Update: Trump sworn in as 47th United States president in Washington DC

Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president Monday, promising a “revolution of common sense” and taking charge as Republicans assume unified control of Washington and set out to reshape the country’s institutions.

Trump, who overcame impeachments, criminal indictments and a pair of assassination attempts to win another term in the White House, will act swiftly after the ceremony, with executive orders already prepared for his signature to clamp down on border crossings, increase fossil fuel development and end diversity and inclusion programs across the federal government.

Read More:

• Canadian leaders descend on Washington for Trump’s inauguration
• Canadians watching to see if Donald Trump follows through on tariff threat
• Biden pardons Fauci, Milley to guard against potential revenge by Trump

Trump is the first former president to return to power since Grover Cleveland regained the White House in the 1892 election. He is also the first person convicted of a felony to become president and, at 78, is the oldest person elected to the office.

In Canada, many are watching to see if Trump will carry out his threats to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, which experts have said could have devastating economic consequences.

The New York Times and Wall Street Journal say incoming U.S. president Donald Trump won’t slam Canada with damaging tariffs on his inauguration day. Both U.S. newspapers report Trump will instead sign an executive order today to investigate alleged unfair trade and currency practices by Canada, Mexico and China.

According to reports Trump’s team has already prepared more than 100 executive orders, but it’s unclear what they contain and how many will be signed immediately after he takes office.

The executive orders are the first step in what Trump will call “the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense.”

The orders are designed to beef up security at the southern border by relying more on the U.S. military and redefining who gets to become an American, preparing to make good on his defining political promise to crack down on immigration.

But actual execution of such a far-reaching immigration agenda is certain to face legal and logistical challenges.

A key announcement was the effort to end birthright citizenship — one of Trump’s most sweeping immigration efforts yet.

Birthright citizenship means anyone born in the United States automatically becomes an American citizen, a right enshrined in the 14th Amendment that was ratified in 1868 in the wake of the Civil War and assured citizenship for all, including Black people.

It applies to children born to someone in the country illegally or in the U.S. on a tourist or student visa who plans to return to their home country. Trump’s effort to end that right is certain to face steep legal challenges, and the incoming White House official provided no information on how he intends to carry it out.

Here are a few of the executive orders Trump says he plans to issue on his first day:

• Several on immigration, including declaring a national emergency at southern border, reinstating the “remain in Mexico” policy and sending troops to the southern border.
• Seeking a broad government effort to reduce inflation and reduce prices.
• Declaring a “national energy emergency” and allowing for more energy production.
• Ending what he has called an “electric vehicle mandate.”

Canada says it is ready to respond with countermeasures if Trump makes good on his tariff threats. Ottawa is also pumping $1.3 billion in new resources into border security in the hopes of convincing Trump not to impose tariffs.

“I think we want to see what the president decides to do,” Kirsten Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., told Bloomberg News last week.

She added: “Canada will be ready for whatever comes our way.”

Saskatchewan Premier’s congratulations

In Saskatchewan, Premier Scott Moe unveiled a new border security plan last week to head off Trump’s tariff threats.

On Monday afternoon, Premier Scott Moe extended his congratulations to Donald Trump and JD Vance on their inauguration.

In a statement, he also said Saskatchewan is critical to food and energy security in the North American economy, and that the province is committed to protecting that security in a “tariff-free environment.”

Jim Farney, a director and professor with the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Regina, joined the Evan Bray Show on Monday morning to share his thoughts as Trump takes office.

Listen to Evan Bray’s interview with Jim Farney:

Farney said the tariff threat isn’t being blown out of proportion, but with Saskatchewan’s diverse economic portfolio, the impact may be lessened here.

“The challenge with Trump is the unpredictability,” Farney said, adding that the unpredictable nature of the president makes it hard to negotiate.

“For Canada, this is a core relationship. And so even if it’s talking about one chance in four that these tariffs actually come to be there, they are a very big thing.”

Farney said Saskatchewan offers the following advantages for businesses:

• A secure regulatory environment;
• open access to that big American market; and
• a skilled workforce.

“If you’re not sure that you can guarantee over the 30 year life of a big capital investment that you’ve got that us access, it becomes a problem,” Farney said.

He said Trump is thinking of tariffs as a way to raise revenue for the federal government.

“If they take money from the rest of the world via tariffs, they can do things like lower taxes or have less of a budget deficit that fundamentally changes the US calculus.”

On The Evan Bray Show on Monday, Bray caught up with Canadian Press Washington correspondent Kelly Malone to find out more about the inauguration.

Listen to Evan Bray’s interview with Kelly Malone:

Many Canadian leaders are in Washington for the inauguration, including Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, Trade Minister Mary Ng, and Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey.

Trump’s first speech as president in 2017 painted a bleak picture of what he called “American carnage” but it was overshadowed in the news cycle by claims about crowd sizes.

That won’t be an issue this year, as a predicted blast of cold temperatures forced most of the events indoors.

Country music star Carrie Underwood performed “America the Beautiful” after Trump gave his oath of office.

Frigid weather is rewriting the pageantry of the day. Trump’s swearing-in was moved indoors to the Capitol Rotunda — the first time that has happened in 40 years — and the inaugural parade was replaced by an event at a downtown arena.

Tech billionaires, world leaders, celebrities and athletes arrived to watch Trump give his inaugural address, including three of the richest men in the world — Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden on Monday pardoned Dr. Anthony Fauci, retired Gen. Mark Milley and members of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, in an extraordinary use of the powers of the presidency in his final hours to guard against potential “revenge” by the incoming Trump administration.

The decision by Biden comes after Donald Trump warned of an enemies list filled with those who have crossed him politically or sought to hold him accountable for his attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss and his role in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Trump has selected Cabinet nominees who backed his election lies and who have pledged to punish those involved in efforts to investigate him.

“The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense,” Biden said in a statement.

“Our nation owes these public servants a debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment to our country.”

–with files from The Canadian Press