CNN.com Quotes Hal Shapiro on Possibility of Obama Regulations Reversal in a Trump Administration

Hal Shapiro, head of the regulatory practices at Akin Gump and a former senior counselor to the director of the National Economic Council in the Clinton administration, was quoted in the CNN.com article “Could a President Trump reverse Obama’s regulations on ‘Day One’?” The article, as its title suggests, addresses the question of how successful Donald Trump would be, should he assume the presidency in January, in rolling back the Obama administration’s regulations.

Shapiro said it is important to remember what is possible is not always doable. “There is a tremendous disconnect between theory and practice here,” he noted. “If the president of the United States has the constitutional authority to change guidance or an executive action, they will almost always prevail. But the reality of it is much harder.”

Shapiro also warned that, because of President’s Obama’s use of executive orders and guidance, a new president with a different agenda could lead to “enormous consequences.”

“I think the President has taken extraordinary measures, particularly in the second term, that were done through executive action and not regulation, and theoretically almost every single one of those could be reversed through executive action,” he said. “How quickly as a practical matter could this be done? Each one is different, each one has a different complexity and legal requirements that have to be attended to. But as President, it’s in their power to do. And if they want to do it, it’s hard to stop them. It's all on the table.”