The Power Of The Pen: President Trump’s 10 Most Significant Executive Orders In His Second Term… So Far
on Sep 30, 2025
President Donald Trump Has Signed Over 200 Executive Orders Since Taking Office Earlier This Year
The use of executive order by the president of the United States can be somewhat controversial.
Loosely established in Article II of the United States Constitution, the president is given executive power and is charged with taking “care that the laws be faithfully executed.”
Checks and balances provide that an executive order may be found unconstitutional.
Since beginning his second term as president on January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump has signed 206 executive orders in just over 250 days, as of September 30. In his first term, from 2017 to 2021, Trump issued a total of 220 executive orders.
While this may seem like a lot, it pales in comparison to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who signed 3,726 executive orders across the four terms he was elected as president.
Presently, Trump is closer to his presidential peers in his executive order tally, with President George W. Bush issuing 291, President Barack Obama issuing 276, and President Joe Biden issuing 162.
Notably, Trump has called into question the Biden administration’s alleged use of an auto-pen to place the president’s signature on documents he was not present to sign.
Let’s take a look at 10 of Trump’s most significant executive orders in his second term, so far…
No. 10: Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism
Signed as one of 26 executive orders Trump issued on his first day in office, on January 20, this executive order, titled in full as “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism And Restoring Biological Truth To The Federal Government,” was made to uphold “the biological reality of sex,” à la male and female.
While this executive order is simple in scope, it was seen as a key decision to counter changes in language regarding biological sex — particularly in the military and government offices — in support of women.
Responding to the Biden administration’s approach to sex and gender, the executive order states:
“This unhealthy road is paved by an ongoing and purposeful attack against the ordinary and longstanding use and understanding of biological and scientific terms, replacing the immutable biological reality of sex with an internal, fluid, and subjective sense of self unmoored from biological facts.”
The executive order made it clear that the United States recognizes only two sexes, male and female, adding, “These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
From this executive order, a framework was established for future executive orders, including the January 28 order “Protecting Children From Chemical and Surgical-Mutilation” and the January 29 order “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.”
The language used in this executive order has been widely adopted within the Trump Cabinet.
In keeping with this executive order, on February 5, Trump signed an executive order banning biological men from competing as women in women’s sporting events. The ceremony for that executive order signing can be seen, here:
No. 9: Protecting American Communities From Criminal Aliens
Signed on April 28, the executive order titled “Protecting American Communities From Criminal Aliens” looked to change policy within the United States pertaining to the enforcement of border security.
This specifically looked to sanctuary cities, which have often been singled out by the Trump administration and Republican legislators for “obstruction of justice” and “harboring or hiring illegal aliens.”
As a result of this executive order, a list of sanctuary cities and jurisdictions was compiled by the Department of Homeland Security. Penalties for jurisdictions identified as being sanctuaries for illegal migrants include:
- The suspension or termination of Federal funds, as permitted by law and authorized by the head of applicable executive departments or agencies in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget; and
- Authorization for Attorney General Pam Bondi and DHS Sec. Kristi Noem “to pursue all necessary legal remedies and enforcement measures to end these violations and bring such jurisdictions into compliance with the laws of the United States.”
From this, the mobilization of the National Guard and Marine Corps in Los Angeles, California, amid anti-ICE protests was achieved through a wide-reaching presidential memorandum.
Watch Border Czar Tom Homan address the press on the day Trump signed the executive order on protecting American communities, here:
No. 8: Reestablish The Presidential Fitness Test
Make America Healthy Again has been a core mantra of Trump’s second term.
Trump’s party-blending coalition, formed with now HHS Sec. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has seen significant (and controversial) wins through measures taken to rollout a ban on artificial dyes from the nation’s food and drug supply, as well as advance research into the cause of autism.
On July 31, Trump signed an executive order reinstating the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition and reestablishing the Presidential Fitness Test.
The order reads:
“As the United States prepares to celebrate its semiquincentennial anniversary in 2026, we must address the threat to the vitality and longevity of our country that is posed by America’s declining health and physical fitness. For far too long, the physical and mental health of the American people has been neglected. Rates of obesity, chronic disease, inactivity, and poor nutrition are at crisis levels, particularly among our children. These trends weaken our economy, military readiness, academic performance, and national morale.”
Described by many as a “rite of passage,” the Presidential Fitness Test evaluated students age six to 17 on their proficiency in five key physical areas.
The test is expected to include:
- One-mile run: how fast can you run a mile?
- Sit-ups: in one minute, how many sit-ups can you do?
- Pull-ups or push-ups: what is the maximum amount of pull-ups or push-ups you can complete?
- Sit-and-reach: how flexible are you?
- Shuttle run: how agile are you?
In the past, students who scored in the top 15th percentile would receive the Presidential Fitness Award.
It is not yet clear if this will contribute to the Patriot Games, which are expected to be held in 2026 for the 250th anniversary of the signing of Declaration of Independence.
Watch professional golfer Bryson DeChambeau, Triple H, and others speak on the reinstating of the Presidential Fitness Test, here:
No. 7: Unleashing American Energy
“In recent years, burdensome and ideologically motivated regulations have impeded the development of these resources, limited the generation of reliable and affordable electricity, reduced job creation, and inflicted high energy costs upon our citizens,” stated a January 20 executive order. “These high energy costs devastate American consumers by driving up the cost of transportation, heating, utilities, farming, and manufacturing, while weakening our national security.”
This day-one executive order was largely done to return to Trump’s policies regarding energy during his first term.
Here, the “Unleashing American Energy” order established, among others, the following initiatives:
- Encourage “energy exploration and production on Federal lands and waters, including on the Outer Continental Shelf;”
- Establish the United States’ “position as the leading producer and processor of non-fuel minerals, including rare earth minerals;”
- “Protect the United States’ economic and national security and military preparedness;” and
- “Eliminate the ‘electric vehicle (EV) mandate’ and promote true consumer choice.”
Watch Trump sign a later executive order deregulating the coal industry, here:
No. 6: The Gold Card
Responding to the influx of illegal migrants during the Biden administration, as well as the Obama administration, the Gold Card was first announced in February.
On September 19, an executive order was signed to make it a reality.
For $1 million, an individual may “establish eligibility for an immigrant visa using an expedited process,” and a corporation may establish eligibility for a person to receive a visa at the cost of $2 million.
These expenditures are made as an unrestricted gift to the Department of Commerce.
A timeline is still being established for the rollout of this program which seeks to incentivize high-priority merit-based employment of foreigners.
Watch the signing of the Gold Card executive order, here:
No. 5: Regulating Imports With A Reciprocal Tariff
When Trump unveiled on April 2 his then-much anticipated tariff policy, he described the signing of the executive order as “liberation day.”
Given the full name of “Regulating Imports with a Reciprocal Tariff To Rectify Trade Practices that Contribute to Large and Persistent Annual United States Goods Trade Deficits,” this executive order has been one of the most contentious and revised of his second term.
Looking at trade deficits, the Trump administration says there was a $1.2 trillion trade deficit, which had grown significantly in the past five years, beginning with the onset of COVID-19.
Since the announcement, tariff rates have fluctuated for many countries, and the enforcement of the tariffs have even been paused.
Revisit Trump’s announcement of the nation’s tariff policy, on “liberation day,” here:
No. 4: Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations
With the influx of fentanyl and other substances across the borders of the United States, Trump signed an executive order on January 20 which seeks “the total elimination of these organizations’ presence in the United States and their ability to threaten the territory, safety, and security of the United States through their extraterritorial command-and-control structures.”
The executive order is called “Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations And Specially Designated Global Terrorists And Specially Designated Global Terrorists,” and its use was on full display this past month.
In September, the Trump administration announced it had conducted drone strikes on narcoterrorists from Venezuela.
Watch a report on the strike, here:
No. 3: Establishing A National Center For Warrior Independence
In an executive order signed by Trump on May 9, the creation of the National Center for Warrior Independence in Los Angeles was announced. Notably, this center will be paid for with funds that were previously directed to illegal aliens.
“Keeping Promises to Veterans and Establishing a National Center for Warrior Independence” seeks to tackle the homeless veteran crisis in America.
Working with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as well as the Department of Housing and Urban Development, “funds that may have been spent on housing or other services for illegal aliens” will be “redirected to construct, establish, and maintain this National Center for Warrior Independence.”
The center is expected to open in January 2028, with capacity for 6,000 veterans in need.
Read more about the executive order, here.
No. 2: Most-Favored-Nation Prescription Drug Pricing To American Patients
On May 12, Trump signed what he described as “one of the most consequential Executive Orders in our Country’s history,” adding, “Prescription Drug and Pharmaceutical prices will be REDUCED, almost immediately, by 30% to 80%.”
To accomplish this drop in costs, he said the cost of prescription drugs “will rise throughout the World in order to equalize” the cost. This, he said, will be happening “for the first time in many years” as an effort to “bring FAIRNESS TO AMERICA!”
This executive order is called “Delivering Most-Favored-Nation Prescription Drug Pricing to American Patients.”
Asked by Trump to speak on the announcement, HHS Sec. RFK Jr. said, “I grew up in the Democratic party, and every major Democratic leader for 20 years has been making this promise to the American people … As it turns out, none of them were doing it. It’s one of these promise that politicians make to their constituents knowing that they’ll never have to do it.”
Stating that “Congress is controlled … by the pharmaceutical industry,” RFK Jr. said, “This was an issue that people talked about but nobody wanted to do anything.”
RFK Jr. then declared, “We now have a president who is a man of his word, who has the courage.”
Watch the full press conference on the Most-Favored-Nation pricing, here:
No. 1: Securing Our Borders
Among the measures taken within the first few hours of his second term, the January 20 signing of the executive order “Securing Our Borders” was perhaps the most significant.
Meeting a campaign promise and setting the tone for many actions which have since been taken, addressing the “invasion” of illegal migrants, particularly at the Southern border, has been a
The executive order states that “a nation without borders is not a nation,” adding that the United States government has “limited information on the precise whereabouts of a great number of these illegal aliens who have entered the United States over the last 4 years.”
Authorizing the “United States to take all appropriate action” to address illegal immigration, this order cites the detention and removal of illegal aliens as a path toward securing the border.
As of September 23, the Department of Homeland Security has announced that 2 million illegal migrants have been removed or have self-deported since President Donald Trump was sworn in.
Of those 2 million, DHS says 400,000 were deported, and an estimated 1.6 million illegal migrants have self-deported.
“The Trump administration is on pace to shatter historic records and deport nearly 600,000 illegal aliens by the end of President Donald Trump’s first year since returning to office,” a DHS news release stated.
Further, U.S. Customs & Border Protection has released no illegal migrants into the country for 4 consecutive months.
Here’s a look inside DHS’ work securing the border:
