The United States was launched on a fresh course of disruption and division on Monday as Donald Trump was sworn in as its 47th president, promising a blitz of executive orders, a radical shake-up of the global order and a “golden age of America”.
In a ceremony staged indoors in the US Capitol because of sub-zero temperatures, the former president prepared to return to the White House in triumph after taking the oath of office from John Roberts, chief justice of the supreme court.
Trump immediately struck a nationalistic tone in his inaugural address, vowing to “put America first”.
“The golden age of America begins right now. From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world. We will be the envy of every nation, and we will not allow ourselves to be taken advantage of any longer during every single day of the Trump administration, I will, very simply, put America first,” he said.
“America’s decline is over.”
Later, referring to his assassination attempt, Trump said: “I was saved by God to make American great again.”
Despite the alternately positive and downbeat tone, Trump’s language still departed from the loftier rhetoric deployed at inaugurations by some of his predecessors, four of whom – Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W Bush – were present to hear his address.
Confirming widespread expectations of a flurry of first-day activity, Trump’s aides told reporters that he would sign 10 executive orders immediately, mainly focusing on immigration – including declaring a state of emergency at the southern US border to allow for the deployment of the armed forces, and attempting to end birthright citizenship. His press secretary also said he would rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
The inauguration ceremony has been moved inside to the rotunda at the US Capitol building because of bitterly cold weather. The high sandstone hall at the Capitol’s centre is the same spot where some of his supporters rioted on 6 January 2021 in an attempt to overturn his election defeat.
Few imagined then that Trump, twice impeached and now a convicted criminal, would set foot inside the White House again. But over the weekend the 78-year-old revelled in his improbable political comeback with supporters of his Maga (Make America great again) movement, including a Sunday rally at the Capitol One arena.
“We won,” declared an exultant Trump after walking on stage, accompanied by his signature campaign anthem God Bless the USA. Vowing to “take our country back”, the soon-to-be 47th president said: “Tomorrow at noon the curtain closes on four long years of American decline and we begin a brand new day of American strength and prosperity, dignity and pride.”
“We’re going to stop the invasion of our borders,” Trump promised. “We’re going to unlock the liquid gold that’s right under our feet … We’re going to bring back law and order to our cities … We’re going to get radical woke ideology the hell out of our military.”
Earlier at the rally, Trump’s senior adviser, Stephen Miller, promised that Trump would on Monday issue “an executive order ending the border invasion, sending illegals home and taking America back”.
On Monday his aides confirmed that those executive orders were expected to include fast-tracking the construction of the long-promised wall, and enabling the use of drones and other surveillance measures. Additionally, there would be an order to end political asylum – a right guaranteed under US and international law – as well as pausing the US refugee program, at least for four months. And there would also be provision for imposing the death penalty for certain crimes committed by migrants, including the murder of a police officer.
Trump was also expected to end birthright citizenship, which confers US citizen rights to American-born children of foreign nationals, including undocumented immigrants.
Tariffs, however – another central plank of Trump’s election campaign – would reportedly be excluded from the early executive orders, replaced for now by a broad trade memo instructing federal agencies to re-evaluate trading relations with China, Canada and Mexico.
His inauguration at noon on Monday will be the first attended by certain foreign leaders: Chinese vice-president Han Zheng, Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, and Italy’s premier, Giorgia Meloni. Trump will then deliver an inaugural address that he claims will be unifying in tone.
“January 20th cannot come fast enough!,” he posted on his social media site. “Everybody, even those that initially opposed a Victory by President Donald J. Trump and the Trump Administration, just want it to happen.”
Kamala Harris, Trump’s opponent in last year’s fraught battle for the White House, will also be in attendance as JD Vance takes her place as vice-president. Harris, who became the Democratic presidential nominee after Biden was forced to withdraw from the race in July, had framed Trump as a fundamental threat to democracy who would exploit his regained power to settle political scores while ignoring the needs of average Americans.
One notable absence among the many invited dignitaries will be Michelle Obama, as the former first lady has said she will not attend the event after skipJimmy Carter’s funeral earlier this month as well. But another well-known former first lady, Hillary Clinton, will witness Trump’s second swearing-in, eight years after she attended his first inauguration following her defeat to him in the 2016 presidential contest.
In that first inaugural address, Trump adopted an ominous tone as he described a country teetering on the edge of calamity, vowing to end “American carnage”. Trump’s aides have indicated that his speech will be much more hopeful this time around, in a surprising change for a man who derided the US as “a nation in decline” under Biden and Harris’ leadership as he campaigned last year.
As Trump takes the reins of power, Biden will depart the White House for the final time as president on Monday morning. He leaves office with an unsually low approval rating amid ongoing attacks from fellow Democrats, many of whom blame Harris’s loss on Biden’s refusal to exit the presidential race earlier.
In his farewell address on Wednesday, Biden largely sidestepped questions about his legacy and instead delivered a frank warning about the nation’s “concentration of power and wealth” in the hands of a privileged few while truth and facts have become ever harder for the public to access.
“Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead,” Biden said.
As he marked the end of a political career that first began with his election to the Senate in 1972, Biden concluded: “After 50 years of public service, I give you my word, I still believe in the idea for which this nation stands – a nation where the strength of our institutions and the character of our people matter and must endure. Now it’s your turn to stand guard.”
That responsibility begins Monday, as the US embarks on four more years of Trump’s leadership, more unsure than ever of what they may bring.
Source: The Guardian
