Art, obsession, and identity
By February 2025, US President Donald Trump had issued nearly 70 executive orders. Many of the orders were in line with Trump’s campaign rhetoric, but some have been quite unexpected and, frankly, odd.
On February 10, 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14208, a measure that reverts a decision to replace plastic straws with paper.
Executive Order 14208 reverses a decision taken by the Biden administration, which sought to address plastic pollution across the US government, which Biden considered a “crisis.”
Biden’s 2024 order sought to end the purchasing of plastic products across the US government, while Trump’s order specifically references straws.
The order notes that an official “National Strategy to End the Use of Paper Straws” should be issued to “eliminate all policies within the executive branch designed to disfavor plastic straws.”
On February 6, 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14203, which imposes sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), the only “global court” that has the legitimate power to “prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
Following a thorough investigation, in 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants on the basis of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The warrants were issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (pictured left), former Defense Minister Yoav Galant, and Hamas leader Mohammed Deif, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in July 2024.
Executive Order 14203 states that the ICC’s decision threatens to “infringe upon the sovereignty of the United States,” undermining its national security and foreign policy with its decision on the basis of “illegitimate and baseless actions.”
The ICC is composed of 125 member states, of which the United States and Israel are not signatories. Nearly 80 signatories, including many American allies, issued a joint statement to condemn American sanctions on the ICC. The Court’s president, Tomoko Akane (pictured), also condemned the Order.
On February 6, 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14202, titled ‘Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias.’ The Order seeks to “end the anti-Christian weaponizing of government.”
The Order includes the formation of the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias. Yet, religious freedom experts are at odds, unable to actually come to a decision if Christians are actually under any sort of attack.
The US is overwhelmingly comprised of Christians (65% of the population). Many argue that the nation is already sympathetic to Christian concerns due to the sheer numbers of the faith group and in terms of legal bodies’ decisions, such as that of the Supreme Court.
On January 29, 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14188, which seeks to further a former Order issued by the administration on combating antisemitism. Antisemitism continues to be a serious, worldwide issue.
However, Trump's Order comes in response to protests across university campuses following the war on Gaza, which the Trump administration considers inherently antisemitic and intimidating.
The Order requires that “activities by alien students and staff” should be monitored and reported so that they may be deported. Additionally, the Order threatens to freeze government funds to higher education institutions that do not apply its measures.
Critics argue that the Order does not include the much-needed measures to eradicate antisemitism across the country, but focuses on 'pro-Palestine' activism, challenging principles of free speech that are protected under the country’s constitution, turning universities into hostile environments.
According to the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and other legal advocacy groups, international students with F-1 visas who participated in ‘pro-Palestine’ protests are already having their visas revoked, refused reentry after foreign travel, or facing outright deportation.
This Order contradicts a previous order issued by Trump on January 20, 2025, titled ‘Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship,’ which points to the right to “speak freely in the public square without Government interference.”
This Order specifically states that “no taxpayer resources [should be used] to engage in or facilitate any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen.”
On January 20, 2025, Trump issued Executive Order 14172, titled ‘Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness.' The Order sets to change the names of national heritage sites according to Trump’s ideological preferences.
North America’s tallest peak, located in Alaska’s Denali National Park and Preserve, is targeted by the order, to revert its name from Denali to Mount McKinley.
Denali is the peak’s native Alaskan name, designated by Athabascan tribal members. It was referred to McKinley for a short period in 1896 by a prospector who named it such following the nomination of President William McKinley (pictured).
The US Geological Survey disputed the name change in 1899, nearly three years after maps had been circulated with McKinley’s name.
McKinley, who served as president until his assassination in 1901, encouraged Christian missionaries’ conversion of indigenous populations. The name reversion is particularly offensive to Athabascan tribal members, who have inhabited the region for several centuries, and attribute great significance to Denali.
The Order also included renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Due to the Order, maps, products, and services across federal agencies are updating the Gulf of Mexico, which has been the name used by cartographers for nearly five centuries, to the Gulf of America.
Newspapers and other media outlets hit a crossroads with this Order, in particular. Several said they would continue to use the Gulf of Mexico in their reporting. Trump has subsequently banned agencies, such as AP News, from the White House until they begin using the Gulf of America.
These are just some of the executive orders that the Trump administration has issued that have caused controversy among its population and institutions.
Some of these orders, as noted, are contradictory. They are all, however, grounded in an ideology that confuses patriotism and national interests with illegal measures that violate the rights of citizens and residents. Many of these measures are being challenged in state and federal courts.
The Order makes specific reference to ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan (pictured), banning Khan from entering the US and conducting business with Americans. During Trump’s first administration, he had sanctioned Khan’s predecessor, Fatou Bensouda.
On February 1, President Donald Trump signed an order imposing a 25% tariff on imports from Mexico and Canada and a 10% tariff on goods from China. These tariffs, which could drive up prices on essentials like groceries, gas, and energy, took effect on March 4, disrupting nearly $2.2 trillion (€2 trillion) in annual US trade and triggering a market decline. The move came just hours after Trump accused all three countries of failing to curb the flow of fentanyl and its precursor chemicals into the US.
Sources: (BBC) (National Archives and Records Administration) (AP News) (Deseret) (CBS) (MSNBC)
See also: Inside the mega-prison in El Salvador that Trump wants to send US criminals to
On March 3, Donald Trump decided to suspend US military aid shipments to Ukraine following a heated Oval Office exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on February 28. The aid will remain frozen until Trump believes Zelenskyy is serious about peace talks, using Ukraine’s battlefield struggles as leverage.
From affirming the purchasing of multiple foreign lands to suggesting the annexing of neighboring nations, some of Trump's suggestions have been considered outlandish, even to his supportive base.
In this gallery, we highlight the oddest of the administration's decisions (so far). Click through to explore these head-scratchers.
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LIFESTYLE Politics
US President Donald Trump began his second term with a slew of executive orders. The extensive list of the new administration's decisions has included rolling back rights for particularly vulnerable groups, mass firings, raids, and deportations, among other measures.
From affirming the purchasing of multiple foreign lands to suggesting the annexing of neighboring nations, some of Trump's suggestions have been considered outlandish, even to his supportive base.
In this gallery, we highlight the oddest of the administration's decisions (so far). Click through to explore these head-scratchers.