President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump, who overcame impeachments, criminal indictments and a pair of assassination attempts to win another term in the White House, was sworn in Monday as the 47th U.S. president, taking charge as Republicans claim unified control of Washington and set out to reshape the country’s institutions.
Trump’s swearing-in ceremony moved indoors due to intense cold. After being inaugurated, he attended a parade in his honor at Capital One Arena and signed a number of executive orders and pardons for his supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Tariffs on Canada, Mexico
Trump said that he expects to put 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting on Feb. 1, while declining to flesh out his plans for taxing Chinese imports.
Trump made the announcement in response to reporters' questions while signing executive actions in the Oval Office on his first day back in the White House.
Trump threatened tariffs of as much as 60 percent on China during his campaign, but appeared to temper his plans after a phone call last week with Chinese President Xi Jinping. He said Monday there would be more discussions with his counterpart in the world’s second largest economy.
“We’re going to have meetings and calls with President Xi,” Trump said.
Trump is placing a big bet that his executive actions can cut energy prices and tame inflation and that the tariffs will strengthen the economy instead of exposing consumers to higher prices. But it's unclear whether his orders will be enough to foster the growing economy with lower prices that he promised voters.
Sweeping pardon for Jan. 6 rioters
Trump issued pardons for participants in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, one of his first acts after being sworn in as the country’s 47th president on Monday.
The pardons fulfill Trump’s promise to release supporters who tried to help him overturn his election defeat four years ago.
“These are the hostages,” he said while signing the paperwork in the Oval Office.
Trump said he was pardoning about 1,500 defendants and issuing six commutations.
Metropolitan police officer Daniel Hodges, who was nearly crushed in a doorway while defending the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, posted a message on social media that he learned about Trump’s mass pardons of rioters after working all day to ensure that Monday’s inauguration was “secure and peaceful.”
“Thanks America,” he wrote.
National emergency
Trump says he favors legal immigration as he signed orders declaring a national emergency on the U.S. border with Mexico, suspending refugee resettlement and ending automatic citizenship for anyone born in the United States.
Trump acknowledged an imminent legal challenge to overturning birthright citizenship, which has been enshrined in the U.S. Constitution since 1868. He said automatic citizenship was “just ridiculous” and that he believes he was on “good (legal) ground” to change it.
“That’s a big one,” he bantered with reporters while signing an order declaring the border emergency.
Trump said immigrant labor was needed for investment that he anticipates will accompany higher tariffs.
“I’m fine with legal immigration. I like it, we need people,” he said.
Deal to own half of TikTok
Trump said the United States as a country should broker a deal to own half of TikTok, which he estimated could be worth $1 trillion.
“I think the US should be entitled to get half of TikTok and, congratulations, TikTok has a good partner and that would be worth, you know, could be $500 billion,” Trump said, adding that rich people have called him about the deal.
The president was speaking about the social media platform with a China-based owner as he was signing an order to keep TikTok open so that it can find a potential buyer and avoid being shut down on national security grounds.
Wartime power act to deport gang members
Trump is raising the possibility of invoking a wartime power act for the first time since World War II to deport gang members who are deemed members of a foreign terrorist organization.
He is directing the Homeland Security and Justice departments to prepare for him to use the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which allows the president to detain or deport any noncitizen from a country considered an enemy of the U.S.
The law has been invoked only three times: during the War of 1812, World War I and World War II. It was last was used to detain Japanese citizens following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
Trump’s executive order paves the way for criminal organizations such as Tren de Aragua or MS-13 to be named “foreign terrorist organizations.”
“The Cartels functionally control, through a campaign of assassination, terror, rape, and brute force nearly all illegal traffic across the southern border of the United States,” the order reads.
Gaza ceasefire
Trump said Hamas is weakened, but he’s hardly certain that the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas will hold.
“I’m not confident,” Trump told reporters. “That’s not our war. It’s their war.”
He said his administration “might” help rebuild Gaza, which he compared to a “massive demolition site.”
“Some beautiful things could be done with it,” said Trump, the real estate developer turned commander in chief, noting the territory’s coastline and “phenomenal” weather and location. “Some fantastic things could be done with Gaza. Some beautiful things could be done with Gaza.”
US foreign assistance review
Trump has signed an executive order temporarily suspending all U.S. foreign assistance programs for 90 days pending reviews to determine whether they are aligned with his policy goals.
It was not immediately clear how much assistance would be initially affected by the order. Funding for many programs has already been appropriated by Congress and obligated to be spent, if not already spent.
One of Trump’s more impactful orders on immigration simply restores what was in place when he took office in 2017.
Trump wants to end federal grants to “sanctuary” jurisdictions, or state and local governments that limit cooperation with immigration authorities. The White House maintains that sanctuaries are breaking a law that forbids interfering with federal law enforcement officers.
He also wants negotiations with state and local governments to deputize local police to enforce immigration laws, known as 287(g) agreements after a section of a 1996 immigration law.
The order restores deportation criteria to pursue everyone in the country illegally, not just those with serious criminal records, those deemed national security or public safety threats, and those who recently crossed the border.
Withdrawal from WHO
Trump has signed an executive order beginning the process of withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization.
It was the second time in less than five years that he’s ordered the country to withdraw from the organization, despite it being a move many scientists fear could roll back decadeslong gains made in fighting infectious diseases like AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
Experts also warn it could weaken the world’s defenses against dangerous new outbreaks capable of triggering pandemics.