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Thank you to member Aaron Klebanoff for this question on policy changes that might have escaped our attention in this crazy news cycle.
What national policy changes have been occurring under the radar that everyone should be aware of?
You live by the pen, you just may die by the pen. And that’s been the case with much of former President Barack Obama’s legacy. Faced with GOP opposition to even his place of birth (Hawaii, America), he used his pen to circumvent Congress through Executive Orders aimed at protecting DACA recipients, combating climate change, combating gun violence, enhancing the Affordable Care Act, expanding America’s trading partners in Asia, and attempting to delay Iran’s nuclear program.
Of late many of those issues have been drowned out of the national headlines, but President Trump’s unparalleled assault on his predecessor’s legacy has meant either the outright repeal or the quiet undoing of all or most of those accomplishments. That’s a big part of the reason why liberals, progressives and Independents have been so riled up since Trump first took office and started systematically undoing Obama’s accomplishments—because each of those issues has a powerful, dedicated core constituency that are now out pounding on doors, making phone calls and doing anything else they can to put a check on Trump and the GOP Congress that has basically allowed him to use his own pen, unchecked.
