Trump’s Golden Promises
Trump’s Golden Promises
A New Golden Era
Donald Trump congratulates the start of the Golden Era of the United States and signs a series of executive orders. Von der Leyen says we have entered a new phase of geo-strategic competition.
There is an image from Donald Trump’s inauguration as the 47th President of the United States that more than any other captures the essence of the new presidency.
This image shows the executives of the largest tech companies, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, and Mark Zuckerberg, smiling and applauding the return of this major investor, alongside the numerous children and grandchildren of the Trump family.
Never before in a public ceremony had there been such a gathering of the country’s wealthiest and most powerful entrepreneurs, a fact that was highlighted by the smaller space they were forced to occupy due to the ceremony being moved inside Capitol Hill because of the cold weather.
Trump announced that the Golden Era of America begins today, a return that took place in the same hall that was vandalized by his supporters four years ago and was confirmed by former President Joe Biden, who had previously described it as a new oligarchy that threatens American democracy.
The fact that Trump and his wife launched their own cryptocurrencies in the volatile global market days before the inauguration symbolizes a new path.
If Trump’s first term and its end were tumultuous, he promises that his second term will be even more radical and disruptive than the first.
From Carnage to the Golden Era
Eight years after his first inaugural address, Trump’s speech about American carnage returns with the promise of a new golden era for the United States.
However, much of that vengeful rhetoric still exists, with a tone laced with bitterness and an almost messianic enthusiasm for his extraordinary political comeback. Referring to an assassination attempt he survived last summer, the tycoon said, ‘God saved me to make America great again.’
In an imperialistic tone, Trump announced in a speech that he would restore the name of America’s tallest peak, Mount Denali, to its former name, Mount McKinley, in honor of the Republican president assassinated in 1901. He also emphasized his intention to pursue manifest destiny into the depths of space, promising to plant the American flag on Mars, rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and reclaim the Panama Canal. The president vowed to end all forms of government censorship, restore freedom of speech to America, and create a society indifferent to skin color and based on merit. He also declared that from now on, the United States would recognize only two genders: male and female.
Is Change Already Here?
After the inauguration ceremony, which indicated his intention to use all his power in the Oval Office to fundamentally change the face of America, Trump signed 26 executive orders, 12 memos, and 4 proclamations, an unprecedented record. If these documents, as usual, indicate the direction of his administration, this would be a revolutionary agenda. These orders include pardoning almost all of the over 1,600 supporters arrested in the Capitol Hill riot on January 6, temporarily suspending the TikTok ban, and withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization and the Paris Agreement on climate change.
He also declared a national emergency at the border with Mexico and, by reinterpreting the constitutional amendment, ordered his administration to deny citizenship to children born in the United States to illegal immigrants.
Continuing on the topic of immigration, Trump has begun the pursuit of illegal aliens in the country and issued orders for mass deportations. He also threatened to impose tariffs of 25% on Mexico and Canada starting February 1. The president also signed other symbolic orders to end the politicization of the judicial system, which he believes has been manipulated to target him. He then ordered his administration to address the issue of rising living costs.
Is Europe Preparing for the Worst?
As expected, Trump’s entry into the White House signals tough days ahead for Europe. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that the world is changing, so we must change too.
Von der Leyen added that the global cooperative order we envisioned 26 years ago has not become a reality; instead, we have entered a new era of fierce geo-strategic competition.
The world’s major economies are competing for access to natural resources, new technologies, and global trade routes.
From artificial intelligence to clean technology, from quantum physics to space, from the Arctic to the South China Sea, competition has begun. But European Commission President von der Leyen warns that despite understanding these issues, we must cooperate to prevent a global race to the bottom. Her remarks came just hours after the start of Trump’s second term.
Von der Leyen explains that disconnecting in the global economy benefits no one. For the past 25 years, Europe has relied on increasing global trade to drive its growth. She added that Europe relied on cheap energy from Russia and often outsourced its security, but those days are over.
The rules of engagement between global powers are changing. We should not take anything for granted, and while some in Europe may not like this new reality, we are ready to face it.
It seems that in Trump’s second term, we will witness much more instability and changes compared to the first term. When he came to power in 2017, Trump was seen as a strange anomaly, a non-political figure who surprisingly managed to win the Electoral College. He was surrounded by officials and advisors who rejected his worldview and spent much time trying to divert and change his political instincts.
The president who took the oath of office under the Capitol dome yesterday and promised America a new golden era knows that he has much more power than before. He enjoys almost complete loyalty from the Republican Party, which holds the majority in both the House and the Senate. His cabinet choices are based on loyalty to him.
And the presence of Silicon Valley billionaires and many others ready to stand by him shows that Trump is no longer an exception but the new rule. In the next four years of his presence in the White House, he will test the American democratic system.