During his inaugural address on Monday, Donald Trump, sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, announced the creation of the External Revenue Service (ERS) to “tariff and tax foreign countries” instead of burdening U.S. citizens with additional taxes. The oath of office was administered by US Chief Justice John Roberts at the US Capitol in Washington, DC.
Outlining his agenda to “protect American workers and families,” Trump vowed to overhaul the nation’s trade system. “I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families. Instead of taxing our citizens, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens,” Trump declared. He added that the ERS would be tasked with collecting all tariffs, duties, and revenues, generating “massive amounts of money” for the country’s treasury from foreign sources.
Trump also pledged to restore “law and order” in the U.S. and introduced a controversial policy to officially recognize only two genders—male and female. “As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female. This week, I will also end the government’s policy of socially engineering race and gender into every aspect of public and private life. We will forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based,” Trump stated.
In addition, Trump announced plans to reinstate service members who were expelled from the military for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. “I will reinstate any service members who were unjustly expelled from our military for objecting to the COVID vaccine mandate with full back pay,” Trump said. He emphasized that the military would be refocused solely on its primary mission of defeating America’s enemies, without the influence of “radical political theories or social experiments.”
Addressing the nation’s energy crisis, Trump declared a “national energy emergency” to reduce prices and enhance energy independence. “The inflation crisis is caused by overspending and massive, escalating energy prices. That’s why I declare a national energy emergency. America will become a manufacturing nation again, powered by the largest reserves of oil and gas on Earth,” Trump said, reinforcing his “drill, baby, drill” strategy.
The 60th Presidential Inauguration saw Trump outlining an ambitious and controversial roadmap for his administration, promising to prioritize American interests and implement sweeping reforms to reshape domestic and international policies.