By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Joe Biden will be inaugurated the 46th United States president at 12 noon E.T. (17 hours GMT) today after the tumultuous reign of Donald Trump who expanded existing divides in America, created new ones, and poured fuel on all for four years.
The House of Representatives impeached Trump for the second time on January 13 for “incitement to insurrection” after he rallied the mob that assaulted the US Capitol.
Trump will leave office at 12 noon today but the Senate is mulling his impeachment trial and may formally remove him from office and bar him from holding any public office for life over the insurrection, which caps his lawlessness in the White House.
He leaves behind a trove of chaos and mess Biden has vowed to clear up, starting immediately after his inauguration.
CNN articulates below the first list of 17 such actions he has promised to take today.
First hours
Biden plans to take 17 executive actions in the first hours of his presidency Wednesday, signing a flurry of executive orders, memoranda and directives to agencies implementing his first moves to address the coronavirus pandemic and undo some of Trump’s signature policies.
The first-day actions include imposing a mask mandate on federal property and installing a coronavirus response coordinator to oversee the Biden White House’s efforts to distribute vaccines and medical supplies.
Biden also plans to reverse several of Trump’s attempts to withdraw from international agreements, rejoining the Paris climate accord and halting the United States’ departure from the World Health Organisation – where Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, will lead the US delegation.
And he’ll undo some of Trump’s harshest immigration crackdowns, ending the ban on travel from some Muslim-majority countries and halting funding for the border wall.
Biden will sign the executive orders and memoranda in the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon, his incoming press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
Psaki and other top Biden officials said the first-day actions are only part of what will be a series of moves to undo Trump policies and implement Biden’s campaign promises in his first weeks in office.
Here’s a look at the 17 actions Biden will take on his first day in office:
Biden plans to issue 17 executive orders, presidential memoranda and agency directives, from directing the Covid-19 pandemic response to canceling the Keystone XL pipeline.
Eight of the 17 actions directly reverse Trump’s policies.