On the eve of his inauguration, President-elect Donald Trump staged a campaign-style rally in frigid Washington where he and his supporters celebrated his win.
Here are some takeaways from Trump’s remarks on Sunday:
QUICK OUT OF THE GATE
As he has been signalling for weeks, Trump is expected to sign a torrent of executive actions on Monday to make good on his campaign promises.
“The American people have given us their trust, and in return, we’re going to give them the best first day, the biggest first week and the most extraordinary first 100 days of any presidency in American history,” Trump said.
A source familiar with the planning confirmed Trump is preparing to sign more than 200 executive actions on Monday.
The orders are expected to cover border security, mass deportations, rolling back government diversity initiatives, pardoning Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol attack defendants, boosting oil and gas production, and replacing thousands of career government bureaucrats, among other policy items.
Trump vowed to repeal “every radical and foolish executive order of the Biden administration” within hours of assuming the presidency.
Trump and other rally speakers said Trump has been given a clear mandate to carry out his plans.
Although critical of his predecessor’s record, Trump largely avoided the name-calling of past rally speeches. It was perhaps a preview of the tone Trump will try to strike on Monday during his inaugural address.
RALLY BREAKS WITH TRADITION
The existence of the rally itself was unusual. Traditionally with a new president, campaign rhetoric yields to more substantive conversations. The language of transition typically focuses on the handover between administrations.
But the crowd at the Capital One Arena was indistinguishable from any at Trump’s prior campaign events: men and women clad in red MAGA hats, Trump-adorned shirts and American-flag regalia.
(Reuters)
