Trump's War on DEI: Executive Orders Spark Legal Battles And Voluntary Rollbacks

Amid President Donald Trump’s early slew of executive orders, at least four seek to eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives started as long ago as the presidency of Lyndon Johnson. This edition of Next Witness…Please examines the concept of executive orders, charts some voluntary compliance and delves into current and upcoming litigations challenging the constitutionality of the orders. The executive orders seek to eliminate DEI initiatives in government, the military, the private sector and higher education. There is a fourth one directed at K-12 education that was promulgated but that will be a subject of a separate Next Witness…Please episode. Our retired judges Gayle Williams-Byers and Thomas Hodson explain that an executive order can take steps that are withing the scope of constitutional authority of the Executive Branch of Government. An executive order cannot override existing federal laws or statutes passed by Congress. On Jan. 20, Trump issued an order to eliminate all DEI hiring within the federal government under the title of “Restoring the Federal Hiring Process and Restoring Merit to Government Service.” The next day he issued an order “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit Based Opportunity” calling DEI programs “dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race and sex-based preferences.” On Jan. 22, he signed an order, “Restoring America’s Fighting Force”, abolishing all DEI offices and initiatives in the military. These orders have sparked voluntary compliance within the federal government and the private sector with many corporations and academic institutions announcing elimination of DEI initiatives. On February 3, one lawsuit was filed in federal court in Maryland asking for a preliminary and permanent injunction against the all-encompassing order saying it is unconstitutional on multiple levels.