It's one thing for the new President to support the blockchain industry, but veterans aren't so crazy about him joining their ranks.

Why it matters: The president-elect nominally making $50 billion on a crypto asset that didn't exist a day prior speaks to the industry's power — but there's growing debate within the community about a stain on crypto's burgeoning credibility.

The big picture: Just days before taking office, Trump launched the Official Trump meme coin, sparking immediate questions of whether it could be used as a vehicle to funnel money to the Trump Organization by people seeking to curry favor with the administration.

• That said, it also brought a huge crush of new buyers into the market.

"Crypto changed forever last night," Udi Wertheimer, a blockchain entrepreneur tweeted the next day.

• "I think the Trump coin represents one of the largest events in crypto history, without a doubt," Alon, a cofounder of Pump.fun, the biggest meme coin launching platform, tells Axios in an interview.

Others are more circumspect. "[The President] creating a bunch of meme coins and DeFi protocols opens the possibility to rampant violations of the emoluments clause," Nic Carter, an investor in the space and fan of the new president said on X.

• When the Trump Organization endorsed decentralized-finance project World Liberty Financial back in August, Carter criticized that, too.

Echoing Carter, long-time crypto lawyer, Hailey Lennon, wrote on X, "I don't think Trump knows or cares what the ramifications of his meme coins are besides his short term personal profit."

• And Lee Bratcher of the Texas Blockchain Council put out a statement this weekend saying, "in my subjective opinion it isn't" a healthy development.
• Bitcoin Magazine was more succinct, denigrating the Trump token offering on X. That's despite the fact that its parent company enthusiastically welcomed the then-presidential candidate to Nashville for Bitcoin 2024.

Some are conflicted. "I'm 50:50 on this," Matti, a partner at Zee Prime Capital, tells Axios over Telegram.

• Matti bases his whole investing strategy on the memetic nature of digital assets. He acknowledged the Trump token could make the industry look bad, but added that "it makes you feel crypto is truly part of the zeitgeist."

Meanwhile, Investor Maya Bakhai, general partner at Spice Capital, which has backed a meme trading app, Hype, tries to keep her eye on the retail investor, which she sees as diverging from the crypto illuminati right now.

• To her, the president getting in makes meme coins credible. The negativity we're seeing today from other crypto investors, Bakhai pins on the fact that they missed so much of the meme coin boom.
• Speaking to the financial risks for meme coin traders, Bakhai pushes back on those concerns. "If you think about retail, they know it's a gamble," she says. "They want to gamble."

By the numbers: The energy sparked by the Trump token is showing up on chain. In terms of volume, this has been the best month ever on the blockchain that the token runs on, Solana.

• And it's clearly the new coin that's driving that. Daily volume had been around $4 billion or $5 billion a day through January, but Friday through Saturday were all over $30 billion daily.
• And crypto app downloads are also spiking.
• On the other hand, overall daily volumes across the market look fairly normal still.

The intrigue: While the Trump token unquestionably enriched the President, at least on paper, its launch doesn't seem to have included a special handout to his blockchain fans.

• The meme coin was released at the same time as a party for crypto leaders in D.C. ahead of the inauguration. Sources who were there tell Axios that there was no announcement of the new token at the event.
• In other words, a lot of the best traders were away from their terminals when the token's price was lowest.

What we're watching: It's too early to predict possible political implications from the launch, although the first voices from official Washington are starting to weigh in.

• House Financial Services Committee ranking member Maxine Waters (D.-Ca.) put out a statement Monday saying, "the launch and sale of this coin is yet another reason why all Americans and policymakers should exercise extreme caution on crypto."
• That's notable, as Waters has been a crucial voice on the topic — one that has become tentatively willing to pass legislation in recent years.

The bottom line: The last thing the crypto lobby needs is for Democrats like her to get cold feet.

Fox News host Sean Hannity will interview President Trump in the Oval Office on Wednesday. It's Trump's first Oval interview since returning to the White House.

Why it matters: Trump has hinted at shaking up the briefing room and allies have praised unconventional news sources. But his first sit-down is with a longstanding, well-known TV host on the president's beloved network.

• The interview will be pre-taped and will air on Hannity's Wednesday night program, which starts at 9pm EST.
• Trump is expected to discuss his second presidential term, recent executive orders and what to expect from the first 100 days, Fox exclusively confirmed to Axios.

Between the lines: Trump tapped 19 people for his administration who have worked for the news company at one point, according to an analysis by NPR.

• Hannity's show averages 2.8 million viewers, the highest rated cable show for the hour.

Flashback: Trump gave his first TV interview to ABC's David Muir his first time around.

A small core of Senate Republicans — including former GOP leader Mitch McConnell — has denounced President Trump's near-blanket pardon of Jan 6 rioters.

Why it matters: These voices will be a distinct minority on Capitol Hill. Many Republicans are in lock-step with Trump, even over an issue as personal to lawmakers as Jan. 6.

• McConnell (R-Ky.) told Semafor "no one should excuse violence. And particularly violence against police officers."
• Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said: "I've got concerns with any pardons for people who did any harm to police officers. Full stop. And I've also got serious concerns with all of the pardons by Biden."
• Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) called Monday a "terrible day" for the Justice Department, citing the pardons by both Trump and former President Biden.
• Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska): "I'm disappointed to see that and I do fear the message that is sent to these great men and women that stood by us," she told HuffPost.

Between the lines: Look to Sens. John Curtis (R-Utah) and Todd Young (R-Ind.) as others who could criticize Trump on issues like the pardons.

• That core group of GOP Senate resisters is the likeliest to break with Trump on a host of issues, including tariffs and TikTok.

Zoom in: The extent of Trump's Jan. 6 pardons shocked many lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

• Less than two weeks ago, VP-elect JD Vance said violent offenders wouldn't be eligible for pardons.
• That view was backed up on Sunday by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who caveated that "it's up to the president on that."

Zoom out: Many GOP senators, including Collins, Tillis and others, blasted Biden's pardons for his own family members and others.

• Biden "opened the door" to pardons, Senate GOP leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told CNN.
• Thune said Biden's pardons were the "most massive use of the pardon power that we've seen in history."

President Trump began his pledge to give America a MAGA makeover Monday, taking a slew of executive actions to walk back Biden-era policies and fulfill bold campaign promises.

The big picture: Trump's radical expansion of executive power will dramatically change life for millions of people if the orders withstand the barrage of legal challenges that are already coming.

President Trump executive orders list 2025

What Trump's Day 1 executive orders do...

Immigration executive orders

Many of Trump's first orders curtail immigration at the southern border.

• He promised mass deportations but hasn't detailed how he would implement, staff and fund such a massive, costly operation.

Trump declares national emergency at Mexico border

Trump declared an emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, vowing to deploy troops to the region, including the National Guard. He also instructed the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to construct additional border barriers.

• Trump designated "certain international cartels" and organizations, such as Tren de Aragua and MS-13, as foreign terrorist organizations and announced plans to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to target them.
• Trump suspended U.S. Refugee Admissions Program resettlements "until such time as the further entry into the United States of refugees aligns with the interests of the United States." Homeland Security will report back within 90 days whether resuming refugee entries would "be in the interests" of America.
• Nearly 1,660 Afghans cleared by the U.S. to resettle in the country, including family of active-duty U.S. military personnel, had their flights canceled following Trump's orders, Reuters reported.
• Trump also ordered Homeland Security to terminate "all categorical parole programs that are contrary to the policies of the United States established in my Executive Orders," including those for refugees fleeing Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela.

Remain in Mexico policy

Trump reinstated the "Remain in Mexico" policy, ending a program that released asylum seekers into the U.S. while their cases were considered.

• The U.S. Customs and Border Protection website said Monday that appointments made through the CBP One app at certain border crossings have been canceled. Hours later, Trump nixed the program.
• Trump empowered officials to "repeal, repatriate, or remove any alien engaged in the invasion" of the southern border.

Trump birthright citizenship executive order

One of his boldest moves was an attempt to end birthright citizenship for those born to undocumented immigrants.

• Birthright citizenship is protected by the U.S. Constitution, and the order already faces legal challenges.
• Trump ordered agencies (starting 30 days after the order) not to recognize babies as citizens if their mothers were "unlawfully present" at the time of birth and their father was not a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident.
• That also applies to children born to mothers who were lawful, temporary residents and fathers who were not citizens or lawful permanent residents.

Energy and environment executive orders

Trump declared a "national energy emergency," ordering expedited, deregulated drilling as he's repeatedly vowed to "drill, baby, drill."

• One order specifically targets energy production in Alaska — rescinding former President Biden's protections around the state's coastal areas.

In a separate memorandum, Trump paused offshore wind leasing in federal waters.

• "[T]he heads of all other relevant agencies, shall not issue new or renewed approvals, rights of way, permits, leases, or loans for onshore or offshore wind projects," pending a review of federal wind leasing, per the order.

Paris Climate treaty

State of play: He also signed an order withdrawing the U.S., the world's second-largest greenhouse gas emitter, from the Paris Climate Agreement.

• Trump had pulled out of the pact during his first term, but Biden rejoined the deal in a Day 1 order of his own.
• It takes a year to withdraw from the agreement, Axios' Andrew Freedman reports.

Trump also took aim at the Biden administration's federal procurement targets for clean power, electric vehicles and other energy goals.

• Trump directed the Energy secretary to restart application reviews for liquefied natural gas export projects, which were paused by Biden over climate change concerns.
• Tump also revoked a 2021 Biden executive order that set a goal for 50% of US vehicle sales to be electric by 2030.

Executive orders targeting DEI and transgender Americans

Trump established Monday that "it is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female" on official documents.

• "These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality," his executive order read.
• Transgender Americans were a central target of Trump's often hyperbolic and outright false campaign trail messaging.

Zoom out: He also rescinded a Biden administration provision that allowed transgender people to serve in the military.

• Trump did not immediately ban trans military personnel from serving, as he did under his first administration, but he paved the path to revive the ban.

Trump, as part of his crusade against what the GOP decries as "woke" culture, ordered the dismantling of government diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives within 60 days.

• It eliminates policies that established several diversity initiatives, Axios' Emily Peck reports, including one that widened sex discrimination protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

Other executive orders affecting federal workers

Trump signed several other provisions that will impact government workers.

• He required a full-time return to in-office work for federal employees and ordered a hiring freeze on government positions.
• The hiring freeze does not apply to the military or "immigration enforcement, national security, or public safety."

He also reinstated his first-term Schedule F executive order, which could make it easier to fire civil servants deemed disloyal.

• The order could strip employment protections from thousands of federal employees, Axios' Mimi Montgomery reports.
• Employees are "not required to personally or politically support the current President" — but they must "faithfully implement administration policies to the best of their ability," the order said.

Jan. 6 pardons

Trump pardoned the vast majority of Jan. 6 defendants charged with participating in the Capitol riot and commuted the sentences of 14 others.

• Among those were leaders of the extremist groups the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers.
• "These are the hostages, approximately 1,500 for a pardon, full pardon," Trump said from the Oval Office on his first night as president.
• Pardoning rioters was a prominent campaign pledge, but Trump had previously said recipients would be determined on a "case-by-case" basis.

Health executive orders: WHO, COVID and drug costs

Trump signed an order pulling the U.S. from the World Health Organization, a process he started during his first term.

• Monday's order said the U.S. will withdraw "due to the organization's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic ... and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states."

Zoom out: Trump also rescinded a 2022 Biden order to lower the cost of prescription drugs.

TikTok extension, DOGE and more executive orders

Trump signed a number of other executive orders and actions. Those include:

• Ensuring government agencies do not "unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen," highlighting what Trump and his allies considered censorship under Biden.
• Ordering a review of trade practices and agreements.
• Revoking security clearances of Trump's former national security adviser, John Bolton, and former intelligence officials who signed a letter discrediting the Hunter Biden laptop story.
• Formally establishing the Department of Government Efficiency.
• Suspending the TikTok ban for 75 days.
• Declaring that federal buildings should "respect regional, traditional, and classical architectural heritage" to "beautify public spaces and ennoble the United States."

Go deeper:

• The most notorious Jan. 6 defendants pardoned by Trump
• America's second Paris withdrawal is not like the first
• Trump's inauguration word choices give insight into Trump 2.0

President Trump threatened to purge officers from the U.S. military upon returning to the White House, and his new administration has already started making leadership changes.

The big picture: The first woman to lead the U.S. Coast Guard has been relieved of her command, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed Tuesday.

Driving the news: Adm. Linda Fagan was relieved of her duties because of "leadership deficiencies, operational failures and inability to advance the strategic objectives of the U.S. Coast Guard," a senior DHS official said in a statement to Axios.

• The statement cites the Coast Guard's role in national border security and the fentanyl crisis, as well as shortfalls in recruitment and the guard's implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies.
• The White House did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment on the shift. The U.S. Coast Guard referred questions to DHS.

Flashback: Former President Biden tapped Fagan, a four-star admiral, to lead the Coast Guard in 2022 after she served as its second-in-command.

• Adm. Kevin E. Lunday, who became the branch's vice commandant in June, is now serving as its acting commandant.

Zoom out: Trump and his Secretary of Defense nominee, Pete Hegseth, have blamed DEI initiatives and what they broadly call "wokeness" for undermining military readiness and effectiveness.

• In a confirmation hearing earlier this month, Hegseth tried to distance himself from his past inflammatory claims about women in the military, specifically their service in combat roles.

Go deeper: Trump tests limits of presidential power with Day 1 barrage

Pope Francis offered President Trump his congratulations on returning to the White House, but called his plan to deport millions of immigrants from the U.S. a "disgrace."

Why it matters: American Catholics strongly supported Trump in the 2024 election. Trump will need their support for any mass deportation plans, but crucial parts are being opposed by Catholic leaders.

• Francis sent Trump a message Monday that he's praying God "will grant you wisdom, strength and protection in the exercise of your high duties."
• "Inspired by your nation's ideals of being a land of opportunity and welcome for all, it is my hope that under your leadership, the American people will prosper and always strive to build a more just society, where there is no room for hatred, discrimination or exclusion."

Yes, but: Before sending him the message, Francis told an Italian TV program that Trump's plans for mass deportations of immigrants would be a "disgrace," per the BBC.

• Francis said that if the plans were implemented, Trump would make "poor wretches that don't have anything foot the bill."
• "That's not right. That's not how you solve problems," he said.

Zoom in: Within hours of returning to the presidency, Trump signed several executive orders aimed at restricting immigration, which are already drawing fierce opposition and lawsuits.

• One executive order calls for ending "birthright citizenship" — a concept promised by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution — for those born to undocumented immigrants.
• Another suspends refugee resettlements and expedites the removal of those who have sought asylum but don't meet the requirements.
• Another sends troops to the southern border, including the National Guard.

The intrigue: A new Axios-Ipsos poll released Sunday found that most U.S. adults say they support mass deportations of immigrants living in the country illegally — but that enthusiasm quickly erodes when presented with options over how to carry them out.

• Just 38% of Americans support using active-duty military to find and detain undocumented immigrants in U.S. cities and towns; and only 28% want to use money allocated for the military to pay for deportations.

Zoom out: A poll by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that Trump won the white Catholic vote, 59% to 39%.

• However, the PRRI poll found that Trump lost the Hispanic Catholic vote, 43% to 55%.

The wild gyrations of the Canadian dollar offer a valuable reminder to markets: There's what other people say Donald Trump will do, and what Donald Trump says he'll do.

Why it matters: The difference between the two can be worth billions of dollars.

Catch up quick: On Monday Trump's team gave the Wall Street Journal an early look at an executive order mandating tariff investigations — but not actually imposing tariffs.

• Trump's team told the Journal he was approaching trade "in a measured way."
• The Canadian dollar promptly rallied to its strongest levels in more than a month, as the specter of Trump's long-threatened tariffs eased.

Between the lines: It was the latest in a series of leaks and trial balloons out of his camp, all aimed at shifting the narrative: Trump's not actually going nuts with tariffs, this will all be strategic and targeted.

Yes, but: Then the cameras entered the Oval Office.

• Even as Trump signed the "measured" order, he told onlookers he was considering imposing a 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican goods on Feb. 1.
• As quickly as the C$ had rallied, it fell right back down.
• The chart above makes it clear: The U.S. dollar plunged against the Canadian dollar on the initial report, and then surged when Trump spoke. (Higher tariffs = stronger dollar, as research has shown.)

Zoom out: Anyone who follows Trump knows there's often a gulf between what people around him say he's thinking or doing, and what he ultimately says (or does).

• He knows it too, and leans into it.
• "Some of Trump's closest advisers would clearly like to limit the scope and size of those tariffs, but we suspect that Trump himself remains steadfast in his protectionist intentions and he will eventually win the internal debate," Capital Economics chief North America economist Paul Ashworth wrote Monday.

The intrigue: Which to believe: His aides, with their careful preparation; or the president, a legendary crafter of soundbites?

• It's always been an open question, one without a clear answer, though on balance Trump does tend to get what he wants.
• As Axios' Marc Caputo notes, the days of Trump's staff undercutting him and keeping him from doing what he wants appear over.

The bottom line: All the documents, briefings and plans in the world don't really matter much when Donald Trump has access to a TV camera.

Nathan Bomey contributed.

President Trump on Monday issued pardons for nearly all of the defendants charged with participating in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot — an unprecedented act of clemency.

Why it matters: In doing so, Trump absolved those who sought to undermine the democratic process. He also dashed a years-long effort by former President Biden's Justice Department to hold accountable those responsible for the deadly violence.

• In addition the roughly 1,500 pardons, Trump also commuted 14 defendants' sentences.

The big picture: Trump himself was indicted after special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. However, the DOJ case was dismissed after Trump won the 2024 election.

• In his final report, Smith drew a direct line between Trump and the rioters, saying the president had "inspired his supporters to commit acts of physical violence."

Here are the most notorious Jan. 6 defendants impacted by Trump's executive order.

Enrique Tarrio: ex-Proud Boys leader

One of the most well known rioters to receive a pardon is Henry "Enrique" Tarrio, the former leader of the right-wing extremist Proud Boys group.

• Tarrio was sentenced in 2023 to 22 years in prison after being found guilty of engaging in seditious conspiracy related to the Jan. 6 riot, the longest prison sentence handed down in the Jan. 6 cases.
• Seditious conspiracy is committed when two or more people in the U.S. conspire to overthrow, destroy, seize the property of or levy war against the U.S. government, or to prevent the execution of any U.S. law.

Zoom in: While Tarrio wasn't at the Capitol riot himself, prosecutors argued that he maintained command over the Proud Boys during that time and took credit for what unfolded on behalf of the group.

• Tarrio's mother posted on X Monday night that her son was being released. "Tarrio is free!" she wrote.

Stewart Rhodes: founder of Oath Keepers

Trump commuted the sentence of Stewart Rhodes, founder of the far-right militia group Oath Keepers.

• Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in prison in 2023 for seditious conspiracy, after he helped lead a plot to halt the certification of the 2020 election results.
• Rhodes was released from prison early Wednesday morning, Reuters reported.

Trump pardons Proud Boys leaders

Three other Proud Boys leaders — Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Ethan Nordean — were all military veterans and Proud Boy leaders who had their sentences commuted by Trump.

• Biggs and Rehl were sentenced for seditious conspiracy and other charges in their Jan. 6 cases, with Biggs was sentenced to 17 years in prison and Rehl to 15 years in prison.
• Nordean was sentenced to 18 years in prison after also being found guilty of seditious conspiracy.
• It was not immediately clear when the trio would be released.

Kelly Meggs: Oath Keepers leader

One of Rhodes' top deputies, Kelly Meggs, also had his sentence commuted by Trump.

• Meggs, a former Florida leader of the Oath Keepers, had been sentenced to 12 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and other felonies.
• His wife, Connie Meggs, also received a pardon for her role in the riot, per Reuters.

Go deeper: Trump pardons most Jan. 6 defendants

A once-in-a-generation snowstorm, tied to the polar vortex event across the Lower 48 states, is plastering the Gulf Coast with record-setting snow and ice on Tuesday.

Why it matters: This region isn't equipped to cope with heavy snow, particularly when it is accompanied by continued cold following the storm.

Threat level: About 3 to 5 inches of snow fell in the Houston metropolitan area, and both the city's major airports shut down for the storm, as did city schools.

• On Monday night, the NWS forecast office in Houston-Galveston described the storm as a "generational event" that is likely to eclipse the city's second-largest snowstorm on record.
• The NWS forecast office in Lake Charles, La. issued its first-ever blizzard warning on Tuesday, for the combination of heavy snow and high winds.
• The snow is moving east Tuesday, and is affecting coastal areas all the way to the Florida Panhandle and southern Carolinas.

New Orleans is also seeing its all-time snowiest day based on modern records taken at their current location. At least 4 inches had fallen at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport as of noon local time, with more snow still falling.

• Videos on social media Tuesday morning showed wind-driven snow falling in Lake Charles as well as New Orleans, with roads covered in snow.
• Blizzard-like conditions were observed in the New Orleans metro area, with high winds and visibility down to a quarter-mile at times.
• Snowfall reports ranged from about 5 inches just outside the city to as much as 9 inches already in Lafayette, with snowfall rates of at least an inch-per-hour at times.

This storm could shut down road and air travel along the coastal stretch from Houston to the Florida Panhandle for days due to the lack of snow plowing equipment and the region's inexperience with these winter hazards.

• Any power outages or other cuts to basic services from the extreme cold and snow could also take days to restore.

Stunning stat: The snow that has fallen so far in New Orleans exceeds the January snowfall so far in the Twin Cities as well as Anchorage, Alaska.

Meanwhile... in Southern California, strong offshore Santa Ana winds have prompted the highest category of red flag warnings for Tuesday.

• And the Storm Prediction Center has issued an "extremely critical" fire weather outlook for parts of LA and Ventura Counties, as well as parts of San Diego County.
• The threat may dissipate somewhat Tuesday afternoon local time, but more Santa Ana winds are on the horizon for later this week.

Zoom out: Both the snowstorms, as well as the serious California fire weather threat Tuesday, are tied to the polar vortex-related Arctic blast affecting the majority of the Lower 48 states.

• Nearly 300 million people in the Lower 48 states were under some type of cold weather warning or advisory as of Tuesday morning.
• In addition, the strip of winter storm and blizzard warnings stretching from South Texas to Jacksonville, Fla. is something rarely seen, as a low pressure area traverses the central Gulf of Mexico, directing abundant moisture northward, into the frigid air mass.
• Over longer timescales, studies suggest polar vortex shifts may be more likely due to human-caused climate change, but this is an area of active research.

Also, extreme cold is expected to become less severe in a climate that is warming over time due to the burning of fossil fuels.

Go deeper:

• Polar vortex-driven Arctic blast to yield historic southern snow
• Read Axios New Orleans' coverage
• Read Axios Houston's coverage

President Trump's Day 1 move to begin the process of withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement for a second time sends a clear signal to international partners that the U.S. is hot and cold on climate action.

Why it matters: The world is a very different place today than in 2017, when Trump first moved to have the U.S. depart from the then-nascent agreement.

• There may be sufficient momentum now in both the Paris regime as well as the burgeoning clean energy sector that this will make only a symbolic difference.

Zoom in: To have the U.S., which is the second-largest emitter behind China, exit the agreement even temporarily has the potential for other countries to start viewing the U.S. as an unreliable partner on climate and potentially other issues as well.

• Last time the U.S. left, no other country followed that move. This time could be different, given the rightward, anti-climate policies tilt in some key countries.
• The departure comes just after the Earth's hottest year on record and as climate impacts are becoming more obvious, from the devastating California wildfires to landscape-shifting hurricanes like Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
• However, the move also comes when clean energy innovation and deployment have hit new highs.

Between the lines: America's withdrawal from Paris doesn't take effect immediately, although the executive order notes the administration will treat it as such.

• The executive order was written to be far-reaching, cutting off funding for the UN climate organization that oversees annual climate summits and facilitates activities under Paris and other climate agreements since 1992.
• It would also squelch American contributions to international climate financing that would help countries adapt to climate impacts and boost clean energy production.
• To become official, it takes one year after U.S. diplomats submit a document to the UN climate bureaucracy notifying them of an intent to withdraw (last time Trump withdrew, it took longer due to a feature in the then-young agreement's provisions.)

There are outstanding questions of whether the Trump administration will continue to send some representatives to the annual climate summits, as it did during his first term, or skip entirely.

The main beneficiary of a U.S. withdrawal and pro-fossil fuels policies domestically could be China, which already leads the U.S. in the clean tech space.

Reality check: Right now, the global community is off track on the road to the Paris Agreement's goals.

• If the U.S.'s step back from international climate engagement results in a slower decline in global emissions, it would mean even worse climate impacts.
• It would also ensure that the agreement's 2°C target, which many experts say is still feasible with rapid emissions cuts, could slip.

What they're saying: "There is no sugar-coating this — it will be harmful to global efforts to combat climate change, and so ultimately, also harmful to the future prosperity and security of U.S. citizens," said Kaveh Guilanpour of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, in a statement.

• He noted, though, that the world has been here before, and the agreement survived.

Humanity is "on the verge" of having AI agents that can complete tasks in the real world, OpenAI Product chief Kevin Weil told Axios' Ina Fried in Davos Tuesday.

Why it matters: Weil's prediction comes days after Axios reported that a major AI company was close to announcing a breakthrough regarding the creation of Ph.D.-level AI super-agents capable of completing complex tasks.

What he's saying: "I think 2025 is the year that we go from ChatGPT being this super smart thing that can answer any question you ask to ChatGPT doing things in the real world for you," Weil told Axios.

• The advanced reasoning skills of new AI models, and improved ability to be multimodal and engage with humans, will be key to this ability, Weil said.
• He predicted that likely as soon as this year, AI agents will be able to do tasks like filling out forms or making restaurant reservations.

State of play: Asked about workers' anxiety about the impacts of AI, Weil encouraged people to experiment with AI tools.

• Using them will give people "a much better sense for how these things really will impact sort of your sphere — your workplace, your friends, your family," he said.
• It will also enable workers to "participate in the change" that AI will bring.

Go deeper:

• AI agents coming soon to a workplace near you
• Behind the Curtain — Coming soon: Ph.D.-level super-agents

President Trump moved to obliterate the outer bounds of executive power Monday, igniting a series of constitutional showdowns that could curtail — or enable — his vision for a maximalist second term.

Why it matters: Within hours of taking office, Trump dared the courts, Congress and his fragmented opposition to stand in the way of what could be his most enduring legacy: a radical expansion of presidential power.

• He did so publicly and with a flourish — signing an initial batch of executive orders in front of a roaring crowd at Capitol One Arena, before returning to the White House.
• There, Trump signed a barrage of executive orders, announced that Canada and Mexico are likely to face 25% tariffs beginning Feb. 1, and pardoned roughly 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants.

Trump also commuted the sentences of 14 Oath Keepers and Proud Boys convicted of seditious conspiracy— an extraordinary act of clemency for far-right extremists who sought to overthrow the government on Jan. 6.

• Many of the Jan. 6 defendants — targeted in the largest Justice Department investigation in U.S. history — were sentenced by Trump-appointed judges.
• "They've already been in jail for a long time," Trump said when asked if there should be any punishment for supporters who attacked police officers. "These people have been destroyed."

Zoom in: One of Trump's Oval Office executive orders stands out for its ambition and audacity: a declaration ending birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants.

• Birthright citizenship is enshrined in the Constitution, but Trump's order seeks to "clarify" the language in the 14 Amendment to exclude undocumented immigrants.
• The ACLU and other immigrant rights groups already are planning to sue to block the executive order, and legal experts widely expect it to be struck down by the courts.

Still, new evidence has emerged to suggest that Trump — emboldened by his historic political comeback and a record-high approval rating — may be willing to circumvent or openly defy U.S. law in his second term.

• Trump has refused, for example, to enforce the U.S. ban on TikTok — despite the law passing with the support of over 80% of Congress, and being unanimously upheld by the Supreme Court.
• Instead, he signed an executive order — without citing any legal authority — giving himself "the right" to find a buyer or ultimately ban the Chinese-owned app in 75 days.

The big picture: Trump's other Day 1 actions vividly illustrate his desire to concentrate power in the executive branch, even while Republicans control both chambers of Congress.

• The new president issued 10 executive orders on immigration, including a national emergency declaration allowing the Pentagon to redirect funds and deploy additional troops at the southern border.
• Trump also designated drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, potentially paving the way for the U.S. to deploy special forces in Mexico without permission from Congress.
• He issued an executive order that could strip thousands of civil servants of their employment protections, making it easier to fire federal employees deemed to be "disloyal."
• And even with U.S. fossil fuel production at record highs, Trump declared a "national energy emergency," unlocking new authorities to increase drilling and bypass environmental and climate regulations.

The other side: Trump allies argue President Biden's own actions in his final days in office amount to a greater abuse of executive authority than anything Trump has done.

• That includes Biden's unilateral declaration that the Equal Rights Amendment, which was passed by Congress in 1972 but not ratified by enough states in time, is "the law of the land."
• Biden also issued preemptive pardons for five members of his family in his final minutes in power, citing "unrelenting attacks and threats" of prosecution by Trump allies.

What they're saying: Trump's blizzard of executive orders has exhilarated his base, who see it as proof that he's willing to steamroll the "Deep State" to fulfill his campaign promises.

• But his rapid consolidation of power has unnerved liberals, institutionalists and even some Republicans who are skeptical of big government.
• "In America, we abide by the rule of law. Even when the law comes for a popular app — TikTok — that the MAGA king likes," Joe Lonsdale, a Silicon Valley magnate who supports Trump, wrote in the Free Press.

President Trump on Monday issued an executive order that would direct the attorney general not to enforce a ban on TikTok for 75 days.

Why it matters: In one of his first actions in office, Trump is prioritizing saving a platform that he says has been friendly to him.

What's inside: During the 75 days, the Department of Justice is directed to take no action to enforce the law or impose any penalties against any entity for any noncompliance with the law, the executive order says.

What they're saying: Speaking in the Oval Office Monday night, Trump said a deal where the U.S. gets half of TikTok and TikTok keeps the other half is "one of many ideas."

• "If I do the deal for the United States, then I think we should get half. I think the U.S. should be entitled to get half of TikTok and congratulations, TikTok has a good partner."
• "Every rich person has called me about TikTok," Trump said when asked if a private company would be involved.
• If China does not approve the deal "it would be somewhat of a hostile act," Trump said, adding that his administration could impose tariffs on China if the country got in the way of a "good deal."

For Trump to satisfy a qualified divestiture under the law, he would have to consult with government agencies and determine TikTok is no longer controlled by China.

• That means making sure it's impossible for China to still control TikTok's algorithm or data sharing.
• The law explicitly bars Trump from allowing a Chinese entity to continue being involved with TikTok, even through an agreement with a U.S. company.
• The law also states that Trump would need to certify to Congress not only that there's been "significant progress" toward executing a qualified divestiture, but there are "binding legal agreements" in place to enable the sale during the extension period.

Catch up quick: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to block the law to ban TikTok.

• The executive order follows a rollercoaster of a weekend where CEO Shou Zi Chew chose to make TikTok go dark and then reinstated it the following day, crediting Trump.
• None of TikTok's actions were necessary under the law, which instead only required Google, Apple, and other web hosting services to stop carrying the app.

If you need smart, quick intel on federal tech policy for your job, get Axios Pro Policy.

The Buckeyes are the champions of college football once again.

State of play: OSU defeated Notre Dame 34-23 in Monday's College Football Playoff National Championship.

• It was a largely one-sided title game, though Notre Dame nearly pulled off a late comeback.

Context: The Buckeyes' championship is their ninth of all time and third since 2002, trailing only five other FBS programs overall.

The star: Junior running back Quinshon Judkins spent most of his night in the end zone, with two rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown in addition to a huge 70-yard third quarter run.

• But senior quarterback Will Howard deserves a mention for playing a nearly perfect game, capping off a four-game playoff run likely to improve his NFL Draft stock.

What we're watching: The Buckeyes will be absolutely loaded next season.

• Superstar freshman Jeremiah Smith and sophomore Caleb Downs will return, along with key contributors like Carnell Tate, Arvell Reese and Luke Montgomery.

More photos from the title game:

President Trump took the first step toward rolling back protections for transgender people on Monday, signing an executive order that the federal government would only recognize two sexes, male and female.

Why it matters: Trump made attacks on transgender individuals central to his 2024 campaign, and by issuing the executive order on his first day in office, signaled the importance of the issue in his second term.

• The executive order could have wide-reaching implications for gender-affirming care and recognition of trans people in a variety of spaces.
• It could also signal a first step toward banning transgender athletes from taking part in women's sports. The move would amount to "removing protections from some of our most vulnerable students," Jon Valant, director of the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution, told Axios ahead of the decision.

Driving the news: Trump's executive order states that only two sexes will be recognized by the federal government, "male and female."

• As such, only those two sexes will be recognized for official documents such as passports and visas.
• "'Sex' is not a synonym for and does not include the concept of 'gender identity,'" the order states.
• The executive order aims to prohibit taxpayer funds from being used for gender-affirming care and to prevent transgender women from being held in women's prisons or detention centers.

State of play: An incoming White House official previewed the executive order on a call with reporters Monday ahead of Trump's inauguration, saying it was part of Trump's aim of "restoring sanity" in the U.S.

• The executive order is about "defending women from gender ideology extremism and restoring biological truth to the federal government," the official said.

Zoom out: Even before he took office, trans rights advocates vowed to fight Trump's rollback of trans rights.

• Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, the biggest LGBTQ political lobbying in the U.S., said in a statement the HRC refused to back down or be intimidated.
• "We are not going anywhere, and we will fight back against these harmful provisions with everything we've got," Robinson added.
• Ash Orr, a spokesperson for Advocates for Trans Equality, told AP the group would persevere and "continue in our work and we're going to continue to protect trans rights throughout the country."

State of play: Trump has repeatedly railed about trans athletes competing in women's and girls' sports while on the campaign trail.

• At a Fox News town hall in October, Trump said, "We're not going to let it happen ... we absolutely stop it. You can't have it," when asked about how he would handle "the transgender issue" in women's sports.

Zoom out: LGBTQ+ advocates long warned that the new Trump administration would attempt to undo the Biden administration's efforts to expand protections for LGBTQ+ students under Title IX.

• Those efforts faced legal hurdles even before Trump re-entered office.
• In December, the Education Department withdrew a proposal to expand Title IX protections for trans student-athletes in the face of multiple lawsuit threats.
• In early January, a federal judge rejected rules to broaden the definition of sex discrimination under Title IX in order to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.

Go deeper: Trump closing out campaign cycle with anti-trans attacks

The Senate voted 99-0 on Monday to confirm Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as President Trump's secretary of state.

Why it matters: Rubio will be instrumental in making good on many of Trump's grandest campaign promises — from ending the war in Ukraine to countering China's growing influence to implementing a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

• The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted unanimously earlier Monday to recommend Rubio's confirmation, and Democrats cleared the way for an expedited process.
• It's a resounding show of Senate bipartisanship for one of their own.

Zoom in: The 53-year-old Floridian has served in the Senate since 2011. He ran for president in 2016 before dropping out and endorsing Trump. He was on Trump's 2024 vice presidential shortlist.

• Rubio, who would be the first Latino secretary of state, opposes normalizing relations with Cuba and is a noted China hawk.
• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tapped the state's attorney general, Ashley Moody, to replace Rubio in the Senate, as Axios first reported.

Zoom out: Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which will enter into its fourth year next month, will be one of the Trump administration's greatest foreign policy challenges.

• Trump and his allies have criticized how the Biden administration has handled the conflict. The GOP has been fractured in the past year over whether the U.S. should continue sending aid to Ukraine.
• Rubio testified last week that both Russia and Ukraine need to make concessions to end the conflict.
• Rubio voted against $95 billion in Ukraine aid in April, and has called for Ukraine to negotiate an end to the war with Russia — even if that means Russia keeps some of the territory from the invasion.

President Trump signed a blitz of first-day energy-related executive orders on Monday, establishing a national "energy emergency" and setting in motion actions that heavily favor expanding fossil fuel production and generation.

Why it matters: The moves amount to policy whiplash for the energy industry, segments of which had chafed under former President Biden's policies aimed at igniting the renewable sector.

Zoom in: The executive orders include a declaration of a "national energy emergency" aimed at increasing domestic energy production and lowering costs to the consumer.

• This is partly in response to the rapid AI-related growth of data centers and their energy needs, which the administration views through a national security lens.
• U.S. power demand is rising quickly after staying largely flat for the last 15 years.
• One of Trump's initial orders formally rescinds a series of Biden moves that stitched climate and environmental justice throughout federal agency decision-making, going well beyond energy and resource agencies.

This includes a repeal of the Biden administration's Justice 40 Initiative and a 2021 order that set aggressive federal procurement targets for EVs, clean power, low-carbon buildings and more.

• Trump also moved ahead with rolling back EPA tailpipe emissions rules that Republicans have characterized as an effective requirement for consumers to buy electric vehicles.
• The same order also seeks to restart liquified natural gas terminal approvals, which the Biden administration had paused for climate change and energy security grounds.

The intrigue: Other energy-related orders that Trump signed include steps to halt leasing of large wind farms, and boost oil and gas production.

• The administration also signed an executive order to boost Alaska's energy production, including by rescinding Biden's 2023 protection of major Alaskan coastal areas from drilling.
• He also signed an order that attempts to rescind Biden's formal withdrawal of East Coast, West Coast and major offshore Alaskan Arctic areas from drilling.
• But there's no guarantee producers have much appetite for exploring these regions, and formally selling drilling rights and enabling development would be a complicated bureaucratic and litigious process.

Other actions include seeking to pause funds from being spent under the Biden climate law, and shifting appliance energy efficiency standards back to Trump's first term, before Biden made them more stringent.

Threat level: Trump's attempted reversal of Biden-era policies could boost U.S. greenhouse gas emissions — or at least slow down projected reductions.

• This could worsen the severity and frequency of some extreme weather events as well as sea level rise, harming national security in other ways over time.

Reality check: Trump's "dominance" agenda will also confront market and process barriers — and plenty of litigation.

• U.S. oil output is already at record levels. Tepid global demand growth makes producers in Texas and elsewhere unlikely to flood the market.
• Gasoline and diesel costs are tethered to oil prices set on global markets, while electricity costs tend to be highly regional and dependent on weather and other forces.
• Executive orders can make some instant policy. Often they're a symbolic opening of the long, legally fraught bureaucratic slog of formally unwinding agency rules and policies.

Between the lines: Presidents can use emergency authorities to redirect resources and push the private sector to boost or maintain critical supplies.

• However, it's likely that the declaration itself will be challenged in court. And its provisions are likely to run into thorny legal issues given that state and regional authorities typically oversee power plant planning and permitting.

Between the lines: The oil and gas industry cheered Trump's opening moves.

• The good news for those companies extends beyond the energy orders.
• Trump's holding off for now on sweeping new tariffs that execs fear could raise project costs — and spur retaliation from buyers of U.S. exports.
• But it may be a temporary reprieve, with Trump instead ordering reviews of trade and currency imbalances.

What they're saying: "By fully harnessing our nation's abundant oil and natural gas resources, we can restore American energy dominance, drive economic prosperity and secure U.S. leadership on the global stage," Mike Sommers, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute, said in a statement.

• But Tiernan Sittenfeld of the League of Conservation Voters said in a separate statement: "It is crystal clear that his administration is all in to pad Big Oil Billionaire profits at the expense of our air, water, lands, climate, health, pocketbooks, and jobs."

The bottom line: The energy-related executive orders will yield some short-term actions on the ground.

• But it's their longer, topsy-turvy road to implementation that will be crucial to accomplishing the administration's goals.

President Trump has signed an executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship in the U.S. — a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and affirmed by the Supreme Court more than 125 years ago.

Why it matters: Trump is acting on a once-fringe belief that U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants have no right to U.S. citizenship and are part of a conspiracy (rooted in racism) to replace white Americans.

The big picture: A coalition of civil rights and civil liberties groups filed a lawsuit on Monday night in an effort to halt the executive order.

• The order is also expected to face legal challenges from state attorneys general since it conflicts with decades of Supreme Court precedent and the 14th Amendment — with the AGs of California and New York among those indicating they would do so.

Context: Ratified in 1868, the 14th Amendment was passed to give nearly emancipated and formerly enslaved Black Americans U.S. citizenship.

• "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside," it reads.

Zoom in: Trump signed the order on Monday, just hours after taking office.

Reality check: Thanks to the landmark Wong Kim Ark case, the U.S. has since 1898 recognized that anyone born on United States soil is a citizen.

• The case established the birthright citizenship clause and led to the dramatic demographic transformation of the U.S.

What they're saying: California Attorney General Rob Bonta told Axios the state will immediately challenge the executive order in federal court.

• "[Trump] can't do it," Bonta said. "He can't undermine it with executive authority. That is not how the law works. It's a constitutional right."
• New York Attorney General Letitia James said in an emailed statement the executive order "is nothing but an attempt to sow division and fear, but we are prepared to fight back with the full force of the law to uphold the integrity of our Constitution."
• ACLU said in a Facebook post announcing it would join the groups suing the Trump administration, "An executive order does not have the power to override the Constitution."

Flashback: San Francisco-born Wong Kim Ark returned to the city of his birth in 1895 after visiting family in China but was refused re-entry.

• John Wise, an openly anti-Chinese bigot and the collector of customs in San Francisco who controlled immigration into the port, wanted a test case that would deny U.S. citizenship to ethnic Chinese residents.
• But Wong fought his case all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled on March 28, 1898, that the 14th Amendment guaranteed U.S. citizenship to Wong and any other person born on U.S. soil.

Zoom out: Birthright citizenship has resulted in major racial and ethnic shifts in the nation's demographic as more immigrants from Latin America and Asia came to the U.S. following the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.

• The U.S. was around 85% white in 1965, according to various estimates.
• The nation is expected to be a "majority-minority" by the 2040s.

Yes, but: That demographic change has fueled a decades-old conspiracy theory, once only held by racists, called "white replacement theory."

• "White replacement theory" posits the existence of a plot to change America's racial composition by methodically enacting policies that reduce white Americans' political power.
• The conspiracy theories encompass strains of anti-Semitism as well as racism and anti-immigrant sentiment.

Trump has repeated the theory and said that immigrants today are "poisoning the blood of our country," language echoing the rhetoric of white supremacists and Adolf Hitler.

Of note: Military bases are not considered "U.S. soil" for citizenship purposes, but a child is a U.S. citizen if born abroad and both parents are U.S. citizens.

Editor's note: This article has been updated to reflect that a lawsuit has been filed challenging President Trump's order, and with comment from New York Attorney General Letitia James and ACLU.

The Senate on Monday passed the Laken Riley Act, setting the immigration crackdown bill for a vote in the House later this week.

Why it matters: The legislation could be on President Trump's desk by the end of this week, handing him an early win on a core campaign promise.

• The bill passed the chamber 64-35, with 12 Democrats voting for it.
• The Laken Riley Act would require the detention of undocumented immigrants arrested for certain crimes.
• The bill is named for a 22-year-old nursing student who was killed on the University of Georgia campus.

The big picture: Senate Democrats helped the Laken Riley Act prevail, with 10 voting to break a filibuster last week.

• The party is still trying to find its footing on immigration and the border after it lost the White House and both chambers of Congress in last year's election.

Between the lines: The Senate passed two amendments to the bill over the past week, including one Monday night before the vote.

• One brought by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) requires ICE to detain undocumented immigrants who attack law enforcement.
• Another brought by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) adds those who commit crimes resulting in death or bodily injury.

Go deeper: ICE warns Laken Riley Act could force it to release detained migrants

Vivek Ramaswamy will leave the Trump administration's new Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, to run for Ohio governor multiple outlets reported on Monday.

Why it matters: Ramaswamy's departure leaves Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has been increasingly asserting authority within the GOP, at the helm of the project.

• Ramaswamy plans to launch a gubernatorial bid in Ohio, the reports said. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's second term will end in January 2027.
• A spokesperson for the Trump administration did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.

Context: Ramaswamy rose to political prominence with his failed 2024 presidential bid.

• In his business roles, he fought against environmental, social and governance and diversity, equity and inclusion.

Catch up quick: DOGE's mandate is to crack down on government waste and inefficiency.

• In December, Ramaswamy told Axios' Mike Allen he was hopeful that firing federal workers would be good for them.
• DOGE was targeted by court challenges just as Trump took office.

Between the lines: Ramaswamy on Monday posted a photo on X of himself and Musk with the caption "a new dawn."

• Both attended Trump's inaugural events.

Go deeper: Musk's DOGE targeted by union lawsuit ahead of Trump's executive order

Editor's note: This story has been updated with details throughout.