On June 6, The Washington Post found that the Trump administration maintains a reserve of executive orders and proclamations.
While some of this collection is to push Presidential priorities, the unsigned pool of executive orders also exists to exploit the media, either by distracting it or creating counternarratives. They are only to be signed at a complimentary political or societal moment.
Some orders are put into the calendar well in advance, the official said. Others are teed up the night before they are signed depending on impulse, political strategy and the overall mood within the White House, the official said.
The Washington Post
For instance, Trump cited the terrorist attack in Boulder, Colorado while announcing his new travel ban. However, the new travel ban was actually being created shortly after Trump’s return to power in January. Some executive orders were being made during the transition.
Regardless of how Trump timed his signature on his executive orders, he has signed 157 executive orders and 62 proclamations, “a pace faster than any modern president.” This is despite his claim that former President Barack Obama’s perceived propensity for executive orders amounted to a power grab.
