'BACK TO PLASTIC!': Trump says he will sign executive order ditching paper straws
WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump is ready to ditch paper straws and go back to plastic.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social Friday, said he will issue an executive order that rolls back efforts made by former President Joe Biden's administration for the federal government to embrace more environmentally-friendly paper straws.
"I will be signing an Executive Order next week ending the ridiculous Biden push for Paper Straws, which don’t work. BACK TO PLASTIC!" Trump said.
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Under Biden, the Department of Interior in 2022 ordered a phase-out by 2032 of all single-use plastic products ? such as plastic straws, food and beverage containers and bottles ? on all federal lands including national parks.
The Interior department was complying with an executive order from Biden that called for federal departments and agencies to minimize waste and support recycled products. Trump rescinded Biden's order ? which Biden dubbed "Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability" ? on his first day of office last month.
While widely regarded as better for the environment, paper straws tend to quickly dissolve and can be unpopular with consumers of beverages. Trump and other Republicans have long made paper straws a go-to attack in their fight against Democrat-backed environmental regulations.
During his 2020 reelection bid, the Trump campaign sold Trump-branded plastic straws because "liberal paper straws don’t work,” the campaign's online store said at the time.
Reach Joey Garrison at X @joeygarrison.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: President Trump says he will sign order ditching paper straws