President Trump has broken a modern day presidential record for action, moving faster than any chief executive since Harry Truman to put his agenda in play.
The University of Minnesota’s Eric J. Ostermeier, a presidential scholar with a knack for historical statistics, said Trump has signed executive orders at a record-breaking pace.
“All told, Trump signed six executive orders during his first 10 days in office — the most among the 13 presidents to serve since the end of World War II,” said Ostermeier, with the school’s center for the Study of Politics and Governance.
Next was former President Barack Obama, who signed five in his first 10 days; followed by Truman, who signed four; John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Gerald Ford, three; Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, two; and Dwight Eisenhower, Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush, one.
What’s more, in research for Secrets, he said Trump nominated a Supreme Court justice faster than any president since Andrew Jackson in 1829, two days after taking over from President John Quincy Adams.
The comparison ends there, though. Jackson’s pick of Postmaster General John McLean was confirmed by the Senate one day later. Trump’s nominee, appeals court Judge Neil Gorsuch, could be stuck in limbo for weeks due to Democratic opposition.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
