President Donald Trump issued two significant executive orders on Friday, both targeting the use of taxpayer dollars for funding abortion-related activities.
Trump reinstated the Mexico City Policy through a presidential memorandum. The policy bars the U.S. government from financially supporting organizations abroad that fund or perform abortion procedures.
This marks a reversal of former President Joe Biden’s January 2021 directive that allowed federal funds to flow to non-governmental organizations advocating for or performing abortions outside the country.
“I direct the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, to the extent allowable by law, to implement a plan to extend the requirements of the reinstated Memorandum to global health assistance furnished by all departments or agencies,” Trump wrote in the memorandum.
“I further direct the Secretary of State to take all necessary actions, to the extent permitted by law, to ensure that U.S. taxpayer dollars do not fund organizations or programs that support or participate in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization,” he continued.
Trump also signed another directive to uphold the Hyde Amendment, which prevents federal funding for elective abortion procedures within U.S. borders.
The move is seen as reinforcing almost five decades of congressional support for anti-abortion laws.
“For nearly five decades, the Congress has annually enacted the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent Federal funding of elective abortion, reflecting a longstanding consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice,” the order stated.
Trump’s order criticized the Biden administration for previously bypassing this policy, stating, “the previous administration disregarded this established, commonsense policy by embedding forced taxpayer funding of elective abortions in a wide variety of Federal programs.”
According to the order, the U.S. aims to ensure, “It is the policy of the United States, consistent with the Hyde Amendment, to end the forced use of Federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion.”
Furthermore, Trump’s action nullified several measures Biden put into place that sought to broaden abortion access following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Amid these domestic policy shifts, tensions with Mexico took a new turn. On Thursday, a deportation flight from the U.S. was blocked from landing in Mexico after Trump amplified border security and ramped up deportation operations upon reclaiming the presidency.
According to defense officials, two U.S. Air Force C-17 aircraft successfully transported approximately 80 deportees each to Guatemala Thursday night. However, a separate flight intended for Mexico was denied entry.
The reason behind Mexico’s refusal to allow the plane remains murky, but relations between Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum have grown increasingly strained.
Trump recently threatened to impose 25% tariffs on Mexican imports in response to a surge of migrants illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.
A White House official clarified the situation via text message, indicating that “the flights thing was an administrative issue and was quickly rectified.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement later detailed its ongoing enforcement efforts, stating on X that, as of Friday night, the agency had made 593 arrests and filed 449 detainers.
