On Monday, President Trump will sign an executive order to eliminate cashless bail for suspects arrested in Washington, D.C.
In addition to the D.C.-focused executive order, Fox News confirmed that Trump is also expected to sign a second executive order with the goal of ending cash bail nationwide by threatening to revoke federal funding for jurisdictions across the country.
The New York Post first reported on the separate nationwide executive order.
Trump spoke about ending the nocash bail policy earlier this month, though hinted that he was going to do it through Congress using Republican votes “because the Democrats are weak on crime, totally weak on crime.”
“Every place in the country where you have no-cash bail is a disaster,” Trump said at the time, specifically naming New York and Chicago. “I mean, bad politicians started it, bad leadership started it. But that was the one thing that’s central. No-cash bail. Somebody murders somebody and they’re out on no-cash bail before the day is out.”
No-cash bail is generally considered a progressive approach to criminal justice. As such reforms have been implemented in states like New York, data shows that bail elimination can lead to higher recidivism rates.
The Data Collaborative for Justice concluded in February 2024 that “the elimination of money bail increasedrecidivism for people charged with nonviolent felonies, with recent criminal history, and with a recent violent felony arrest, while it decreased recidivism for people charged with misdemeanors and people with no recent criminal history.”
Earlier this month, the Trump administration rolled out a plan aimed at making Washington, D.C., “safer and more beautiful” as his administration doubles down on efforts to address crime and a growing homeless population in the nation’s capital.
Trump is also expected to sign an executive order that would direct the attorney general to prosecute those cases in which people desecrate the flag by identifying state and local laws they may have violated.
A landmark 1989 Supreme Court ruling established that burning the American flag is protected under the First Amendment.
