President Trump wasted no time flexing his presidential powers, acting on promises made during his campaign.
"Today I will sign a series of historic executive orders. With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of commonsense," Trump declared in his inauguration address on Monday at the U.S. Capitol.
Hours later, Trump delivered. He signed numerous executive orders at Washington's Capital One Arena before thousands of supporters and later continued the signings in the Oval Office.
"It's just pure Trump. He's governing in a connected world where you need to rally public support," said Republican strategist Alex Castellanos to Fox News Digital.
Trump’s immigration promises were a cornerstone of his campaign.
"On Day One, I will launch the largest deportation program of criminals in the history of America," he pledged during an October rally at Madison Square Garden.
In his first hours in office, Trump declared a national emergency at the southern border and sent troops to assist immigration agents. He reinstated his first-term "Remain in Mexico" policy and resumed border wall construction, though Mexico’s cooperation on asylum seekers remained uncertain.
He also signed an order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal migrants, though it faced immediate legal challenges due to its constitutional implications.
"I will declare a national emergency at our southern border," Trump reaffirmed in his inauguration speech. "All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will return millions of criminal aliens."
Trump also announced the designation of cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to target foreign gangs and criminal networks.
Energy policies were next. Trump tied his actions to fighting inflation, promising aggressive energy production.
"I will declare a national energy emergency. We will drill, baby, drill," he said, emphasizing America’s oil and gas reserves and vowing to restore the nation as a manufacturing powerhouse.
On education, Trump acted swiftly on promises to counter progressive policies.
"We’re going to end it on Day One," he had said about protections for transgender students. On Monday, he signed executive orders defining gender as strictly male or female and eliminating federal DEI programs.
Another promise fulfilled was the pardoning of many Jan. 6 defendants. Speaking to supporters at the U.S. Capitol, Trump reiterated his belief that the 2020 election "was totally rigged."
Later, at an arena rally, he promised, "I’ll be signing pardons for a lot of people…to get them out." By the end of the day, he had pardoned around 1,500 individuals, including some convicted of attacking police officers.
"These people have been destroyed," Trump argued. "What they’ve done to these people has been outrageous."
Trump also introduced unexpected changes. He announced plans to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and restore Mount McKinley’s name, replacing Denali.
"He's flooding the zone. He’s rallying American support for massive government transformation," Castellanos observed. "Democrats just don’t know what’s hitting them."
Despite his flurry of actions, Trump didn’t fulfill all campaign promises. One significant omission was his pledge to end the Russia-Ukraine war in a single day.
"They’re dying, Russians and Ukrainians. I want them to stop dying," Trump had vowed, promising swift action.
By Monday night, Trump only told reporters, "We’re going to try and get it done as quickly as possible," leaving the timeline uncertain.