WASHINGTON — President Trump is expected to sign an executive order making English the official language of the US for the first time in the country’s 250-year history, The Post has confirmed.
The mandate would mark the first time the US has had an official language at the federal level — and would negate a rule issued by former President Bill Clinton that required federal agencies to have language materials for non-English speakers.
The executive action will now require the agencies or groups that receive government funding to no longer provide assistance in languages other than English.
The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the incoming order, reported the text outlines a need for unity, efficiency and civic engagement.
Trump has long spoken about the rise of illegal immigration through the southern border — and the need for English to be the primary language spoken in the country.
“This is a country where we speak English, not Spanish,” Trump said in a presidential debate in 2015.
He repeated a similar sentiment during his 2024 campaign, saying, “We have languages coming into our country. We don’t have one instructor in our entire nation that can speak that language.”
“These are languages — it’s the craziest thing — they have languages that nobody in this country has ever heard of. It’s a very horrible thing,” the president has said.
English is the most widely-spoken language in the US, and 32 states have declared it as the official language.
US lawmakers have also introduced legislation for decades to the same effect — but it has never reached the president’s desk.
Most recently, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), who emigrated from Colombia and became an American citizen at the age of 18, floated a bill to make English the official language of the US.
That legislation goes further than the executive order and would have forced all US government functions to be conducted in English — while also mandating applicants for citizenship to demonstrate proficiency in the language.
https://nypost.com/2025/02/28/us-news/trump-to-make-english-the-official-language-of-us-with-executive-order/
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