Donald Trump promises sweeping changes

President Trump’s speech used sharp rhetoric to take aim at the Washington establishment.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump talk with former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama during a departure ceremony. Picture: AP

Donald Trump took office as the 45th president of the U.S. on Friday, delivering a speech that promised sweeping changes and used sharp rhetoric to take aim at the Washington establishment.

Mr. Trump, a New York businessman who had never held elected office before, was sworn in to lead the most powerful country in the world, taking the oath with his family by his side.

His inaugural address quickly hit on the themes he used during his campaign. “We are transferring power from Washington, D.C., and giving it back to you, the people,” Mr Trump said.

“For too long, a small group in our nation’s capital has reaped the rewards of government, while the people have borne the costs,” he said. “That all changes, starting right here and right now.”

Donald Trump inauguration

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The moment starts the clock on the ambitious agenda on which Mr Trump has vowed to deliver, including new jobs and immigration reforms.

He set the expectations high. “I will never, ever let you down,” he said.

In an ominous, populist 16-minute speech, Mr Trump lamented the “American carnage” of struggling families across a country he said is dotted with shuttered factories and decayed infrastructure and riddled with crime.

He also vowed to reorient America’s role in the world, which he said has gone in the wrong direction, and to protect the U.S. from “the ravages of other countries.”

“We defended other nations’ borders while refusing to defend our own,” Mr Trump said. “We will follow two simple rules: buy American, and hire American.”

He delivered the speech as President Barack Obama, whom he praised for helping facilitate his smooth transition to the White House but whose legacy his speech appeared to skewer, was seated within arms reach.

The inauguration was attended by many former presidents and dignitaries, including Mr Trump’s 2016 election rival Hillary Clinton, who gathered on the steps of the U.S. Capitol under cloudy skies.

The day was rich in the pomp and rituals that have long characterised America’s shift from one commander-in-chief to the next, though Mr Trump early on added a touch of his own flair. Just a few hours before he took the oath of office, Mr Trump posted a message on Twitter to his supporters. While the movement that propelled his outsider candidacy to the White House continues, he said, now “THE WORK BEGINS!”

In a symbol of America’s tradition of a peaceful transition of power, the incoming president travelled to the Capitol from the White House alongside Mr Obama, a man whose legitimacy as U.S. leader Mr Trump once aggressively questioned.

Before arriving at the White House for a reception with Mr Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, Mr Trump and his wife, Melania, attended services across the street at the historical St. John’s Episcopal Church.

As is customary, Mr Obama left Washington via Marine helicopter from the Capitol, with the new president and first lady seeing them off. The former president then delivered parting remarks to aides at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. He would then take his final flight aboard the presidential aircraft, heading to Palm Springs, Calif., for a family vacation, before returning to Washington where he will live just a short distance from the White House.

The Trump family, meanwhile, will begin settling into a life at the White House, which his predecessors have given mixed reviews. President Gerald Ford called it “the best public housing I’ve ever seen,” while President Harry S. Truman said it was a “glamorous prison.”

Mr Trump had promised to make a number of policy changes on the first day of his presidency but is now expected to issue only a handful of orders, including some routine security actions.

The Trump team has pledged to begin taking more aggressive policy steps on Monday.

Yet Mr Trump enters the White House with only a few of his cabinet members expected to be in place, and many other positions unfilled. The dynamic prompted him to retain dozens of Mr Obama’s staff until he can find replacements, including some who have been at the forefront of policies Mr Trump has sharply criticised.

Mr Obama made his last visit to the Oval Office Friday, placing a letter to his successor in the drawer of the resolute desk.

Asked if he had any final words for the American people as he walked down the storied colonnade along the Rose Garden, Mr Obama said: “Thank you.”

Wall Street Journal