Trump targets ‘weak’ shower heads he’s long complained about
President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at relaxing rules that limit water flow for shower heads, targeting an issue he has long complained makes it harder for him to properly wash his hair.
The order ends water conservation standards that restrict the number of gallons per minute that are allowed to flow through shower heads, according to people familiar with the matter, who detailed the action ahead of the signing.
“In my case, I would like to take a nice shower to take care of my beautiful hair. For 15 minutes until it gets wet. Drip, drip, drip. Ridiculous,” Trump said Wednesday in the Oval Office as he signed the directive. “What you do is you end up washing your hands five times longer, so it’s the same water. And we’re going to open it up so that people can live.”
According to a draft of the executive order, “Americans pay for their own water and should be free to choose their shower heads without federal meddling.” “No longer will shower heads be weak and worthless,” the draft adds.
The rules were first put put into place by former President Barack Obama, rolled back by Trump during his first term, and then reinstated by former President Joe Biden.
Water pressure is a personal issue for Trump, who has long complained about low-flow shower heads he says merely drip water, making it hard for him to wash his hair, and toilets that he has said force people to flush “10 times, 15 times as opposed to once.”
The order was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
During Trump’s first term, he ordered a federal review of water efficiency standards in bathroom fixtures, with his focus on toilet flushes prompting the hashtag #ToiletTrump to trend on social media. Regulations in place during the Obama administration enabled an average family to save $380 in water costs per year and save more than 17 gallons per day, the Environmental Protection Agency said at the time.
In February, Trump moved to also ease energy efficiency standards for many household appliances and fixtures.
Trump and conservative allies have long bristled at environmentally conscious regulations aimed at reducing the country’s water use, saying they end up wasting consumers’ time and frustrating them. The president’s moves to ease such efficiency standards, however, threaten to raise consumers’ water and electric bills.
The rules, which were mandated in a 1992 law signed by Republican President George H.W. Bush, have been backed by Consumer Reports and the Appliance Standards Awareness Project, an environmental group that has said the requirements prevent an enormous amount of wasted water, as well as the energy needed to heat it.
