After not placing his hand on the Bible as he took the oath of workplace, Donald Trump gave a particularly darkish and lie-filled inaugural handle on Monday wherein he rattled off a listing of his priorities—none of which can decrease costs for People, as he promised to do.
In his speech, Trump bragged about his slender victory, whined that he’s been “challenged greater than any president in our 250 yr historical past,” and in the end declared that God himself saved Trump so he might “make America nice once more”—a very humble factor to say.
He then went on to record his priorities, most of which have been both immigration associated or meaningless gestures meant to harm susceptible populations or make him really feel macho.
Actually, after the official speech was over, Trump spoke to an overflow crowd of his supporters—who have been stored out of the Capitol Rotunda the place the speech occurred in order that the cadre of billionaire tech bros Trump buddies round with might get front-row seats—telling them that his advisers actually needed him to speak extra about inflation, however he refused.
“What number of instances are you able to say an apple has doubled in price?” Trump stated in a rambling speech wherein he went on to complain about his 2024 victory once more and stated he would have gained California if it weren’t for fraud—a whole lie.
In any occasion, listed here are the guarantees Trump made in his inaugural handle that will not assist your pocket guide and will truly make your funds worse:
1. He’s sending troops to the border.
“I’ll ship troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our nation,” Trump stated, invoking the Nazi-esque language about immigrants looking for asylum on the southern border.
Deploying troops to take care of immigrants on the border will price taxpayers cash, and certain gained’t make a distinction as it’s authorized to hunt asylum within the U.S.
2. “Drill, child, drill.”
“America might be a producing nation as soon as once more, and now we have one thing that no different manufacturing nation will ever have, the most important quantity of oil and gasoline of any nation on Earth and we’re going to use it,” Trump declared. “We’ll convey costs down, fill our strategic reserves up once more, proper to the highest and export American power everywhere in the world. We might be a wealthy nation once more and it’s that liquid gold beneath our ft that can assist to do it.”
Opposite to what Trump stated, America is already producing a report quantity of crude oil, and is at present the lead oil producer on the planet for the sixth consecutive yr.
What’s extra, consultants say his “drill child drill” coverage gained’t truly decrease costs.
“It will seemingly have little to no impression on #gasprices or gasoline costs within the short-term, as a President can de-regulate, however there isn’t any direct motion that may be issued requiring oil corporations to boost manufacturing,” Patrick De Haan, a gasoline costs professional, wrote in a publish on X.
3. He claims he’s creating a brand new company to gather tariffs.
“I’ll instantly start the overhaul of our commerce system to guard American employees and households. As an alternative of taxing our residents to complement different international locations, we’ll tariff and tax international international locations to complement our residents,” Trump stated. “For this goal, we’re establishing the Exterior Income Service to gather all tariffs, duties, and revenues that might be huge quantities of cash pouring into our treasury coming from international sources.”
After all, international international locations don’t pay tariffs. Corporations in america that import items pay the tariffs, after which they cross these added prices right down to shoppers, elevating costs and inflicting inflation to soar.
His new tariff coverage might be harmful to the economic system, and your pocket guide.
4. Trump says he’ll “convey again free speech to America.”
“After years and years of unlawful and unconstitutional federal efforts to limit free expression, I can even signal an govt order to instantly cease all authorities censorship and produce again free speech to America,” Trump stated.
There’s already a factor referred to as the First Modification that protects speech, so it’s unlikely a toothless govt order will do something greater than give Trump a bit of paper to signal at his massive boy desk.
5. Trump declares there are solely two genders.
“As of at present, it should henceforth be the official coverage of america authorities that there are solely two genders, female and male,” Trump stated.
This declaration will actually do nothing to make your day by day life higher, and as a substitute will solely harm transgender People, who’re already prone to being targets of violence and discrimination.
6. Trump says he’ll change the identify of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
Trump desires to look macho by declaring he’ll unilaterally change the identify of a significant physique of water. How will this assist you, you ask? It gained’t. It’s actually a meaningless gesture.
It was such a dumb promise that Hillary Clinton was seen laughing out loud within the viewers.
7. Trump says he’ll rename Denali to Mt. McKinley.
“We’ll restore the identify of an important president, William McKinley to Mt. McKinley, the place it needs to be and the place it belongs,” Trump stated. “President McKinley made our nation very wealthy by means of tariffs and thru expertise.”
Alaskans, the place Denali is situated, don’t even need this, however that’s not stopping Trump from utilizing his sharpie to signal an govt order to make him really feel like he’s carrying out one thing.
8. Trump declares he’ll take again the Panama Canal.
“We’ve been handled very badly from this silly reward that ought to have by no means been made and Panama’s promise to us has been damaged,” Trump stated. “The aim of our deal and the spirit of our treaty has been completely violated. American ships are being severely overcharged and never handled pretty in any manner, form or kind. And that features america Navy and above all, China is working the Panama Canal and we didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama and we’re taking it again.”
There’s rather a lot to unpack right here.
First, American ships are being charged the identical as different ships within the canal.
And second, China is just not working the canal.
Trump has been telling this lie for weeks, main Panamanian President Jose Mulino to declare publicly, “There aren’t any Chinese language troopers within the canal, for the love of God. The world is free to go to the canal.”
Trump even threatened to make use of army power to take again the canal, which might violate Trump’s different inaugural speech promise of not beginning any wars.
MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow identified that conflicting message after Trump’s inaugural handle.
“He pledged to be a president of peace and never begin any new wars but in addition pledged to forcibly take one other nation’s territory,” Maddow stated.
9. Trump says he’ll put astronauts on Mars.
“And we’ll pursue our manifest future into the celebs launching American astronauts to plant the celebs and stripes on the planet Mars,” Trump stated, a line that actually obtained co-President Elon Musk going.
If this speech is any indication, the subsequent 4 years are going to be so extremely silly. Simply 1,461 days to go.
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