While he had signed many decrees just after his inauguration in front of a packed room, he has not been idle for the second day of his presidency.
Second day of Donald Trump's term at the head of the United States. After a first day where he signed a lot of decrees, the American president continues to make many decisions.
Trump threatens the EU and China with customs duties again
US President Donald Trump has pledged to impose tariffs on the European Union and said his administration is considering imposing 10% tariffs on imports from China. Trump was speaking to reporters from the White House the day after his inauguration.
The Republican president has raised February 1 as a possible deadline for imposing 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and 10% on imports from China. Markets were reassured on Tuesday that none of the measures announced by Donald Trump the day before included tariffs on US trading partners.
Donald Trump also said that there were trade imbalances between the United States and other countries, including the European Union. “The European Union is very, very bad for us”, he said. “So they're not going to be able to avoid tariffs. That's the only way to get fairness.” Donald Trump said the tariffs on Beijing were being imposed because of the trafficking of fentanyl, a powerful opioid painkiller that has caused a public health crisis in the United States.
The Republican president said Monday he would consider imposing tariffs on products from Mexico and Canada unless the two countries curb drug trafficking, including fentanyl, and the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States.
President backs Elon Musk's acquisition of TikTok Musk
Donald Trump also said he was in favor of the idea of a TikTok acquisition by Elon Musk, if the boss of X, SpaceX, and Tesla wanted to buy the social network from the Chinese company ByteDance, banned in the United States since Sunday.
200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000The American president, who signed an executive order on Monday to suspend the ban law for 75 days, also suggested from the White House that the entity that would buy TikTok should “give half to the United States” in exchange for a “license”.
A major $500 billion infrastructure plan for AI
Donald Trump has announced a $500 billion private investment plan for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle plan to form a joint venture called Stargate and have already committed to an initial investment of $100 billion. The companies plan to invest up to $500 billion over the next four years.
The announcement comes after Trump’s predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, rescinded an executive order aimed at reducing the risks AI poses to consumers, workers, and national security. AI requires enormous computing power, which is driving demand for specialized data centers.
“They need to produce a lot of electricity, and we'll make it very easy for them to do that in their own factories if they want.”, Donald Trump said. The Republican had promised during the 2016 presidential campaign a $1 trillion infrastructure upgrade program during his first term, which never materialized.
End of federal diversity, equity and inclusion programs
The new Trump administration has directed federal government departments and agencies to dismantle all programs aimed at promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). The decision, presented in a memorandum from the Office of Personnel Management, comes the day after Donald Trump was sworn in for a second term as President of the United States.
The Republican president immediately revoked executive orders signed by his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, that were designed to promote the rights of LGBTQ+ and racial minorities upon his return to the White House. The government is expected to notify employees in any office or division working solely on so-called “DEI” measures on Wednesday that they will be placed on paid leave, the memo said.
Possible sanctions on Russia if Putin fails to negotiate
Finally, Donald Trump has said he would likely impose sanctions on Russia if his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, refuses to negotiate an end to the conflict in Ukraine. Donald Trump did not provide details on the potential sanctions.
The United States has already imposed significant sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The US president said his administration was reviewing the issue of arms shipments to Ukraine, adding that he believed the European Union should do more to support kyiv. “We are talking to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, we will be talking to President Vladimir Putin very soon,” he said. Donald Trump said he had pressed Chinese President Xi Jinping to intervene to end the war in Ukraine when he spoke with him.