Donald Trump has said the ‘golden age of America begins now’ as he’s sworn in as the 47th president.

The President is speaking inside the US Capitol building in Washington for his inauguration.

Trump arrived with his wife and incoming First Lady, Melania Trump, to St John’s Church, known as the ‘Church of the Presidents’, today (January 20) as he prepares to take on the role for the second time.

The President with wife, Melania, during his second inauguration (YouTube/ABC)

He has dubbed the day’s events as ‘liberation day’ for America, adding: “It is my hope that our recent presidential election will be remembered as the greatest and most consequential election in the history of our country.”

In his speech, Trump also listed off figures including Vice President JD Vance and Justices of the US Supreme Court, as well as former presidents Clinton, Bush, Obama and now Joe Biden, and announced that ‘the golden age of America begins right now’.

Trump continued that he is ‘confident and optimistic that we are at the start of a thrilling new era of national success’.

“Sunlight is pouring over the entire world and America has the chance to seize this opportunity like never before,” he added.

During his inaugural address, the President said he will ‘rebalance’ the ‘scales of justice’ during his term.

“The scales of justice will be rebalanced. The vicious, violent and unfair weaponization of the Justice Department and government will end,” CNN reports.

He also slammed his predecessor, Joe Biden, for his policies at home and abroad.

Former President Biden during the inauguration (ABC/YouTube)

Trump said: “We now have a government that cannot manage a simple crisis at home, while at the same time stumble into a continuing catalog of catastrophic events abroad.

“We have a government that has given unlimited funding to the defense of foreign borders but refuses to defend American borders or, more importantly, its own people.”

Trump also highlighted some of the executive orders he will sign and take on as president, including an end to the ‘Green New Deal’ and the ‘electric vehicle mandate’ while tackling inflation.

He claimed in his speech that the US is in a ‘national energy emergency’, promising to ‘drill, baby, drill’ as well as bring down rocketing costs and provide ‘tax cuts for American workers’.

The 78-year-old is the oldest person to be elected to the presidency and will be the oldest president in US history by the end of his term.

Touching his assassination attempt during the campaign trial, Trump claims his life was ‘saved by God’ to ‘make America great again’.

His speech comes as part of the age-old tradition, during which the president-elect recites an oath while the vice-president will also be sworn in by repeating the same oath of office that has been in use since 1884.

As Donald Trump prepares to be inaugurated to the White House a second time, we take a look at all changes he’s vowed to usher in.

The Republican Party leader is set to officially become the 47th US President, as he’s sworn into office in Washington DC later from 11.30am Eastern Time today (20 January).

From cryptocurrency to education and everything in between, here’s everything Donald Trump has promised to do as he returns to office…

Be a ‘dictator’

Donald Trump is the 47th President of the United States (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Trump admitted that one of his plans for his first day back in the Oval Office would be to be a ‘dictator’ when discussing the possibility of his win in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity last year.

He referred to himself as a ‘dictator’ during the interview, when asked by Hannity if he was promising to ‘never abuse power as retribution against anybody’.

In response, Trump said: “Except for Day 1.

“I want to close the border and I want to drill, drill, drill. We’re closing the border and we’re drilling, drilling, drilling,” he continued.

“After that, I’m not a dictator.”

Delay the TikTok ban

The TikTok ban has been delayed (TikTok/ Twitter/ @amyewong)

TikTok went dark yesterday (January 19), but it was bought back after mere hours with a message reading: “Welcome back! Thank you for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the US!

“You can continue to create, share and discover all the things you love on TikTok.”

Trump will reportedly sign an executive order to delay the ban saying he wants to ‘make a deal to protect our national security.’

Scrap ‘electric vehicle mandates’

Trump has vowed to scrap EV mandates (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

Trump plans to scrap Biden administration’s so-called electric vehicle mandate, referring to new pollution standards that incentivize auto manufacturers to increase production of electric and lower-emission vehicles.

Despite vowing to get rid of the policy on his first day, Trump told podcaster Joe Rogan the move could take ‘maybe two days, because it’s a little bit busy’.

Make US ‘crypto capital’

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Back in 2021, Trump called crypto a ‘scam against the dollar.’ But four years on, he’s pulled a u-turn as he vowed to make the US the ‘crypto capital of the planet’.

On social media, Trump claimed crypto would be ‘mined, minted and made in the US’.

Both he and wife Melania released their own memecoins ahead of the inauguration, while experts previously predicted Bitcoin could reach up to $250,000 this year.

Trump also said he would ‘fire’ Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler ‘on day one’ – referencing the Joe Biden-appointed SEC chairman who has taken an aggressive approach to crypto regulation.

Free some of the January 6 rioters

Trump supporters clashed with police and security forces as they stormed the US Capitol in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021 (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

It was Trump’s loss in the 2020 election that led to the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, resulting in the arrests of a number of Trump supporters.

However, the president-elect told reporters on voting day this year that his supporters are ‘not violent people’, and that there would be ‘no violence’ surrounding the most recent election.

This belief echoes Trump’s previous claim that some of the people sentenced for their role in the insurrection were ‘wrongfully imprisoned’, and explains why he has shared plans to free them of their sentences as one of his first acts when he returns as president.

In a post shared on his social media channel, Trump said: “I am inclined to pardon many of them. I can’t say for every single one, because a couple of them, probably they got out of control.”

End Green Deals

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Five years after introducing the Green New Deal, we’ve helped secure the largest US investment to combat the climate crisis, launched the American Climate Corps, and more. And we’re just getting started.

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Trump has spoken previously about his plan to ‘terminate the Green New Deal’, which he dubbed the ‘Green New Scam’.

The Green New Deal was pitched by Democrats Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey, but it was never signed into law. However, Trump has used the term to refer more generally to Joe Biden’s climate and energy policies.

Addressing the policies in a speech in September, Trump said: “To further defeat inflation, my plan will terminate the Green New Deal, which I call the Green New Scam. Greatest scam in history, probably.

“We [will] rescind all unspent funds under the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act.

“I’m going to write it out in an executive order. It’s going to end on Day 1.”

Fire the man who indicted him

Trump faced two federal cases due to the insurrection (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

Trump faced two federal cases in relation to the 2020 election result from special counsel Jack Smith, and the future POTUS has no plans to work with him again.

Speaking on October 24, Trump told the Hugh Hewitt show he would fire Smith ‘within two seconds’.

“He’ll be one of the first things addressed,” he said.

Plan over 100 executive orders

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It’s been reported by AP that Trump plans on preparing over 100 executive orders on his first day in the White House.

Trump’s allies have reportedly spent time preparing documents that Trump can sign quickly, on issues such as deportation, school gender policies, and vaccine mandates, without input from congress.

“There will be a substantial number,” said Senator John Hoeven, R-N.D.

Make hidden government files public

Trump has promised to increase government transparency, including information about MLK’s assassination (Alpha Historica / Alamy Stock Photo)

Including the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King Jr., Trump promised at his recent rally in Washington D.C that, in a bid to increase government transparency, he will be making these disclosures in ‘the coming days’.

“And in the coming days, we are going to make public remaining records relating to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert Kennedy, as well as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” he said.

Mass deportations

Trump, his wife Melania and their son Barron (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Making it clear this will be a priority from day one, Trump wants to start his second presidential reign by using the military to deport masses of undocumented immigrants.

In November 2024, Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton put these claims to social media, to which Trump simply replied: “TRUE!”

In a lengthier statement during a rally at Madison Square Garden, he said: “On Day 1, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out.

“I will rescue every city and town that has been invaded and conquered, and we will put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail, then kick them the hell out of our country as fast as possible.”

It’s thought the move will impact an estimated 11 million people.

Getting rid of birthright citizenship

Exactly as it sounds, Trump once declared he wanted to get rid of birthright citizenship, which immediately gives citizenship to anyone born in the US.

Noting that this may not be possible as it’s written into the constitution, he said he wants to achieve this by executive order – bypassing congress again – ‘if we can’.

Arrange green cards for college graduates

Despite making his stance on immigration clear, Trump has advocated for non-US citizens to receive green cards to stay in the country if they graduate from college.

During an episode of the ‘All In’ podcast recorded this year, Trump said: “Anybody graduates from a college, you go in there for two years or four years, if you graduate, or you get a doctorate degree from a college, you should be able to stay in this country […]

“Somebody graduates at the top of the class, they can’t even make a deal with the company because they don’t think they’re going to be able to stay in the country. That is going to end on Day 1.”

The ‘Make Greenland Great Again Act’

Trump has his sights set on Greenland (Juan Maria Coy Vergara/Getty Images)

In a bid that has not gone down well with Greenlanders – shocking – Trump has said he wants to buy Greenland, with Republican lawmakers having drawn up a bill which will allow Trump to start negotiations when he enters the White House January 20.

Taking to his social media platform Truth Social, he said: “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.

“Greenland is an incredible place. The people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, cherish it, from a very vicious outside World.

“MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”

Cut federal funding for schools educating on ‘inappropriate’ topics

Speaking early last year, Trump addressed a crowd in Iowa and made plans to ‘save [the] country from destruction’.

As part of this, the president-elect shared his plans to crack down on schools which include certain lessons about race, gender or politics.

“On day one, I will sign a new executive order to cut federal funding for any school pushing critical race theory, transgender insanity,” he said, per NPR.

Trump also said he would target schools pushing ‘any other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content on our children’.

The creator of a dark web marketplace has sent a message to Donald Trump after being pardoned and released from prison.

Since Donald Trump was sworn into office and became the 47th president of the United States on Monday (January 20), executive orders and presidential pardons have been flying out.

On the list of the excused include the January 6 rioters, Washington DC police officers Andrew Zabavsky and Terence Sutton convicted for their roles in a deadly chase and subsequent cover-up, and some 23 anti-abortion protestors.

However, arguably the biggest name on the list is Ross Ulbricht, a 40-year-old tech pro from Texas who created and operated the darkweb market website, Silk Road, from 2011 up until his arrest in 2013 and conviction two years later.

The president has pardoned the dark web creator (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

For the past 11 years, Ulbricht has been locked up behind bars for crimes ranging from engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, distributing narcotics by means of the internet, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to traffic fraudulent identity documents, and conspiracy to commit computer hacking.

He was sentenced to double life in prison plus 40 years without any possibility of parole – until now.

Calls to liberate Ulbricht have been in full-swing since his dramatic FBI arrest in 2013 and apparently caught the ears of the president while on his campaign trail.

Trump later vowed to free the Silk Road founder if he returned to power while at the Libertarian Party National Convention last year.

Members of the Libertarian Party campaigned for Ross Ulbricht’s release (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Now, Ulbricht has sent his thanks to the POTUS on Twitter.

In his almost two-minute-long video, he started off with the announcement that the POTUS granted him a ‘full pardon’ while reminding viewers of the time he’s already spent behind bars.

He said: “I was doing life without parole and I was locked up for more than 11 years, but he let me out. I’m a free man now.

“So let it be known that Donald Trump is a man of his word,” he continued with a hand on his heart. “Thank you so much, President Trump for giving me this amazing blessing.”

Ulbricht also stressed how ‘grateful’ he is to be released from prison, adding: “To have my future back, to have a second change. This is such an important moment for me and my whole family, it’s an important moment for everybody who has been working for this for years.”

To his fans and campaigners, he said: “This is a victory and it’s your victory, too. And this is an important moment for everybody, everywhere, who loves freedom and who cares about second chances.

“So, it feels amazing to be free, to say the least, and it’s overwhelming.”

He was grateful to the president (Twitter/@‌RealRossU)

He finished by saying he will need to spend some time with his family to ‘reunite’ and ‘heal’ but promised he would be back.

“There’s a lot to talk about and I look forward to reengaging with the free world. And so once I’m feeling up to it, we’ll talk again,” he ended his message.

Fans have since been flooding social media with their thoughts on his release and pardon.

“We are so happy to see you out!” one wrote on Twitter, while another chimed: “What was done to you was outrageous and should have never happened.”

A third added: “You deserved your freedom. Making a simple website should not be a crime.”

Darknet Diaries’ Jack Rhysider also wrote: “When you’re feeling up for it, I’d love to sit down with you for an interview. But get some rest, catch your breath, and let the reality sink in for a while. Enjoy yourself.”

Donald Trump has allegedly sent Greenland into crisis mode after having a rather heated phone call with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

Donald Trump has made it pretty clear that he and his government are interested in acquiring Greenland.

However, this request hasn’t exactly been taken seriously – until now.

Danish officials, who wished to stay anonymous, spoke to the Financial Times after Trump and Frederiksen spoke on the phone about this possibility.

They said Trump was fiery, aggressive, and confrontational, despite the offer to increase Greenland-US cooperation on military bases and natural resources.

Donald Trump had a fiery call with the Danish PM (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

An unnamed source said: “[Trump] was very firm. It was a cold shower. Before, it was hard to take it seriously. But I do think it is serious, and potentially very dangerous.”

Before he entered the White House, Trump said he wanted to buy Greenland, with Republican lawmakers having drawn up a bill which will allow the 47th President to start negotiations.

Taking to his social media platform Truth Social, he said: “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.

“Greenland is an incredible place. The people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, cherish it, from a very vicious outside World.

“MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”

Frederiksen has previously said that Greenland’s prime minister, Mute Edege, ‘has been very, very clear … there is a lot of support among the people of Greenland that Greenland is not for sale and will not be in the future’.

Edege has previously called for independence from Denmark but said he has no interest in the island becoming a part of the US.

Trump has previously said acquiring Greenland is crucial to global security (Kristian Tuxen Ladegaard Berg/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Greenlandic member of the Danish parliament Aaja Chemnitz has added that this idea isn’t popular among the population either.

She said: “Most people don’t want it.

“I think some people find it quite disrespectful. And the way it has been done, and just the fact that you’re saying that you can buy another country.”

Greenland, has a population of just 57,000 and is the world’s largest island and is a strategically important part of the Arctic region.

It has wide-ranging autonomy, but its economy is largely dependent on subsidies from Copenhagen and it remains part of the kingdom of Denmark.

UNILAD has reached out to representatives of Donald Trump for comment.