today's episode of up first was edited by Roberta Rampton, Anna Yukonanov, Robert Little, Olivia Hampton and Alice Wolfley. It was produced by Ziad Butch, Nia Dumas, Milton Gavada and Claire Marashima. We get engineering support from Nisha Hynes, and our technical director is Stacy Abbott. Join us again tomorrow foreign.

[NPR Sponsor Ad]

To hear this podcast without sponsor breaks. Amazon prime members can listen to up first sponsor free through Amazon Music, or you can also support NPR's vital journalism and get up first [e-mail] that's plus.NPR.org.

[Cook Unity Ad]

This message is brought to you by NPR sponsor Shopify. It's 2025, a new year with new opportunities. The best time to start your new business is right now. Go to shopify.com NPR allovercase to sign up for a $1 per month trial period today.

[NPR Sponsor Ad]

This message comes from Warby Parker. What makes a great pair of glasses at Warby Parker? It's all the invisible extras without the extra cost, like free adjustments for life. Find your [e-mail] or visit one of their hundreds of stores around the country.