In the capstone to a political comeback story like none other, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States this afternoon, ushering in a new era of GOP dominance in Washington. While the icy cold weather may have forced the inauguration inside for the first time since Ronald Reagan’s swearing in, today’s inaugural proceedings were still bustling. Inside the Capitol Rotunda, lawmakers and press crammed into roughly 600 seats to watch the swearing in, with congressional staff privately noting that there was hardly enough room to fit every GOP lawmaker. An eclectic group of guests — from former UK PM Boris Johnson to social media influencers Jake and Logan Paul, to slew of tech titans — joined Republican officials to watch Trump and VP JD Vance take their oaths. And yet, for all the ways this time was different than Trump’s first swearing in — few protesters in downtown Washington, a ceremony inside the Capitol, the billionaires brought to heel and seated in front of the incoming Cabinet, and so on — this was a distinctly Trumpian display. This morning, the WSJ previewed Trump’s inaugural speech: “While a combative Trump in his 2017 address lamented ‘American carnage,’ his speech has been designed to be more optimistic, people familiar with the drafting say.” The reality of the speech that was delivered was quite different. Moments of optimism — “the golden age of America begins right now,” he said, and “ambition is the lifeblood of a great nation,” and “we will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars” — were matched throughout with grievance. “Liberation Day,” Trump declared it, launching into unsparing criticism of outgoing President Joe Biden's administration. And liberated he was. He blasted Biden's policies, if not him by name, criticizing “the inflation crisis” his “electric vehicle mandate” and promising to declare a national energy emergency (“we will drill, baby, drill”). He slammed the political establishment, describing a “crisis of trust” in government and calling his election victory a “mandate to completely reverse a horrible betrayal,” per Eli Stokols. He recast his myriad legal woes as the fruit of a poisoned justice system: “Never again will the immense power of the state be weaponized to persecute political opponents,” he said. He announced that he would push to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” (prompting shoulder-rattling chuckles from Hillary Clinton) and rechristen Alaska’s Denali as Mount McKinley (despite the fact that both of Alaska’s Republican senators like the name as it is, thank you very much). He vowed to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, asserting vast wartime powers as part of a crackdown on gangs and illegal immigration, and said that “we are going to bring law and order back to our cities.” He promised to “forge a society that is color-blind and merit-based,” and proclaimed that “it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female.” “My proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and a unifier,” he said. Welcome back to Trump’s Washington. More inauguration reads: “Florida's takeover of Washington is only just beginning,” by Kimberly Leonard … “Trump Takes Office as a Newly Minted Crypto Billionaire,” by NYT’s Bernhard Warner … “What Americans think about Trump’s inaugural address,” by WaPo’s Scott Clement, Emily Guskin, Eric Lau, Dan Keating, Garland Potts and Hannah Good … “Proud Boys seen marching on Washington streets,” AP’s Lindsay Whitehurst and Gary Fields BIDEN’S FINAL BOW — After spending most of the last five decades in public office, Joe Biden now begins his life as a private citizen — but not without making a few significant parting moves. With just 20 minutes left in office, Biden announced a final batch of pardons for his family members — including his siblings James Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, Francis Biden and their spouses. Though Biden was heavily criticized for pardoning his son Hunter last month, he said the new wave of clemency was necessary as his family was “subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me — the worst kind of partisan politics.” The pardons are widespread, covering “all ‘nonviolent’ actions dating back to 2014,” Kyle Cheney reports. The last-minute announcement came just hours after Biden issued a slew of preemptive pardons towards several current and former government officials in an effort to shield them against Trump's promises of retribution. The pardons included retired Gen. Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci and members of the House Select Committee on January 6th, Irie Sentner, Kyle Cheney and Nicholas Wu report. The preemptive pardon issue has been the subject of debate at the White House for months, with Biden aides and advisers reportedly huddling in the West Wing in recent weeks to weigh if they would open them up to further criticism. Either way, Biden’s 11th-hour decision on the matter serves as a final check of Trump’s power, blocking him from exacting legal revenge against those on his rumored “enemies list.” In a statement announcing the pardons, Biden noted the move “should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense. … These public servants have served our nation with honor and distinction and do not deserve to be the targets of unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions.” What they’re saying …
- Trump: In a text message to NBC News this morning, Trump described Biden’s decision as “disgraceful,” and claimed without evidence that many of those pardoned “are guilty of MAJOR CRIMES!” More from NBC News’ Rebecca Shabad
- Fauci: “I really truly appreciate the action President Biden has taken today on my behalf,” Fauci said. “Let me be perfectly clear … I have committed no crime, you know that, and there are no possible grounds for any allegation or threat of criminal investigation or prosecution of me,” per ABC News’ Alexandra Hutzler.
- Former MPD officer Michael Fanone: It is “insane that we live in a country where the president of the United States feels the need to offer a pre-emptive pardon to American citizens who testified in an investigation regarding an insurrection which was incited by the incoming president because he’s promised to enact, or exact, vengeance on those participants and the body that investigated them,” per NYT’s Peter Baker.
- Milley: “I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights ... I do not want to put my family, my friends, and those with whom I served through the resulting distraction, expense, and anxiety.” More from AP’s Colleen Long and Zeke Miller
Good Monday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at birvine@politico.com.
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John Fetterman rocked shorts in the icy cold today. Debra Tice said the Trump administration has offered to help her locate her son, Austin. Capitol staff had issues raising the flags to full staff due to the weather. IN MEMORIAM — “Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president and feminist activist, has died,” by The 19th’s Shefali Luthra: “Richards, the daughter of [former Texas Gov. Ann Richards], was one of the nation’s most prominent advocates for abortion rights. … Even after her 2023 glioblastoma diagnosis, Richards had remained a fixture in Democratic politics. In August, she helped cast Texas’ ceremonial votes at the Democratic National Convention to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris, and delivered one of the event’s speeches focused on reproductive rights. … It was Richards’ work at Planned Parenthood, which she helmed from 2006 to 2018, the longest time any individual has run the organization, that catapulted her into the national spotlight.” OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at a “candlelight dinner" last night at the National Building Museum: Donald and Melania Trump, JD Vance and Usha Vance, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Susie Wiles, Elon Musk, Maye Musk, Howard and Allison Lutnick, Jason Miller, Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan, Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sanchez, Carrie Underwood, Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) and Dina Powell McCormick, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Bernard Arnault, Sergey Brin, Chris LaCivita, Jeff Miller, Steve Witkoff, Shou Zi Chew, Michael Whatley, Reince Priebus, Kevin McCarthy, Masayoshi Son, James Taiclet, Ross and Sarah Perot, Vivek Ramaswamy, Sam Brown, Ted Leonis, Tony Fabrizio, Mukesh Ambani, Corey Lewandowski, Ryan Lance, Kevin Hassett, Jay Kramer, Mike Goldfarb, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Tony Sayegh. — Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, X CEO Linda Yaccarino, and Bari Weiss, founder of The Free Press, co-hosted an inauguration eve party at Café Riggs last night featuring a live performance by Dierks Bentley and cocktails and bites by Jean-Georges, who flew in from New York to oversee the kitchen. SPOTTED: Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Mehmet and Daphne Oz, Conor McGregor, Liz Truss, Francis Suarez, Peter Thiel, Matt Danzeisen, Sergey Brin, Lex Fridman, Tim Armstrong, Jared Birchall, Jason Calacanis, Jacob Helberg, Keith Rabois, Bret Baier, Dana Perino, Dana Bash, Cesar Conde, Joanna Coles, Steve Hilton, Nellie Bowles, Jillian Michaels, Calley Means, Amy Chua, Maye, Tosca, Kimbal, James and Andrew Musk, Kick, Kyra, and Finn Kennedy, Hogan Gidley, Tucker Bounds, Jill Hazelbaker, Chris Franks, Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah and Andrew Byrne. — SPOTTED at Florida International University’s 305 Miami Brunch at FIU in Washington, D.C. yesterday: Ken Jessell, Elizabeth Bejar, Carlos Duart, Tina Vidal-Duart, George Heisel, Mario Murgado, Marc Caputo, Reps. Carlos Giménez (R-Fla.) and Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), Kevin Cabrera, Benjamin Leon Jr., Juan Guaidó, Maor Elbaz-Starinsky, Adrienne Arsht, Cesar Conde, Jorge Plasencia, Nick Iarossi, Danny Gomez, Melissa Shuffield, Madeline Pumariega, Viviana Jordan, Kristin Boedensdtadt, Alice Ancona, Ivan Barrios, Rolando Aedo, Matthew Love, Lilly Lopez, Nicole De Lara Puente, Florida state Reps. Omar Blanco, Juan Porras and David Borrero, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo, Sweetwater Mayor Jose “Pepe” Diaz, Alix Desulme, Lynne Su, Juan Fernandez-Barquin, Dariel Fernandez and Alina Garcia. — TechNet, hosted an inaugural tech event, “Innovation Nation,” with ACT, BSA, Consumer Technology Association, Entertainment Software Association. Information Technology Industry Council, Software & Information Industry Association and XR Association yesterday at Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak and Stone Crab, where Linda Moore introduced Speaker Mike Johnson and Victoria Espinel introduced Michael Kratsios, Trump’s OSTP director nominee. SPOTTED: Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Ron Estes (R-Kan.), Liz Truss, Lynn Parker, Gideon Lett, Carl Holshouser, Stan Pierre-Louis, Liz Hyman, Jason Oxman, Morgan Reed, Steve Hartell, Shannon Kellogg, Hugh Gamble, Chan Park, Johanna Shelton, Alex Scheuer, Allison O’Brien, Ryan Hagemann, Jim Shaughnessy, Erica Fensom, Kevin Richards, Chris Massey, Mike Sellitto, Grover Norquist, Todd Malan, Neil Hare, Andrew Ohlmen, Max Pappas, Patty Koch, Todd Weiss and Jon Deuser. — SPOTTED last night at the North Dakota State Society Inaugural Event at the National Restaurant Association: Reps. Julie Fedorchak (R-N.D.) and Brad Finstad (R-Minn.), Doug Burgum, Kelly Armstrong, Drew Wrigley, Michelle Korsmo, Sue Hensley, Matt Walker, Kent Knutson and Brian Quintenz. — SPOTTED at the Newsmax inaugural party at the Mellon Auditorium last night where Lee Greenwood sang “God Bless America”: Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, Australian Ambassador Kevin Rudd, British Ambassador Karen Pierce, Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Scott Bessent, Mehmet Oz, Chris Ruddy, Elliot Jacobson, Rudy Giuliani, Ric Grenell, Sergio Gor, Chris Landau, Adam Boehler, Penny Wong, Rod Blagojevich, Clay Travis, Buck Sexton, Enes Kanter Freedom, Charlie Ergen, Ike and Laurie Perlmutter, Lee and Erika Lipton, Alexandra de Borchgrave, Samantha Dravis, Ryan Williams, Steve Clemons, Chad Wolf, Bernard Kerik, Blake Kernen, Margaret Carlson, Robert Stryk and Jim Bognet. — SPOTTED yesterday at an Inaugural Reception marking The Southern Group’s launch of their D.C. office with founding partners Danny Diaz-Balart and Chase Kroll: Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) and Addison McDowell (R-N.C.), Rachel Cone, Edgar Castro, Nelson Diaz, Jason Saine, Brandon Dermody, Sheela VanHoose, Crystal Wagar, Kevin Hoffman, Mary Esrtime-Irvin, Adam Bolek, Brett James, Jessey Niyongabo, Michael and Pamela Rubin, Neil McCabe, Brian Darling, Beau Rothschild, Tripp and Jenn Baird and James Kahrs. Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us at 202-556-3307. Playbook couldn’t happen without our deputy editor Zack Stanton and Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
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