{"id":220563,"date":"2026-01-20T08:00:21","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T13:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aclu.org\/?p=220563"},"modified":"2026-01-20T08:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T13:05:06","slug":"one-year-in-defending-the-constitution-under-a-second-trump-administration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aclu.org\/news\/civil-liberties\/one-year-in-defending-the-constitution-under-a-second-trump-administration","title":{"rendered":"One Year In: Defending the Constitution Under a Second Trump Administration"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":109,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"tags":[],"metadata":[2027,1763,1757,1750,2024,1751,1752,1755,1769,1768],"class_list":["post-220563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","metadata-both","metadata-context","metadata-historical-commemorative","metadata-layout","metadata-length","metadata-listicle-roundup","metadata-longform","metadata-narrative-frame","metadata-national-affiliate-staff","metadata-voice"],"acf":{"header_layout":"standard","header_image":220617,"mobile_header_image":"","description":"From blocking unconstitutional orders to mobilizing millions, here\u2019s how we fought back and what comes next.","authors":[1631],"components":[{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":{"text":"One year ago, President Donald Trump was sworn in for a second term. Within hours of his inauguration, it was clear that he and his administration would, once again, test the Constitution and the willingness of our nation\u2019s institutions and people to defend it. However, what stood out most to us during the last year has been the volume, pace, and persistence of the second Trump administration\u2019s assault on many of our most fundamental rights and freedoms. There were multiple flashpoints throughout the last year, as the administration\u2019s \u201cshock and awe<\/a>\u201d strategy yielded a sustained and aggressive assault on civil rights and civil liberties resulting in 225 executive orders signed<\/a> (as of December).\r\n\r\nNear daily efforts to dismantle civil rights and civil liberties protections, intimidate marginalized communities, and upend the rule of law threatened to normalize the previously unthinkable. At the U.S. Supreme Court, blows to trans rights and free speech set dangerous precedents. At the state level, attacks on core protections for reproductive freedom and voting rights persisted.\r\n\r\nAlthough we faced an incredibly bleak landscape for civil rights and civil liberties, the ACLU did not relent because we were ready on day one and able to meet the Trump administration\u2019s shock and awe strategy with an even more shocking and awesome response. Months before the 2024 election, we studied President Trump\u2019s campaign promises and Project 2025, and, in a series of public memos<\/a>, laid out the civil rights and civil liberties threats a second Trump presidency would pose. We anticipated the renewed attacks on immigrants and other vulnerable communities, expanded domestic use of federal force, and systematic efforts to suppress dissent."}},{"acf_fc_layout":"content_link","content_link":{"":null,"content_link_field_group":{"url":"https:\/\/www.aclu.org\/campaigns-initiatives\/aclu-vs-trump","":null,"title_override":"","image_override":"","hide_description":false,"description":"One year ago, President Donald Trump was sworn in for a second term. His administration has created chaos, trampled on our rights, and harmed so...","title":"Defeat, Delay, Dilute: ACLU Versus President Trump | American Civil Liberties Union","og-title":"Defeat, Delay, Dilute: ACLU Versus President Trump","og-image":220570,"og-site-name":"American Civil Liberties Union"},"card_variant":"horizontal","hide_image":false,"width":"standard","alignment":"left"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":{"text":"Yet, defending the Constitution in this environment has required more than advance preparation and a sense of urgency. It necessitated an unshakable belief that democratic norms are worth fighting for even when the pressure seems unyielding. That\u2019s why we mobilized our lawyers, advocates, organizers, storytellers, and supporters to delay unconstitutional policies before they took effect, dilute their reach when full blockage wasn\u2019t immediately possible, and defeat them through courts, public pressure, and sustained organizing.\r\n\r\nOne year in, our work is guided by a simple principle: we are only in a constitutional crisis if we allow ourselves to be."}},{"acf_fc_layout":"heading","heading":{"":null,"text":"We Fought \u2014 and Won \u2014 in Court ","anchor":"","sub-heading":"","type":"h2","heading-style":"standard"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":{"text":"Mere hours after taking office, President Trump issued a blitz of executive orders and policy directives that immediately threatened birthright citizenship, trans rights, freedom of speech, and voting rights. Our response reflected a core constitutional principle: rights endure not because leaders respect them, but because people and institutions insist on enforcing them.\r\n