President Trump is planning to sign an executive order making English the official language of the United States, multiple White House sources tell CBS News.
English is already the most commonly used language in the country, but the U.S. has never had an official language at the federal level.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the president’s plan to sign the executive order.
The English language executive order will rescind a federal mandate that requires agencies and other recipients of federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers, a mandate issued by former President Bill Clinton. Agencies, however, will still be able to provide documents and services in other languages. The Trump administration says its goal is to “promote unity, establish efficiency in the government, and provide a pathway to civic engagement.”
Republican members of Congress have tried unsuccessfully to pass legislation declaring English the official language. Many states have designated English as their official language.
On the campaign trail last year, Mr. Trump decried other languages entering the U.S.
“We have languages coming into our country,” Mr. Trump said at CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference, outside Washington, D.C., last year. “…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.”
