Donald Trump had an eventful first day back in the White House. After four years away, the 78-year-old wasted no time implementing his policies.
Soon after being sworn in, he signed swathes of executive orders. Here’s the craziest things Trump did on his first day in his second stint as US President.
Pardoned supporters who stormed the Capitol
Trump gave pardons to 1,500 of his supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Many of them had assaulted police officers and some were leaders of far-right groups. Some 418 people were convicted of violent offences, including one man who was given 20 years in jail.
Pulled out of the Paris Climate Treaty
Trump had pulled the US out of the Paris Climate Treaty during his first term. The agreement commits nearly every country in the world to try to limit global warming to two degrees.
Joe Biden re-signed it in his early days as President, but Trump has withdrawn again. He joins Libya, Iran and Yemen in an exclusive group.
Pulled out of the World Health Organisation
The WHO is a group of scientists who work to promote healthcare and help countries prepare for health emergencies. It was crucial to the fight against covid, but conspiracy theorists think it invents or exaggerates diseases for power.
Trump has decided the US is leaving the group, meaning it will lose its biggest source of funding.
Said he’s fine with China spying on kids
Trump was asked about reversing the ban on TikTok when he signed his executive orders. The app had been briefly banned due to concerns about the Chinese government stealing people’s personal information.
“Remember,” he said. “TikTok is largely about kids. Young kids. If China is going to get information about young kids, I dunno. I think to be honest with you we have bigger problems than that.”
Denied being a dictator but called Democrats ‘dogs’
Asked if he would live up to his promise to be a “dictator on day one”, Trump said: “No. I can’t imagine even being called that.”
Then he said things which were much more dictator-like: “I believe in the sanctity of the vote. The Democrats didn’t because [in 2020] they cheated like dogs.”
Talked about Gaza like it was property
Asked whether he thought the ceasefire would hold in the Middle East, the President said: “I’m not confident. It’s not our war, it’s their war.”
“I looked at a picture of Gaza,” he said. “Gaza is like a massive demolition site. That place has got to be rebuilt in a different way.”
Asked if he’d help with rebuilding, he said: “I might. You know Gaza’s interesting, it’s a phenomenal location. On the sea, the best weather, you know everything’s good. Beautiful things could be done with it. Fantastic things could be done with Gaza.”
He later said of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un: “I like him… I think he has tremendous condo capability. He’s got a lot of shoreline.”
Stranded 1,600 Afghan refugees
Trump immediately halted America’s refugee resettlement programme. This meant that flights taking Afghans to the US were cancelled. Many are in danger and need to leave the country quickly due to helping the US in the past.
Danced to YMCA
In surreal scenes, the President danced onstage to YMCA by Village People while waving around a sword.
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