The key moments of Donald Trump’s big speech

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free

Your guide to what the 2024 US elections mean for Washington and the world

Sticking to the teleprompter and speaking in a more measured tone than at his rallies, Donald Trump began his inaugural address by predicting that “America’s golden age begins now” and vowing that United States will “prosper and be respected everywhere again.” the world.”

But the 78-year-old’s speech, which was the longest given by a new US president in almost a century, quickly devolved into attacks on his predecessor Joe Biden and threats to cancel a major part of his heritage with a series of decrees. .

Here are some of the key passages:

It was one of several applause lines taken almost verbatim from Trump’s first, and famously somber, inaugural address eight years ago.

Asset He also renewed his criticism of “the establishment”, which he said had “snatched power and wealth from our citizens while the pillars of our society were broken and seemingly completely in ruins”. Four of the world’s five richest men and several business leaders were among the VIPs watching sitting just meters away.

Although Trump’s rhetoric was not as sinister as his 2017 inauguration speech about “American carnage,” the president took several opportunities to attack Biden’s record.

“We now have a government that cannot manage even a single crisis at home, while at the same time facing a continuing series of catastrophic events abroad,” he said. declared.

He also criticized “a government that has provided unlimited funding for foreign border defense,” in a thinly veiled reference to U.S. aid to Ukraine.

Trump campaigned hard for the White House last year, saying immigrants crossing the southern border were turning the United States into an “occupied country.” He once again addressed this theme forcefully in his inauguration speech.

Trump claimed the Biden administration’s immigration policies had provided “sanctuary and protection” to criminals, “many of whom came from prisons and mental institutions who entered our country illegally from around the world.”

The new president pledged to “begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens to their places of origin.” He said he would send troops to the southern border to repel an “invasion.”

Some of Trump’s remarks pointed to specific policies designed to appeal to various factions within his broad coalition.

He received enthusiastic applause for announcing he would sign executive orders aimed at expanding oil and gas exploration in the United States – tapping America’s “liquid gold” – a move he said would reduce prices for energy and would push back inflation. As he spoke, the White House said it would also withdraw the United States from Paris Climate Pact.

Trump also said he would fulfill his “sacred commitment to our great American auto workers” by removing the electric vehicle mandate – although the US does not have a law requiring people to buy electric vehicles – and pledged to impose tariffs on other countries “to enrich our citizens.” .

The president also approved a plan touted by his biggest financial backer, Elon Musk, to colonize Mars — a mission the U.S. government had seen as a distraction from visiting the Moon.

Midway through his speech, Trump rattled off a list of outlandish promises. He said the United States would rename the Gulf of Mexico “Gulf of America” ​​and rename North America’s highest peak, Alaska’s Denali, to Mount McKinley, in honor of the former president who “made our country very rich thanks to tariffs and customs taxes. “by talent”.

He said the United States would “take back” the Panama Canal, which Washington gave to the Central American country in 1978.

“The purpose of our agreement and the spirit of our treaty have been totally violated,” Trump said. “American ships are severely overcharged and are not treated fairly in any way,” he added, before falsely claiming – in front of the Chinese vice president present – ​​that Beijing was “operating the Panama Canal “.

A sense of messianic destiny and a touch of vindication were prominent features of Trump’s lengthy speech.

“Those who wish to stop our cause have tried to take away my freedom and even kill me,” Trump said. He recalled the July rally in Pennsylvania, during which “an assassin’s bullet went through my ear.” “I felt then and I believe even more now that my life had been saved for a reason. »

The first convicted felon to hold the presidency also denounced the various criminal cases brought against him in recent years, vowing that “the vicious, violent and unjust militarization of the Department of Justice and our government will end.”

While he did not repeat his false claim that he won the 2020 election, Trump said his victory in November was “a mandate to completely and utterly undo a horrible betrayal.”