President Donald Trump signed more than 20 executive orders and actions on Inauguration Day. Local voices on campus have expressed opinions about his inauguration and the executive orders he signed during his first day in office.

The perception of President Trump’s speech 

Trump’s inauguration speech received mixed reactions across the nation. Many Americans hope he will fulfill his promises regarding the country’s economic state, peacemaking efforts, and foreign affairs.

Marlee Foster, president of College Republicans, said she was impressed by his speech and felt much of America resonated with his message.

“I hope that he can act on the promises that he made and follow through on those because I think the last four years have been hard on everybody,” said Foster, sophomore kinesiology major from Westcliffe, Colorado. “A lot of us are hoping that the next four years will be better and more successful than the past four.”

However, some Americans believe his speech was disingenuous.

“My overall impression of his speech was that there was a lot of fearmongering,” said Thaddeus Stringer, president of the Kingdom Justice Coalition.

Stringer believes the verbiage used in his speech is a tactic to divide the country when he should be trying to unite Americans.

“That’s what he claims to be doing when his actions show that’s not what he wants at all,” said Stringer, senior global studies major from Houston. “It’s not what he’s done since he’s been inaugurated.”

Dr. Neal Coates, chair of the Department of Government and Criminal Justice, said people responded more positively to Trump’s second inauguration speech than his first.

“I don’t mean they all agreed with what he said, but they kind of knew what to expect as they have learned to understand what he says,” Coates said. “They know that his call for Americans to recognize that their country is exceptional is actually a positive.”

Immigration executive orders

As of Jan. 22, six executive orders addressing immigration and border policies had been signed. One of the most notable is titled “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.”

This executive order states: “The privilege of United States citizenship does not automatically extend to persons born in the United States.”

Many Americans argue this order violates the 14th Amendment and is unconstitutional. Stringer said he was concerned about the immigration-related orders signed.

“Immigrants are not the only community being targeted, and very active steps are being taken that are going to hurt a lot of people,” Stringer said. “The fact you’re going to do that within hours of being put into the office raises the question of what are the next four years going to look like.”

Coates said this lawsuit would end up in the Supreme Court. He explained Congress will potentially step in and we will have a national debate on how exactly the 14th Amendment will be interpreted and applied in the U.S.

“Most countries in the world don’t have birthright citizenship as it’s currently practiced in the United States, so I think we’re gonna have a debate about this and the abuses that can occur,” Coates said.

Political polarization

Even with differing opinions on policy, many Americans share the same goal: unity. Stringer and Foster agreed on how important it is for people to work together and find common ground.

Political polarization has grown more dramatic in the U.S. in the last 30 years, according to an article from Facing History & Ourselves. The organization explains that “political polarization is the movement of political views and actions away from the center and toward more extreme views and policies.”

“I think we are too politically divided, and I think we’ve seen that,” Foster said. “But especially with this new election, we are realizing how stark that divide is.”

Stringer encourages students to care about the U.S. government and the ways it serves them.

“There’s a lot of issues that could be improved, but at the very least, we should make some sort of pledge that this is something we care about,” Stringer said. “Just the absolute refusal to care about it, I think, is more concerning than anything.”

Trump’s inauguration speech brought both hope and fear to different groups of Americans. After signing 26 executive orders on his first day, it’s clear change is coming.

“Action is what does things,” Foster said. “And so we need to find where the divide is, trying to cross that divide, and then build back the America that we want.”

Here is a list of the executive orders passed.