The new US president returned to the White House after promising during his inauguration speech on Capitol Hill that “America’s golden age begins now”.
After arriving at the Capitol, Donald Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, took the oath of office. Donald Trump then delivered his inauguration speech, which lasted more than 30 minutes. “America’s Golden Age Begins Today”said the new president in the introduction to his inauguration speech.
Foreign dignitaries, including world leaders, attended the event. Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, Argentine President Javier Milei and Chinese Vice President Han Zheng were present.
A host of billionaires, business leaders and influential people have also been invited to attend the ceremony. Elon Musk, boss of Tesla and SpaceX, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Dana White, boss of the UFC, and Bernard Arnault of LVMH were among the participants.
Barely reinstalled in the Oval Office of the White House, Donald Trump signed around a hundred presidential decrees.
Decree of pardon for certain Capitol rioters
He signed the pardon decree in favor of hundreds of people convicted for their participation in the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, once again calling them“hostages”.
“It’s for January 6, for the hostages, around 1,500 people who will be completely pardoned”said the new president.
Reprieve for TikTok and reduce inflation as quickly as possible
Donald Trump signed a largely symbolic memorandum that he described as ordering all federal agencies to combat consumer price inflation by repealing measures taken by Joe Biden.
The new president is easing regulatory constraints on oil and natural gas production, which he promises will lower the costs of consumer goods.
On trade, he said he would impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Feb. 1, but he has not announced plans to tax Chinese imports.
Donald Trump also signed an executive order to suspend the ban on TikTok imposed by Congress for 75 days. He said this period will be used to find a US buyer for the platform in a deal that would protect national security interests, while allowing the popular social media platform to remain open to Americans.
America First
Repeating what he did during his first term, Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO). He also ordered a thorough review of U.S. foreign aid spending.
These two measures are part of his isolationist, “America First” approach to foreign affairs.
More symbolically, Donald Trump also plans to sign an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico “Gulf of America”. North America’s tallest mountain, currently known as Denali – renamed by former President Barack Obama – will return to its former name of Mount McKinley.
Immigration and national security
Donald Trump has reversed several executive orders on immigration taken during his predecessor’s presidency, including one that reduced the scope of expulsions. Joe Biden had ordered to prioritize the expulsion of people who commit serious crimes or who are considered threats to national security.
This cancellation is part of the plan, promised during the campaign, which consists of implementing the “largest deportation program in US history”. It also restores the immigration policy as Donald Trump led it when he left office in January 2021.
The new president also declared a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, and plans to send troops to help support immigration officials and restrict asylum and refugees.
He also attempts to put an end to land law. It is not yet certain whether his executive order will survive the inevitable legal challenges, given that land law is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.
Donald Trump also temporarily suspended the United States’ refugee admissions program, pending a review to assess the public safety and national security implications of the program.
He also pledged to revive a policy that forced asylum seekers to wait at the Mexican border, but it is unclear whether Mexico will accept migrants again now that its relations with Washington are strained.
The 47th president of the United States also ended CBP One, a border application implemented during the Biden era that allowed nearly a million migrants to enter the country legally.
On the national security front, the new president has revoked all active security clearances of a long list of suspected enemies. That list includes former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former CIA Director and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, and his own former National Security Advisor, John Bolton.
Climate and energy
Donald Trump has signed documents that he says will officially withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accords. He did the same thing during his first term, but Joe Biden reversed his decision as soon as he took office.
Donald Trump has declared an energy emergency as he seeks to fulfill his campaign promise to “drill, baby, drill” (“drill, drill”), and said he would eliminate what he calls “Joe Biden’s mandate on electric vehicles”.
Reforms of the federal government and bureaucracy
Donald Trump has halted hiring in the federal government, except for the military and other areas of the administration that he did not name. He has instituted a freeze on new federal regulations as he lays the groundwork for his second administration.
He also gave official powers to the new government department called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is led by the richest man in the world, Elon Musk.
DOGE is being sold as an effort to streamline government and how it operates. It’s not an official agency, but Donald Trump appears willing to grant Elon Musk, owner of Tesla, SpaceX and X, a wide range of powers to recommend cuts in government programs and spending.
Rights of transgender and disabled people
Donald Trump is rolling back protections for transgender people and ending diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal government. Both are major changes in federal policy, consistent with his election campaign promises.
A decree declared that the federal government would recognize only two immutable sexes, man and woman. They will be defined based on whether people are born with eggs or sperm, rather than their chromosomes.
The executive order provides for the segregation of federal prisons, rape shelters and migrants based on the sex defined by the executive order. Federal taxpayer dollars will no longer be used to finance “transition services”. Another decree put an end to immigrant integration assistance programs. Donald Trump asked the White House to identify them and put an end to them quickly within the government.