By Peter Baker
Donald John Trump marked a remarkable resurgence to authority on Monday as he took the oath as the 47th president of the United States, vowing a swift series of initiatives to fundamentally alter the nation’s direction and initiate a new “golden era of America.”
In a celebration of both himself and his movement, Trump took the oath in the Capitol four years after being voted out, recharged for another term focused on reshaping America according to his ideals. He quickly set forth a bold agenda of often polarizing policies to “reclaim our Republic” and eliminate its adversaries and his own.
“My recent victory represents a mandate to absolutely and thoroughly rectify a dreadful betrayal and all these numerous betrayals that have occurred, and to restore to the people their faith, their wealth, their democracy and, indeed, their liberty,” Trump stated during a 29-minute inaugural speech as former President Joe Biden observed. “From this point forward, America’s decline is over.”
Feeling justified by voters following impeachments, indictments, and a conviction on 34 felony counts, Trump asserted both a personal and political mandate. “Many believed it was impossible for me to execute such a monumental political comeback,” he noted. “But as you can see today, here I am. The American people have spoken.”
Indeed, he perceived divine intervention in his return to the White House, referencing a close encounter with death during an assassination attempt this summer. “I felt then, and believe even more so now, that my life was saved for a purpose,” he said. “I was spared by God to make America great again.”
Trump was inaugurated in the same venue where a mob of his supporters ran rampant four years prior in a failed attempt to overturn the results of an election he lost, culminating in an unprecedented political resurgence in U.S. history. In a clear indication of the shifting power dynamics in America, Trump intended later that day to pardon or reduce the sentences for hundreds of rioters convicted for their involvement in the attack.
Biden, cautious of Trump’s threats of taking “retribution” on his perceived foes, utilized his final hours in office to exercise his own pardon power to prevent potential political prosecutions by his successor. Biden pardoned five family members, including his two brothers, as well as others targeted by Trump: former Rep. Liz Cheney, retired Gen. Mark Milley, and Dr. Anthony Fauci.
However, Biden, who has warned for over four years that Trump posed a danger to democracy, still engaged in the day’s ceremonial acts, unlike his predecessor did four years prior. He warmly welcomed Trump for coffee at the White House before the event.
“Welcome home,” Biden greeted Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, upon their arrival at the executive mansion.
Trump planned to swiftly move beyond the ceremonial inaugural activities to reassert his influence over the government with as many as 100 orders and actions. He promised to immediately announce a national emergency at the southern border and deploy military forces to secure it. He declared he would terminate government initiatives promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. He stated he would rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America and vowed to reclaim the Panama Canal. “We’re taking it back,” he asserted.
Similar to his address eight years ago, when he condemned “American carnage” during his first inauguration speech, Trump portrayed a bleak image of a nation in distress that only he could rescue. However, even more than in 2017, he mostly discarded lofty ideals and inclusive themes favored by most presidents post-inauguration, instead detailing specific policies he intended to implement.
Seated a short distance away, Biden looked downward at various points during the speech, while former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton even chuckled at the mention of the Gulf of Mexico. The atmosphere quickly resembled a State of the Union address, as Republicans eagerly stood to applaud specific proposals while Democrats appeared quiet and uneasy.
Chief Justice John Roberts administered the 35-word oath of office to Trump at 12:01 p.m., one minute after the constitutionally mandated time, during a ceremony that the president-elect’s team moved indoors due to chilly conditions. James David Vance was sworn in a minute prior as the nation’s 50th vice president by Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
Trump, at 78, became the oldest individual inaugurated as president, surpassing Biden, who was five months younger at his inauguration four years earlier. Vance, at 40, became the third-youngest vice president in United States history.
Trump also became only the second president since the founding of the Republic to regain the White House after losing reelection, joining President Grover Cleveland, who held nonconsecutive terms in the 19th century.
