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PresidentDonald Trump hit the ground running for his second term in the Oval Office, issuing a flurry of executive orders and policy shifts at breakneck speed.

Some came so fast, in fact, they barely had time to take effect before being reversed.

For example, Elon Musk and Trump quickly made broad strokes in their effort to downsize the federal government and its spending through the newDepartment of Government Efficiency. But they accidentally cut vital programs in doing so.

“We will make mistakes,” Musk said at a Cabinet meeting in February, revealing that DOGE “accidentally canceled very briefly” funding for Ebola prevention efforts distributed by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

And then there was the time Trump berated Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on social media, calling him a “major loser” and saying his “termination cannot come fast enough,” only to have to about-face days later and publicly insist he had “no intention” of firing Powell after the markets dived deeply in response. Or the time Musk mandated that federal employees submit weekly emails justifying their jobs with five things they accomplished in that time span. The administration quicklywalked back the requirement amid much derision and uneven participation, saying Cabinet secretaries could decide whether or not to have their employees comply.

But those are far from the only incidents. In a rush to impose tariffs, slash government, roll back transgender rights, and curb diversity, equity and inclusion programs, the White House more than once found itself reversing course. Here are some of the efforts and policies the Trump administration has had a change of heart about:

On-Again, Off-Again Tariffs

Trump changed his mind on tariffs so much that he reversed some of his own reversals. His tariff whiplash roiled the markets and prompted backlash from several countries, including U.S. allies.

After many threats, announcements, pauses and resumptions, some of Trump’s promised tariffs are in place, but the situation remains dynamic.

As it stands in April, Trump has announced a 145% tariff on Chinese goods, prompting a trade war between the world’s two largest economies. But Trump later hinted at a U-turn, saying that the rates for China will “come down substantially, but it won’t be zero.”

Trump was quick to implement a 90-day pause on dozens of other countries for what he calls “reciprocal” tariffs that are in negotiations. In the meantime, they face a 10% levy instead of the original rates Trumpannounced on his “Liberation Day.”

“There will be a transition cost and transition problems,” Trump said at a Cabinet meeting in April. “But in the end it’s going to be a beautiful thing.”

Canada and Mexico were spared from Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, but he previously announced and then delayed and then scaled down tariffs on the U.S. neighbors.

Trump previously delayed tariffs on Canada and Mexico after they agreed to help stem the flow offentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid, over the borders into the U.S. He later said that the countries haven’t done enough and went forward with a 25% tariff on nearly all goods from Mexico and Canada. Shortly after, heamended the tariffs to carve out an exemption for most goods that fall under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Meanwhile, Trump also pivoted on some auto tariffs after hearing from American automakers that the effects could backfire on U.S. manufacturing.

Trump changed the levies so that carmakers who pay a 25% tariff on auto imports do not face other tariffs, like the one in place on steel and aluminum.

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Federal Employees Laid Off, Then Rehired

In the Trump administration’s rush to rapidly shrink the size of the government, it fired many federal employees who later had to be rehired. Rehired employeesincluded people who worked on America's nuclear weapons and scientists trying to fight a worsening outbreak ofbird flu.

The administration appeared to focus its cutting efforts on probationary employees and other categories of workers who are easier to fire.

For example, the administration fired 180 workers at the National Nuclear Security Administration, which manages the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile. Later, all but 28 of those layoffs were rescinded.

The Department of Agricultureacknowledged in February that it was working to rehire several employees who were working on the government’s response to the bird flu outbreak.

And agencies faced an Aprildeadline for plans for another round of mass layoffs.

OMB Memo Rescinded After Sparking Federal Funding Freeze Panic

The White House Office of Management and Budget in Januaryrescinded a memo calling for a massive freeze of federal funds that caused widespread confusion and spurred lawsuits.

The memo said that “federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be impacted by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that while that initial order from OMB had been rescinded, the administration’s executive actions to freeze federal spending remained in effect.

Several state governments, universities and nonprofits argued that funding for a range of programs continued to face obstruction after the memo was rescinded, and two federal judges have sinceindefinitelyblocked the Trump administration’s federal funding freeze.

Legal Aid for Unaccompanied Migrant Children Paused, Reinstated – Then Slashed

Just days after telling legal groups representing unaccompanied migrant children to stop their work, the Trump administrationreversed its order – only to terminate a contract with them shortly after.

The Trump administration in March ended a contract with the nonprofit Acacia Center for Justice for services under its Unaccompanied Children Program.

“Acacia’s Unaccompanied Children Program provides legal representation to more than 26,000 children in and released from Office of Refugee Resettlement custody,” the group said in astatement, adding that the administration’s decision “flies in the face of decades of work and bipartisan cooperation spent ensuring children who have been trafficked or are at risk of trafficking have child-friendly legal representatives protecting their legal rights and interests.”

But a judge in Aprilordered the White House to temporarily restore legal aid for the children. However, legal groupshave said that the Trump administration has failed to comply with the order.

Murky Future for 9/11 Survivors’ Health Program That Was Cut, Then Saved

The Trump administration in Februarywalked back funding and staff cuts to a federal health program for survivors of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks after the move received bipartisan pushback.

However, the workers were fired again duringcuts to the Department of Health and Human Services. The director of the program wasreinstated, but the staffers were not.

The World Trade Center Health Program “provides medical monitoring and treatment of WTC-related health conditions for 9/11 responders and survivors,”according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which oversees the program.

Pentagon Restarts Gender Affirming Care Despite Trump’s Efforts

The Pentagon announced in April that it will restart gender-affirming care for service members despite Trump’s efforts to eliminate transgender individuals from the U.S. military.

“Service members and all other covered beneficiaries 19 years of age or older may receive appropriate care for their diagnosis of [gender dysphoria], including mental health care and counseling and newly initiated or ongoing cross-sex hormone therapy,” according to the memo, which was firstreported by Politico. “Service members may also receive voice therapy and appropriate surgical procedures.”

The move comes after two federal judgesblocked the Trump administration’s transgender service member ban, forcing it to U-turn on a big policy priority.

DHS Reverses Course on Foreign Students’ Legal Status – For Now

After weeks of confusion, the Trump administrationreversed course on canceling student visa registrations for many international students. The registrations, maintained in a DHS-administered database called the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, are used by colleges and universities as proof of legal status.

The deletions of the records of more than 4,000 international students were seen as an attempt to pressure them to self-deport. Some of the students had been flagged for offenses as minor as traffic violations, while others were given little or no reason for their status change.

The Trump administration announced that it would restore the registrations of foreign students after more than 100 students challenging the policy won court orders temporarily barring the policy.

The announcement marked a major reversal and brought a sigh of relief for the students. But that might be temporary, as federal officials say they plan to introduce a new policy for international student visa holders.