It’s week one of Donald Trump’s second term, and the new administration is already at work implementing Project 2025. Trump’s flurry of lawless first-day executive orders targeted birthright citizenship, fetal “personhood,” and gender non-conforming people. Let’s get into what went down this week.

Reproductive rights

• The White House took down reproductiverights.gov, a government website offering reproductive health and abortion information. For resources on accessing abortion care, birth control pills, emergency contraception, and more, you can visit our guide.
• The global gag rule—which blocks international funding to NGOs that provide abortion care, referrals, or advocacy—is expected to be reinstated any minute now. We’ll have more from Garnet Henderson if it is re-implemented.

LGBTQ+ rights

• In one of his first executive orders, Trump declared the United States’ policy is to “recognize two sexes, male and female,” effectively halting the federal government’s recognition of transgender and nonbinary people’s gender identities. The Biden administration previously allowed people to mark a gender “X” on their passports if they did not identify as male or female.
• NOTUS reported that nothing will happen to existing passports using the gender marker “X” until the passport holder renews it.
• Trump’s executive order also states that federal funds cannot be used “to promote gender ideology.”
• Newly-confirmed Secretary of State Marco Rubio has ordered the State Department to freeze passport applications with “X” sex designations.

Immigration

• A day-one executive order aims to end birthright citizenship, which is guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. The order has been temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
• Another executive order halted the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. The move shut down an app that migrants could use to apply for legal asylum in the United States.
• The administration canceled flights for thousands of refugees who had already been approved to enter the U.S.

Health and science

• Trump issued an executive order pulling the U.S. out of the World Health Organization (WHO)—but as Imani Gandy and Jessica Mason Pieklo pointed out on this week’s Boom! Lawyered, just because Trump issued an executive order doesn’t mean it’s happening. Congress is required to act for the U.S. to actually withdraw from the WHO.
• The administration canceled all National Institutes of Health meetings, effectively halting the fellowship and grant process. Business Insider reporter Adam Rogers wrote on Bluesky that this constitutes nearly $50 billion of scientific research.

DEI and civil rights

• Trump ordered an end to all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, including the 1965 Equal Employment Opportunity order, in the federal government. The move put all federal employees with DEI jobs on paid leave.
• The administration also ordered federal employees to report any DEI efforts or else face “adverse consequences.”
• A separate order shut down DEI initiatives in the Federal Aviation Administration.
• The Justice Department froze all new civil rights cases and investigations.