WASHINGTON — Donald Trump was sworn in as the nation’s 47th president Monday, completing a remarkable return to power with soaring promises of a new “golden age” in Washington and searing criticism of what he called the “horrible betrayal” during his four-year exile from the White House.
The Capitol Rotunda swearing-in ceremony, moved indoors for the first time in 40 years, capped a political comeback without precedent as Trump overcame impeachments, a conviction on 34 felony counts, election-interference charges in Georgia and two assassination attempts to return to the presidency.
But unlike his inauguration in 2017, when a stunned Washington struggled to reconcile Trump’s savaging of political norms, the Republican returns to the nation’s most powerful office with a tight grip on his party’s reins after decisive victories in Georgia and other battleground states.
“If we work together, there is nothing we cannot do and no dream we cannot achieve,” Trump said. “Many people thought it was impossible for me to stage such a historic political comeback. But as you see today, here I am. The American people have spoken.”
Gov. Brian Kemp, a veteran of years of conflict with Trump, signaled a new era of cooperation in Washington with his smiling appearance in a Capitol overflow room. Trump and his MAGA allies have largely subdued opposition within the GOP’s ranks, and Never Trump leaders have been forced from office or pressed into uneasy truces with the president.
“This is a moment of renewed optimism, patriotism and faith in the promise of a stronger, united America,” said DeKalb GOP chair Marci McCarthy, who traveled to Washington for the ceremony. “We stand ready to support his vision for our nation’s future.”
Democrats in Georgia and nationwide are still grappling with how to contend with the resurgent MAGA movement, torn between the outright opposition that marked his first term and a cautious willingness to compromise.
Stacey Abrams, the two-time Democratic gubernatorial candidate, is among the loudest voices in her party demanding fierce pushback to the GOP’s complete control of Washington.
“It is the culmination of an extreme Republican Party racing to the right,” said Abrams, who hasn’t ruled out a third bid for governor in 2026. “We can’t just wait four years for Trump’s term to be up to fight for our values because after Trump, someone just as extreme and hateful will fill his spot if we sit on the sidelines now.”
Trump plans to leverage his political momentum by moving with lightning speed to carry out his priorities, with plans to sign dozens of directives that may initiate a mass deportation operation, impose tariffs on imports and pardon supporters — including 44 people with Georgia ties — who mobbed the Capitol four years ago.
And he’s a supporter of legislation swiftly moving through Congress named for Laken Riley, a slain Georgia nursing student, that would make it easier to deport immigrants in the U.S. illegally who are accused of minor crimes.
His window is tight. Barred from seeking a third term, Trump enters his presidency as a lame duck, and as the 2026 midterms approach, he’ll have to compete for attention and influence with ambitious Republicans who are jockeying for his job and congressional leaders seeking more clout in Washington.
After harnessing voter frustration over inflation and immigration to a decisive victory, Trump will face pressure to make good on grand promises — including to boost the economy, end foreign wars, curb illegal immigration and juice domestic manufacturing — that helped him recapture Georgia four years after Joe Biden became the first Democrat to win the state in decades.
His restoration to power took place in the same Capitol Rotunda that four years ago was ransacked by MAGA supporters egged on by Trump’s false claims of a “rigged” 2020 election.
After his failure to reverse his defeat, Trump skipped Biden’s inauguration and withstood a second impeachment attempt. But he never retreated from politics, and he led efforts in Georgia to exact revenge on Kemp and other Republicans he accused of disloyalty.
Although his push to oust the incumbent state Republicans failed, Trump’s popularity among Georgia conservatives hardly waned. He defeated Vice President Kamala Harris by roughly 115,000 votes thanks partly to a high-stakes Georgia strategy that focused intensely on MAGA supporters who sometimes skip elections.
Trump’s comeback victory also returns to prominence several key Georgia allies who suffered political defeats. Former U.S. Rep. Doug Collins and ex-U. S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler have both been appointed to Cabinet-level positions, while former U.S. Sen. David Perdue is nominated as the nation’s U.S. ambassador to China.
For just the third time in U.S. history, the inaugural proceedings took place on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. King’s descendants, who presided over an annual service at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, urged congregants not to ignore the political conversation.
“We will not close our eyes,” said Bernice King, the slain civil rights leader’s youngest child. “We will remain woke because too much is on the line. The survival of humanity is on the line. I urge every one of us to say yes to the power and strength of love. And heed my father’s call to remain awake through a great revolution.”
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
While authorities took unprecedented measures to make sure events this week were safe and secure, most of the crowds that descended on the dangerously cold capital were there to celebrate Trump and his MAGA policies rather than protest them.
The plunging temperatures forced Georgians who trekked to Washington expecting to watch the swearing-in ritual from the National Mall to recalibrate their plans.
Some waited in lengthy lines to get a coveted seat in Capital One Arena, where Trump is set to deliver remarks after he’s inaugurated. Some are watching the ceremony at parties scattered around the city. And some are taking it in from their hotel rooms.
“I’m up here to celebrate,” said Mark Williams, one of about 80 Georgians who camped for days in an RV park in suburban Maryland after taking an overnight bus caravan from Atlanta. “We’re up here to have a good time, and we’re going to do it right.”
Staff writer Ernie Suggs contributed to this report.
