On Monday, President Trump said he is “looking at” breaking up the big banks with Glass-Steagall–like legislation. From Bloomberg:
“I’m looking at that right now,” Trump said of breaking up banks in a 30-minute Oval Office interview with Bloomberg News. “There’s some people that want to go back to the old system, right? So we’re going to look at that.”
Those of you who have watched this administration closely have probably noticed that President Trump is often said to be “considering” or “actively considering” or “looking at” various proposals. Reporting on the substance or likelihood of the policies he is putatively weighing tends to be difficult, given that Trump is very obviously willing to say he’s thinking about almost any idea someone places in front of him. The following is an in-no-way-exhaustive list of things the Trump White House was said to have considered recently:
A gas tax. Bloomberg:
Trump also said he’s open to increasing the U.S. gas tax to fund infrastructure development, in a further sign that policies unpopular with the Republican establishment are under consideration in the White House. He described higher gas taxes as acceptable to truckers – “I have one friend who’s a big trucker,” he said – as long as the proceeds are dedicated to improving U.S. highways.
Changing libel laws. ABC:
Jonathan Karl: That would require, as I understand it, a constitutional amendment. Is he really going to pursue that? Is that something he wants to pursue?
Reince Priebus: I think it’s something that we’ve looked at. How that gets executed or whether that goes anywhere is a different story.
Criminalizing flag burning. ABC:
Reince Preibus: People need to stand up for our flag.
Jonathan Karl: Is he going to pursue that?
Preibus: One thing we have in common as Americans is our American flag. And I think it’s something that, again, is probably going to get looked at.
Breaking up the 9th Circuit Court. The Washington Examiner:
President Trump said Wednesday that he has “absolutely” considered proposals that would split up the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, where judges have blocked two of his executive actions.
“Absolutely, I have,” Trump said of considering 9th Circuit breakup proposals during a far-ranging interview with the Washington Examiner at the White House. “There are many people that want to break up the 9th Circuit. It’s outrageous.”
Moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. The Washington Examiner:
Vice President Mike Pence said President Trump continues to mull moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which would overturn decades of foreign policy.
“The president is giving serious consideration to moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem,” Pence said before the annual meeting Sunday of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the largest pro-Israel group in the country.
Going to Israel. The Jerusalem Post:
US President Donald Trump is considering a visit to Israel in the near future, a senior White House official confirmed to The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday.
“We are exploring the possibility of a future visit to Israel as well as other countries,” the official said, after Israeli government officials first leaked news of a potential visit to local press.
Going to the moon. Politico:
The Trump administration is considering a bold and controversial vision for the U.S. space program that calls for a “rapid and affordable” return to the moon by 2020, the construction of privately operated space stations and the redirection of NASA’s mission to “the large-scale economic development of space,” according to internal documents obtained by Politico.
Trump’s got a lot on his mind! Or, more realistically, nothing in particular.
