The Evening: Trump is sworn in as president

Also, Biden issued several final-hour pardons.

View in browser|nytimes.com January 20, 2025 By Matthew Cullen Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Monday. Trump's Day 1 Biden's final pardons Plus, the college football championship President Trump speaking during his inauguration inside the Capitol Rotunda. Kenny Holston/The New York Times Donald Trump is president At 12:01 p.m. Eastern today, Donald Trump was sworn in as president of the United States. His return to the White House for a second term caps a political comeback unlike any other in U.S. history. He was voted out of office, impeached, indicted and convicted of 34 felonies. Now, Trump is leading the country again. Cold weather in Washington caused the inauguration to be moved inside the Capitol Rotunda, the capacity of which narrowed the crowd to several hundred V.I.P.s. There, Trump delivered an inaugural speech vowing to save the U.S. from decline. Read an annotated version, and see the words he used most. "The golden age of America begins right now," Trump declared. "My recent election is a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal and all these many betrayals that have taken place and give people back their faith, their wealth, their democracy and indeed their freedom." In his address, Trump largely dispensed with the broad unifying strokes that most presidents have turned to on the occasion. "One of the things that was striking about his speech was how much it was about him and his journey as much as it was about the country," our chief White House correspondent Peter Baker told me. "He said that God saved him from an assassin's bullet so he could save the country." At 78, Trump became the oldest person ever inaugurated as president, eclipsing Joe Biden. He also became the second person to serve nonconsecutive terms as president, joining Grover Cleveland. Melania: The first lady wore a hat with a brim so broad that it shaded her eyes — giving her an air of inaccessibility. President Trump taking part in a signing ceremony at the Capitol.  Pool photo by Melina Mara Trump is planning big changes Just hours after taking office, Trump began to sign as many as 100 executive orders, many designed to reverse Biden administration policies and to reshape the federal government to align with his own priorities. Among them, Trump said he was planning to issue an order declaring a national emergency at the border, allowing the deployment of troops, and a national energy emergency, giving him the ability to speed up permits for pipelines. He also is planning to sign orders designating cartel organizations as "global terrorists," withdrawing from the Paris climate accord and ending Biden administration support for electric vehicles. Here's a breakdown of the expected executive orders. Moments after Trump took the oath of office, his administration shut down an app that allows migrants to secure appointments for admission into the U.S. through legal ports of entry. An announcement on the program's website said that "existing appointments have been canceled." What's next: TikTok is expecting Trump to stall a federal ban of the app. Trump did not immediately impose tariffs, as he had previously suggested. Instead, he ordered his administration to study the issue. Transition aides asked scores of senior career diplomats to resign. Trump plans to order the end of birthright citizenship, a constitutional guarantee that would very likely be difficult to eliminate. Trump said he would release records relating to the assassinations of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King. Joe Biden delivered a farewell address before departing Washington. Erin Schaff/The New York Times Biden issued final-hour pardons to thwart Trump reprisals Joe Biden left Washington today as a former president with a dismal approval rating and a complicated legacy. In his final hours in power, he used his pardon power to thwart potential political prosecutions by his successor. Biden pardoned five members of his own family, including his two brothers, as well as other figures who have been targeted by Trump, like former Representative Liz Cheney, retired Gen. Mark Milley and Anthony Fauci. Biden also commuted the life sentence for Leonard Peltier, a Native American activist who was convicted of killing two F.B.I. agents in 1975. Peltier could serve the remainder of his time in home confinement. Destruction in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, today.  Abdel Kareem Hana/Associated Press A cease-fire took hold in Gaza When the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas went into effect yesterday, celebrations replaced explosions, and hundreds of humanitarian aid trucks began rolling into Gaza. Israeli hostages returned to jubilant embraces with relatives and friends, and Palestinian prisoners were released. Here's the latest. In Gaza: In video footage shared with The Times, a father and son returned to their neighborhood to find it destroyed. In Israel: Three hostages returned on Sunday — Romi Gonen, Emily Damari and Doron Steinbrecher. More top news California: Forecasters warned of a "particularly dangerous situation" today in the Los Angeles area, with powerful, sweeping winds and low relative humidity levels adding to the high fire risk. Weather: The Gulf Coast braced for a rare winter storm that could bring snow to Houston and New Orleans. Davos: In recent years, C.E.O.s have emphasized diversity and environmental initiatives at the World Economic Forum. This year, the vibes have shifted. Colombia: At least 80 people are dead and more than 18,000 have been forced to flee their homes amid fierce clashes between two rival armed groups on the border with Venezuela. Britain: The suspect in a knife attack at a dance class last July in Southport pleaded guilty to murdering three children and attempting to kill 10 other people. India: The man convicted of raping and murdering a trainee doctor in Kolkata, a crime that led to months of protests over the response by authorities, was sentenced to life in prison. Olympics: Medals from the Paris Games are falling apart. TIME TO UNWIND Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports, via Usa Today Sports, via Reuters Con It's championship time The first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff is down to its final two teams. Ohio State and Notre Dame will play tonight at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time for a national championship. Here's what to expect. Both teams reached the final only after bouncing back from tough losses. Notre Dame dropped a shocking game to Northern Illinois in September, and Ohio State suffered an embarrassing defeat to Michigan in November. This quiz will help you pick which team to root for. The Corneliani men's fashion show in Milan on Saturday.  Corneliani Dancing down the catwalk At men's fashion week in Milan, my colleague Jacob Gallagher went to one dance performance after another. He was there to see the latest in men's clothing, but designers are increasingly sending their models out to the stage with a choreographed routine. For more: Prada caused pants anxiety with its sexiest men's runway show in recent memory. Maria Tallchief in her dressing room in 1954.  Sam Falk/The New York Times Dinner table topics Maria Tallchief: Widely considered America's first prima ballerina, her centennial year is being celebrated in New York. 50 seasons later: We picked out the 13 greatest "S.N.L." commercial parodies. A renaissance: A robust publishing ecosystem has emerged in Africa, opening up possibilities unimaginable to previous generations of writers. Is it a scam? We asked experts if LED face masks actually work. WHAT TO DO TONIGHT Linda Xiao for The New York Times Cook: This smoothie hits all the right notes when you're craving a cinnamon bun. Watch: "Year 10" is one of the best science fiction movies to stream right now. Read: Want to get sucked into a black hole? Try Marcus Chown's new book. Care: Here's how to revive your worn-out wooden spoons. Exercise: Keep yourself moving with one of these simple but effective workouts. Compete: Take this week's Flashback history quiz. Play: Here are today's Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here. ONE LAST THING Mikayla Whitmore for The New York Times 'The Super Bowl for Excel nerds' Last month, a dozen men faced off at a high-pressure tournament in Las Vegas, where a roaring crowd cheered them along. The competition, streamed on ESPN: the Microsoft Excel World Championship. At stake was a $5,000 prize, a wrestling-style championship belt and the title of world's best spreadsheeter. "You'd never see this with Google Sheets," one fan said. "You'd never get this level of passion." Have a well-organized evening. Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Matthew Bryan Denton was our photo editor today. We welcome your feedback. Write to us at evening@nytimes.com. Writer: Matthew Cullen Editors: Carole Landry, Whet Moser, Justin Porter, Jonathan Wolfe Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. 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