The administration of Donald Trump demanded on Friday that all US federal agencies close their offices responsible for promoting diversity and environmental justice and fire the officials who work in them, who have already been placed on forced leave, within two months.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration fired the independent inspectors general of more than a dozen major government agencies late Friday, US media reported.

Large-scale layoffs of federal anti-discrimination workers in state machinery recorded on the fifth day of Donald Trump’s termwho also yesterday took a series of measures against abortion.

All U.S. federal government agencies are ordered to “take steps to terminate” the operation of their diversity and environmental justice offices “within 60 days,” according to a circular from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). ) that was distributed and made public yesterday.

This is a step that follows the decision announced on Wednesday to put all federal employees in DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility) programs on mandatory leave.

Now, the federal agencies “can and must” begin “from now” dismissal procedures for these workers.

The terms DEI and DEIA, which in the lexicon of human resources management mean efforts to hire people who belong to racial or sexual minorities, have become anathemas to the American right.

During the election campaign, Trump supporters kept attacking Democratic candidate Kamala Harris—a woman, black, of Indian and Jamaican descent—by claiming she was a “DEI hire,” implying that she was chosen because of of her identity, not because of her qualifications.

In addition to programs to promote diversity, equality and anti-exclusion, yesterday’s order also included a service to promote environmental justice.

That last expression refers to “the fair treatment and meaningful participation of all, without regard to income, race, color, ethnicity, national identity, or disability” in the federal government’s decision-making about all things “health and the environment,” according to the definition of the US environmental agency (EPA), which has — until now at least — a department specialized in it.

On the first day of his second term on Monday, Donald Trump made it clear he would end pro-transgender policies, insisting the US would henceforth recognize only “two genders, male and female”.

The 47th president of the United States thus confirmed, as he promised in his election campaign, his will to satisfy the portion of American conservatives who are furious with those who characterize the excesses of programs to promote diversity and the inclusion of minorities.

Trump has fired 17 independent federal agency inspectors general

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump fired 17 independent inspectors general of several government agencies on Friday, a person with knowledge of the matter said, eliminating a critical oversight mechanism and paving the way for their replacement with loyalists to the new president.

Inspectors general in agencies that include the departments of State, Defense and Transportation were told in emails by the White House chief of staff that their jobs were being terminated effective immediately, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The firings appear to violate federal law, which requires the president to give both houses of Congress justification for firings 30 days in advance.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The inspector general holds an independent position and conducts audits and investigations into reports of waste, fraud and abuse of power.

Agencies are moving forward on orders from Trump, who returned to the presidency on Monday, to reshape the federal bureaucracy by scrapping multiculturalism programs, revoking job offers and ousting at least 150 national security and foreign policy officials.

The Justice Department’s inspector general, Michael Horowitz, was exempt from Friday’s prosecution, according to the New York Times. The Washington Post, which first reported the firings, said most of the inspectors general were appointed during Trump’s first term (2017-2021).

Many politically appointed heads of agencies and departments come and go with each administration, but an inspector general can remain in place under several presidents.

During his first term, Trump fired five inspectors general in less than two months in 2020. They included the State Department’s inspector general who had a role in the president’s impeachment process.

Last year, Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, fired the inspector general of the Railroad Retirement Board after an investigation found the official had created a hostile work environment. In 2022, Congress strengthened protections for inspectors general by making it more difficult to replace them with select officials and requiring additional explanations from the president for removing them.