Pardons and Populism: Trump’s First Day Back in the White House

Summary

The Daily: Pardons and Populism: Trump’s First Day Back in the White House

Podcast Information

• Title: The Daily
• Host/Authors: Michael Barbaro and Sabrina Tavernise
• Description: “This is what the news should sound like. The biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world.”
• Episode: Pardons and Populism: Trump’s First Day Back in the White House
• Release Date: January 21, 2025

---

Inauguration Day: A Chilling Comeback

Timestamp: 00:44 - 02:08

On a bitterly cold and windy January 21, 2025, Michael Barbaro sets the scene for President Donald Trump’s inauguration back at the U.S. Capitol. “We are headed to the Capitol,” Barbaro narrates, describing the frigid conditions and the heavily fortified environment surrounding the event. The motorcade, described by Jonathan Swan as “the longest motorcade I’ve ever seen,” signals a significant and dramatic return of Trump to the presidency.

Key Points:

• Relocation of the inauguration indoors due to extreme weather.
• The presence of outgoing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in close proximity to Trump and his allies, highlighting the intense political divide.
• Notable attendees include tech billionaires Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg, indicating a shift in the power dynamics within Washington.

---

Trump’s Inaugural Address: A Speech of Retribution and Expansion

Timestamp: 05:07 - 13:11

Peter Baker and Michael Barbaro delve into the content and tone of Trump’s inaugural speech, which diverges sharply from traditional inaugurations. Unlike past addresses that often call for unity, Trump's speech is marked by confrontation and a focus on dismantling the previous administration's policies.

Notable Quotes:

• Trump (05:18): “The golden age of America begins right now.”
• Trump (06:03): “A radical and corrupt establishment has extracted power and wealth from our citizens.”
• Trump (07:06): “Those who wish to stop our cause have tried to take my freedom and indeed to take my life.”

Analysis:

• Peter Baker: Highlights the aggressive and retributive nature of the speech, contrasting it with more ceremonial addresses. He notes, “[Trump] is the central character in this speech in a way we don't often necessarily hear by new presidents.”
• Trump positions himself as a savior figure, intertwining his identity with that of the nation. Baker observes, “He is now tied in to the country. His identity is tied in as he presents it, with the identity of the country.”

Executive Orders and Policy Changes:

• Immediate resigning of 78 Biden-era executive actions.
• Restoration of freedom of speech policies and rollback of diversity and inclusion initiatives.
• Ambitious and expansionist policies, including the reclamation of the Panama Canal and renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
• Declaration of a national emergency at the border and designation of cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
• Trump (09:22): “We will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense.”

Impact:

• Astad Herndon points out that these orders indicate a more strategic and forceful approach to governing compared to Trump’s first term.
• The executive orders target key areas such as immigration, climate policy, and multilateral agreements, reflecting Trump’s longstanding skepticism of international institutions.

---

Mass Pardons: A Defining Act of Reckoning

Timestamp: 24:43 - 27:06

One of the most consequential actions on Trump’s first day back is the mass pardoning of over 1,500 individuals convicted for their roles in the January 6th Capitol attack.

Notable Quotes:

• Donald Trump (24:43): “I will pardon More than 1500 people who were prosecuted for their roles in the January 6th attack on the Capitol.”
• Michael Barbaro (25:35): “It's quite possible that the history books will look back on this mass pardoning as the defining act of this first day of Trump’s presidency.”

Analysis:

• Astad Herndon: Describes the pardons as “not the action of someone who’s operating cautiously or with any amount of restraint.” He emphasizes that pardoning individuals regardless of their crimes signifies Trump’s maximalist approach to power.
• The pardons are seen as a direct retaliation against the previous administration and the justice system, reinforcing Trump’s narrative of himself as a martyr and his supporters as righteous warriors.

Public Reaction:

• Supporters celebrate the pardons, viewing them as fulfillment of promises and justice for those they believe were wronged by the system.
• Conversely, critics argue that these actions undermine the rule of law and signal a dangerous consolidation of power.

---

Public Sentiment: Hope and Validation

Timestamp: 16:06 - 17:38

Michael Barbaro and Jonathan Swan capture the immediate reactions of Trump supporters in downtown Washington. Visitors from various states express feelings of relief, excitement, and hope.

Key Points:

• Supporters anticipate swift action on key issues such as immigration control and the release of January 6th prisoners.
• Pledges to tackle “WOKE policies” and reinforce national borders reflect the populist agenda driving Trump’s base.

Notable Quotes:

• Supporter: “Fabulous.”
• Supporter: “Relieved.”
• Supporter: “We’re ready.”
• Jonathan Swan (16:36): “I would hope that all the J6 prisoners would be released today because they didn’t commit crimes.”

---

Trump’s Consolidation of Power: Executive Orders and Strategic Moves

Timestamp: 18:44 - 28:43

Following the inauguration, President Trump wastes no time in exercising his executive authority. In a dramatic display, he signs multiple executive orders aimed at reversing Biden-era policies and implementing his own agenda.

Notable Actions:

• Executive Orders Rescinded:

  • Ending subsidies for electric cars.
  • Facilitating oil drilling in protected areas.
  • Withdrawing from the Paris Climate Accords and the World Health Organization.

• New Policies:

  • Eliminating birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants.
  • Designating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
  • Ending policies promoting diversity and inclusion in public and private sectors.
  • Reinstating military service members discharged for refusing COVID-19 vaccines.

Notable Quotes:

• Astad Herndon (19:12): “They are figuring out all the legal tools available to effectively seal the southern border and end asylum.”
• Trump (11:26): “We have been treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made.”

Pardons:

• Trump (24:43): “I will pardon More than 1500 people who were prosecuted for their roles in the January 6th attack on the Capitol.”
• Michael Barbaro (26:12): “Their crimes don’t matter because they were done in his name.”

Analysis:

• Peter Baker (13:21): Emphasizes that Trump is no longer a novice in utilizing presidential powers, showcasing a more calculated and strategic approach.
• Astad Herndon: Highlights the potential legal and political ramifications of Trump's actions, suggesting a roadmap for further prosecution and retribution against the previous administration.

Consolidation and Symbolism:

• Trump’s mass pardons and executive orders serve to solidify his control and reshape federal policies according to his ideological stance.
• The actions reflect a fusion of Trump's identity with that of the nation, positioning himself as the central figure driving America’s future.

---

Post-Inauguration: Biden’s Final Moves and the Transition

Timestamp: 29:00 - 30:29

In a surprising turn, then-President Joe Biden issues a wave of preemptive pardons to protect his allies from potential future prosecution by the incoming Trump administration.

Notable Actions:

• Pardons extended to Biden’s family members, congressional committee members, and key government officials, including Dr. Anthony Fauci.
• Biden defends the actions as “exceptional circumstances” despite his long-standing belief in the justice system.

Notable Quotes:

• Biden’s Statement (30:29): “While I believe in the justice system, these are exceptional circumstances.”

Analysis:

• These pardons indicate a tense and fraught transition period, with both administrations engaging in acts perceived as protective and retaliatory.
• The mutual pardoning actions signal deep divisions and a breakdown in the traditional norms of peaceful and respectful transfer of power.

---

Conclusion: A New Chapter of Divisive Leadership

President Donald Trump’s return to the White House marks a significant shift in American politics. His inaugural speech and immediate executive actions underscore a populist and retributive agenda, prioritizing aggressive policy reversals and mass pardons that align with his supporters’ expectations. The fusion of Trump’s identity with that of the nation, coupled with strategic legal maneuvers, sets the stage for a tumultuous second term characterized by deep political divides and substantial policy transformations.

Speaker Insights:

• Peter Baker: Provides a critical analysis of Trump’s strategic use of power and his positioning as the nation’s savior.
• Astad Herndon: Highlights the legal implications and potential for further retribution against former administration officials.

Public Reaction: The polarized responses from the public reflect the broader national divisions, with supporters celebrating the changes and critics expressing concern over the erosion of institutional norms and legal safeguards.

---

End of Summary

---

This summary was crafted based on the transcript provided from "The Daily" podcast episode titled "Pardons and Populism: Trump’s First Day Back in the White House," released on January 21, 2025.

Transcript

[Ad]

You just realized your business needed to hire someone yesterday. How can you find amazing candidates fast? Easy. Just use Indeed. Join the 3.5 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to hire great talent fast. There's no need to wait any longer. Speed up your hiring right now with Indeed and listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit. To get your jobs more visibility at indeed.com NYT just go to indeed.com NYT right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed indeed.com NYT terms and conditions apply. Hiring Indeed is all you need.

[Michael Barbaro]

So it is around 9:30am on Inauguration Day and we are headed to the Capitol. And as you can perhaps hear through.

[Peter Baker]

The microphone, hopefully not if I do my job well.

[Michael Barbaro]

It is really, really windy and very cold. So we are layered to the hilt, like five layers. Wool socks, double socked thermal underwear, two hats. Because we're going to spend a lot of this day outside.

[Jonathan Swan]

There it is.

[Donald Trump]

Yeah. Oh, that's a beautiful view.

[Michael Barbaro]

We're standing about a football field and a half away from the US Capitol. I am staring at the dome. And because it is so bone chillingly cold, the inauguration, which is normally held outside, facing the National Mall. This has been moved inside the Capitol in the rotunda, which we're looking at. And at this very moment, President Elect Trump and President Biden are at the White House. They're having tea. They're gonna come in a motorcade together to the Capitol. And we're looking at what we think is the exact spot they're gonna arrive. And it's very, very heavily fortified. We're surrounded by these tall metal gates. There are dozens of police officers.

[Jonathan Swan]

There's something happening.

[Michael Barbaro]

This is the motorcade. It's the longest motorcade I've ever seen, dozens and dozens of vehicles. And it is working its way to the eastern gate of the Capitol to deposit the two presidents inside the building for the inauguration. And Donald Trump is to be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. From the New York Times, I'm Michael Balbaro. This is the Daily on Monday, in the culmination of an extraordinary political comeback.

[Donald Trump]

Please raise your right hand and repeat after me.

[Peter Baker]

I, Donald John Trump, do solemnly swear.

[Donald Trump]

I, Donald John Trump, do solemnly swear.

[Peter Baker]

That I will.

[Michael Barbaro]

Donald Trump was officially sworn in as President of the United States for a second time, just four years after being voted out of office and being impeached and later criminally charged for trying to overturn that result, so help me God. Congratulations, Mr. President. Today, my colleague Peter Baker on the message Trump sent in his inaugural address, and Jonathan Swan on the actions Trump took during his first hours in office. It's Tuesday, January 21st. Peter, thank you for coming in the studio. It's nice to be here with you in person.

[Peter Baker]

I don't think I've ever done this in person with you.

[Michael Barbaro]

I don't think I've ever done this in person with you either.

[Peter Baker]

Aren't you glad you're here?

[Michael Barbaro]

Yes.

[Peter Baker]

You're here for a day of history. However way you look back on it, this is a day of history.

[Michael Barbaro]

Exactly. Because I got to talk to you in person. Peter set the scene for us inside the Capitol Rotunda as Donald Trump prepares to deliver this inaugural speech.

[Peter Baker]

Well, we see in the Capitol, inside the rotunda, this new power map of Washington. You see the outgoing president of the United States, Joe Biden, the outgoing Vice president, Kamala Harris, who lost to Trump in November, seated just a few feet away from the victors, from the new.

[Michael Barbaro]

Power felt like inches from the camera.

[Peter Baker]

Very close, probably uncomfortably so for both sides. Right? And behind the new president, behind Donald Trump and J.D. vance are family members, as you would expect, members of their incoming cabinet, as you would expect, congressional leaders, and these billionaires, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. And suddenly we see the new dynamics of power in Washington. It's a new crowd, and they're all deferring to him.

[Donald Trump]

Thank you very much, everybody. Well, thank you very, very much.

[Michael Barbaro]

So describe the speech itself. Once Trump begins to deliver it, the.

[Donald Trump]

Golden age of America begins right now.

[Peter Baker]

Well, the speech itself is Obviously American Carnage 2.0 on some level. Right.

[Donald Trump]

And we will not allow ourselves to be taken advantage of any longer.

[Peter Baker]

There is.

[Michael Barbaro]

Just explain that for those who may not remember the reference.

[Peter Baker]

First inauguration, who could forget that? But in 2017, of course, at his first inauguration, Donald Trump delivers this speech that becomes, you know, iconic, infamous, whatever word you want to use, describing an America that was very dystopian at the time, very grim, very dark, and unlike what most presidents do in their inaugural addresses. So much so that George W. Bush, who was sitting there, turns to Hillary Clinton and says, well, that was some weird shit.

[Donald Trump]

As we gather today, our government confronts a crisis of trust.

[Peter Baker]

This time around, eight years later, you hear the echoes of that speech again. In this speech, for many years, a.

[Donald Trump]

Radical and corrupt establishment has extracted power and wealth from our citizens while the pillars of our society lay broken and seemingly in complete disrepair.

[Peter Baker]

He's describing an America in decline, an America that is weak on the international stage, whose economy is weak at home.

[Donald Trump]

We now have a government that cannot manage even a simple crisis at home, while at the same time stumbling into a continuing catalog of catastrophic events abroad.

[Peter Baker]

What was different in this inaugural address compared to eight years ago is how central he makes himself as the solution to all these problems.

[Donald Trump]

My recent election is a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal and all of these many betrayals that have taken place.

[Peter Baker]

It's very much a speech of triumph, both politically, but also personally.

[Donald Trump]

Over the past eight years, I have been tested and challenged more than any president in our 250 year history. And I've learned a lot along the way. The journey to reclaim our republic has not been an easy one, that I can tell you.

[Peter Baker]

He was the central character in this speech in a way we don't often necessarily hear by new presidents.

[Donald Trump]

Those who wish to stop our cause have tried to take my freedom and indeed to take my life.

[Peter Baker]

He talks about, in fact, the assassination attempts against him last summer.

[Donald Trump]

Just a few months ago, in a beautiful Pennsylvania field, an assassin's bullet ripped through my ear. But I felt then, and believe even more so now, that my life was saved for a reason. I was saved by God to make America great again.

[Peter Baker]

And he says that God saved him to make America great again, which really takes that formulation, which he's played with over the months, even further than before. He is the savior now of the country.

[Donald Trump]

A tide of change is sweeping the country. Sunlight is pouring over the entire world, and America has the chance to seize this opportunity like never before.

[Michael Barbaro]

What this speech did not contain was an overture to those who didn't support him. We think of inaugural speeches as almost dutifully containing language that says, to those who didn't vote for me.

[Peter Baker]

Right.

[Michael Barbaro]

I offer you this message exactly. That was not in this speech.

[Peter Baker]

No. The words national unity were uttered.

[Donald Trump]

National unity is now returning to America and.

[Peter Baker]

But you wouldn't have heard it a lot in the rest of the speech, Right? He didn't say anything nice about his outgoing predecessor, Joe Biden, even though that's the tradition when a new president comes in to at least thank you for your service. Didn't do that. Didn't talk about bipartisanship.

[Donald Trump]

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 common sense.

[Peter Baker]

He instead went for some of these wedge issues right from the start.

[Donald Trump]

It will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two Genders, male and female.

[Peter Baker]

He said he's going to get rid of government programs that promote diversity and inclusion.

[Donald Trump]

I will also end the government policy of trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life.

[Peter Baker]

And he even said that he would reinstate military service members who were discharged for refusing to have a vaccine during the COVID pandemic, even pay them back.

[Michael Barbaro]

Pay, which is, of course, rolling back a very specific President Biden policy.

[Peter Baker]

Exactly.

[Donald Trump]

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.

[Peter Baker]

This is my seventh presidential inauguration, and this is not the way inauguration speeches are supposed to go. Right. They're supposed to be the lofty speech. They're supposed to be the large theme speech. Broad strokes. And here he makes this more like a State of the Union address, and he outlines one idea, one proposal after another, many of them divisive. It felt very different than a normal inaugural.

[Michael Barbaro]

Within that list, Peter, of things that Trump says he wants to do that made this feel State of the Union ish, as you said, what struck me was how much it strayed from Trump's traditional isolationism. Right. It was expansionist.

[Peter Baker]

Yes, exactly.

[Donald Trump]

Above all, 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.

[Peter Baker]

Rather than pulling back. It's about America expanding in a way not in a new war in the Middle east, not Iraq, Afghanistan kind of way, but in a territorial way, a very 19th century way of looking at the world.

[Donald Trump]

We have been treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made. And Panama's promise to us has been broken.

[Peter Baker]

He did talk about the Panama Canal, which is an issue that nobody had been thinking about for 40 some years. And he said it was a mistake to give it away. And we're taking it, and we're taking it back. Not just we're going to renegotiate this or that, we're taking it back.

[Michael Barbaro]

Right. And the implication being perhaps by force?

[Peter Baker]

Well, that's right. He hasn't ruled it out. And the other one, of course, was saying he had signed or was signing a proclamation.

[Donald Trump]

A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf.

[Peter Baker]

Of America, renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, which, again, is a very nationalist thing to do.

[Michael Barbaro]

And you're forgetting something, Peter.

[Donald Trump]

And we will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars. Launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.

[Michael Barbaro]

He's going to plant a US Flag, he claimed, on Mars, which is about as ambitious an expansion vision as I think any president has ever had.

[Peter Baker]

And there in the back row was Elon Musk, pumping his fists in the air and giving thumbs up. He loves that, of course, because SpaceX is his company and he was always talking about going to Mars.

[Michael Barbaro]

Right.

[Donald Trump]

From this day on, the United States of America will be a free, sovereign and independent nation. We will stand bravely, we will live proudly, we will dream boldly, and nothing will stand in our way because we are Americans. The future is ours. And our golden age has just begun. Thank you. God bless America. Thank you all. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.

[Michael Barbaro]

So, taken all together, how do you think we should understand this speech as a whole and what it means?

[Peter Baker]

Well, it's an aggressive speech, right? And it presages an aggressive term. This is not a president coming into office for the first time, having never spent a day in public office with the military. Remember in 2017 was the only president who was that inexperienced and he didn't know what he was doing by his own later admission, right. This time he knows what he's doing. He's not going to let, you know, mealy mouth establishment Republicans or military officers, any of these lawyers or any of these other people tell him no, he's not going to let them tell him, sorry, that's illegal. Sorry, that's unconstitutional, Sorry, that's unwise. No way he's gonna listen to that anymore.

[Michael Barbaro]

In that sense, this did not feel simply like a speech articulating a restoration because that would suggest I'm back just like I was before. What it sounds like he's saying is I am back, I am better prepared and I am capable now of transcending what my first presidency was. And as you said earlier, Peter, it is about me. And this term will be big and ambitious because I am. And the country, in his telling, is kind of him and he is the country. And they are so fused in this speech that it's hard to imagine him tolerating the country, not meeting his expectations. Because he and his expectations of the country, they're all so bound up, they're.

[Peter Baker]

All intertwined in there, right? He says, I have been tested over these last eight years and I've learned, right, what he's saying is the country has also been tested and it's learned that it wants him. I think that makes him feel very powerful in this moment, right, that he's got validation of the voters. And there's for him this sort of sense of destiny. And he is now tied in to the country. His identity is tied in as he presents it, with the identity of the country. If he was down, the country is down. If he succeeds, the country succeeds.

[Michael Barbaro]

And he is succeeding right now.

[Peter Baker]

He is succeeding right now. He is the most dominant force in American society today. He drives our conversation, he drives our debate. He even forces the opposition to respond to him on his terms. That may not last, but for the moment, he's got a lot of momentum going.

[Michael Barbaro]

Well, Peter, thank you very much.

[Peter Baker]

Thank you. Great to see you here in Washington.

[Michael Barbaro]

Great to be here. So now that Donald Trump has been sworn in and delivered his inaugural address, we wanted to head out into the streets of downtown Washington, where thousands of his supporters are milling around to understand how they are feeling now that it is official that he is president again. Are you here for the inauguration?

[Astad Herndon]

Yes.

[Michael Barbaro]

Where did you guys come from?

[Jonathan Swan]

Virginia.

[Michael Barbaro]

From Florida, Hawaii. I'm from Atlanta. Atlanta, Georgia. Fulton County, St. Mary's Ohio, South Arkansas, Louisiana. And those Cajuns love President Trump. And how are you feeling right now? Like, in a word, now that it's official that he's president again? Fabulous.

[Peter Baker]

Is there any other word?

[Michael Barbaro]

Fabulous.

[Astad Herndon]

Relieved.

[Donald Trump]

Ready.

[Jonathan Swan]

We're ready.

[Astad Herndon]

Very much ready.

[Michael Barbaro]

Yes.

[Jonathan Swan]

I'm excited, elated, hopeful.

[Donald Trump]

Hallelujah.

[Michael Barbaro]

And what's the most important thing you want to see him get done? Maybe in the next few hours through executive orders, but definitely, like in the next couple of days or weeks. First thing first, let's tackle these borders.

[Jonathan Swan]

Get our borders under control.

[Michael Barbaro]

You know, without borders, we don't have a country. You know what I mean? Without a front door, you really don't really have a house. You know, he's going to get rid of the WOKE policies. Yes. We're not going to be weak. Oh, my God.

[Peter Baker]

Yeah.

[Jonathan Swan]

I would hope that all the J6 prisoners would be released today because they didn't commit crimes. They were using justice in a bad way.

[Michael Barbaro]

So many people voted for him and he is not going to disappoint us, not even on the first day. He never does. After the break, Jonathan Swan on what Trump actually did on day one. We'll be right back.

[Jonathan Swan]

It's another wild weeknight. So you pick an easy New York Times cooking sheet pan recipe. But when you open the pantry, no onions. And as usual, somehow you're low on olive oil. With instacart. There's another way where quality ingredients don't require a road trip where the contents of your pantry don't define your meal. Where you can click shop ingredients on Instacart. On New York Times cooking recipes for delivery in as fast as 30 minutes. Learn more at nytcooking.com Instacart that's nytcooking.com InstaCart Hey, I'm Tracy Mumford. You can join me every weekday morning for the headlines from the New York Times.

[Peter Baker]

Now we're about to see a spectacle that we've never seen before.

[Jonathan Swan]

It's a show that catches you up on the biggest news stories of the day. I'm here in Red Square. We'll put you on the ground where news is unfolding.

[Michael Barbaro]

I just got back from a trip.

[Peter Baker]

Out to the front lines and every.

[Jonathan Swan]

Soldier and bring you the analysis and expertise you can only get from the Times newsroom.

[Michael Barbaro]

I just can't emphasize enough how extraordinary this moment is.

[Jonathan Swan]

Look for the headlines wherever you get your podcasts.

[Michael Barbaro]

Jonathan, I want you to pick up with the second half of Donald Trump's day when he's suddenly endowed with the full powers of the presidency. What does he do with that power?

[Donald Trump]

So I'm going to go right over to here and I'm going to sign in front of you. Is that okay? Good.

[Astad Herndon]

He sits in a in the Capital One arena in D.C. picks up his Sharpie and he starts signing executive orders.

[Donald Trump]

Why don't you say what I'm saying?

[Astad Herndon]

Sure. The first item that President Trump is signing is the rescission of 78 Biden era executive actions. And you have his staff secretary standing there announcing each executive order to the federal government, ordering the restoration of freedom of speech and preventing government censorship of free speech going forward. And then at the end of all this, he stands up and throws the Sharpies into the crowd like he's a baseball star throwing a cap or a ball or something like that. I've never seen anything like it. And then he walks out, leaves the arena and heads over to the Oval Office and keep signing executive orders for the cameras. Essentially, it's saying things are changing now, starting right now. And he wanted that to be the message from the outset.

[Michael Barbaro]

So talk us through some of the specific orders that really stand out.

[Astad Herndon]

Immigration is probably the area that they spent most time thinking about. Stephen Miller, who's one of his most important advisors, has been overseeing the entire process of developing these executive orders. And his most important issue is immigration. It's also Donald Trump's. So every baby born in America is guaranteed citizenship, and he's trying to get rid of that for people born to undocumented immigrants, trying to eliminate birthright citizenship. It's guaranteed in the Constitution. Not clear how he'll do that. There's going to be a lawsuit. We'll find out. But. So that's one example. Designating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations is another. Declaring a national emergency at the border. A lot of these actions were strongly foreshadowed in his campaign. Basically, what they've been doing for the last two years, three years, is figuring out all the legal tools available to them to effectively seal the southern border, to end asylum, to freeze the refugee program in this country, and also to begin what Trump has called the largest deportation operation in American history.

[Michael Barbaro]

Right.

[Astad Herndon]

They know what they're doing, and they know how to affect the machinery of government far better than they did in 2017. So I would expect to see real changes happening in the immigration space with the force of law behind them.

[Michael Barbaro]

So, beyond immigration, what stood out in the executive orders?

[Astad Herndon]

A big part of what Trump is doing in these executive orders is unwinding the Biden administration's policies, in particular in climate. And you're seeing him get rid of subsidies for electric cars. You're seeing him make it much easier to drill for oil in protected areas. He's also pulling America out of multilateral deals and institutions. He's pulling America back out of the Paris climate Accords, which he had removed America from in his first term. Biden put America back into the deal. Now he's taking it, Reversing the reversal. Exactly. And he's withdrawing America from the World Health Organization.

[Michael Barbaro]

That seems like a fairly big deal.

[Astad Herndon]

Yeah, it is a big deal. And it's not just a big deal on its own terms. In terms of America's cooperation with other countries, you know, with global health. I think it's also a signal for what he might do with other multilateral institutions. Donald Trump has always been skeptical of multilateral institutions. He's always been skeptical of the World Trade Organization. What's he going to do now in the second term? So it's important on its own terms, but it's also potentially a signal for other multilateral institutions that America is a part of, that maybe America will be reassessing its global relationships. So those are the high profile ones, but there's actually an order that hasn't been getting a lot of attention. And I think it's really important and actually could foreshadow where things are heading with Trump. The order is titled Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government. When you actually read the Order. The preamble asserts as fact that the Biden administration has acted lawlessly.

[Michael Barbaro]

Huh.

[Astad Herndon]

Okay. And then it directs all agencies to produce reports on this. So whether it be, you know, through doj, through the intelligence agencies, whatever, these reports have to be produced and sent to the White House. Well, if you have asserted as fact that this thing is happening, and then you're telling your cabinet agencies, go and find me evidence of this thing and send it back to me, at a minimum, you're naming a bunch of Biden officials, you know, damaging their reputations, whatever. But more likely, perhaps, or equally likely, is you're setting up a roadmap for prosecution.

[Michael Barbaro]

Right.

[Astad Herndon]

For investigation, etc. So. Right.

[Michael Barbaro]

The president's basically ordering every executive agency to go dig up potentially incriminating evidence that could be used against the outgoing administration and its personnel.

[Astad Herndon]

Correct. That seems important to me, particularly when you have a campaign where one of the themes was retribution, and then this is sort of the executive order version of actually, yeah, let's do a little bit of retribution.

[Michael Barbaro]

Right. Because it could become a tool of that retribution.

[Astad Herndon]

Pretty blatantly. Yes.

[Michael Barbaro]

I think we have to end and end quite meaningfully with something that wasn't an executive order per se, but flowed from the executive pen, which was President Trump's pardons.

[Astad Herndon]

Yes. And we knew these were coming, but they're pretty stunning. He is going to pardon More than 1500 people who were prosecuted for their roles in the January 6th attack on the Capitol. No matter what you did, you're getting out of prison. Now. There's 14 of them, I think the number is, who are getting their sentences commuted, but everyone's getting out. Whether you're a proud boy, whether you're an oath keeper, doesn't matter. You're getting out of prison. The fact that he went that far says a lot to me about how Trump plans to use his power as president.

[Michael Barbaro]

Just explain that.

[Astad Herndon]

Well, that's not the action of someone who's operating cautiously or with any amount of restraint. If you're basically saying, even though, you know, the majority of Americans do not support pardoning, all the January sixes, certainly not the ones you know, who committed acts of violence, that if the fact that he feels empowered enough to do that anyway tells me a lot about his mindset right now, his confidence, his comfort with exerting a maximalist power. I thought that of all the things he did today, that was the most revealing.

[Michael Barbaro]

It's quite possible that the history books will look back on this mass pardoning as the defining act of this first day of Trump's presidency. And I think it arguably speaks to something that our colleague Peter Baker told us when we asked him to analyze Trump's inaugural speech. And he talked about just how much Trump is at this moment telling the story of America in relation to himself and kind of fusing man and country in the way he talks. And now he's pardoning people who the justice system charged in many cases found guilty of serious, some cases, violent crimes, he would argue, because a weaponized justice system mistreated them. But by many people's lights, what he's really saying is their crimes don't matter. And this brings me back to what Peter said. Their crimes don't matter because they were done in his name.

[Astad Herndon]

For him, watching Trump today brought together so much of what he's done throughout this campaign, which is the story he's told about this victory. It's not just an electoral victory. It's a victory, you know, mandated by God. And he's connected all elements of his story since he left office the first time with this sort of divine mission. It's, I'm a martyr. They're only prosecuting me for you. And of course, all these people who committed acts of violence in my name, they are righteous warriors, too. They are martyrs, too. And me coming back into office is justice for our side. It's the triumph of good over evil. And Donald Trump has always seen the world in this black and white way. If you're with him, you're on the side of sunshine and glory and everything's great sunshine. He literally said, the sun will shine in or something to that effect. And the other side is, you know, a scene out of Mad Max apocalypse, death and destruction and crime and all manner of evil. And that's what today was really all about. It was Donald Trump returning as an instrument of God. And now that he's seen this arc of the story and the political power in their cause, now they are righteous martyrs and they've been saved.

[Michael Barbaro]

And so, in his telling, has the entire country.

[Astad Herndon]

Exactly.

[Michael Barbaro]

Well, Jonathan, thank you very much.

[Astad Herndon]

Thanks for having me.

[Michael Barbaro]

On Monday evening, the families and friends of January 6th rioters celebrated Trump's pardons outside a jail in Washington where several convicted rioters remain imprisoned.

[Donald Trump]

We are so grateful to President Trump. Promises made, promises kept. Promises made, promises kept.

[Michael Barbaro]

In some cases, Trump's pardons resulted in the immediate release of rioters. A spokesperson for Enrique Tarrio, a former leader of the Proud Boys, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in the assault on the Capitol said that Tarrio had walked out of a federal prison in Louisiana on Monday afternoon as a free man. We'll be right back.

[Tracy Mumford]

Hey everyone, it's Astad Herndon, political reporter for the New York Times. When I became a journalist, I made a promise to my readers. Like the way the doctors take an oath to their patients. I committed to make sure I'm getting to the truth, no matter which party, business, organization or person I'm reporting on. That's what the New York Times has been doing for more than a century. We believe the public deserves the right to make up their mind based on the facts. If you want to support this kind of work, you can subscribe to the New york [e-mail] subscribe here's what else.

[Michael Barbaro]

You need to know. Today, in his final act as president, Joe Biden issued a wave of preemptive pardons to those who fear that President Trump will prosecute them over the next four years. The pardons were given to members of Biden's own family, including his brothers, every member of the congressional committee that investigated January 6, including its vice chairwoman, Liz Cheney, and the government's lead scientist during the COVID pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci. In a statement, Biden said that while he believes in the justice system, these are exceptional circumstances. Following Trump's swearing in ceremony, Biden boarded a military plane bound for California, where he was expected to begin a vacation as a private citizen and a former president. Today's episode was produced by Clare Tenisketter, Asta Chaturvedi and Will Reed. It was edited by Rachel Quester and Mark George, contains original music by Dan Powell, Mary Lozano and Sophia Landman and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Runberg and Ben Landsberg of Wonderly. Special thanks to Efim Shapiro. That's it for the Daily I'm Michael Balbaro. See you tomorrow.

[Jonathan Swan]

With Schwab Investing Themes it's easy to invest in ideas you believe in, like online music and videos, artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and more. Schwab's research process uncovers emerging trends. Then their technology curates relevant stocks into themes. Choose from over 40 themes, buy all the stocks in a theme as is or customized to better fit your investing goals, all in a few clicks. Schwab Investing Themes is not intended to be investment advice or a recommendation of any stock or investment strategy. Learn [e-mail] ThematicInvesting.