New Delhi:
Donald Trump took oath as the 47th President of the United States Monday, capping a remarkable turnaround in fortunes that nosedived after the riots in Washington, D.C. in January 2021 and hit rock bottom in May 2024, when he was convicted of felonies by a New York court.
Trump now becomes the first ex-President to be convicted of felony crimes – the jury found him guilty on all 34 charges, including those in a scheme to illegally influence the 2020 presidential election, the loss of which led to the riots – and the first convicted felon to be President.
Minutes after being administered the oath by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, Trump – who survived assassination attempts – declared, “The ‘Golden Age of America’ begins now”.
Trump had vowed to sign a flurry of executive orders, including announcing stringent curbs on immigrant and mass deportation of illegal migrants, as well as banning transgender athletes from women’s sports, and undoing his predecessor’s directives on diversity and oil drilling.
The president will also declare a national emergency at the Mexico border, send armed troops there, and resume a policy forcing asylum seekers to wait there for court dates, officials said.
He will also seek to end so-called birthright citizenship for U.S.-born children whose parents lack legal status, a move some legal scholars have said would be unconstitutional.
Trump’s deputy, JD Vance, was sworn in as Vice President just before him.
