To read the inaugural speech, click here (whitehouse.gov)
To watch a recording of the speech and the oath of office, click here (cspan; speech begins at about 3 mins)
President Trump shows class in victory, click here (USA Today)
To learn more about President Trump, click here (Wikipedia) or here (nat’l GOP)
SJCRP Chairman Nathan Butler writes:
Do you remember when Barack Obama was inaugurated as president of the United States? Celebrities competed to attend the inauguration, and shortly after he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Simply for being Barack Obama. He hadn’t even done anything yet.
Fast forward to Donald Trump. The hysterical paranoia in the national press. The sulking celebrities. I am not a fan of these people, and far from being a snub it makes me appreciate our new president more. I’m fairly certain far-left academia is in a feverish fury too.
It remains to be seen what lesson we should learn from this last election. Did democrats flub it with their fixation on far-left candidates like Bernie Sanders? Did Donald Trump win it with his widely noted willingness to say exactly what he thinks? Does this herald a new era of conservative leadership?
I honestly don’t know. The election was very close. I guess as party leaders we’re supposed to say that the democrats are over. I believe such hubris just makes people distrust us as yes-men. After Barack Obama won there were countless editorials about how the Republican party was over. Let’s not make the same silly mistake.
We need to start preparing now. Democrats believe they simply didn’t run a candidate extreme enough to mobilize the base. And with such narrow tolerances between winning and losing we cannot afford laxity.
We understand that there is a certain level of ambivalence among some, including in our party. Instead of leaving, stay, and help shape the party. We invite everyone to give our new president a chance. May God bless America!
PCO and Orcas resident Rick Boucher later wrote (1/25):
“What a relief.” There I said it. I was a NeverTrump voter. I did not vote for the man. And, “No, I did not vote for Hillary.” Now, who is President? Donald Trump. Well then let us work with that. Time to move forward. I have entered into a state of “Trust, but Verify”. I am very pleased with what I have seen thus far. Policies and Nominations appear to be very good. Some of the nuances of the Trump persona are to be expected. I expect the NeverTrump attributes will glare at me at times. Actions, though, speak loads. The actions have been very good, by and large. I am a bit eager to see if Congress, if our new President crosses the Constitutional line, to see if Congress stands up for themselves or just lets him bulldoze them like they let the previous President. And if they do, how will he react? I do not think President Trump should over extend his power to truncate President Obama’s over extensions. What is the right approach/solution for fixing those issues? It will be interesting the next two years. The first week is more than interesting. Feels like a win. A lot of work to do going forward.