Trump orders review of trade agreements, WTO membership News
Trump orders review of trade agreements, WTO membership

US President Donald Trump [official website] on Saturday signed an executive order [text] directing the Commerce Department [official website] and the US Trade Representative [official website] to review all US trade agreements and membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO) [official website] to determine the cause of the US trade deficit. The order calls for a comprehensive review of whether previous free trade agreements and membership in the WTO have brought the benefits that were predicted. The order comes three days after Trump announced [AP report] he would not order a withdrawal from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), but would rather renegotiate its terms with Canada and Mexico. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross responded [press briefing] to the order, and stated that an analysis of NAFTA will be a significant part of the required study.

The new executive orders raise the number of executive orders by President Trump since taking office 100 days ago to 32. On Friday Trump signed [JURIST report] an executive order to lift restrictions placed on offshore oil drilling. Earlier this month a federal judge issued a temporary injunction [JURIST report] against Executive Order 13768 which would have allowed the federal government to withhold funds from cities which have been designated as “sanctuary cities.” Also in April, Trump signed [JURIST report] an order that requires executive agencies to monitor and enforce “Buy American” laws.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.