In a hastily called press briefing at his New Jersey golf course, President Trump said that he would unilaterally issue executive orders to help Americans during the economic recession caused by the lack of federal response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement made at a dining room at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster came after White House and Democratic leaders working to break a deadlock in Washington, DC, while Trump played a round of golf, failed to come to an agreement.

Club members, who pay an initiation fee estimated to be $350,000, packed the back of the dining room as Trump stood at the podium to announce a series of executive orders that it is unclear he has the power to mandate.  They cheered when Trump pointed out that they refused to social distance.

Trump announced his intention to use executive orders to extend federal unemployment subsidies; deferment or forgiveness of student debt interest payments; a ban on insurance companies dropping policyholders due to pre-existing conditions; and a moratorium on evictions.

There are some problems with Trump’s claims.  First, banning insurance companies from using pre-existing conditions to refuse coverage is already the law, established in 2010 with the Affordable Care Act.  The Trump Administration is in the process of suing to have the courts negate the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, including the protections for pre-existing conditions.

It’s also unclear how the President has the power to unilaterally order an extension through the end of the year for federal supplemental payments for unemployed Americans given that any such financial outlay would have to be approved by Congress.  Senate republicans have blocked efforts to provide such an extension, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell does not have the votes to drive the proposal through even though the Democratic-led House approved it as part of the relief package they passed in May.

While Trump may be able to order a moratorium on evictions, he did not provide any guidance on financial assistance for landlords, particularly those who own fewer than 20 units, the majority of landlords in the country.  Nor did Trump detail how the student loan program would be implemented.