Trump Vows Sweeping Reforms, Evokes Manifest Destiny In Rousing Inaugural Speech
A reinvigorated President Donald Trump used his first official speech to lay out a MAGA vision for America that he will immediately begin implementing after walking off the stage today.
Surrounding by an audience that stood in unison to applaud every word, the Republican sounded a note of calm leadership, making it clear to the world he is certain who’s in charge this time around. In the days leading up to his inauguration, Trump’s team has vowed to eschew its habit four years ago of deferring to Washington, D.C.’s power brokers.
Among his first actions will be the signing of 10 executive orders meant to gain control of the illegal immigration crisis. “Today i will sign a series of historic executive orders,” Trump announced. “With these actions, we will begin complete restoration of trust and common sense.”
“First, I will declare a national emergency at our southern border,” a line which received extended applause and a standing ovation. “All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came. We will reinstate my remain-in-Mexico policy,” Trump said, rousing the audience to stand once more. “I will end the practice of catch-and-release, and I will send troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country.”
Other immigration orders not previewed by his staff were unveiled as well. “Under the orders I sign today, we will also be designating the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. By invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will direct our government to use its full power to eliminate migrant criminal gangs from U.S. inner cities,” Trump stated.
Another key campaign promise — to tamp down the rising costs of goods — will be met through other orders, Trump went on.
TRUMP TAKES THE OATH!
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s official. pic.twitter.com/bd99voLq1r
— Russell Brand (@rustyrockets) January 20, 2025
“I will direct all members of my cabinet to marshal their vast powers to defeat what was once rapid inflation and rapidly bring down costs and prices,” he said, adding that “escalating energy prices” have overburdened Americans. “Today I will declare national energy emergency – we will drill, baby, drill.”
“America will be a manufacturing nation once again. We have something no other manufacturing nation has – the largest amount of oil and gas of any country on earth, and we are going to use it. We will bring prices down, fill our strategic reserves up right to the top, and export American energy all over the world.”
Central to Trump’s bipartisan appeal is his commitment to bringing manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., one that led some of America’s largest unions, including the Teamsters, to refrain from issuing an endorsement during the campaign. Auto workers, Trump went on, will benefit from executive orders to eliminate the government’s green energy and electric vehicle mandates.
“With my actions today, we will end the Green New Deal, and we will revoke the EV mandate, saving our auto industry and keeping my sacred pledge to our great American auto workers,” Trump said to sustained cheers. “In other words, you’ll be able to buy the car of your choice. We will build autos in America again at a rate nobody could have dreamt possible a few years ago. Thank you to auto workers for your inspiring vote of confidence.”
President Trump also rolled out details about the recently announced External Revenue Service, a new arm of the federal government he said will aim to pursue revenue from foreign nations.
“We will begin to overhaul our trade system to protect American workers and families. Instead of taxing citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax other foreign countries to enrich our citizens,” Trump said. “For this purpose, we are establishing the External Revenue Service to collect all tariffs duties and revenues. It will be massive amounts of money pouring in to our treasury coming from foreign sources. The American Dream will soon be back and thriving like never before to restore competence and confidence to our federal government.”
Elsewhere in the nearly two dozen executive orders Trump promises to sign, he will order an end to “all government censorship and bring back free speech to America… after years and years of illegal and unconstitutional efforts to restrict free expression.”
“Never again will the advanced power of the United States be weaponized to persecute political opponents, something I know something about,” Trump said to a chorus of laughter. “We will restore fair, equal, impartial justice under constitutional rule of law.”
The president also touched on cultural issues like gender ideology and the COVID-19 vaccines, both of which became rallying cries during the Biden era.
“This week, I will end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life. We will forge a society that is color-blind and is merit-based. It will henceforth be official policy of the United States government that there will only be two genders: male and female,” he told the crowd.
“I will reinstate any service members unjustly expelled for objecting to the Covid vaccine mandate, with full back pay. And I will sign an order to stop our warriors from being subjected to radical political theories and experiments while on duty – it’s going to end immediately.”
