Executive Order 14147 · Signed Jan 20, 2025

90 FR 8235 · Published Jan 28, 2025 · Effective on signing

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Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government

federal law enforcement oversightintelligence community accountabilityexecutive branch investigationsgovernment misconduct review

Signed by President Donald Trump

The order directs the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence to review four years of federal enforcement and intelligence activities for politically motivated misconduct and submit reports to the President recommending corrective action.

Establishes a formal accountability process targeting what the order characterizes as the prior administration's use of federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies against political opponents, with remedial steps dependent on future presidential decisions.

What this order does

What it orders

The order directs the Attorney General, in consultation with all federal agency heads, to review civil and criminal enforcement activities of every department and agency with enforcement authority — including but not limited to the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission — over the prior four years. The AG must identify conduct that appears contrary to the order's purposes and submit a report to the President with remedial recommendations. In parallel, the Director of National Intelligence must conduct the same review for the Intelligence Community and deliver a separate report through the National Security Advisor. All agencies are required to comply with document-retention obligations; noncompliance must be referred to the AG.

The order does not itself reverse any prosecution, drop any case, change any enforcement standard, or impose any binding new legal requirement on private parties. Its operative deliverables are the two reports and recommendations; actual corrective measures depend entirely on future presidential or agency decisions taken after the reviews are complete.

Who it affects

All federal departments and agencies with civil or criminal enforcement authority, and the full Intelligence Community. The Attorney General and Director of National Intelligence bear the primary review obligations. Federal employees involved in enforcement or intelligence activities over the past four years may be subject to the findings.

Why it matters

Depending on the reports' findings, the President could order personnel actions, case reversals, funding changes, or other remedies affecting ongoing enforcement and intelligence operations. No such consequences are triggered by the order itself — all impact flows from the future reports and decisions they prompt.

What must happen and when

How the order is supposed to work

The Attorney General leads the enforcement review consulting all agency heads and channels the final report through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the Counsel to the President. The DNI leads the Intelligence Community review and routes that report through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the National Security Advisor. Neither report has a specified deadline. Document-retention noncompliance discovered during or outside the reviews must be referred to the AG. No severability clause is included; the general-provisions section reserves all existing agency and OMB authorities.

Actions and deadlines

  • Review all federal enforcement activities over the prior four years and submit report with remedial recommendations to the PresidentNo deadline specified
  • Review all Intelligence Community activities over the prior four years and submit report with remedial recommendations to the PresidentNo deadline specified
  • Refer instances of agency noncompliance with document-retention policies or legal obligations to the Attorney GeneralNo deadline specified

Agencies directed to act

Department of JusticeSecurities and Exchange CommissionFederal Trade CommissionOffice of the Director of National Intelligence

Authority and reach

Authorities cited

Article II

Constitutional grant of executive power to the President.

3 U.S.C. § 301

Authorizes the President to delegate functions to executive branch officers.

Executive Order

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Executive Order 14147: Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government | EO Reporter