Hours before taking the oath of office, Donald Trump promised to sign a slew of executive orders on his first day as president as he celebrated at a victory rally.
Trump addressed a crowd of thousands of supporters in Washington DC ahead of his inauguration, offering an overview of the next four years and celebrating his election victory over Democrats.
The Republican has vowed to act unilaterally on a wide range of issues, using his new presidential powers to launch deportation operations and reduce environmental regulations.
“I will act with historic speed and strength and solve every crisis facing our country,” he promised the crowd.
“You’re going to have a lot of fun watching television tomorrow,” he told the crowd at the Make America Great Again Victory Rally. “Every radical and stupid executive order by the Biden administration will be rescinded within hours of me being sworn in.”
Trump has promised executive orders that will boost artificial intelligence, create the Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE), make available records related to the assassinations of former presidents, direct the military to create an Iron Dome missile defense shield, and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. from the army.
Media reports indicate that Trump could issue more than 200 executive actions on Monday, which are different from executive orders.
Executive decisions are recognized by the courts, are legally binding and are published in the Federal Register. They can be overthrown by future presidents.
However, executive measures have less weight and are not subject to legal review. They serve more as a “wish list” of policies the president hopes to accomplish, writes political writer Tom Murse.
“You’re going to see executive orders that will make you extremely happy,” he told the crowd. “We have to set our country on the right path.”
Many of these executive orders are expected to be challenged in court.
Trump has also promised to sign executive measures to deal with illegal immigration at the border by launching what he claims is the largest deportation operation in history.
Experts say Trump’s pledge to deport millions of migrants will face huge problems logistical obstaclesand potentially cost tens or hundreds of billions of dollars.
Trump also promised to act against crime in American cities, eliminate left-leaning policies in government and crack down on trans people competing in American sports.
Speaking at the rally, he took credit for TikTok’s revival after it was briefly banned over the weekend and for a ceasefire agreement in the Middle East.
The cease-fire agreement was reached a few days ago under the Biden administration.
The rally took place in the Capital One Arena in the center of Washington, which has a capacity of about 20,000.
It started with a performance by Kid Rock and speeches by TV personality Megyn Kelly, actor Jon Voight and Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller.
Elon Musk also gave a brief speech after Trump touted his creation of DOGA, an advisory agency called the Department of Government Efficiency that Mr. Musk is expected to lead with Vivek Ramaswamy.
He was joined on stage by the Trump family, including Donald Trump Jr., Eric and Lara Trump.
Trump supporters — wearing red Make America Great Again hats and other pro-Trump gear — flooded the state capital this weekend despite bitterly cold temperatures and snow on Sunday.
Bad weather conditions caused the inauguration ceremony to be moved, making it a less public event with reduced access.
Trump will take the oath of office in the Rotunda of the US Capitol on Monday morning.
