President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order Friday declaring English to be the official language of the United States for the first time in its history.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the plan to sign the order, citing a summary obtained from the White House, saying the Trump administration took down the Spanish-language version of the White House website shortly after taking office in January and also removed the Spanish language White House X account @LaCasaBlanca.
NBC News, The Hill and USA Today also reported Trump’s plan, citing White House officials with knowledge of the plans to issue the order.
The order will rescind a President Bill Clinton order requiring federal agencies to offer language assistance to people who don’t speak English, according to a White House summary of the order.
That summary said agencies would still be allowed to use other languages to provide service.
According to the summary the order’s goal is national unity. Between 350 and 430 languages are spoken in the United States.
A fact sheet describing the order said it encourages “new Americans to adopt a national language that opens doors to greater opportunities.” (UPI)
