President-elect promises crackdown on US-Mexico border, more oil drilling, reining in federal workforce and eradicating diversity programmes.
The United States president-elect, Donald Trump, has pledged to end “four long years of American decline” at a raucous pre-inauguration rally in the capital, Washington, DC.
“We’re going to give them the best first day, the biggest first week and the most extraordinary first 100 days of any presidency in American history,” Trump told a packed 20,000-seat stadium of supporters at a “Make America Great Again (MAGA) Victory Rally” at the Capital One Arena on Sunday.
“Tomorrow, at noon, the curtain closes on four long years of American decline, and we begin a brand new day of American strength and prosperity, dignity and pride,” Trump said, adding, “Once and for all, we are going to end the reign of a failed and corrupt political establishment in Washington.”
Trump, 78, is due to be sworn in as the 47th US president at 17:00 GMT on Monday. He will take the presidential oath of office inside the rotunda of the Capitol building after cold weather prompted organisers to move the ceremony indoors.
At the MAGA rally, Trump pledged a “brand-new day of American strength and prosperity” by cracking down on everything from “illegal” immigration across the US-Mexico border to promoting oil drilling, reining in the federal workforce and eradicating diversity programmes.
“By the time the sun sets tomorrow, the invasion of our country will have come to a halt,” he said.
The event marked his first major address in Washington, DC since his speech on January 6, 2021, that preceded the storming of the US Capitol by an angry mob of his supporters. Trump has said he will pardon many of the more than 1,500 people convicted or charged in connection with the attack.
Sticking to the populist imagery and messaging of his presidential campaign, Trump entered the stadium from a public entrance, allowing him to walk through the crowds of supporters before reaching the stage.
He pledged to repeal “every radical and foolish executive order of the Biden administration” within hours of assuming the presidency. Local media reports say he will take more than 200 executive actions on Monday.
“You’re going to see executive orders that are going to make you extremely happy. Lots of them,” Trump told his supporters at the rally.
He also said he would release historical files pertaining to the assassination of prominent figures of the 1960s, including President John F Kennedy, his brother Bobby Kennedy, who was shot while running for president, and Martin Luther King Jr, one of the most revered civil rights leaders in the US.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk, CEO of Space X, Tesla and the owner of X, once again got top billing at the MAGA rally.
Musk was one of Trump’s most vocal supporters during the recent US election and is due to head the newly created Department of Government Efficiency – better known by its acronym, DOGE – to slash the federal workforce and spending.
The event also featured a performance by Kid Rock and singer Lee Greenwood, whose God Bless the USA is a Trump favourite.
Jon Voight, an actor named by Trump as a special ambassador to Hollywood, declared the president-elect “our hero”.
“A man who never gave up on the American people, and we the people never gave up on him,” said Voight.
