Author: Michelle Dryden

Today has been an “unbelievable” day for the 45th United States President, Donald J. Trump — President Trump responded to a CNN reporter during the Inauguration Parade.

Many thought this day would never come: For better or worse, a billionaire businessman with no public sector experience has become the president of the United States. Liberals are horrified, moderate Republicans are displeased, and the incoming Trump administration is alarmingly unprepared to take the reins. Trump, the controversial real estate scion and former reality TV star, delivered an impressive Inaugural Address and relished in his success today.

Some are cheering Trump as the take-charge outsider we need to end Washington dysfunction, while others fear that he is an incompetent blowhard who will provide only anger and outrage instead of leadership and guidance.

With little evidence as to how Trump will actually operate as America’s chief executive, the press hangs on his every word and searches for clues. Will he be as aggressive as he portrayed himself during his campaign, or will he relax into a hands-off delegator?

Donald Trump’s inauguration address is being examined as a preview of how the Washington outsider will run his Oval Office. Like virtually all of Trump’s politicking thus far, it is far from placid.

From the very beginning, Trump struck a strong populist tone, insisting that his presidency would return power “back to you, the people.” This is certainly a swipe at the outgoing Democratic administration of Barack Obama, who was accused by conservatives of engaging in significant federal overreach with the Affordable Care Act.

But the jab was not intended solely for the departing Democratic administration, but also at moderate Republicans: Trump proclaimed seconds later that “the establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country,” echoing his consistent displeasure with GOP elder statesmen.

Trump then addressed the woes of the nation, but saw them through a staunchly conservative lens: “inner cities, rusted out factories…an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of all knowledge…the crime and the gangs and the drugs.”

The comment about the education system being “flush with cash” will undoubtedly ruffle feathers, especially among K-12 public school teachers who have faced recent budget cuts. The focus on crime, gangs, and drugs as prominent ailments of America implies that president Trump will continue the controversial “war on drugs” and insist on harsh sentencing guidelines.

“This American carnage stops right here and stops right now” is a line that will divide citizens, with some praising Trump as a tough-on-crime advocate of order and others criticizing him as a proto-dictator looking to exaggerate problems and seek scapegoats.

Doubling down on order, Trump insisted that America had allowed “for the very sad depletion of our military,” implying that he will seek to increase defense spending.

He criticized foreign trade and foreign nations as eroding our economic strength and draining the middle class.

Though the last portion of Trump’s speech was more positive, seeking unity, he re-emphasized some key points that could be considered controversial: Biblical values, staunch support of military and law enforcement, and a criticism of “all talk and no action” politicians. Liberal critics of the “blue wall of silence” and the military-industrial complex are undoubtedly wary.

Though he remained a populist and was true to his brand, eschewing the usual Republican line of being pro-business and pro-free trade, Trump did signal an alliance with the defense hawk wing of the GOP by vowing to restore military funding. The prominent reference of Biblical values may have been intended as an olive branch to religious conservatives, many of whom have been ambivalent about supporting the former Republican nominee due to his extramarital affairs. Nevertheless, his strongest vow, throughout his address, was to the people.

By promising to never let the American people down, Donald Trump is taking a substantial risk. True to form, he chose an optimistic, aggressive message of guaranteed growth and success. He is playing to the crowd, promising results, but he stands to fall hard in 2020 if his administration has not delivered unparalleled security and prosperity.

This begs the question of whether or not Trump has considered re-election strategies. In an era where every utterance, tweet, or text is saved online forever, the ambitious promises made in an inauguration address could quickly become opposition fodder when miracles don’t occur. Remember George Bush Sr. and “no new taxes”?

All in all, Trump’s inauguration address had few major surprises. He did not deviate from the themes and tones of his unorthodox presidential campaign, which made ample use of tough talk and confrontation. He stuck to his guns on destroying ISIS, “bring[ing] back our borders,” and getting people “off welfare.” One thing he did not mention, however, was health care. And, there was also no explicit reference to a border wall. Does this signal that Trump is concerned about his ability to accomplish those two major reforms as originally planned?

It was a speech full of confidence, with a dash of defiance, and with little show of willingness to compromise. Liberals likely hated it, and conservatives probably loved it. In sum, Trump’s first speech as president was consistent with his brand, with the exact same tone as his controversial campaigns. He continued with his theme to “Make America Great Again.”