Donald Trump has just signed his first lot of executive orders during his second term as president of the United States.

The list is much smaller than what some had thought, with expectations of up to 100 orders on his first day back in the White House.

Mr Trump has spoken openly about his plans to grow domestic energy production, crack down on the Mexican border and stop diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs within the federal government.

Here's what we know.

What is an executive order?

They are essentially statements about how the president wants the federal government to be managed, which can mean instructions to federal agencies or requests for reports.

Executive orders can also play an important role in laying out major policy agendas.

While these orders are legally binding, they are not legislation as they don't require approval from Congress.

It doesn't necessarily mean the president can enact orders without challenge, as Congress could still block an order from being fulfilled by removing funding or creating other hurdles.

Only a sitting US president can overturn an existing executive order.

New presidents will often issue orders to cancel the orders of their predecessors.

Other presidential documents ? such as proclamations and political memorandums ? can also be similar to executive orders, but have different purposes.

However, all three are used by presidents to pursue actions they can't get through Congress.

What are the limitations to executive orders?

There have been several thousand executive orders signed throughout US history, according to data collected by the American Presidency Project at the University of California.

During his first term, Mr Trump signed 220 orders and Joe Biden had signed 160, as of December 20.

But there are limitations to executive orders, as both Congress and the courts can potentially block orders.

In 1992, Congress revoked an executive order by then-president George HW Bush that would establish a human fetal tissue bank for scientific research.

Congress did this by passing a measure that meant the order would "not have any legal effect".

And, Congress can also deny funding to agencies and those behind the enforcement of an order.

These orders could also be legally challenged based on the argument that a president went beyond their legal authority.

This was seen when the US Supreme Court said then-president Harry Truman lacked the authority to take private property without authorisation from Congress, when he tried to seize steel mills during the Korean War.

What executive orders has Donald Trump signed?

Mr Trump was expected to sign a bunch of executive orders, with some estimating as many as 100 orders would be inked on his first day.

Here are some of the key things he's signed:

Withdrew the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, which is an international treaty which legally binds its signatories to fight climate change
Pardoned those convicted over the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol
Ordered the "restoration of free speech" and the prevention of "government censorship"
Kept TikTok operating for 90 days
Actioned the process to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America
Termination of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) programs
Recognition of only female and male genders
Withdrew the US from the World Health Organization
Declared a "national emergency" at the US Mexico border
Ended automatic citizenship for anyone born in the US
Rescinded 78 Biden-era orders, including revoking transgender protections

(Sourced from ABC News)

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