Biden plans flurry of Day One executive actions

The promised executive actions to be taken on Day One include policy changes on housing, student loans, climate change and immigration.

This report produced by Jonah Green.

The Biden administration says it will hit the ground running with a slew of executive orders on Day One.

President-elect Joe Biden's incoming chief of staff said in a memo to reporters that Biden will cap a busy day of inauguration pageantry by using the powers of his new office to push policy changes on housing, student loans, climate change and immigration.

The executive actions to be taken on Wednesday include rejoining the Paris climate accords, reversing a travel ban on several majority Muslim countries, extending a pause on federal student loan payments, halting evictions and foreclosures, as well as mandating masks in inter-state travel and on federal property.

Most of the measures are a reversal of policies Trump pursued and do not require congressional action.

But Biden will also unveil a long-expected immigration proposal that would provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants that does require congressional action.

That measure, as well as Biden’s recent proposal for $1.9 trillion in spending on COVID vaccinations and economic stimulus, face uphill battles in a Congress narrowly controlled by Biden’s fellow Democrats.

Incoming chief of staff Ron Klain said a broader set of executive orders will come in the days after inauguration.

Those measures include expanding COVID-19 testing and directing the government to favor American-made goods.