The four executive actions President Donald Trump signed Saturday may face legal challenges because the Constitution grants Congress, not the president, the power to tax and spend.
Trump signed three presidential memoranda and an executive order to provide economic relief for the economic crisis caused by COVID-19. The three memoranda seek to increase the unemployment benefit to $400, defer student loan interest on loans held by the Department of Education, and create a “payroll tax holiday” that defers tax withholding from September 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. The executive order says that the Trump administration will find ways to protect renters from eviction and homeowners from foreclosure.
