The Trump administration took a sledgehammer to progressive diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives Tuesday night with executive orders designed to root racialist ideology out of the federal government and American institutions at large.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order overturning President Lyndon Johnson’s 1965 executive order creating race-based hiring requirements for federal contractors. Paired with that is a memo from the Office of Personnel Management placing all DEI employees on leave and shutting down DEI programs and offices.
“President Trump campaigned on ending the scourge of DEI from our federal government and returning America to a merit-based society where people are hired based on their skills, not for the color of their skin. This is another win for Americans of all races, religions, and creeds. Promises made, promises kept,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
In addition to overturning affirmative action for contractors, Trump’s executive order declares DEI illegal and advises corporations and federally funded universities to end all illegal discrimination, with DEI falling under that umbrella.
Likewise, Trump took action to rid the Federal Aviation Administration of DEI hiring practices and return the agency to a merit-based system. Trump instructed the Secretary of Transportation and FAA administrator to end preferential hiring protocols for certain demographic criteria and revoke DEI programming inside the agency.
On Monday, Trump’s first day in office, he signed executive orders directing agencies to terminate DEI programs and review employment practices to root out DEI in all its forms. He also repealed the Biden administration’s “equity” executive order for the federal workforce and other executive actions meant to advance “equity” for minority groups.
Trump’s executive actions have the potential to significantly reshape federal civil rights law and could spell the end of DEI across American institutions. Large corporations, elite universities, news organizations, and many other powerful facets of American business and culture adopted DEI during the summer 2020 Black Lives Matter riots and racial reckoning.
Over the past few years, conservatives have waged a legal and political battle against DEI that started gaining traction after the Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that race-based college admissions programs violated the 14th Amendment. Conservative groups have filed a flurry of lawsuits alleging that corporate DEI programs violate anti-discrimination laws by explicitly creating programs for people with certain racial and gender characteristics. Numerous red states have also passed legislation outlawing DEI from universities and other public institutions.
More broadly, conservatives believe DEI programs obsessively focus on people’s immutable characteristics and assign blame to certain groups, rather than prioritizing individual character and meritocracy. DEI practitioners and proponents assert that it is necessary to make up for historical injustices to support people from marginalized backgrounds and train others to hold their same views.
Prior to Trump’s resounding electoral victory this past November, several large corporations including John Deere, Tractor Supply, Ford, and Lowe’s walked back DEI initiatives following conservative pressure. The slow corporate retreat from DEI continues after the election, with McDonald’s and Meta being among the companies to abandon DEI ahead of Trump’s inauguration.
Thus far, Trump is fulfilling his promise to use the federal government to combat DEI and end illegal discrimination. To make it last, Trump will likely need support from Congress and the legal system to ensure his efforts to end DEI have a long-term impact.
James Lynch is a news writer for National Review. He previously was a reporter for the Daily Caller. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and based in the Washington, D.C. area.
Reprinted with permission from National Review – By James Lynch
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
“President Trump campaigned on ending the scourge of DEI from our government. . . .”
While DEI might sound innocuous on paper,
DEI is nothing more than a euphemism for Depravity, Enslavement and Incompetence.
The far Left is going to pitch an absolute hissy-fit, but, in reality, this is the first step in returning to COMMON SENSE.
Carefully but quickly we are seeing change we have needed for so long.
Merit!!!!
Thank God we have some sense in our government again!!!!!!!
Great! Promises made and kept.
Boo hoo! Eliminate all that is donkey! Smells like rotten hay.
Ending historical injustices is definitely important. But to somehow attempt to “make up for them” is ridiculous. All that does is keep alive the roots of the injustices, which allows some gullible people to be influenced by them and continue them.
And that, Boys and Girls, is why I hired him!!!!!! MAGA Baby!!!!!
Only one problem–they get PAID leave! Should make them do SOMETHING but DIMM union thugs wouldn’t stand for that! Go out and pick up litter; scrub the sidewalks; wash the windows!
DEI sounds compassionate but anytime you give preferential treatment to one group over another, isn’t that unfair? So being unfair to certain groups makes up for the unfairness of the past? strange logic.
Excellent, now it’s fair for everybody. If you know a company is continuing to do it, report them!
America is coming back to her senses! I was beginning to fear that God had abandoned us! The demonic rats are going to be pooping down both pant legs.