Former President Barack Obama praised President Biden on Thursday for promulgating a vast list of executive orders hours after his inauguration as president.
Biden signed a total of 17 executive orders minutes after entering the Oval Office for the first time on Wednesday and 10 more orders related to the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday. The orders reversed a series of policies from the Trump administration and covered areas that Biden identified as his priorities in the campaign, including the coronavirus pandemic and climate change.
“This is a moment of boldness and President Biden is already delivering the results,” wrote Obama on Twitter. “Upon returning to the Paris climate agreements on the first day, he declared loud and clear that the United States will once again lead the fight against climate change.”
“And this is just the beginning,” added Obama.
Biden renewed the U.S. commitment to the Paris climate agreement, an international agreement to reduce carbon emissions, just three years after President Trump withdrew support. Trump argued that the deal was unfair to U.S. interests and would result in the loss of domestic jobs.
The actions angered several prominent Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. The Republican Party leadership has argued that Biden’s plan to combat climate change will hurt US energy interests and eliminate thousands of jobs.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally, warned on the day of his inauguration that he would take steps to challenge “federal hype” in any Biden order he deemed “unconstitutional”.
Biden signed an executive order demanding the use of masks on federal land and government buildings. Other actions included withdrawing federal funding for the Trump-backed border wall and suspending the Keystone XL pipeline.
“Today, thanks to executive orders and other guidelines signed by the president within hours of taking office, we are closer to ending this pandemic and better prepared for the next one,” Obama added in a blog.