Trump Signs Presidential Directives on Pacific Trade Deal, Hiring Freeze, and Policy Prohibiting U.S. Aid From Supporting Abortion Groups

US President Donald Trump holds up an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership after signing it alongside White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus (R) in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, January 23, 2017.
Trump the decree Monday that effectively ends US participation in a sweeping trans-Pacific free trade agreement negotiated under former president Barack Obama. (AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEBSAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

President Trump signed three presidential directives Monday, withdrawing U.S. support for a Pacific trade deal, imposing a hiring freeze in civilian agencies, and restoring the so-called Mexico City policy that prohibits U.S. aid from supporting international groups that promote abortion.

“Everybody knows what I’m about to do,” Trump said before withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 13-nation trade deal signed by the Obama administration but not ratified by the Senate. “We’ve been talking about this for a long time. A great thing for the American worker, what we just did.”

When Chief of Staff Reince Priebus handed him an order directing a hiring freeze, Trump emphasized, “Except for the military.”

The White House did not immediately release the text of the directives, but Trump held up the trade order for a photo opportunity. “It is the policy of my administration to represent the American people and their financial well-being in all negotiations, particularly the American worker,” the presidential memorandum said.

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SOURCE: USA Today, Gregory Korte