Pinned
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump on Jan. 21 announced $500 billion in private sector investment to build artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in the United States.
OpenAI, Softbank, and Oracle will invest in the infrastructure through their joint venture, Stargate.
Trump described it as the “largest AI infrastructure project by far in history.”
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump has rescinded former national security adviser John Bolton’s Secret Service detail; while Bolton maintains he is under threat from Iran.
“Notwithstanding my criticisms of President Biden’s national-security policies, he nonetheless made the decision to extend that protection to me in 2021.”
Trump announced earlier in the day that one of his first actions as the 47th president would be undoing much of the previous administration’s work, targeting former President Joe Biden’s executive orders (EOs) on policies related to COVID-19, immigration, the environment, gender and race, health care, and others.
Actions on COVID-19
Trump rescinded multiple executive orders Biden signed regarding the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including one that created a government-wide response to the pandemic to expand testing and vaccine distribution and another that developed a plan to conduct studies, large-scale trials, and novel therapies to combat the coronavirus.
WASHINGTON—Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Jan. 21 as President Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and criticized the multilateral organization over its stances against Israel.
In her opening statement, Stefanik said that the U.S. agenda at Turtle Bay will reflect Trump’s “America First” agenda, which includes standing with the Jewish state.
“As the world faces crisis after crisis, with hostages including Americans still held in Hamas’s captivity, to national security challenges ranging from China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, it has never been more critical for the United States to lead with strength and moral clarity,” she said.
President Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said Tuesday that U.S. immigration officials have already started carrying out deportations, targeting illegal immigrants who are deemed a threat to public safety.
“ICE teams are out there as of today,” he said, without providing details on where. Homan then made note of leaks to the media about ICE targeting areas in Chicago and suggested that a different plan was initiated.
A coalition of 22 state attorneys general and two cities have filed lawsuits seeking to block President Donald Trump’s executive order denying citizenship to children born in the United States to illegal immigrants and other non-citizens.
WASHINGTON—While the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is not a high-profile federal agency, some people are paying close attention to who President-elect Donald Trump chooses to lead it.
“Any Big Tech ally would be a huge problem,” inventor Randy Landreneau told The Epoch Times.
Landreneau’s group, the nonprofit U.S. Inventor, represents small inventors dissatisfied with how recent legislation and court decisions have affected their patents.
Fagan assumed the duties in June 2022 under the Biden administration. President Donald Trump has named Adm. Kevin Lunday, the vice commandant, to become the Coast Guard’s commandant, and he must be confirmed by the Senate.
The message, released by Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Benjamine Huffman, said that he has relieved Fagan “of her duties as Commandant of the United States Coast Guard,” saying she “served a long and illustrious career, and I thank her for her service to our nation.”
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon most of the Jan. 6 defendants on his first day in office brought excitement and hope to those close to the detained.
The White House announced the pardons shortly after Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, more than four years after the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach and after the pardoned individuals spent years dealing with the legal system. His pardon affected about 1,500 people, and he commuted the sentences of others.
The Senate Finance Committee greenlit billionaire financier Scott Bessent’s nomination as President Donald Trump’s U.S. Treasury secretary.
Two Democrat senators—Sens. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.)—voted in favor with all Republicans.
President Donald Trump’s order removing job protections from federal officials violates federal law, according to a Jan. 20 lawsuit.
President Donald Trump on Monday declared a national emergency over what he called “an invasion” at the U.S.–Mexico border.
“I have determined that the current state of the southern border reveals that the Federal Government has failed in fulfilling this obligation to the States and hereby declare that an invasion is ongoing at the southern border, which requires the Federal Government to take measures to fulfill its obligation to the States,” Trump said in the proclamation.
President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 signed an executive order that directs the U.S. attorney general to help states obtain drugs to carry out executions and seek the death penalty in appropriate cases.
It also specifies that in murders of law enforcement officers, or capital crimes committed by illegal immigrants, the federal government shall pursue jurisdiction and seek the death penalty regardless of other factors.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon on Jan. 21 blocked a redacted release of the second volume of former special counsel Jack Smith’s report on President Donald Trump’s classified documents case to four members of Congress.
Cannon sided with an emergency motion brought forward by Trump’s co-defendants, Waltine Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, to prevent the report from being released until all matters concerning the criminal case were concluded, stating the release “presents a substantial and unacceptable risk of prejudice to the defendants.”
Cannon previously dismissed the case, ruling Smith’s appointment a violation of the appointments clause of the U.S. Constitution, and the indictment against Trump was dismissed after his election victory. However, her ruling was quickly appealed and is still waiting for an appellate decision concerning Nauta and De Oliveira.
The outcome of several international crises will depend on decisions made by the Trump administration, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.
President Donald Trump returned to the White House on Jan. 20 for his second, albeit non-consecutive, four-year term in office.
“A lot depends on the United States,” Lavrov said at a meeting of Russia’s Security Council held only hours before Trump’s inauguration in Washington.
President Donald Trump announced the firing of four high-profile appointees early Tuesday morning, according to a post he made on Truth Social.
“You’re fired!” he wrote at the end of his post.
President Donald Trump ordered the removal of incentives for electric vehicles and promoted market choice for consumers as part of the executive orders issued on his first day in office.
In conjunction with this initiative, the “electric vehicle (EV) mandate” will be eliminated, and “true consumer choice” will be promoted, along with the removal of regulatory barriers to motor vehicle access, according to the order.
Groups sued President Donald Trump and his administration on Jan. 20 over his order ending birthright citizenship for certain individuals born in the United States in the future.
President Donald Trump on Monday evening suspended U.S. foreign aid for 90 days, pending further review to determine whether those programs align with American interests.
The reason for the order, according to the readout, is that the U.S. government’s foreign policy is “not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values.”
President Donald Trump said on Jan. 20—moments after being sworn into office—that he would reinstate former members of the military who refused to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
“And I will sign an order to stop our warriors from being subjected to radical political theories and social experiments while on duty. It’s going to end immediately.”
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday revoking the security clearances of 51 former U.S. intelligence officials who signed a letter discrediting credible reports about emails found on Hunter Biden’s laptop.
The letter was issued just weeks ahead of the 2020 presidential election in which Hunter Biden’s father, then-candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, was a contender. The signatories said that a news report about emails found on the laptop that Hunter Biden allegedly abandoned at a Delaware repair shop were false and “part of a Russian disinformation campaign.”
President Donald Trump has issued several executive actions aimed at reforming public education in the United States, including one that targets transgender ideology, keeping a promise he made after winning the 2024 election.
“We will get critical race theory and transgender insanity the [expletive] out of our schools, and we’re going to get it out of our schools very fast,” he said during a Dec. 22, 2024, rally in Arizona.
Within hours of his inauguration, President Donald Trump took action to fulfill his promise to dismantle the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) agenda of the Biden administration.
The Trump directive orders the director of the Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. Attorney General, and the director of the Office of Personnel Management to terminate “all discriminatory programs, including illegal DEI and ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) mandates, policies, programs, preferences, and activities in the federal government, under whatever name they appear.”
Newly inaugurated President Donald Trump signed a detailed executive order late Monday in the Oval Office that’s intended to make it easier to fire poor performers among the managerial ranks of the 2.3 million members of the career federal workforce.
The new EO resurrects and makes multiple amendments to the controversial “Schedule F” EO Trump signed near the end of his first term in the White House. That EO was initiated by his Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director, Russ Vought, but it was issued too late to have any measurable impact on federal workers.
Newly-inaugurated President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Monday withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO) and halting U.S. funding to the United Nations body.
It also stated that the WHO failed to “adopt urgently needed reforms” and was unable to demonstrate independence from “the inappropriate political influence” of member states.
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has voted to move forward with John Ratcliffe’s nomination to be the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The select committee voted 14–3 in a closed hearing on Jan. 20 to recommend that the Senate take a full vote to confirm Ratcliffe.
Ratcliffe could become the second of President Donald Trump’s appointees to be confirmed, following the approval of Marco Rubio for Secretary of State in a 99–0 vote on Jan. 20.
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump has followed through on his vows to move swiftly in pardoning almost all of those charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, demonstrations at the U.S. Capitol—a group he referred to as “J6 hostages.”
After leaving the Capital One Arena late on Jan. 20, he went back to the Oval Office and pardoned roughly 1,500 individuals involved in the breach while commuting sentences of 14 individuals still serving time.
Trump had reiterated his pledges at the Capitol earlier in the day soon after his inauguration.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted on Jan. 20 to advance two of President Donald Trump’s cabinet-level nominees, Kristi Noem for Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary and Russ Vought for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director.
The committee advanced Noem’s nomination on a 13-2 vote.
Vought’s nomination advanced through the committee by an 8-7 vote.
The Senate unanimously approved the nomination of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of state on Jan. 20, making him the first of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks to receive the green light on Inauguration Day.
Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the committee, said he encourages anyone who wants a clear understanding of U.S. foreign policy to watch Rubio’s testimony.
The Senate Armed Services Committee voted along party lines on Jan. 20 to advance President Donald Trump’s defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth to a full Senate floor vote.
The committee voted 14–13 to advance Hegseth’s nomination.
The Senate unanimously approved the nomination of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of state on Jan. 20, making him the first of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks to receive the green light on Inauguration Day.
Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the committee, said he encourages anyone who wants a clear understanding of U.S. foreign policy to watch Rubio’s testimony.
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order withdrawing the United States again from the Paris climate accord.
The order mandates the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations to notify the U.N. secretary-general of the withdrawal.
Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI director, vowed not to back down as he prepares for what could be a difficult Senate confirmation process.
Addressing thousands of Trump supporters at Capital One Arena in Washington, Patel promised not to quit in his efforts to “end the two-tier system of justice” in the United States.
Multiple lawsuits were filed against the Trump administration regarding the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as President Donald Trump was sworn into office on Jan. 20.
After his election win in November 2024, Trump announced he would set up DOGE with co-chairs Elon Musk, the owner of social media platform X, and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.
Trump tapped the two business titans to head DOGE, a nongovernmental task force assigned to find ways to terminate federal workers, cut programs, and slash federal regulations. The three have said they want to cut as much as $2 trillion in government spending.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Jan. 20 congratulated President Donald Trump on becoming the 47th president of the United States and said he looks forward to talks on the Russia–Ukraine war that would lead to lasting peace rather than just a temporary cease-fire.
“We congratulate Donald Trump on entering the office,” Putin said during a meeting of Russia’s Security and Defense Council.
“Moscow is open for dialogue with the United States that will be built on an equal and mutually respectful basis.”
Usha Vance wait for former President Joe Biden and Jill Biden to depart from the US Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times
WASHINGTON—Donald Trump, inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States, called for a “revolution of common sense” as he began a historic non-consecutive second term.
“I return to the presidency confident and optimistic that we are at the start of a thrilling new era of national success. A tide of change is sweeping the country,” Trump said in his inaugural address.
“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.”
Former President Joe Biden’s final act as president was to preemptively pardon several members of his family.
The sweeping pardon covers the president’s brother, James B. Biden; sister-in-law, Sara Jones Biden; sister, Valerie Biden Owens; brother-in-law, John T. Owens; and brother, Francis W. Biden. The pardons were announced minutes before President Donald Trump was sworn in.
“The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense,” Biden said in a statement.
President-elect Donald Trump will not impose new tariffs on day one of his new term in office. Instead, he will sign a memorandum directing federal agencies to investigate unfair trade practices by foreign countries and recommend associated trade policies.
The memo singles out China for a review of its compliance with the 2020 Phase One trade deal and includes an assessment of the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement trade pact, which is up for renewal in 2026, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Previously, Trump has repeatedly said he would impose 10 percent additional tariffs on all goods imported from China and 25 percent on those from Canada and Mexico.
Outgoing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both made their final posts on social media on Monday ahead of the inauguration ceremony for the 47th president, Donald Trump.
The two posts both featured a portrait of Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, Harris, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff.
Ending federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and declaring that there are only two sexes were among President-elect Donald Trump’s first actions after he was sworn in as president on Jan. 20, according to incoming White House officials.
The Trump administration will define a female as “a person belonging at conception to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell,” with the large reproductive cell being an egg cell or ovum.
Notably, the definition does not rely on chromosomes—a fact that should clear up confusion regarding intersex individuals, who may have an irregular combination of chromosomes.
President Donald Trump issued 10 executive actions on border security Monday evening, including one declaring a national emergency at the U.S. southern border that will pave the way for military deployment.
After taking the oath of office, Trump described big changes coming to the U.S.–Mexico border.
The executive order would enable the United States to accelerate oil and gas production by encouraging energy exploration and production on federal lands, cutting red tape and regulations, and eliminating the electric vehicle mandate.
The national energy emergency was invoked under the National Emergencies Act, extending Trump’s emergency powers. It orders the heads of federal departments and agencies to find emergency authorities to bolster production and possibly issue emergency fuel waivers to permit the year-round sale of gasoline containing high ethanol volumes.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden greeted President-elect Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, as they pulled up in front of the White House for tea.
The outgoing first lady was dressed in a deep purple coat and gloves—potentially as a symbol of unity as the nation transitions to a new administration.
President Joe Biden on Jan. 20 issued preemptive pardons to Dr. Anthony Fauci, ret. Gen. Mark Milley, and people who served on the U.S. House of Representatives committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol.
Biden is also issuing preemptive pardons to law enforcement officers who testified to the House panel.
“I believe in the rule of law, and I am optimistic that the strength of our legal institutions will ultimately prevail over politics. But these are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing,” Biden said in a statement, alleging that the individuals for whom he issued the pardons “do not deserve to be the targets of unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions.”
President-elect Donald J. Trump returns to the White House as a seasoned executive intent on ending a decades-long approach to governance in ways that could reshape the presidency and the country well into the future.
Trump plans an about-face from the expansion of domestic programs and regulations and globalist foreign policy of the post-Cold War era. Instead, he’ll govern by an “America First” doctrine focused on border security, deregulation, energy production, and strategic engagement with other nations.
To achieve that, he proposes a further expansion of presidential power and a reduction of the size and authority of the federal bureaucracy.
President-elect Donald Trump will be inaugurated as the country’s 47th president on Jan. 20 in an event that will include welcoming ceremonies from business and global leaders and feature extravagant celebrations from well-known performers.
After weather forecasts predicted temperatures as low as 22 degrees Fahrenheit during the time Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance are set to take the oath of office, the swearing-in ceremony was moved inside the Capitol rotunda. This will be the first time a commander-in-chief has been inaugurated indoors since President Ronald Reagan was sworn in for his second term 40 years ago.
The musical performers include country music stars Carrie Underwood and Lee Greenwood, tenor Christopher Macchio, and the Village People. Among the business moguls planning to attend Trump’s inauguration are Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
WASHINGTON—President-elect Donald Trump spoke at a rally on Sunday, the eve of Inauguration Day, at the Capital One Arena in downtown Washington.
At the “Make America Great Again” victory rally, Trump offered a preview of the actions he would take upon being sworn in on Jan. 20 as the 47th president of the United States.
“We won,” Trump said, before beginning his speech.
How to Watch
The Epoch Times and its sister media NTD Television will host live coverage of Trump’s inauguration on The Epoch Times website and NTD’s website starting at 9 a.m. ET.When Is It Being Held?
The swearing-in ceremony is slated to begin just before 12 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 20, which is Martin Luther King Day, according to the National Park Service.“The terms of the President and the Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3rd day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin,” it reads in full.
After years of applying the progressive environmental, social, and governance (ESG) ideological framework to their corporations, executives appear to now be realizing that these programs could be driving their companies into a legal and financial wall.
The past year has seen a growing list of Fortune 500 companies announcing that they are dropping race- and gender-based programs for their employees and pulling out of global net zero climate clubs.
Companies that have announced they are canceling or dialing back their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs include Meta, Walmart, Ford, McDonald’s, Harley-Davidson, John Deere, Tractor Supply Company, Lowe’s, Molson Coors, Nissan, Toyota, and Stanley Black & Decker.
President-elect Donald Trump said on Jan. 19 that he is asking tech companies to keep social media platform TikTok online and would sign an executive order postponing the federal ban of the social media website in the United States.
Trump’s announcement was made as millions of U.S. users found they could no longer access the TikTok app or platform.
WASHINGTON—President Joe Biden took office amid one of the most sweeping public health crises in the nation’s history, promising to “restore the soul” of the country and bring unity. As his term comes to an end, his presidency has been met with a mix of praise and criticism, leaving behind a divided legacy.
In his inaugural address in 2021, Biden described the moment as a “winter of peril and possibility.” Four years later, in his farewell speech to the nation on Jan. 15, he expressed pride in his administration’s achievements.
“I’ve kept my commitment to be president for all Americans through one of the toughest periods in our nation’s history,” Biden said, reflecting on the successes and challenges of his tenure.