Trump’s Merit-Based DEI Executive Order Is A Sledgehammer
The EO takes aim at the private sector and higher education, requesting an OMB report within 120 days on the worst offenders and targets for federal action. Through our work at the Equal Protection Project, we have already identified numerous recalcitrant and systematically discriminatory institutions and we will be making our findings public long in advance of the OMB report.

I previously wrote how Trump Signed Executive Orders Rescinding Biden’s “Racial Equity” Agenda and Eliminating DEI Throughout Federal Government. Those executive orders rescinded Biden’s 2021 and 2023 “Racial Equity” executive orders, and also banned DEI within federal agencies and programs. That was big. Pursuant to those executive orders, federal DEI staffers were put on leave and DEI offices ordered closed starting at 5 p.m. today.
But that was nothing compared to the Executive Order signed last night, January 21, 2025, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (the “Merit-Baed EO”), which targets discrimination done in the name of DEI.
That terminology might sound familiar to you, as our Equal Protection Project (EqualProtect.org) has been fighting such DEI discrimination for two years. I’d like to think that the massive publicity our actions have received helped set the stage for these political changes.
The purpose of the Merit-Based EO is to bring various institutions into alignment with existing anti-discrmination laws:
Yet today, roughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, critical and influential institutions of American society, including the Federal Government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, large commercial airlines, law enforcement agencies, and institutions of higher education have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) or “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation….
The Federal Government is charged with enforcing our civil-rights laws. The purpose of this order is to ensure that it does so by ending illegal preferences and discrimination.
All the government needs to do is enforce existing law. That’s a point we make all the time.
The Merit-Based EO then terminates numerous prior federal affirmative action programs and bars DEI discrimination in federal contracting and grant-making. EPP has not yet challenged discriminatory federal grant requirements, which are pervasive, that was on our “to do” list, now we don’t have to do it (at least not for four more years). Given the economic largesse of the federal government, these contracting and grant-making changes are huge.
But it’s not as huge as what comes next. The Merit-Based EO takes aim at the private sector and higher education, holding the sledgehammer of loss of funding and civil rights actions by the Justice Department, requesting a report within 120 days on the worst offenders and targets for federal action (emphasis added):
Sec. 4. Encouraging the Private Sector to End Illegal DEI Discrimination and Preferences.
(a) The heads of all agencies, with the assistance of the Attorney General, shall take all appropriate action with respect to the operations of their agencies to advance in the private sector the policy of individual initiative, excellence, and hard work identified in section 2 of this order.
(b) To further inform and advise me so that my Administration may formulate appropriate and effective civil-rights policy, the Attorney General, within 120 days of this order, in consultation with the heads of relevant agencies and in coordination with the Director of OMB, shall submit a report to the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy containing recommendations for enforcing Federal civil-rights laws and taking other appropriate measures to encourage the private sector to end illegal discrimination and preferences, including DEI. The report shall contain a proposed strategic enforcement plan identifying:
(i) Key sectors of concern within each agency’s jurisdiction;
(ii) The most egregious and discriminatory DEI practitioners in each sector of concern;
(iii) A plan of specific steps or measures to deter DEI programs or principles (whether specifically denominated “DEI” or otherwise) that constitute illegal discrimination or preferences. As a part of this plan, each agency shall identify up to nine potential civil compliance investigations of publicly traded corporations, large non-profit corporations or associations, foundations with assets of 500 million dollars or more, State and local bar and medical associations, and institutions of higher education with endowments over 1 billion dollars;
(iv) Other strategies to encourage the private sector to end illegal DEI discrimination and preferences and comply with all Federal civil-rights laws;
(v) Litigation that would be potentially appropriate for Federal lawsuits, intervention, or statements of interest; and
(vi) Potential regulatory action and sub-regulatory guidance.Sec. 5. Other Actions. Within 120 days of this order, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Education shall jointly issue guidance to all State and local educational agencies that receive Federal funds, as well as all institutions of higher education that receive Federal grants or participate in the Federal student loan assistance program under Title IV of the Higher Education Act, 20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq., regarding the measures and practices required to comply with Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, 600 U.S. 181 (2023).
Through our work at EPP, we have already identified numerous recalcitrant and systematically discriminatory institutions who deserve formal DOJ investigation, at minimum, and we will be making our findings public long in advance of the OMB report required by the Merit-Based EO.

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Comments
How to end discrimination? Don’t discriminate.
One of the few concepts that the greasy, malleable and politically-minded Justice Roberts has gotten right.
Correct. Don’t discriminate, and don’t use taxpayer dollars to subsidize it. I believe 120 days is too long. Make it clear to educational institutions, hospitals, nonprofits, etc. that the trough will be closed to the pigs who continue this nonsense.
The pigs that continue this nonsense need to be castrated
Al Sharpton is not amused at your comment.
How about minority set-asides in government contracting? As well as minority hire and promotion to qualify for the previously mentioned government contracts.
The Deep State is exposing themselves by trying to just ‘rename’ their DEI crap to other things.
Hope Trump is ready to fire all the ones trying to pull this crap.
The vile Dhimmi-crats’ lexicon antics in search of new euphemisms for their wretched conceits are unsurprising, but, I take it them as a sign that conservatives are slowly gaining back ground in the culture wars, after decades of getting our butts kicked.
The acronyms “DEI” and “ESG” have both become subject to so much widespread scrutiny, derision, mockery and legal repercussions, that they’re both toxic. This is a fantastic result, after decades of the Dhimmi-crats’ promotion of them as alleged holy writ.
Yesterday, I had to fill out an intake form for my yearly wellness exam. The Medicare section had a “social/emotional profile” that I had to fill out. I bristled at the name. All the questions were oriented around the topic of “don’t you want to kill yourself yet?” I gave answers consonant with, “not until I take you out first.”
Hey, look on the bright side — at least the form didn’t ask for your “Pronouns.” Or, so I assume. Little victories, LOL.
It was a pre-Trump photocopy, so it did ask if I was nonbinary or had any of a number of other widely-entrenched sexual delusions,
A product of de facto federal control of medical practice. Remarkably, the dollars often result in control but rarely accountability,
I believe I read somewhere that Trump acknowledged this by eliminating every DEI department and every department that was labeled DEI before Nov. 4, 2024.
I think so. He specifically mentioned all personnel that were in those offices and where they went. I think he is serious about chasing this stuff down.
Looking forward to this stuff being swept out of the special non-profit federal contractors called Federally Funded Research and Development Corporations (FFRDCs).
IDA video on systemic racism by retired USAF general 6/17/2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYmLtGPZrvc
MITRE video on DEI. 06/25/2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–Y6P758B68
RAND video on “advancing racial equity” 10/6/2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9KJuS_YolQ
What? No Boeing?
When racism ends, “that day when all of God’s children, Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.”
Why would whites, Jews and Gentiles be free when racism ends? Free of their prejudice makes them free. The same would be true of blacks, when and if their prejudice (chip on the shoulder) ends. Then they would be free.
Yeah. Just as with letting go of hate/anger towards those who have wronged you. Those are not just unproductive
feelings/emotions but are harmful to those who cling to them.
The irony is that many of the most recent harms to the black community have been inflicted by those the community elected.
Nobody elected tax dodging Sharpton, but there he is.
Yes, they will free and on welfare since nobody will hire them based on merit.
Hopefully, the Trump Administration will be going after Larry Fink, CEO of Blackrock and close advisor to the prior administration.
https://www.rebelnews.com/caught_him_rebel_news_pummels_blackrock_ceo_with_questions_at_world_economic_forum?utm_campaign=el_larryfink_012225&utm_medium=email&utm_source=therebel
This is truly “progressive” governance, in the best sense of the word.
Dhimmi-crats, take note.
This EO is long overdue. The rotten edifice of brazenly racist, inequitable, unconstitutional and corrosive “affirmative action” and “DEI” nonsense and assorted conceits in job hiring and contract awards has stood as allegedly inviolable and sacred practice in federal and state governments, and, in the private sector, for an outrageous and indefensible fifty years.
Only #47 possessed the gumption and will to dismantle it, brick by brick, and, to salt the earth upon which it stood — thus restoring the primacy of the U.S. Constitution, and, restoring muscle and substance to federal anti-discrimination laws.
I forgot to give all thanks and praises to Professor Jacobson and his team at the Equal Protection Project, for their tenacious and laudable work in furtherance of anti-discrimination and equal opportunity.
I had an epiphany the other day (which I mentioned I believe elsewhere but not on LI, so forgive me if I’m wrong and it was already here) while reading the definition of “Spoils System” at library.fiveable.me:
Who else recognizes DEI there, by another name?
Looking to the future and the 2028 presidential election — I don’t think it’s too early to start pondering this and preparing tactics — we need to make sure that VP Vance succeeds #47 for two terms, thus cementing the former’s policies and producing a 12-year MAGA renaissance/Enlightenment.
Gotta deal with the midterms first. Repub majority in the House is perilously thin.
Someone’s been paying attention to all your hard work Professor and I hope you and your team get the recognition you all deserve
Thank you, Professor Jacobson, for your patriotic work combating Discrimination, Egregiousness and Insanity!
I did not read through these EO’s…. do they incorporate provisions from striking “Race” or “Ethnicity” from federal employee or contractor employment applications? That alone would go a long long way to getting rid of this pestilence,
“Trump’s Merit-Based DEI Executive Order Is A Sledgehammer.” A “Sledgehammer” figuratively was used to create the Abraham Treaty.
I love the EOs, but they’re only draining some of the pus. We need supporting legislation to scour out the infection and inject antibiotics to keep it from returning.
The legislation already exists. It’s called “The Civil Rights Act.”
I just watched a DEI video for training at my workplace. It was called something like “harassment, tolerance” or something but I knew what it was. It was funny to find out that of all the cartoon characters in it made me believe there were no white males at the company which spans the entire eastern seaboard. Watching all the other training videos confirmed this. Just ridiculous.
Three score and three years ago, my forefather (Speaker McCormack) helped set up all this discriminatory crap. It was supposed to be transitory, just as JFK described it. Early in life I got to hear directly from some of those involved. In no way was there any plan, idea, concept, etc. to persecute whites for the rest of eternity.
Trump’s EOs are way, way overdue.
As the Gipper said, the closest thing to eternal life on this earth is a government program.
Just like there was no intent to persecute whites with gun control laws. Any power you give a government can can be abused, will be abused,
The Equal Protection Project has done much work that can be passed onto the Trump/Vance administration — for a QUICK start on cleaning up large part of the DEI project.
Of course, the MSM is playing this as “anti-DEI” rather than “pro-civil rights.” Who is opposed to the enforcement of the Civil Rights Act? Racists, that’s who. The Dems told me so back in 1964. They need reminding at every opportunity.
I hope he remembered to get rid of the DEI requirements for research grants.
https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-ruthless-politicization-of-science-funding?sra=true
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01753/advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-government
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/02/22/2023-03779/further-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal
It speaks volumes that a U.S. president enforcing the letter of Congressionally enacted and Executive signed federal statutes, and relevant case precedents interpreting same, consistent with constitutional due process and equal protection rights, is controversial in our 250-year-0ld republic. It’s time the Marxist left is brought to heel and kicked to the curb, hopefully for good. Not likely, but a patriot can dream.