Trump executive orders: The administration's one 'great conundrum'
President Donald Trump signed nearly 200 executive orders and proclamations on his first day back in office, with actions covering a wide variety of policy areas from immigration to inflation and US energy. Stifel chief Washington policy strategist Brian Gardner joins Morning Brief to analyze these orders. On energy policy, Gardner explains that Trump's proposed executive order aligns with his "deregulatory agenda," noting market participants weren't "surprised." However, he questions Trump's "Drill, Baby, Drill" mantra surrounding oil (CL=F, BZ=F), asking: "Is it 'Will, Baby, Will,' In terms of are oil companies, energy companies going to do more exploration and production?" Gardner describes inflation as "the great conundrum" for Trump's platform. While Trump campaigned heavily on "the battle over inflation," highlighting voter "frustration over higher prices," Gardner points out that Trump's proposed tariffs could increase prices over time. He suggests that "when a policy runs into the problems that it's against what his base wants... you're going to see some flexibility." Gardner references Trump's position on TikTok as an example of this flexibility. For a deeper analysis of the TikTok situation and potential tariff impacts, watch Gardner's complete interview above. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Morning Brief here. This post was written by Angel Smith
