Over 80 executive orders and a plethora of promises amid a clear message to the global leaders, the new US President is bang on the job to transform the role of America on the world stage.
Washington: The Capitol Hill's scenic West Lawn went silent due to a frigid weather forecast but inside the Rotunda of the US Capitol, Donald Trump who took the oath of office as the 47th president of the United States, was on the fire — with promises to push the limits of executive power, deport millions of immigrants, secure retribution against his political enemies and transform the role of America on the world stage.
Faced with an Arctic blast outdoors, the new president delivered an inaugural address, laying out his plans for the next four years. Trump signed as many as 80 executive orders to reverse actions taken by the Joe Biden administration and continues to do so as we go to press.
Before Trump took the oath of office, in the final hours of his presidency, Democrat Biden issued a series of “preemptive pardons” for those he feared would come under attack during a Trump presidency. They included Biden’s brothers, immunologist Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and the members of the House Select Committee on the January 6 attack, including former Congress member Liz Cheney.
Trump’s inauguration was the first to invite foreign leaders to participate, and many politicians were in attendance. Outgoing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were joined by former presidents Barack Obama, George W Bush, and Bill Clinton, while tech moguls like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos also made appearances.
In his inaugural address, Trump advanced a vision of the future that called for the expansion of US territory, including by “taking” the Panama Canal “back” from Panama. The Republican leader also announced he would declare a state of emergency at the southern border with Mexico and declare drug-trafficking cartels “terrorists” in order to expel them from the country.
Later, at a rally for supporters at the Capital One Arena, Trump signed a series of executive orders freezing government hiring and halting the addition of federal regulations, among other things. The President’s decision to pull the US out of the World Health Organization has left the WHO facing a major blow to its budget.
Trump also issued pardons for over 1,500 individuals charged in connection with the January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack, including members of the Proud Boys and other far-right groups. He has also told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to make a deal to end the grinding Ukraine war "now" or face tariff hikes and more sanctions.
Golden age of America has begun: Trump at WEFDavos: US President Donald Trump on January 23 said a golden age of America has begun with his second term and the entire world would soon be more peaceful and prosperous. Virtually addressing the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) Summit, the President said he is going to ask Saudi Arabia and OPEC to bring down oil prices and asserted that if prices come down, the Russia-Ukraine war will end immediately. On ties with China, he said: “We will have a very good relationship with China... we are only looking for a fair relationship and nothing phenomenal. I like President Xi very much, but the relationship got strained due to COVID-19. Look forward to getting along with China. Hope we can work with China to get the war in Ukraine to end,” Trump said. Trump criticized the trade deficit with Canada. “Cannot have such a deficit with Canada and they have been very tough to deal with. We don’t need their lumber or their factories to make our cars.” He also slammed the EU for unfair trade practices. He called for immediate interest rate cuts. “Will ask for interest rates to drop immediately and all countries should follow America. Even America’s adversaries are happy with the election result.” |
