Fresh out of Barnard College with a degree in political science, Riley is a writer and reporter for GZERO. When she isn’t writing about global politics, you can find her making GZERO’s crossword puzzles, conducting research on American politics, or persisting in her lifelong quest to learn French. Riley spends her time outside of work grilling, dancing, and wearing many hats (both literally and figuratively).
Nearing the end of his first 100 days, a milestone he’ll hit on April 30, Donald Trump has already shattered records with 124 executive orders — more than any other president. But he has signed just five new bills into law, a historic low, and many of his EOs are facing legal challenges, while some – like his bids to end birthright citizenship, freeze foreign aid, and ban transgender military service members – have been temporarily blocked.
Trump’s controversial executive orders have grabbed plenty of headlines, but what about the less-contentious ones? We know it’s a lot to keep up with, so here are a few you may have missed:
Scrub a dub dub dub STRONGER
Think of Trump next time you shower. Thanks to the executive order “Maintaining Acceptable Water Pressure in Showerheads,” the White House is taking aim at what it sees as the “left’s war on water pressure,” ensuring that showerheads will no longer “be weak and worthless.”
The order takes issue with Obama- and Biden-era regulations that lowered the amount of water shower heads could spout to decrease America’s water usage, arguing that the “13,000-word” regulation had turned the household appliance into a hydrodynamic device of bureaucratic oppression. Now, showers will be required to produce 2.5-gallons-per-minute, just in time for Earth Day, which is Tuesday, April 22.
Cutting out checks
Trump’s order “Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account,” will officially bring an end to the government issuing or accepting checks by the end of September.
While check usage has been steadily declining, the US still clings to them more than any other country — writing 10 times as many as Britain, Australia, Italy, Germany, and France combined. That’s largely due to America’s highly fragmented banking system. Since the federal government is one of the biggest check writers, this move could mark the beginning of the end for checks in the US — a payment method still commonly used by small businesses, contractors, and for charity donations.
Check writing in America is also deeply generational, with seniors aged 65 and up far the biggest users. So, if you’re hoping for a birthday check from grandma next year, set her up on Venmo.
Cartels designated terrorists, and deportations followed
A major part of Trump’s push to increase deportations is tied to an executive order called “Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.” This order gives the US government powerful new tools by officially labeling drug cartels and similar groups as terrorist organizations. It allows authorities to freeze their assets, ban members from traveling, hit them with tough sanctions, and prosecute them — along with anyone connected to them — even outside the US.
The move has already caused tension with Mexico, especially after the US used the order to justify flying surveillance drones into Mexican territory.
This policy works in tandem with another executive order, the “Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of the United States by Tren de Aragua.” Now that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua has been designated a terrorist group, this order allows the government to immediately detain and deport suspected members. Some Venezuelan migrants have already been deported to El Salvador, although further deportations are currently paused due to legal challenges.
Mining influence
Another executive order “Establishment of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and United States Digital Asset Stockpile,” directs the Federal Reserve — and by extension, the government — to be directly involved in buying and selling cryptocurrency. The reserve would hold five types of cryptocurrency, including 200,000 Bitcoin tokens seized from criminal cases — worth over $17 billion. With a reserve in place, those holdings could expand beyond Bitcoin to include Ether, along with three lesser-known cryptocurrencies: XRP, Solana, and Cardano.
Since cryptocurrency is still relatively new, the US taking this step will make it a key player in this emerging industry, potentially putting it in a position to influence prices. Trump has embraced cryptocurrency on the campaign trail and in his administration’s infancy, collecting millions of dollars in donations from crypto investors and founders and attending a crypto summit in March.
Make America Healthy Again
Trump has signed executive orders on health. The first, “Establishing the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission,”creates an initiative to study key health issues like rising rates of chronic disease, the overuse of prescription drugs, poor nutrition standards, and how much influence the food and pharmaceutical industries have on regulations.
It will also lay the foundation for possible changes to things like vaccine schedules and food-labeling rules.
The second executive order, “Making America Healthy Again by Empowering Patients with Clear, Accurate, and Actionable Healthcare Pricing Information,” will require hospitals, insurers, and pharmaceutical companies to be more transparent about their prices.
The goal is to help patients clearly see what insurance plans, medical procedures, and prescription drugs actually cost, so they can make informed choices instead of relying on vague estimates or confusing information.
As we pass the 100-day mark, Trump’s executive orders have touched everything from Bitcoin to bathtime — and there’s no sign he’s slowing down. But the real test will be whether he can turn these policy priorities into lasting change by securing funding in the next congressional budget or getting them written into law.
