(VOVWORLD) - Donald Trump was sworn in on Monday as the 47th President of the United States. On his first day back in the White House, President Trump issued a series of executive ordersand made drasticpolicy changes.
 President Donald Trump delivers a speech after the sworn-in ceremony. (Photo: Reuters/VNA) |
His inauguration ceremony was held inside the Capitol building in Washington D.C. This is the second time Donald Trump has assumed the supreme leadership of the United States. His first term was from 2016 to 2020.
Trump announces a “golden age of America”
At his inauguration, Trump declared “The golden age of America begins right now.” He said many people thought it was impossible for him to stage such a historic political comeback, but his victory shows that you should never believe something is impossible. In America, the impossible is what we do best, said Trump.
He vowed that his administration will do impossible things to make America respected again. “We stand on the verge of the four greatest years in American history,” said Trump. “The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation, one that increases our wealth, expands our territory, builds our cities, raises our expectations and carries our flag into new and beautiful horizons.”
President Trump laid out some of his plans for the next four years, including a series of executive orders. He said he will declare a national emergency at the southern border, begin the process of returning millions of illegal migrants back to the places they came from, take the Panama Canal back, and change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. He will end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life.
Upon his return to the Oval Office following the inauguration, Trump signed close to 100 executive orders. Notably, he withdrew the US from the World Health Organization and the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate, something he did in his previous term, only to be reversed by Joe Biden during his term. He also signed an executive order to end birthright citizenship guaranteed under the 14th Amendment.
He signed executive orders imposing a 25% tax on all imported products from Canada and Mexico, and an additional 10% import tax on goods from China. He signed other executive orders to facilitate oil exploration, end incentives for electric vehicles, and extend TikTok's operations in the US to allow its parent company, ByteDance, more time to divest from the app.
 President Trump signs close to 100 executive orders upon his return to the Oval Office following the inauguration. (Photo: Reuters/VNA) |
Unpredictable impacts
Observers say the executive orders Trump signed on his first day in office will create major changes, even reversals, in the US’s domestic and foreign policy. The withdrawal of the US, one of the world's largest emitters, from the Paris Climate Agreement and the acceleration of fossil fuel exploitation and use will certainly undermine the global fight against climate change.
Many of those attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, said that if the US withdraws from the Paris Agreement, many other countries may reduce their own commitments to climate finance or relax their emission reduction roadmaps. Countries are required to submit their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), outlining their commitments and emission reduction roadmaps, to the UN early this year.
Environmental expert Pranshu Singhal, CEO of Karo Sambhav, an Indian environmental organization specializing in the circular economy and sustainable development, said, “I think the biggest thing it's a landmark change, which is happening especially in the space that I operate in climate. Almost everyone is wondering what happens to the treaties, what happens to the policies, do we go forward, what happens to the future protocols. So it's a big question mark. Sometimes change is good. Maybe something is coming which is the surprise for everyone.”
Many leaders of countries and international organizations have responded cautiously to the drastic policy changes enacted on the first day of Trump's return to power, particularly his decisions to withdraw from international organizations and multilateral mechanisms and to intensify trade pressure on economic partners.