Stop/Go?

Trump’s nearly 100 Inauguration Day executive orders aim to signal early progress on his agenda and represent a trend of ballooning executive power that began with President Richard Nixon. But whether they will survive a glut of legal challenges to characterize his lasting legacy remains to be seen.Here are just some of the executive orders Trump signed on his first day: 

• Orders affecting the federal workforce include a hiring freeze and an end to remote work policies, among others.

• On immigration, Trump closed the southern border for migrants seeking asylum, suspended refugee admissions, designated cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and declared a national emergency to expedite wall construction. He also moved to end to birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the Constitution.

• On gender and diversity, he terminated DEI programs across the federal government and officially recognized only two genders: male and female.

• He rolled back climate commitments, including withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, expanding oil drilling in the Alaskan wilderness, eliminating energy-efficiency regulations and declaring a national energy emergency to help speed up the building of pipelines and power plants.

• Other notable actions included pardoning January 6 rioters, proposing tariffs through a new “External Revenue Service” and renaming the Gulf of Mexico to be the “Gulf of America.” 

President Trump’s controversial Day One executive orders will face a litany of legal challenges. Three lawsuits challenging the new Department of Government Efficiency were filed before Trump had even departed his inauguration in the Capitol. Today, 18 states filed a lawsuit challenging his attack on birthright citizenship – while experts question whether his other immigration actions can sustain legal objections.

The 55^th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos arrives at a time of intense geopolitical division, economic uncertainty and rapid technological innovation. For attendees, effectively engaging requires preparation. Our WEF experts offer key insights to consider while lacing up your mountain boots:

• Understanding the Davos attendee landscape is essential to making meaningful connections and establishing long-term partnerships. Beyond the typical client or investor outreach, leaders are focusing on broader coalitions that can drive change on key global issues. 

• Clarity will be crucial. In a year of headlines questioning corporate commitment to sustainability and DEI, Davos 2025 will be a litmus test for how businesses can navigate shareholder pressure and corporate values. Companies should craft a strategy that is both authentic and specific to set their organization apart. 

• The media landscape is fierce, with journalists seeking stories that go beyond the press release and the single company. Business leaders need to express views on key topics that cut through the noise.

• It's about quality over quantity. The right engagement amplifies your message and reinforces your leadership. Choosing which sessions to attend starts by identifying high-impact side events well in advance and collaborating with organizers to secure influential speaking slots.

• Geopolitics will take center stage, with ongoing conflicts, energy transitions and economic realignments shaping the tone of the week. Companies prepared to share informed perspectives on these issues are well-positioned to stand out as thought leaders.

For more insights and on-the-ground resources to navigate the World Economic Forum, contact our team at wef@fgsglobal.com.

Despite TikTok’s 75-day reprieve, the weekend’s chaos has many of its users seeking refuge on another popular Chinese social media platform: ‘RedNote.’ Our colleagues at the Asia in Context newsletter shared some insights on the app and the migration implications.

Known as Xiaohongshu in Chinese, which directly translates to “Little Red Book,” RedNote is owned by Shanghai-based Xingyin Information Technology and was established in 2013. It is a Chinese-language lifestyle, social networking and e-commerce platform with an Instagram-meets-Pinterest hybrid style. 

On January 13, RedNote became the most-downloaded app from Apple’s US App store, attracting more than 700,000 new users. Following the migration, TikTok-ers quickly began posting content on RedNote, with #TikTokRefugee trending on the platform. “Goodbye to my Chinese spy” also became a new TikTok trend. 

While American TikTokers express hope for building new communities and continuing their creative endeavors on RedNote, questions remain about its long-term viability as an alternative to TikTok, especially since it may face similar regulatory pressures in the future. By migrating to RedNote, which stores user data in China in compliance with local laws, TikTok users are effectively choosing to share their personal information with the Chinese government – a bold protest against the ban. 

Even as President Trump moved to save TikTok on his first day in office, Americans continue to use and download RedNote. More than anything, amid strained U.S.-China relations, the migration presents a rare opportunity for cross-cultural dialogue between American TikTok users and their Chinese counterparts on RedNote, who have generally welcomed their arrival.