--- title: Trump’s Executive Orders Laid a Dangerous Trap for Democrats description: The Sharpies squeaked as Trump signed four documents promising aid for Americans feeling the economic brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. canonical: https://time.com/5878123/trump-executive-orders-traps-democrats/ author: Philip Elliott article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-08-10T17:46:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T09:06:22.499Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump’s Executive Orders Laid a Dangerous Trap for Democrats og:description: The Sharpies squeaked as Trump signed four documents promising aid for Americans feeling the economic brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. og:url: https://time.com/5878123/trump-executive-orders-traps-democrats/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt812c978d4cacc5b9/698a113d09208f4d604170fe/donald-trump-signing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: US-POLITICS-TRUMP-briefing og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump’s Executive Orders Laid a Dangerous Trap for Democrats twitter:description: The Sharpies squeaked as Trump signed four documents promising aid for Americans feeling the economic brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt812c978d4cacc5b9/698a113d09208f4d604170fe/donald-trump-signing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How President Trump’s Weekend Executive Actions Laid a Dangerous Trap for Democrats > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=b2c10300-34af-47ba-a384-3b07eb0d23aa&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1)  by [Philip Elliott](https://time.com/author/philip-elliott/)  ## Philip Elliott Senior Correspondent Aug 10, 2020 5:46 PM UTC  President Donald Trump signs executive orders extending coronavirus economic relief, during a news conference in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Aug. 8, 2020. President Donald Trump signs executive orders extending coronavirus economic relief, during a news conference in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Aug. 8, 2020. Jim Watson—AFP/Getty Images  by [Philip Elliott](https://time.com/author/philip-elliott/)  ## Philip Elliott Senior Correspondent Aug 10, 2020 5:46 PM UTC The Sharpies squeaked as President Donald Trump put his signature on four [documents](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/10/world/coronavirus-covid-19.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage) over the weekend promising aid for Americans feeling the economic brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. The [orders](https://time.com/5877828/trump-coronavirus-relief-executive-order/) were ostensibly meant to deliver action after lawmakers on the Hill failed to reach an agreement last week on the terms of the next federal aid package and further talks are on permanent hold. But beyond the toxic fumes, there’s still no tangible help on the way for Americans facing evictions, student loans, payroll taxes or even reduced unemployment checks — the four threats that the memos covered. Instead, what Trump signed over the weekend sets in motion a constitutional standoff over federal powers and a political quagmire for Democrats trying to [check](https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/08/10/trump-coronavirus-stimulus-congress/) this President’s wanton rebudgeting of taxpayers’ dollars. The President knew exactly what he was doing. The political show was one designed for cameras’ flashes, not action. When pushed by reporters at his golf club in New Jersey for details of how the orders will work**,** Trump couldn’t confirm when any of his promises would turn into reality. They weren’t designed to. The eviction relief plan was merely an encouragement for landlords and tenants to find a compromise, his student-loans and payroll-tax holidays were merely suspensions of due dates, and the plus-up on unemployment benefits was only an idea that [requires](https://time.com/5878000/trump-coronavirus-relief-unemployment-states/) states’ buy-in, which is not going to happen. _Make sense of what matters in Washington._ [_Sign up for the daily D.C. Brief newsletter._](https://cloud.newsletters.time.com/politics?source=dc%5Farticle) During normal times, Congress decides how much programs like student-loan deferments can have and the Administration spends the cash. These days, Trump is redirecting money as if Congress didn’t weigh in at all. For instance, Trump, in his edicts, re-imagines hurricane-relief dollars as pandemic bailout cash. Theoretically, that leaves Congress primed to challenge the White House, a move that would demand Democrats stand up and say Trump has no power to repurpose taxpayer dollars this way. It’s a constitutionally-sound objection, but one that puts Democrats arguing against rescuing struggling Americans. Do Democrats, in an election year, want to be the ones signing onto lawsuits that challenge a President’s power to unilaterally re-budget dollars that help the 30-plus-million Americans who have lost their jobs so far? On Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi [called](https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/09/politics/nancy-pelosi-trump-coronavirus-actions-cnntv/index.html) the orders bypassing Congress “absurdly unconstitutional,” but dodged the question whether she and fellow Democrats would take Trump to court over them. Trump has been buoyed by last month’s Supreme Court [ruling](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/31/us/supreme-court-trump-border-wall.html) that permits him to retool Pentagon dollars to build his border wall — despite the fact that Congress didn’t mean for those dollars to do that. In interviews, Trump has cited that ruling as rationale for near-absolute power to reprogram taxpayer dollars as he sees fit. It is inevitably a course that will send him back to the Supreme Court. His efforts to shift dollars through these orders is a prime example of where Democrats have good cause to check him. But, with fewer than 100 days before Election Day, the ground is plenty shaky. Democrats may end up prevailing in the long run — but their win would mean the pandemic’s victims lose out on Trump’s promised bounty. _A version of this article first appeared in The DC Brief, TIME’s politics newsletter. 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