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Trump's Day 1 tradeoff
 
Illustration of a golden percentage sign on a red velvet pillow.
 

Megan Robinson/Axios

 

President-elect Trump has said he wants to slap aggressive tariffs on all sorts of U.S. imports as soon as Day 1 of his administration. But taking shock-and-awe action would come with economic, political and legal risks.

  • Trump will have to decide whether to turn to the tried-and-true tools to implement tariffs he used when he was last in office — which are powerful, but take time and care to enact — or rip up the playbook, Axios' Neil Irwin and Courtenay Brown write.

1) ? In the disruption scenario, Trump could declare a national economic emergency, which gives the president wide latitude over international economic policy.

  • Then he could move quickly on tariffs. But he'd face blowback in the form of higher consumer prices, a slumping stock market, angry CEOs and congressional Republicans, retaliation from trade partners, and legal challenges.
  • There have been mixed signals in recent days over which approach is more likely — including dueling press leaks suggesting both the emergency declaration option and more limited tactics are in play.

? "Markets would freak and I think the real world would freak," said Scott Lincicome, a trade scholar at the Cato Institute. "You're talking about substantial price increases that would show up quite quickly."

  • "It strikes me as politically fraught for a president who won because of inflation to suddenly be sitting on top of Trumpflation 30 days into his presidency," he adds.
  • "I can't imagine the president tariffing guacamole right before the Super Bowl," Lincicome said. (Most U.S. avocados are imported from Latin America.)

2) ↩️ The president-elect could also go back to Trump 1.0, when he relied on legal authorities that required months-long investigations and comment periods before the administration could impose double-digit tariffs on imports from China and elsewhere.

  • The process allowed corporations to seek carve-outs, other countries to negotiate for changes — and, at a minimum, time for all parties to prepare.
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Screenshot: CNN

? What to watch: Speedier tariffs could also mean speedier retaliation from major allies that might take a huge toll on domestic producers.

  • For instance, Canadian officials are already readying tariffs as high as 25% on nearly everything America sends to its neighbor to the north, Bloomberg reports.

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?️ Rare inauguration overlap
 
Photo illustration showing Trump and civil rights leaders, include Martin Luther King, Jr.
 

Photo illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios. Photos: Charly Triballeau/AFP, Hulton Archive/Getty Images

 

President-elect Trump's swearing-in a week from today will be one of the few inaugurations to coincide with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Axios' Mimi Montgomery, Russell Contreras and Delano Massey write.

  • Why it matters: Trump's second inauguration is only the third to take place on the federal holiday.

Former President Clinton's 1997 inauguration was the first, and former President Obama's 2013 ceremony was the second. (Obama took his oath that year using a Bible that belonged to King.)

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Photo: Jon Elswick/AP

Above: Master Sgt. Matthew Nall stands in for Trump during a rehearsal yesterday on the West Front of the Capitol.

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Vance: "There's a deal to be made in Greenland"
 
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Photo: Fox News

In his first interview since the election, Vice President-elect JD Vance told Fox News' Shannon Bream that Greenland is "really important for America strategically" and has "a lot of great natural resources."

  • Vance added that people Donald Trump Jr. met in Greenland last week told him they "want to be empowered to develop" those resources. He also argued that the Danish government has not done a sufficient job of securing the island, Axios' Avery Lotz writes.

Vance also said the Trump administration will release "dozens of executive orders" on day one signaling that "America is closed to illegal immigration."

  • He dismissed questions about the humanitarian concerns surrounding Trump's mass deportation promises, arguing that family separation is a "dishonest term."
  • Vance argued Democrats "hide behind" raising alarms about a lack of compassion for families at the border.
  • "If you say, for example, in the United States we have a guy who's convicted of a violent crime and has to go to prison, we want that guy to go to prison," he said. "But yes, it does mean that that guy is going to be separated from his family."

Bream pushed back, noting that violent criminals are a small slice of the millions of undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.

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?Trump's top team is youngest in decades
 
A bar chart that displays the average age of key Cabinet and White House officials at their respective inauguration days. Joe Biden
Data: Axios research. Chart: Axios Visuals

Donald Trump is about to become the oldest person ever sworn in as president. But his top team (if confirmed) will be the youngest to take office since 1989, Axios' Erin Doherty writes.

  • The average age of Trump's picks for VP, chief of staff, attorney general and secretaries of State, Treasury and Defense is 54.1 — the youngest since the start of George H.W. Bush's presidency, and much younger than Trump's team from 2017.

Why it matters: Even as Trump has sought to regain his grip on power, the once and future president has tried to build the next generation of his MAGA movement — as seen in his choice of JD Vance, 40, as vice president.

? Breaking it down: Vance will be the third-youngest VP in U.S. history. Hegseth, 44, would be the youngest SecDef since Donald Rumsfeld during the Ford administration.

  • Outside the core Cabinet positions, Trump chose Elise Stefanik, 40, for UN ambassador and Tulsi Gabbard, 43, for director of national intelligence.
  • Stephen Miller, 39, will have extraordinary power and wide purview as deputy White House chief of staff for policy, plus homeland security adviser.
  • Karoline Leavitt, 27, will be the youngest White House press secretary in history.

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Dark money plays both sides on RFK Jr.

A progressive group that bolstered Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during the 2024 presidential campaign is also supporting a new war room that wants to scuttle his nomination for Health and Human Services secretary.

Driving the news: Protect Our Care plans to spend close to $1 million on its war room, which is running digital ads and coordinating opposition to the Kennedy nomination ahead of his confirmation hearing, according to a person familiar with the matter.

  • Its executive director, Brad Woodhouse, a longtime Democratic strategist, told Politico that Kennedy's ideas are '"too dangerous" not to counter.
  • "Neither of these efforts are at odds with the values of Sixteen Thirty Fund to achieve progressive outcomes," a spokesperson for the Sixteen Thirty Fund told us.

Zoom out: The Sixteen Thirty Fund acts as a clearinghouse for progressive causes, funneling unrestricted money — around $400 million in the 2020 campaign, according to the New York Times — to various organizations.

  • Organized as 501(c)(4), contributions to the Sixteen Thirty Fund are not tax-deductible. But donors' names remain confidential.

Zoom in: In the 2024 cycle, the Sixteen Thirty Fund gave about $2 million to Retire Career Politicians, a super PAC that spent most of its $18 million trying to defeat Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.).

  • But the super PAC also spent some $400,000 on behalf of Kennedy. Some of that money was spent after he dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump.

— Hans Nichols

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Trump's $500M windfall
 
Photo illustration of President Donald Trump smiling in a pile of money
 

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

 

President-elect Trump is being inundated with so much money from corporations and wealthy donors that his team expects to raise about $500 million by this summer, sources in his operation tell Axios' Marc Caputo.

"The crypto guys are just blowing it out," the Trump adviser said. "It used to be $1 million was a big number. Now we're looking at some folks giving like $10 [million] or $20 million."

Why it matters: A half-billion is a staggering sum for someone who can't run again — and a signal that Trump is ready to help allies, punish opponents and spend big to keep Republicans in full control of Congress through his term.

? "The money is just pouring in at Mar-a-Lago," a Trump adviser told us. "Trump doesn't have to lift a finger. Everyone's coming to him."

  • It's flowing into multiple accounts, including Trump's inauguration fund, the MAGA Inc. super PAC, a political nonprofit called Securing American Greatness, the RNC and Trump's presidential library fund.

? Donors run the gamut: tech, health care, agriculture, insurance, financial institutions.

️ Between the lines: Trump has made it clear in meetings with corporate donors that this is a one-way street. They donate money to support his agenda, but he's not taking their money to support their agenda.

  • "A lot of these guys are going down [to Mar-a-Lago] taking victory laps because he's taking their money and they're in for a rude awakening," a corporate consultant familiar with the process said. "Sure, he'll throw an inaugural party with their money. But he owes them nothing."

Even so, donors seem to be giving on the assumption that there's something in it for them.

  • "We don't want to get DOGE'd," one lobbyist told Axios.

Keep reading.

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The Second Trump White House Could Drastically Reshape Infectious Disease Research. Here’s What’s at Stake.

Donald Trump’s pick to lead the federal health agency has vowed to replace hundreds of staffers and shift research away from infectious diseases and vaccines. Such an overhaul could imperil the development of life-saving treatments, experts warn.

https://www.propublica.org/article/nih-niaid-trump-kennedy-bhattacharya-vaccines-research?

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? Trump donors fear Trump's tariffs
 
Illustration of a target painted on a cargo container.
 

Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios

 

Big corporate donors to Trump's inaugural committee could soon find themselves in the crosshairs of his trade policy, Axios' Brittany Gibson reports.

  • Why it matters: Ford, GM, Stellantis, Stanley Black & Decker and Apple's Tim Cook all have written seven-figure checks for Trump's inauguration — even though Trump's tariffs plans could seriously disrupt their bottom lines.

? Trump has promised a 25% tariff on all goods from Mexico and Canada, tariffs of up to 60% on products from China and a universal tariff of at least 10%.

  • He claims those tariffs will protect U.S. businesses, create jobs, and help pay for tax cuts.

? Some companies that gave to Trump's inauguration and have manufacturing plants abroad aren't so sure.

  • Stanley Black & Decker CEO Donald Allan said on an earnings call before the election that it's "unlikely" that tariffs would bring more manufacturing back to the U.S.

? First look: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will roll out its annual "State of American Business" program today — and it includes a three-part wish list for Trump, Axios Neil Irwin and Courtenay Brown write.

  1. Roll back Biden-era regulations.
  2. Extend Trump's tax cuts and incentives.
  3. Stay away from sweeping tariffs.

What they're saying: "There are targeted tariffs that have a good use in global trade negotiations and then there are blanket tariffs that we think would be bad for American families and communities," Chamber CEO Suzanne Clark told Axios in an interview ahead of her speech today in Dallas.

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Does This Trump Crypto Appointee Even Have Crypto Experience? Yes, With a Trump-Themed Meme Coin.

When Donald Trump announced days before Christmas that he was tapping a former college football player and failed congressional candidate to lead a White House “crypto council,” even crypto bros were confused.

https://theintercept.com/2025/01/15/trump-crypto-who-is-bo-hines/?

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?️ Trump's official portrait
 
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President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance pose in their official portraits. Photo: Daniel Torok/courtesy of the Trump-Vance transition team

These are the official portraits for President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance — "and they go hard," the transition said in a statement.

  • With a raised eyebrow and a stone-faced stare, lit from below, Trump's portrait is reminiscent of his infamous mugshot, which became a powerful symbol for the MAGA faithful, Axios' Avery Lotz notes.

? The official portraits will hang in government offices across the country once Trump is sworn in.

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? Trump strikes warmer inaugural tone
 
Photo illustration of former President Trump with the U.S. Capitol Building duplicated in the background behind him
 

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images

 

Eight years ago, Donald Trump took office with a dark message about "American carnage" — a nation ravaged by crime, poverty and drugs.

  • As he returns to the White House on Monday, his team is stressing "unity" and "light," Axios' Erin Doherty writes.
  • The weekend's pre-inauguration festivities have optimistic, hopeful themes, including a "One America, One Light" prayer service.

?️What they're saying: "Light signifies hope, it signifies a new beginning, it signifies a pathway forward," a person familiar with Trump's inauguration plans told Axios.

  • "It's really something that has been a theme for the inaugural, yes, but also a guiding principle for our team over the past couple months."

Between the lines: Trump and his inner circle feel vindicated and validated after winning the popular and electoral votes, and see a broad MAGA mandate.

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? Reality check: Trump has tried to play the role of unifier before. It hasn't lasted.

  • Trump called for national unity after surviving an assassination attempt last summer. His speech at the Republican convention — his first after the shooting — began with a reflective, positive tone about unity.
  • Go deeper.

 

✈️ Tech CEOs flock to D.C.
 
A headshots chart displays prominent tech leaders attending Trump
Chart: Axios Visuals

Just about all the biggest names in tech will be in Washington on Monday for President-elect Trump's inauguration — a much different scene than the beginning of his first term, Axios' Sam Baker writes.

  • TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is the latest addition to the Big Tech guest list for Trump's swearing-in — a day after his company's app is set to be banned in the U.S.

? Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are also planning to attend, according to media reports.

  • Elon Musk will be there, too.

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This Storm-Battered Town Voted for Trump. He Has Vowed to Overturn the Law That Could Fix Its Homes.

Donald Trump has said he will overturn a law that helps communities better weather the effects of climate change. If he follows through, he’ll be reversing an initiative that has disproportionately benefited areas that make up his base.

https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-biden-ira-climate-red-states?

A Trump DOJ Could Bring an End to the Yearslong Investigation of His Ally Ken Paxton

When President Donald Trump appeared in a New York courtroom last spring to face a slew of criminal charges, he was joined by a rotating cadre of lawyers, campaign aides, his family — and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-ken-paxton-doj-investigation?

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Trump inauguration will move indoors over frigid weather

President-elect Trump's inaugural ceremony Monday will take place inside the Capitol Rotunda due to the weather forecast in Washington, D.C., he posted on Truth Social.

https://www.axios.com/2025/01/17/trump-inauguration-indoors-dc-cold-weather?

? Hottest ticket in town
 
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Ronald Reagan's indoor swearing-in ceremony in 1985. Photo via Reagan Presidential Library

Trump's decision to move the swearing-in to the Capitol rotunda has thrown many lawmakers' Monday plans into serious doubt, they told us this afternoon.

  • "The weather gods have spoken," Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) told us.

Why it matters: Space is expected to be limited. Only 96 people were invited to Ronald Reagan's second inauguration in 1985, the last time a swearing-in was held indoors.

  • The Capital One Arena, a downtown D.C. stadium with a capacity of 20,000, will screen the swearing-in live and host the inaugural parade, Trump said.
  • Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) said he's unlikely to be in the rotunda but may be at the arena, telling us: "I have 46 guests attending the inauguration. and I will remain with them throughout."

Go deeper.

— Andrew Solender

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As Trump spouts nonsense, the climate change disasters just keep on coming

Like a three-pack-a-day smoker who blames their chronic cough on everything but their addiction, President-elect Donald Trump continues to embrace an absurd and criminally irresponsible brand of denialism on the subject of climate change.

https://ncnewsline.com/2025/01/15/as-trump-spouts-nonsense-the-climate-change-disasters-just-keep-on-coming/?

Mass deportations don’t keep out ‘bad genes,’ they use scientific racism as justification

Threats of mass deportations loom on the post-2024 election horizon. Some supporters claim these will protect the country from immigrants who bring “bad genes” into America. But this is a misguided use of the language of science to give a sheen of legitimacy to unscientific claims.

https://azmirror.com/2025/01/15/mass-deportations-dont-keep-out-bad-genes-they-use-scientific-racism-as-justification/?

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?? Trump's team wants Maduro out
 
Photo illustration of Donald Trump and Nicolás Maduro on a background made up of a deconstructed Venezuelan flag and paper textures.
 

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photos: Getty Images

 

The incoming Trump administration wants regime change in Venezuela, where dictator Nicolás Maduro stole his election, jailed a rival and this month even threatened to invade the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.

  • Why it matters: Venezuela under Maduro has been a massive problem for Latin America and the U.S. It's accounted for the largest modern-day migration in the Western Hemisphere — nearly 8 million people have fled Maduro's regime in the past decade, Axios' Marc Caputo reports.

Trump's team says it wants Maduro to go the way of recently toppled Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. But regime change doesn't necessarily mean military action, Trump advisers say.

  • "We wouldn't mind one bit seeing Maduro being neighbors with Assad in Moscow," a Trump adviser involved with foreign policy discussions told Axios.

? The big picture: Trump's interest in Venezuela is part of a broader national security policy that's anything but the isolationist model his "America First" theme often has seemed to project — especially when it comes to the Western Hemisphere.

  • Trump's tactics have been dubbed the "Donroe Doctrine."

Keep reading.

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Trump 2.0 draws more celebrities

Conor McGregor, the mixed martial arts champ known as Notorious, was spotted making the scene at STK Steakhouse in Washington this weekend, Mike Allen reports.

  • Other Ultimate Fighting Championship stars are expected at a black-tie reception Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg — a UFC fan and Brazilian jiu-jitsu medalist — will co-host Monday night before the inaugural balls.

Why it matters: The fighters are part of a celebrity influx since President-elect Trump's last inauguration. Giddy MAGA insiders crow that Trump is culturally cool — or at least socially acceptable — after a stretch of toxicity.

Alex Bruesewitz — CEO of X Strategies LLC, based in Palm Beach, who advises Trump's inner circle on alternative media — told Axios between parties this weekend: "President Trump is cool again."

  • "He's reclaimed that image he had his entire adult life before he ran for president — sitting courtside at New York Knicks games and lighting Kate Moss's cigarette," Bruesewitz said. "That Donald Trump is back, and now he's going to the White House. It's now socially acceptable to support it."

Behind the scenes: Bruesewitz helped lead the charge on VIP outreach for the inauguration. He drew on his personal relationships and input from other Trump friends to help build a glittery roster for this weekend's festivities.

  • Bruesewitz told me part of the reason is that as celebrities met Trump personally, and as people hear him on long-form podcast interviews, they found him at odds with the portrayal in much of the media: "He was charming and hilarious, not crazy and angry."

Trump's inaugural weekend roster is expected to include:

As part of the Nashville-friendly festivities, country singer, guitarist and songwriter Parker McCollum will perform at the Commander-in-Chief Ball, one of three where the newly inaugurated president will speak Monday night.

  • Performers at the unofficial Crypto Ball at the 90-year-old Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium on Friday night: Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross, Soulja Boy.

✈️ For history ... AP NewsAlert, 7:06 p.m.: DULLES, Va. (AP) — Trump lands in Washington area as he prepares to reclaim the White House.

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? How Americans view deportations
 
A range plot showing the share of Americans who say they strongly or somewhat support select immigration policies, by party. The policy with the most support is deporting immigrants who are in the country illegally, which is supported by 66% of Americans, including 93% of Republicans and 43% of Democrats. The policy with the least support is deporting immigrants who are in the country legally, supported by 11% overall, 18% of Republicans and 10% of Democrats.
Data: Axios/Ipsos poll. Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals

Most U.S. adults say they support mass deportations of immigrants living in the country illegally — but that enthusiasm erodes when respondents are presented with options on how to carry them out, Axios' Margaret Talev and Russell Contreras write from a new Axios-Ipsos poll.

By the numbers: Two-thirds of Americans surveyed said they support deporting immigrants who are in the country illegally.

  • Among Republicans, support was at 93%, followed by 67% among independents and 43% among Democrats.

Just 38% of Americans support using active-duty military to find and detain undocumented immigrants.

  • Just one in three endorses separating families or sending people to countries other than their country of origin in the interest of speed. And just one in three supports deporting those who came to the U.S. as children.

 

Chicago prepares for deportation arrests targeting hundreds next week after Trump takes office

Federal immigration officers will target more than 300 people with histories of egregious, violent crimes after President-elect Donald Trump takes office Monday, an official said, marking his administration’s initial attempt toward fulfilling his promise of large-scale deportations.

https://apnews.com/article/chicago-ice-raids-trump-immigrant-community-b3b276656067b5302bed7dfcaf950f57?

 

Building the Deportation Machine for Trump 2.0

What can we expect when President-elect Donald Trump begins his second term on Monday? This week on The Intercept Briefing, we ask Intercept reporters what’s on their radar as a new president and a Republican-controlled Congress take office. 

https://theintercept.com/2025/01/17/intercept-briefing-podcast-deportation-trump/?

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Trump shock & awe

Shortly after being sworn in at high noon today, President-elect Trump plans to revoke security clearances of 51 former intelligence officials who signed a letter in 2020 saying emails from Hunter Biden's laptop carried "classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.

  • We're told Day 1 will bring about 200 executive actions of various sorts, including executive orders.
  • Today's actions are expected to include declaring an emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, Jan. 6 pardons, a TikTok reprieve, and executive orders to increase fossil fuel development and reduce civil service protections for federal workers.

Why it matters: The action on security clearances is a Day 1 sign that Trump plans to use his formidable tools of office in his war with what he calls the "intelligence apparatus," which he blames for the "Russia collusion hoax."

  • "The threats have real teeth to them," a transition source told me.

?The big picture: During the 75-day transition, Trump's team put a huge focus on prepping a Day 1 barrage to tell the story of "promises made, promises kept" — before he's even had a full day in the Oval Office.

  • "I will act with historic speed and strength and fix every single crisis facing our country," Trump said yesterday at a Make America Great Again Victory Rally at Capital One Arena in Washington.
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Lead story of today's New York Times; TIME cover illustration: Tim O'Brien

?️ Charlie Kirk — founder and CEO of Turning Point USA, and one of the most powerful MAGA podcasters — calls this "Liberation Day."

  • Steve Bannon, whose "War Room" podcast is powerful with Trump's base, told me it's a "tsunami this time ... flood the zone." Bannon said the fusillade will mean "the media is so overwhelmed with so much activity on so many fronts that it cannot process."

? Behind the scenes: John Ratcliffe — Trump's pick for CIA director, who served as director of national intelligence during Trump's first term — brought up the issue of the 51 former officials at his confirmation hearing last week.

  • We hear Ratcliffe pushed the idea of revoking the security clearances, and Trump loved the idea.

? Reality check: A former U.S. official told us that some of the 51 officials are fully retired, and sees the move as largely symbolic — "none of these people are going to lose their day job."

?️ Follow Axios' live inauguration coverage.

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?️ Day 1: Trump energy burst
 
a photo illustration of former president donald trump on a background made of lightning bolts
 

Photo illustration: Tiffany Herring/Axios. Photo: David Becker/Getty Images

 

President-elect Trump's opening flurry of executive orders will declare a "national energy emergency" to juice higher production and lower consumer costs, an incoming administration official tells Axios' Ben Geman and me.

  • "We're going to cut the burdensome red tape and bureaucracy that have inhibited our economy for four years now," the incoming energy adviser said.
  • Trump's opening wave, on Day 1 and shortly thereafter, is also expected to include an executive order to "unleash Alaska's natural resource potential."

Why it matters: Trump wants to send an instant message of "promises made, promises kept" — and signal a much friendlier climate for businesses across the board.

? The big picture: Trump's energy executive actions will create "conditions that facilitate investment, that facilitate job creation, that facilitate the production of America's natural resources, and the result will be lower prices for the American people," the incoming energy adviser told us.

  • "National security is a key issue here," the adviser said. "Energy is fundamental to our foreign policy, and reducing American energy production curtails our ability to exercise our foreign policies."

? Future focus: The power to fuel AI — which requires energy-thirsty data centers — is top of mind for the incoming White House, which is vowing to "unleash" U.S. energy.

  • "We're in an AI race with the People's Republic of China and other nations," the incoming energy adviser said. "It's fundamental that we're able to produce the necessary electricity here in the United States so that we can win that race and protect our nation."
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President-elect Trump dances as the Village People perform during his rally yesterday at Capital One Arena in Washington. Photo: Brian Snyder/Reuters

? Reality check: Trump's "dominance" agenda will confront market and process barriers — and plenty of litigation.

  • U.S. oil output is already at record levels. Tepid global demand growth makes producers in Texas and elsewhere unlikely to flood the market.

? Between the lines: The oil and gas industry will cheer Trump's opening moves. But executives are wary of his plans for tariffs, which could raise project costs — and spur retaliation from buyers of U.S. exports.

The bottom line: The first moments and days of Trump 2.0 will ignite a U-turn from President Biden's expansive climate agenda.

  • But often they're a symbolic opening of the long, legally fraught bureaucratic slog of formally unwinding agency rules and policies.

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? Trump's head start
 
Photo illustration of Donald Trump climbing stairs that look like the American flag, with Joe Biden behind.
 

Photo illustration: Maura Losch/Axios. Photos: Al Drago/Getty Images and Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

 

An aggressive transition, plus actions by President Biden, have given President-elect Trump a head start on some of his biggest campaign promises, Axios' Neal Rothschild, Brittany Gibson and Russell Contreras write.

Why it matters: The most consequential pre-presidency in recent U.S. history has left Trump uniquely positioned to quickly impose his plans to boost executive power, reshape foreign policy, deport millions of undocumented immigrants and juice the economy.

  • Trump also has ignited a rightward tilt of corporate America, the removal of social media speech guardrails and significant geopolitical shifts.

In its final hours, Biden's White House hailed a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal — one that was made possible partly by Trump's imminent arrival.

  • Biden's team worked for months to secure peace. But Israel was willing to close the deal only with Trump's backing, Axios' Barak Ravid reports.

Trump has sent ripples through several countries with his pre-inauguration musings on foreign policy.

  • ?? Justin Trudeau's resignation was triggered in part by divisions within Canada's government over how to respond to Trump's 25% tariff threat.
  • ?? Iran put a retaliation plan against Israel on the back burner, signaling it wants to negotiate a new nuclear deal with Trump.

? The Trump effect is cascading through corporate America.

  • Several of the country's biggest companies have unwound DEI efforts, with many others talking about the topic less.
  • Top executives sense a new permission structure to speak their minds, unshackled.

?️ The big picture: Trump has cast Biden as weak. But on some policy fronts — namely immigration and the economy — Biden is leaving Trump a stronger hand than the Republican admits.

  • As Biden departs, border crossings are down, deportations are up and the economy is humming along, with inflation trending down.

Keep reading.

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Inauguration Day

Donald Trump today will recite the oath of office and officially return to power to enact his sweeping vision of America. Trump's inauguration is set to take place inside the US Capitol Rotunda due to freezing temperatures projected in the nation's capital. On Sunday, Trump previewed a stack of executive orders he plans to unleash hours after being sworn in. Some of the promises he has made for Day 1 include pardoning some January 6 defendants, imposing steep tariffs on imports from overseas and launching mass deportations. His expected executive orders will likely face immediate legal challenges.


?? How to watch Trump's inauguration:
CNN's special coverage begins at 7 a.m. ET and carries through the ceremony, the oath of office around noon ET and the inaugural balls in the evening. Coverage will also stream live on CNN.com and CNN Max.

 

Immigration

The Trump administration has promised to quickly enact a wide-ranging agenda that is expected to include immediate executive actions on immigration. Trump plans to invoke a national emergency at the border as a way to unlock funding from the Defense Department for the administration's use, according to Stephen Miller, Trump's incoming deputy chief of staff for policy. Trump will move to designate a series of drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and direct his administration to roll back Biden-era policies. His plans also include ICE raids in major metropolitan areas and placing additional restrictions on who is eligible to enter the US.

 

TikTok ban

TikTok is back online after shutting itself down in the US over the weekend. Late Saturday night, TikTok became unusable for Americans who were met with a message saying the app was offline due to a ban — which the Supreme Court affirmed on Friday — and asking users to "stay tuned." Around 14 hours later, TikTok welcomed users back with a notification that said: "Thanks for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump's efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.!" Donald Trump has expressed confidence in TikTok's future and proposed a "joint venture" where the US could take "a 50% ownership position" in the app.

phkrause

Read Isaiah 10:1-13
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phkrause

Read Isaiah 10:1-13

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