Day One Agenda
The Day One Agenda: Highlights
Laws already on the books give a president great discretionary power for constructive change—without abusing executive authority.
Now Chuck Schumer Wants to Cancel Student Debt
Once considered a fringe theory, Senate leadership has adopted an aggressive posture on executive authority. Read more
Joe Biden Is Unhappy About the Day One Agenda
But those are the breaks when you’re president; people will want you to exercise your power for the general good. Read more
⏩ David Dayen Discusses the Day One Agenda on The Majority Report
Watch Prospect executive editor David Dayen discuss the Day One Agenda on The Majority Report With Sam Seder. Read more
How Biden Can Raise Some Wages Even if Congress Won’t
There’s a lot he and his Labor Department can do, no matter what Congress may or may not enact. Read more
Cancel Student Debt—Almost All of It
An obscure, decades-old provision called “compromise and settlement” authority could allow the Department of Education to opt out of collecting trillions in debt. Read more
Biden Could Shut Down Oil and Gas Leasing on Federal Lands
That’s just one of many authorities available to the Interior Department on day one. Read more
Make Marijuana Effectively Legal
By rescheduling cannabis as a less dangerous narcotic, the next president can upend the drug war and the damaging effects on communities of color. Read more
Create a More Progressive Tax Policy
Congress writes the laws, but the IRS interprets them, and they can do so in ways that make the system more fair. Read more
It’s Time to End the Korean War
Seventy years into the conflict, Biden can resolve the original forever war. Read more