Donald Trump will have a very hectic Monday – if he can fulfill just a handful of his 'Day One' pledges.
The 78-year-old will be sworn in as president, host a rally, end the war in Ukraine, launch mass deportation raids across the country, reject electric car mandates and pardon thousands convicted on January 6 for their parts. Capitol riot.
Promises for his first 24 hours back in the Oval Office range from tariffs to transgender athletes playing on girls' sports teams, with a series of executive orders lined up for the president to sign.
The day ends with an inauguration ceremony that has been moved indoors due to a dangerous polar vortex threatening DC and much of the country.
His MAGA bonanza inauguration began when Trump headed to DC on Saturday to host fireworks at his golf club in Virginia.
Before he submits his sweeping policy plan, his loyal supporters and high rollers will admire the festivities marking his historic return to the White House.
Mass deportations
“On day one, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out,” Trump declared during his rally at Madison Square Garden.
There are signs that the wheels for such a move are in motion even before Trump comes to power.
Ending illegal immigration was one of Trump's key campaign promises, in a race in which he said migrants are “ravaging our country.” That line drew criticism from critics, and his policy of getting law enforcement to eject millions of people who came here illegally is sure to draw lawsuits and scrutiny.
There were reports Monday that preparations are underway for a massive immigration raid in Chicago as soon as Tuesday. “Well, it has to happen, and if it doesn't happen, we won't have a country anymore,” Trump told NBC before leaving for Washington.
Trump's team has yet to specify how he will carry out the massive nationwide effort, with an estimated millions of migrants living here illegally. Fortunately for Trump, the Senate is already moving on another immigration measure, having voted to break a filibuster on the Laken Riley Act, which requires the detention of migrants accused of certain crimes. A vote on Monday could get the bill to his desk on its second day in office.
Trump, who has driven illegal immigration into the country, has promised to carry out mass deportations
Ending the Russian war in Ukraine
Finally ending Russia's three-year war against Ukraine will likely be one of the first plans to be cast aside, if the facts on the ground are any indication.
'That's a war that's about to be settled. I will take care of it before I even become president,” Trump said in his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris.
On Wednesday, Russia pounded Ukraine with another salvo of ballistic missile attacks, knocking out key energy infrastructure over the winter.
Trump said he will have 'settled' the war in Ukraine by the time he takes office, though Russia has continued to hammer Ukraine with ballistic missile attacks
Nevertheless, Trump is determined to bring his negotiating skills to the conflict, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised some of his recent statements that reflected Moscow's narrative on NATO membership.
Trump has praised his relations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, but Ukraine is refusing Moscow's demands to allow territory seized in the war.
Trump has made so many domestic policy statements for his first stay that it will be difficult for him to fit them all in, especially now that he has added a speech at DC's Capital One Arena after moving the festivities indoors.
Trump appears to have avoided issuing a threat that all hell would break loose if there was no agreement on a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza before he took office. That came about in the final days of the Biden administration, with the help of his negotiator.
Pardon January 6 suspects
Trump has said he would pardon the Jan. 6 defendants on his first day — and “maybe the first nine minutes.”
That came after a campaign in which he played a rendition of the national anthem sung by detained suspects on January 6.
Trump's pick for AG Pam Bondi was questioned during her confirmation hearing about how she would respond to Trump's pardons of those convicted of violent attacks on police officers.
Trump may feel he owes a mass pardon to his MAGA base, but not all members of his party are okay with that. Senator Thom Tillis (RN.C.) warned about it during the Bondi hearing. 'Folks, I was the last Senate member to leave the House on January 6. I saw the Capitol Police officers bleeding and bruised, and I saw some damage as we left. To call these people patriots is not in my dictionary,” he said.
Trump has left little doubt that the January 6 pardon is available. But how much – and whether to extend to violent offenders convicted of assaulting police officers – could be politically tricky
Rates
Many experts attribute Trump's victory to Americans' economic concerns, and Trump has pledged to make tariffs a major priority on day one. He has kept up his drumbeat throughout the transition, talking about tariffs on China and allies like Canada and Denmark, which reject his ideas.
Trump said he would impose 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada on “ALL products entering the United States,” criticizing neighbors for helping open borders days after his election. That immediately caught the attention of Canada's outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and new Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
He has also promised high tariffs to China, although the country's vice president, Han Zheng, was his representative at the inauguration.
Oil drilling and cars
Trump's “drill, baby, drill” mantra was a Trump refrain at almost all of his campaign rallies. If it were to appear in one of his most curious comments on the campaign, when Trump told Sean Hannity he wouldn't be a dictator “except on day one.”
He later explained that he was referring to closing the border and “drilling, drilling, drilling.”
Trump has promised to abolish environmental regulations and unleash American energy. He has repeatedly emphasized his support for fracking and criticized Harris for her statements on the matter.
The US became the world's largest producer of crude oil in 2018 and now retains this title by a larger margin. Trump has called for production to be increased even further. One of Biden's last official acts was to designate new national monuments in California that are protected from new oil and gas leasing. Trump said he would reverse it, but congressional action is likely required.
Trump has vowed to roll back government incentives to buy electric cars, something he regularly attacks despite his budding friendship with Tesla boss Elon Musk. “The day I take office, I will repeal Crooked Joe's mandate for electric vehicles,” Trump said.
The incentives are intended to rid the country of gas-powered cars, but Biden's efforts to build electric vehicle charging stations have been slow and costly.
Women's sports and gender-affirming care
Trump repeatedly raised hot cultural issues during his campaign, railing against DEI and repeatedly promising to “keep men out of women's sports.”
It's another problem he's added to his “first day” to-do list.
The decisions about whether to allow transgender athletes to participate in sports are made at the local school and league level. But the Trump administration does have influence through federal education funds, which are a major part of university support.
Trump also promised on “day one” to “rescind Joe Biden's cruel policies on so-called 'gender-affirming care.'
Trump's team has had months to prepare to try to counter some of President Biden's executive orders.
“Look, I can undo almost everything Biden has done, he via executive order. And on day one, a lot of that will be undone,” Trump told Time.
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