Business Interference
Government taking stakes in or control over private companies; pressuring executive firings; imposing loyalty tests on business leaders; weaponizing regulatory agencies against specific firms
Why This Score
This category scores 7/10, placing it in the High tier (7-8): “Government demanding loyalty from business leaders, forced investments or policy compliance, executive firings pressured”
- 1.Schedule F now active with agencies submitting reclassification petitions to OPM; union coalition filed amended complaint arguing it violates APA and Constitution; no injunction issued as of April 2 (Government Executive/Federal News Network)
- 2.Federal judge ruled CFPB must continue requesting funds, calling admin's actions a 'transparent attempt to close down the agency'; D.C. Circuit en banc ruling on NTEU v. Vought (defining case for whether executive can disable congressionally-created agencies) expected later in 2026 (Consumer Finance Monitor)
- 3.Trump signed DEI contractor certification EO (March 26) requiring all federal contractors to certify anti-DEI compliance within 30 days or face contract cancellation and False Claims Act liability; EO count reached 253 with 59 memoranda and 135 proclamations (Gibson Dunn/Federal Register)
Score History
Executive order count exceeded 200; AI EO reversed Biden-era safeguards; contradictory guidance created compliance chaos
Schedule F finalized (effective March 8) reclassifying 50,000 employees as at-will; EPA revoked greenhouse gas endangerment finding; SCOTUS allowing firing of independent agency heads; EO total reaches 243
Scoring Rubric
Normal regulatory environment, market-based competition
Increased regulatory uncertainty, public pressure on specific companies
Government pressuring executive decisions, regulatory agencies used selectively
Government demanding loyalty from business leaders, forced investments or policy compliance, executive firings pressured
Government directing business operations, systematic coercion of private sector
Key Findings
Schedule F now active with agencies submitting reclassification petitions to OPM; union coalition filed amended complaint arguing it violates APA and Constitution; no injunction issued as of April 2 (Government Executive/Federal News Network)
Federal judge ruled CFPB must continue requesting funds, calling admin's actions a 'transparent attempt to close down the agency'; D.C. Circuit en banc ruling on NTEU v. Vought (defining case for whether executive can disable congressionally-created agencies) expected later in 2026 (Consumer Finance Monitor)
Trump signed DEI contractor certification EO (March 26) requiring all federal contractors to certify anti-DEI compliance within 30 days or face contract cancellation and False Claims Act liability; EO count reached 253 with 59 memoranda and 135 proclamations (Gibson Dunn/Federal Register)
Related Executive Actions
View all →Scenario Outlook
All scenarios →Markets whipsaw on conflicting signals about monetary policy direction
Signals bipartisan commitment to institutional norms
Binary outcome creates massive uncertainty for businesses planning around tariff levels
Agencies lose capacity to implement or enforce regulations consistently
Divided government historically constrains radical policy shifts
Signals business community pushback against politicized regulation
Every independent agency subject to political control; regulatory environment becomes entirely presidential-preference driven
Judicial check on executive trade authority further constrains policy unpredictability
Businesses cannot plan around tariff levels that shift between legal frameworks every few months
Removes single largest source of business uncertainty; restores congressional primacy over trade