Highlights of President Donald Trump's Inauguration Address

Compiled by Robert E. Martin

On Monday, January 20th, Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States amidst freezing inclement weather prompting the ceremony to be held indoors at the United States Capitol rotunda, which was highly symbolic as over 20,000 supporters patiently waited outside to cheer the second term of a President who four years earlier had been charged with starting an insurrection to gain entry to the premises. 

As he took to the podium to deliver his second inaugural address, President Trump declared, "America's decline is over," and promised a second Golden Age of prosperity, security, peace, strength, and equitable treatment for all, describing the election as a mandate to end "a horrible betrayal" and pledged to prioritize an "America First" agenda.

The president also vowed to "rebalance" the scales of justice.  "Our sovereignty will be reclaimed, our safety will be restored, the scales of justice will be rebalanced. The vicious, violent, and unfair weaponization of the Justice Department and our government will end," Trump said.

He said climate, education, and public health policies will change "starting today and very quickly."   Trump promised to sign an executive order to "immediately stop all government censorship and bring back free speech to America."

He stated, "From this moment on, America's decline is over." 

The president then spoke about unity and criticized the Biden administration: "In the United States of America, as we gather today, our government confronts a crisis of trust. For many years, a radical and corrupt establishment has extracted power and wealth from our citizens while the pillars of our society lay broken and seemingly incomplete disrepair ...  We now have a government that cannot manage even a simple crisis at home, while at the same time, stumbling into a continuing catalog of catastrophic events abroad." 

Trump continued on the subject of unity: "National unity is now returning to America, and confidence and pride is soaring like never before in everything we do. My administration will be inspired by a strong pursuit of excellence and unrelenting success. We will not forget our country. We will not forget our Constitution. And we will not forget our God."

Trump shifted his speech to the migrant invasion crisis. He said that "criminal aliens" would be deported, catch and release would end, and US troops would secure the border, adding that drug cartels would soon be deemed terrorist organizations. 

"As Commander in Chief, I have no higher responsibility than to defend our country from threats and invasions, and that is exactly what I am going to do. We will do it at a level that nobody has ever seen before,"

Trump addressed the inflation monster, saying, "I will direct all members of my cabinet to marshal the vast powers at their disposal to defeat what was record inflation and rapidly bring down costs and prices.  We will drill baby drill," Trump said, adding that a national energy emergency would be declared.

Trump's policy rollout has been as expected and is consistent with his campaign pledges.

He said he would sign a "series of historic executive orders" and "with these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense."

Regarding gender, Trump said: "As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government, that there are only two genders: male and female."

The president noted that all efforts to " socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life" will be halted dead in its tracks. Instead, he said, he will "forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based."

Trump then declared that the Gulf of Mexico would be renamed the "Gulf of America." 

He praised President McKinley for the Panama Canal and his efforts during the Spanish-American war. He stated, "China is operating the Panama Canal," indicating, "We're taking it back."  

He pledged to "end the chronic disease epidemic".  During Trump's speech, the White House released a summary of Trump's America First Priorities:

Make America Safe Again

•    President Trump will take bold action to secure our border and protect American communities. This includes ending Biden's catch-and-release policies, reinstating Remain in Mexico, building the wall, ending asylum for illegal border crossers, cracking down on criminal sanctuaries, and enhancing vetting and screening of aliens.

•    President Trump's deportation operation will address the record border crossings criminal aliens under the prior administration.


• The president is suspending refugee resettlement, after communities were forced to house large and unsustainable populations of migrants, straining community safety and resources.

•    The Armed Forces, including the National Guard, will engage in border security, which is national security, and will be deployed to the border to assist existing law enforcement personnel.

•    President Trump will begin the process of designating cartels, including the dangerous Tren de Aragua, as foreign terrorist organizations and use the Alien Enemies Act to remove them.

•    The Department of Justice will seek the death penalty as the appropriate punishment for heinous crimes against humanity, including those who kill law enforcement officers and illegal migrants who maim and murder Americans.


Make America Affordable And Energy Dominant Again

•    The president will unleash American energy by ending Biden's policies of climate extremism, streamlining permitting, and reviewing for rescission all regulations that impose undue burdens on energy production and use, including mining and processing of non-fuel minerals.

•    President Trump's energy actions empower consumer choice in vehicles, showerheads, toilets, washing machines, lightbulbs and dishwashers. He promised that Detroit autoworkers would start making vehicles once again that middle class people can afford.

•    President Trump will declare an energy emergency and use all necessary resources to build critical infrastructure.

•    President Trump's energy policies will end leasing to massive wind farms that degrade our natural landscapes and fail to serve American energy consumers.

•    President Trump will withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord.
 

•    All agencies will take emergency measures to reduce the cost of living.


•    President Trump will announce the America First Trade Policy.

•    America will no longer be beholden to foreign organizations for our national tax policy, which punishes American businesses.


Drain The Swamp

•    The president will usher a Golden Age for America by reforming and improving the government bureaucracy to work for the American people. He will freeze bureaucrat hiring except in essential areas to end the onslaught of useless and overpaid DEI activists buried into the federal workforce. He will pause burdensome and radical regulations not yet in effect that Biden announced.

•    President Trump is announcing an unprecedented slate of executive orders for rescission.

•    President Trump is planning for improved accountability of government bureaucrats. The American people deserve the highest-quality service from people who love our country.

•    The president will also return federal workers to work, as only 6% of employees currently work in person.


•    President Trump is taking swift action to end the weaponization of government against political rivals and ordering all document retention as required by law. President Trump is also ending the unconstitutional censorship by the federal government. No longer will government employees pick and require the erasure of entirely true speech.


•    On the president's direction, the State Department will have an America-First foreign policy.