Donald Trump shook the United States and the world during his extraordinary first week back in the White House and reshaping the American political world in his image.
On his first day in office, Trump signed more executive orders than any president in history, increasing his power over every tool of the U.S. government.
Since then, he has been everywhere, seemingly doing everything at once to further impose his will and his conservative, nationalist version of the “Golden Age” on this country.
The theme was “Promises Made, Promises Keeped,” beginning with the president’s mass pardons for the 2021 Capitol riot and a slew of executive orders on issues ranging from immigration to gender.
Mr. Trump and his supporters have made themes of majestic and even divine power.
The 78-year-old claimed he was “saved by God” from an assassination attempt to make America great again and danced with a sword at his inaugural ball. His ally, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, simply praised the “return of the king.”
Trump’s influence on the world stage is also enormous, as he flaunts threats of massive tariffs and US territorial expansion.
“Trump is like Godzilla at home and abroad, buoyed by a surprising resurgence early in his new term,” Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told AFP.
“I’m here again.”
If Trump’s supporters and critics had any doubts about what his second coming would bring, a few squeaks of black marker in the Oval Office on Monday put those doubts to rest. Ta.
Hours after the inauguration at the U.S. Capitol, President Trump signed a pardon for 1,500 rioters who stormed the same building four years ago in an attempt to overturn his election loss to Joe Biden.
But that was just the beginning of a dizzying avalanche of change.
The Republican order launched a long-promised immigration crackdown, abolished birthright citizenship and said the U.S. government would recognize only two genders.
He eliminated diversity efforts and employees from the government, and later eliminated internal monitors who could challenge his rulings.
He ripped the US out of the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organization.
The phrase “I’m back again” could be heard repeatedly in the hallways of the White House.
The spokesperson claimed that Trump “achieved more in 100 hours than any president in 100 days.”
And the contrast with President Trump’s own first term could not be greater.
Instead of chaos and strife, the first days of Trump 2.0 were marked by careful planning, steely discipline, and what appeared to be a hard-hitting message.
Internationally, President Trump appeared on a giant screen at Davos, towering over the assembled world elites.
President Trump is telling other countries to make products in the U.S. or pay tariffs.
Throughout this week, he has repeated territorial threats against Greenland and Panama, calling into question U.S. sovereignty while asserting it.
“Mr. Trump is saying, ‘I’m in charge,'” said Peter Rosi, director of George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs.
“Imperial Presidency”
But the return of the Trump show has also brought back some old habits and challenges.
President Trump still can’t resist rehashing his frustrations with his opponents, including the bishops he urged to show “mercy” at his inauguration, and continues to use lies and exaggerations.
The former reality TV star has been unable to resist the microphone and has been freely holding press conferences since his return. At one point, President Trump asked reporters, “Has Biden ever held a press conference like this?”
Important promises remain unfulfilled. U.S. food prices remain high despite President Trump’s pledge to lower them, and the war in Ukraine, which he vowed to end within 24 hours of his return, rages on.
But as billionaire Trump promises a golden age, his critics worry it could have a dark side.
For example, a freed leader of a far-right militia group toured the Capitol two days after the January 6 pardon.
Neo-Nazi groups also paraded at an anti-abortion march in Washington, which President Trump himself called for in a video message.
President Trump’s message praised “all children as beautiful gifts from the hands of our Creator.” The Creator is the same God for whom President Trump claimed a divine mandate in his inaugural address on Monday.
“President Trump wants to restore the so-called imperial presidency that existed from President Franklin Roosevelt in the 1930s until the fall of President Richard Nixon in 1974,” Sabato said.
But, Sabato added, “that time is long gone, and President Trump lacks the strong public support he needs to maintain the tough image he projects.”
Democrats and the anti-Trump “resistance” that opposed his 2016 victory have been largely silent for now, but legal action has already been taken against key parts of his agenda.
“We all know Mr. Trump. He cannot and will not change. So over time, much of the public will grow tired of his antics. It’s the same as in my first term,” Sabato said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
