Trump Inauguration: President Withdraws From Paris Climate Accords, Plans To Pardon January 6th Rioters

Donald Trump took to the rally-like atmosphere of Capital One Arena to sign a series of executive orders, including one that withdraws from the Paris Climate Accords and others that freeze much of non-military federal hiring and new regulations.

Trump also signed an order rescinding 78 of Joe Biden‘s executive actions, although the specific details have not yet been released.

The Paris Climate Accords were a signature achievement of Barack Obama’s presidency. Trump withdrew from the pact in 2017, leading to the resignation of Disney CEO Bob Iger and other business executives from a White House advisory committee. When he took office, Biden returned to the agreement, a global effort to address climate change.

Trump also promised to sign pardon’s for those who were prosecuted and convicted for their role in the riot on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The president indicated that he would take action on the pardons this evening.

The rally in the arena replaced a planned inaugural parade, canceled because of the cold wave that has hit D.C., with temperatures in the teens. Marching bands played indoors, but the event also included a speech from Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, and a tribute to family members of hostages who have been held by Hamas.

Trump himself talked not just about undoing Biden’s legacy, but went into some longtime grievances and moments of the presidential campaign, including the debates. He also went on a long tirade about windmills and the “fake news.”

During the rally, the Senate confirmed Trump’s first cabinet nominee: Marco Rubio as secretary of state. He was confirmed in a 99-0 vote.

Trump To Sign Executive Orders, 2:47 p.m. PT: President Donald Trump has arrived at Capital One Arena, for a rally that is taking place instead of the traditional inaugural parade, canceled due to the cold weather.

Trump took his seat next to Vice President JD Vance on a makeshift reviewing stand, as one built in front of the White House is empty in the winter chill.

Trump is poised to sign executive orders at the event, as a desk has been set up on stage. Unlike most executive orders, signed in the Oval Office or at a small White House ceremony, the signing will take place in the packed arena, which seats about 20,000.

Elon Musk Offers MAGA Rally Nazi-Like Salute, CNN Calls It “Odd Looking,” 12:25 p.m. PT: Elon Musk offered Donald Trump supporters what looked a lot like a Nazi salute today on live TV to cheers from the MAGA crowd.

As social media exploded with condemnation of what some were calling a “Sieg Heil,” with some others applauding the world’s richest man’s gesture, there was also some speculation that Musk’s movement was more like that of an Imperial Roman general in the Gladiator mode. In point of fact, Musk turned around and gave the salute a second time almost immediately afterwards to supporters seated behind him at DC’s Capital One Arena.

“This is what victory feels like,” Musk told the indoor arena Trump rally in DC moments before banging on his heart and offering a stiff outstretched arm from the podium with the presidential seal on it. “This was no ordinary victory, this was a fork in the road of human civilization.”

“This one really matters, thank you,” Musk then said of last year’s election, before making the salute, Nazi, Roman or otherwise. The Space X and Tesla owner then when on about exploration to Mars.

In very odd and circumspect language, CNN’s Erin Burnett first called Musk’s action an “odd looking salute.” Her on-screen companion added, “it’s not something you see at an American political rally.” Newsweek Opinion Editor Batya Ungar-Sargon had another take. “This is a man with Aspergers exuberantly throwing his heart to the crowd,” the journalist said, calling Musk “a friend to the Jews.”

Musk himself reposted his speech to the Trump parade, which was moved indoors this weekend due to extreme cold in Washington DC Monday, online soon after he left the stage. The clip from Fox cut away to the audience from the first time gave the salute, but still showed him giving to the people behind him.

A major financial and digital backer of Trump’s third successful run for the White House, unofficial First Buddy Musk has also been a big supporter of far-right causes and parties around the global of late. Among others, the South African-born X owner has put a lot of time and spotlight on Germany’s poll surging AfD, who also regularly incorporate such salutes into their rallies and gatherings.

Newly sworn in 47th POTUS Trump is expected to speak himself at the Capitol One Arena soon.

Joe Biden Tells Supporters “We’ve Got A Lot More To Do” After Rival Takes Office Again; Trump To Pardon Nonviolent Jan. 6 Participants – 11:09 am PT: “We’re leaving office, we’re not leaving the fight,” Joe Biden told supporters Monday as the now former president prepared to leave Washington DC after one-term and the return of Donald Trump. As Biden spoke, the anticipated news broke that Trump plans to pardon nonviolent convicted participants in the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. The past and current president also will be commuting the sentences of defendants more violently involved in the MAGA  insurrection.

No surprise, only Biden friendly MSNBC covered the words of the once most powerful person in the world from Joint Base Andrews. CNN, Fox and the BBC stayed with Trump’s rambling remarks to supporters from Emancipation Hall — a speech that the now 47th POTUS implied was the inaugural address he really wanted to give.

In it, Trump said that he was able to talk about an issue cut from the earlier speech: January 6th and the following investigations and prosecutions. He again insisted the 2020 election was rigged and railed against Biden’s pardons today,mocking Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney for “crying.” Trump called the January 6th Committee the “unselect committee of political thugs.” He also referred to those who stormed the Capitol on January 6th as “hostages,” signaling action later today.

“You’ll be happy because, you know, it’s action not words that count,” Trump said, signalling his own pardon plans.

After Biden’s words, CNN and Fox did cut to a split screen of the ex-president and former First Lady Dr. Jill Biden walking to their plane for their planned vacation trip to California.

“Every day, I’m deeply moved by all we all did for this country,” added Biden from a podium with no seal on it. “I really mean it.”  

“The point I want to make today is and I made clear in my farewell address, as we all do have more, to a lot more to do,” the 46th POTUS said as members of his cabinet and staff looked on in the chilly hanger. “We heard the inaugural address today,” Biden exclaimed of Trump’s speech that spent a lot of time attacking and promising to overturn large parts of Biden’s time in office. “We got a lot more to do. You I know many have experienced the ups and down, but we have to stay with it.”

Having issued last-minute pardons, clemencies and sentencing commutes to the likes of Liz Cheney, members of his own family, now California Senator Adam Schiff, Leonard Peltier and more, Biden is going to the Golden State for around a week. Now former Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff are also going out to their native California, where many expect the 2024 Democratic candidate for president to be considering a 2026 run for Governor.

Donald Trump Offers Second Inaugural Address Filled With Talk Of American Greatness — And Grievance, 9:54 am PT: Donald Trump’s 30-minute inaugural address combined the typical, soaring rhetoric of a new president with some of his grievance from the campaign trail.

Declaring the start of a “golden age of America,” Trump declared that “America’s decline is over.”

He also framed his next presidency as divinely inspired, talking of assassination attempt on his life.

“My life was saved for a reason,” Trump said. “I was saved by God to make America great again.”

But his speech also had elements of his campaign rallies, as he leaned heavily into divisive cultural issues, including the transgender movement, while casting himself as wronged over the past four years. He multiple times accused the Biden administration of leading a “weaponization” of government.

“My recent election is a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal, and all of these many betrayals that have taken place and to give the people back their faith, their wealth, their democracy and indeed, their freedom,” Trump said.

The 47th president also outlined a series of executive orders he planned to sign later today, including declaring a national emergency at the U.S. southern border, with plans to send U.S. troops there. He also said that he planned to reverse Biden’s electrical vehicle mandate.

Trump also said that he would sign an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, bolstering his vision of an America First agenda, while reverting Alaska’s Mount Denali to the name Mount McKinley.

The latter had symbolism, Trump said, as President William McKinley embraced tariffs. Trump has vowed to impose across the board tariffs, insisting that they will collect revenue for the country that can replace taxation. But economists warn that excessive tariffs will lead to higher prices, as companies will pass on the higher costs of imports to consumers.

Trump said that he was creating an External Revenue Service to collect the tariffs, which he also referred to as a “tax” on other countries.

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The speech lacked gestures to the previous administration, as past presidents have done, and instead characterized the country as one in decline. Unemployment remains low and inflation has dropped below 3%, but Biden struggled to convince Americans that the turbulent times of the post-Covid era were over.

Speaking in a monotone voice, Trump declared that in his next term, his “proudest legacy will be as a peacemaker and unifier,” but he also vowed to take back the Panama Canal.

Trump said that it would be “the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female.” During the campaign, Trump’s campaign blanketed swing state markets with ads attacking Kamala Harris on transgender rights.

Trump also vowed that he would “bring back free speech to America.” In his first term and since then, though, Trump has called for TV networks to lose their FCC licenses for broadcasting content he doesn’t like.

RELATED: Hollywood & The Beltway React To Trump Inauguration

Donald Trump Sworn In As 47th President Of The United States, 9:02 a.m. PT: Donald Trump was sworn in shortly after noon as the 47th president of the United States.

Trump shook hands with members of his family shortly after Chief Justice John Roberts administered the oath.

JD Vance was sworn in as vice president just moments earlier, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh administering the oath.

Spotted in the background of the tight space in the Capitol Rotunda: Elon Musk, as well as Robert Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

His swearing in was followed by a soaring rendition of “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

Biden Issues Final Pardons: With just minutes left in his presidency, Joe Biden issued a final batch of pardons: Members of his family.

His pardons were yet another signal of his fear that allies will be targeted by incoming President Donald Trump.

Those pardoned include brother James Biden and wife Sara Jones Biden, sister Valerie Biden Owens and her husband John T. Owens, and brother Francis Biden.

“My family has been subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me—the worst kind of partisan politics.  Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” Biden said in a statement.

He added, “Even when individuals have done nothing wrong and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances.”

Biden also pardoned Gerald G. Lundergan and Ernest William Cromartie, and he commuted the life sentence of Leonard Peltier so he can serve the remainder of a life sentence in home confinement.

Peltier, a Native American activist, is serving a life sentence for killing two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and then escaping from federal prison. 

The announcements were made just about the same time as Biden entered the Rotunda to witness the swearing in of Trump.

Donald Trump Arrives In Rotunda , 8:46 a.m. PT: Donald Trump has arrived in the Capitol Rotunda to be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.

He was cheered loudly as he entered the Rotunda.

He’s due to take the oath around noon ET/9 a.m. PT, following prayers and musical interludes, as well as Carrie Underwood singing “America the Beautiful.”

A number of lawmakers attending are wearing blue suits and red ties, mimicking Trump’s look. Trump’s tie today, though, is more of a purple-ish red.

A Telling Tale Of Two Americas, 8:16 a.m. PT: A study in contrasts in coverage of the inauguration.

On Fox News, host Harris Faulkner spoke of Trump supporters filling the streets of D.C. in celebration. The anchor may be playing to the news channel’s core audience. As Joe Biden and Donald Trump traveled by motorcade to the Capitol, cameras showed very few people along the sidewalks, on a chilly and icy D.C. morning. Military and law enforcement personnel far outnumbered citizens.

On MSNBC, Joy Reid focused on the absence of Karen Pence, even though her husband, former Vice President Mike Pence, is attending. “Karen Pence, if you are watching at home, God bless you,” Reid said. Karen Pence has made clear she has no time for her husband’s former boss after the January 6 MAGA mob threatened to hang the then VP. Also absent: Former First Lady Michelle Obama.

Another no show was former Vice President Dick Cheney, who endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. Trump has called for his daughter, Liz Cheney, to be jailed for her role on the January 6th Committee.

Tech CEOs Get Choice Spots In Capitol Rotunda, 7:52 a.m. PT: Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos are among the tech industry titans who were spotted at the Capitol for the swearing in ceremony.

They, along with other tech CEOs, are expected to get the choicest of seating: In the Rotunda, where space is extremely limited and largely set aside for members of Congress. Spotted there were Elon Musk, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai, along with Rupert Murdoch and Joe Rogan.

Other guests are being seated in Emancipation Hall, part of the White House Visitor Center, where they will watch the ceremony on large screens. Also spotted at the Capitol: TikTok CEO Shou Chew, as Trump has said he will sign an executive order to try to delay congressional legislation to ban it.

“This is about mutually beneficial as it gets,” CNN’s Dana Bash said of the presence of the CEOs and their placement on a makeshift stage, in some cases in front of members of Trump’s cabinet.

Among those spotted in Emancipation Hall: Sam Altman, Logan and Jake Paul, Conor McGregor, Theo Von and Danica Patrick.

Joe Biden And Donald Trump Depart White House For Swearing In Ceremony, 7:40 a.m. PT: President Joe Biden departed the White House with Donald Trump on their way to the Capitol for the swearing in ceremony.

Biden told reporters that he left a letter for the incoming president, but declined to say what the contents were. “That’s between Trump and me.”

The ride down Pennsylvania Avenue, often with bitter rivals, is yet another longtime tradition of the transfer of power, one that didn’t happen four years ago as Trump declined to participate.

The Bidens posted one last selfie before their farewell.

First Lady Jill Biden and Melania Trump also traveled together, as did Vice President Kamala Harris and JD Vance.

The Bidens Greet The Trumps At White House, 7:22 a.m. PT: President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden greeted Donald Trump and Melania Trump at the White House for a morning tea, continuing a symbolic gesture in the transfer of power.

The two couples stood briefly for a photo, with a chilly wind blowing on the north end of the White House. Biden and Trump will soon travel to the Capitol for the swearing in ceremony.

“Welcome home,” Biden said to Trump after he got out of his black SUV, per a pool report.

Earlier, reporters asked Biden what his message was for the day. “Joy,” Biden said.

The tradition is one that Trump denied Biden four years ago, following the January 6th attack on the Capitol. Trump still insists, falsely, that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

Earlier, Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff welcomed JD Vance and Usha Vance.

Donald Trump Attends St. John’s Church Services, 6:08 a.m. PT: President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump kicked off Inauguration Day with a longtime tradition: Attending services at St. John’s Episcopal Church across Lafayette Square.

Trump was joined by Vice President-elect JD Vance and his wife Usha, and among those attending were the leaders of the tech giants: Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta; Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, and fiance Lauren Sanchez; Apple CEO Tim Cook; X’s owner Elon Musk; and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Also present: Rupert Murdoch, TikTok CEO Shou Chew; UFC’s Dana White, podcast host Joe Rogan, and Boris Johnson, the former British prime minister, per a pool report.

The temperature in Washington this morning is 24 degrees, with the windchill even lower and a light snow on the ground, a reason why Trump decided to move the swearing in ceremony indoors. That set off a scramble for seats, as the Capitol Rotunda, where the ceremony will take place, only holds about a thousand people.

St. John’s, known as the church of presidents, holds significance from the first Trump term. It’s where Trump held up a Bible after walking with members of his administration from the White House. It was amid 2020 protests and riots following the death of George Floyd, and moments earlier, authorities from Park Police had cleared the area of demonstrators.

The service lasted for about 25 minutes and finished with a rendition of “America the Beautiful.”

Earlier, the Trump team released some excerpts of what he would say in his inaugural address to The Wall Street Journal. Trump plans to proclaim a “new era of national success” and call for a “revolution of common sense.”

“My message to Americans today is that it is time for us to once again act with courage, vigor and the vitality of history’s greatest civilization,” Trump will say, per the Journal.

The president is expected to sign dozens of executive orders today — more than 200, per Fox News, including those dealing with the border and immigration, the federal workforce and oil drilling. One executive order will lift an electric vehicle mandate, one of the signature efforts of the Biden administration to address climate change.