Donald Trump, 78, sworn in as US president for 2nd time, vows to expand US territory

Donald Trump was sworn in as president of the United States for the second time on Jan. 20, 2025 (U.S. time).

In his inaugural address after taking the oath of office in the Capitol Rotunda, Trump, 78, promised to be a peacemaker and unifier, but also to expand U.S. territory, such as by taking back the Panama Canal.

Promised to be peacemaker, but also 'expand territory'

"The Golden Age of America begins right now," Trump started his speech, to the listening ears of attendees, such as tech billionaires Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

Trump vowed to build "the strongest military the world has ever seen", but noted that its success would be measured "not only by the battles we win, but also by the wars that we end and, perhaps most importantly, the wars we never get into".

"My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier," the 47th president said.

Trump also spoke on his plans of "expanding territory", echoing his recent remarks about reclaiming the Panama Canal, annexing Greenland and even Canada.

"The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation, one that increases our wealth, expands our territory, builds our cities, raises our expectations and carries our flag into new and beautiful horizons," Trump said.

One of these goals is for U.S. astronauts to plant the country's flag on the planet Mars, said Trump.

On the Panama Canal, Trump said the U.S. had been "treated very badly" after giving Panama control of the waterway, raising concerns, such as overcharging of U.S. ships and rising Chinese influence.

"We didn't give it to China, we gave it to Panama and we're taking it back," he said.

Tariffs

On America's economy, Trump said he plans to make significant changes on tariff policy

"I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families. Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens."

To that end, Trump said he will establish an "External Revenue Service", parallel to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to collect tariffs, duties and revenues from foreign sources.

Trump also said America would be a "manufacturing nation" once again.

"We have something that no other manufacturing nation will ever have — we have the largest amount of oil and gas of any country, and we are going to use it."

Revoked 78 Biden-era policies

Trump also promised to curb immigration, revoke a mandate to increase electric vehicle sales in the U.S., and roll back environmental regulations.

He wasted no time in signing his first tranche of executive actions the same day, revoking 78 Biden-era policies and removing the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement, CNN reported.

Trump also signed an executive action that extended the deadline for TikTok’s parent company to find a new owner or face a ban in the U.S., in line with his promises a day earlier to bring TikTok back via a "joint venture".

Trump also granted a mass pardon to nearly all 1,270 convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack led by Trump supporters.

'I was saved by God to make America great again'

"I was saved by God to make America great again," Trump said in his speech, referencing an assassination attempt on him during a rally in July 2024.

“From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world,” Trump said.

“We will be the envy of every nation, and we will not allow ourselves to be taken advantage of any longer. During every single day of the Trump administration, I will very simply put America first.”

You can watch the ceremony here:

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Top image from Donald J. Trump/Facebook