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–>He issued more executive orders than any modern president …<!–>
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Executive orders
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[–><!–>On his first day in office, Mr. Trump signed a record 26 executive orders — and he didn’t stop there. The executive order has become something of a hallmark of his governing style, a way to express clear policy directives without the bureaucracy of regulation or the horse trading of legislation.–><!–>
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[–><!–>Some orders direct federal agencies to develop policy in particular areas, like oil drilling, prescription drug prices or the water pressure delivered by shower heads. Some mostly express the president’s sentiment on an issue. Some function as warnings or punishments for political enemies. But many — in key areas like immigration and tariffs — effectively carry the force of law. The near daily release of orders stands as a counterpoint to the current anemic Congress, which has passed only a handful of laws since Mr. Trump’s inauguration.–><!–>
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–>… and was sued in federal court more, too.<!–>
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Federal lawsuits filed against the president
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[–><!–>Mr. Trump’s executive actions have already led to an explosion of lawsuits. Some of the legal intensity can be explained by the speed and scope of his actions. These include cutting funding across numerous programs; firing large swaths of the federal work force; imposing emergency tariffs; reshaping immigration and deportation policies; demanding federal oversight over universities; and more.–><!–>
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[–><!–>In other recent administrations, lawsuits challenging major federal policies have become common. But those suits often come later, in response to laws and regulations that take months and years to develop. The second Trump term is remarkable because of both the number of suits and their immediacy.–><!–>
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–>Revenue from tariffs increased.<!–>
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Tariff revenue
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–>The dollar plunged.<!–>
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Relative value of the U.S. dollar
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–>Markets fell, too.<!–>
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Shifts in the S&P 500
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–>The State Department was quiet.<!–>
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State Department press briefings
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[–><!–>The State Department press briefing — once a near-daily opportunity for an administration to communicate foreign policy aims — became much rarer in Mr. Trump’s first term. In his second, the briefings have been even more infrequent.–><!–>
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[–><!–>The changes to this practice are consistent with the administration’s attempts to reduce and reshape the government to a degree unseen in generations. Those efforts have included the freezing of foreign aid spending and the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio unveiled a plan to make major cuts to the State Department, calling the government’s diplomatic agency “bloated, bureaucratic” and “beholden to radical political ideology.”–><!–>
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–>Federal funding for medical research slowed.<!–>
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N.I.H. funding for competitive grants
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[–><!–>But the Trump administration has made big cuts to the N.I.H.’s research funding. Some of the cuts have aligned with certain political priorities, including the termination of studies on care for transgender people, cuts to studies on racial disparities in medical care, and the elimination of some categories of vaccine research. The cuts have also reflected Mr. Trump’s feuds with educational institutions, including major funding freezes on grants to Columbia and Harvard.–><!–>
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[–><!–>The reductions go far beyond those targeted cuts, however. Overall, there has been a widespread decrease in research investment.–><!–>
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–>Trump went from being popular to unpopular.<!–>
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Presidential approval ratings
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Methodology
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