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Topics: Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Politics, Climate Change, Environment, US News
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Politics, Climate Change, Environment, US News
President Donald Trump hasn't even been back in office for a month, but has already turned a lot of Joe Biden-created orders on their head.
But one of his biggest is revoking the former president's security clearance and access to daily intelligence briefings.
Apparently, Biden did the same to him when he came into office in 2021, with Trump now arguing that there's 'no need' for the 82-year-old to receive intel on classified information.
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Now, seemingly in another swipe at the former president, Trump has pledged to change the country's 'ridiculous' plans to get rid of plastic straws by 2027.
The Biden administration shared its plans last summer to 'phase out' single-use plastic products from food service operations, events and packaging in two years' time, and from all federal operations by 2035.
"The President is committed to taking ambitious actions to end plastic pollution and is calling upon the global community to do the same, with the goal to reduce the global production and consumption of virgin plastics," The White House said in a statement at the time, as per New York Post.
Plastic and polystyrene food and beverage containers, bottles, straws, cups, cutlery and disposable plastic bags, were also mentioned in the plans to reduce waste.
According to Condor Ferries, 50 million straws are used by Americans every day, 7.5 million of which pollute US coastlines.
Elsewhere in the UK (where the use of plastic straws is restricted), 4.4 billion straws are thrown away every year.
But Trump has announced his plans to sign yet another executive order, which aims to bring back plastic straws.
It's not clear if the order will see the whole plastic-prohibiting plans scrapped.
"I will be signing an Executive Order next week ending the ridiculous Biden push for Paper Straws, which don’t work," Trump penned on Truth Social.
He added: "BACK TO PLASTIC!"
And it's not the first time Trump has complained about paper straws.
"They want to ban straws. Has anyone tried those paper straws? They’re not working too good,” he complained at an event in 2020.
"It disintegrates as you drink it," Trump went on to say of the more environmentally friendly alternative.
Climate change doesn't seem to be on the top of Trump's agenda when it comes to oil and gas either.
In his first few days as president, the 78-year-old signed an order that promotes oil and gas drilling in Alaska.
He's also ordered for the country to leave the Paris Climate Agreement, which was adopted by almost 200 countries back in 2015.
UNILAD has contacted the White House for comment.