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On Jan. 20 Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States for his second term.
Inside the Capitol Rotunda, President Trump was joined by his cabinet and Vice President JD Vance and many of the world’s foremost tech billionaires, including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos. Following his swearing-in, President Trump made his inaugural address.
He remarked on what he saw as an opportunity for America and stated he would sign a series of executive orders to seize it. These range from increasing fracking to deporting millions of migrants, making it “official policy” that the United States government only recognizes two genders, to stating that the U.S. would “take back” the Panama Canal.
“From what I saw, the entire speech had a weird undertone” shared Ashley Scott, a second-year student who reacted to the President’s inauguration speech. Scott shared that she and many of her friends found the President’s words both unifying and divisive. “It went from being really optimistic, to the most right-wing claims out of nowhere.”
After the speech and a benediction from Rabbi Ari Berman and Father Francis Man, President Trump gave another, less formal speech with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, in which he praised Texas Governor Greg Abbott for his handling of the southern border, announced pardons for the Jan. 6 rioters and generally celebrated his election. President Trump went on to sign his executive cabinet appointments before the inaugural luncheon.
“I expected the pardons,” shared fourth-year student Taylor Slims. “Not this early into his term but I expected it.” Slims shared that he was skeptical of Trump’s fulfillment of his “day one” plans. He found the pardoning as a poor decision. “It just seems kinda like a bad message to put out. It feels self-serving for him,” said Slims.
The inaugural parade took place inside the Capitol One Arena and was headed off by several speeches from the likes of new FBI Director Kash Patel, Commerce Secretary Nominee Howard Lutnick, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Elon Musk. Elon’s speech in particular was notable for a gesture he made which has stirred controversy online for resembling the Roman salute used by the Nazis. Musk and his supporters have adamantly denied the claims, with Musk calling the controversy on X a “dirty trick” from the left.
“It feels like a bad omen for this to be one of the biggest moments from Trump’s first day as President,” said third-year student Daren Nash in reaction to the salute from Musk. Musk’s sentiments were shared across the internet by others who saw the move poorly.
Meanwhile, President Trump was met at the parade with thunderous applause from his supporters. Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff preceded Trump with a speech highlighting the hostage release ceasefire deal achieved between Israel and Gaza just days prior. Witkoff also emphasized the need for sovereignty in the Middle East, which may be at odds with Israel’s opposition to a two-state solution with Gaza and the West Bank.
President Trump began his speech at the inaugural parade by again announcing pardons for the Jan. 6 rioters, which he described as hostages. He also took a moment to acknowledge the hostages freed from Hamas several days ago. Trump also announced he would be moving forward with his controversial tariffs, and remarked on how great his inaugural speech was, as well as possible frustrations with Biden’s last-minute pardoning of some members of his administration.
President Trump then departed from the inaugural parade to the Oval Office, where he began his signing of executive orders and pardons.