Businesses scramble to keep up with flurry of White House activity

Flurry of executive orders leaves businesses, leaders scrambling

What you probably already know: Take a deep breath. If you’re losing track of all the executive orders and statements the president has made in the days since he took office, you can be forgiven. There are so many that CEOs and law firms have set up hot lines to help clients parse what all the changes to tax, immigration, trade and energy laws might mean for their businesses. One law firm posted a Trump Executive Order Tracker, which is a great resource if you’re looking for quick overviews of each order.

Why? There are too many orders to list out here, but there are some that are getting more attention than others. Business leaders are concerned that there may be immigration raids of their offices, and they want to know what their legal rights are. Others are looking to gear up for the coming tariffs, as many companies purchase parts and products from Mexico and Canada. JPMorgan Chase set up a “war room” to work through all the changes and ensure the bank was in compliance with all the new laws while helping clients and companies respond.

What it means: For companies in the construction, hospitality, health care and farming industries, the immigration orders are causing the biggest and most immediate challenges. Migrants have not been able to cross the border and farmers suddenly have disappeared. One California citrus farmer told the Wall Street Journal he lost 70% of his harvest crew this month when Border Patrol raided the area and prompted everyone to stay at home. The Trump administration also removed the protections for “sensitive zones” where undocumented people could be safe from deportation, such as domestic violence shelters, churches, schools and hospitals. This has left many nonprofits nervous about potential raids and unclear about their legal rights should ICE knock on their doors.

What happens now? The lawsuits are already starting to flood in as a result of the orders. The attorneys general from 22 states have filed suit to stop Trump’s order to end birthright citizenship, a designation that is enshrined in the Constitution and has been upheld multiple times by the Supreme Court. While the immigration issue captures the spotlight, it’s likely other orders will get lost in the flurry of activity and not get the attention they deserve, which may be intentional. For instance, orders on the massive roll-back of many environmental protections barely made headlines, and the move to recognize only two genders in all federal policies and documents was barely mentioned. Trump also reversed Biden’s order to make Cuba a unrestricted country for Americans and has redesignated the country as a state sponsor of terrorism.