With the government shutdown averted over the weekend thanks to the passing of a stopgap spending bill, attention turns to President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration. On Sunday, Dec. 22, he took to the podium to touch on several topics as he nears Inauguration Day.
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Trump, who will become the 47th President of the United States on Jan. 20, 2025, spoke for over an hour to a crowd at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest in Phoenix, Arizona. It was his first rally-type speech since winning the election last month.
“That’s what I call it: a ‘common sense revolution’ that’s coming soon to America, to a theater near you, right?” Trump said. “But it’s coming to you through your president, Donald J. Trump. The people have given us their trust and in return, we’re going to give them the best Day 1, the biggest first week, and the most extraordinary first 100 days of any president in American history.”
In his address, Trump repeated his plans to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China to target illegal immigration and drugs entering the U.S. He also mentioned his administration will create an ad campaign to warn Americans of the dangers of drugs like fentanyl.
Regarding Russia and Ukraine, Trump described the war as “horrible” and called for its end, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to meet with him “as soon as possible.”
Trump also brought up the Panama Canal, claiming the country of Panama is charging excessive fees to for the U.S. Navy and American businesses to use the passageway between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. If the fees don’t change, Trump threatened for America to take back control of the canal. The U.S. owned the canal until it was handed over to Panama in 1999.
The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, reacted to Trump’s comments, saying on social media, “Every square meter of the Panama Canal and the surrounding area belongs to Panama, and will continue to.”
🇵🇦 Mensaje del Presidente José Raúl Mulino 🇵🇦 pic.twitter.com/DMXU8qAuNT
— José Raúl Mulino (@JoseRaulMulino) December 22, 2024
Trump responded to that with a post saying, “We’ll see about that.”
Also in his speech, the president-elect addressed the criticism he is facing concerning the influence of his ally Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Some Democrats have mockingly labeled him “President Musk.” Trump called those allegations just another “hoax.”
“No, he’s not taking the presidency,” Trump said. “I like having smart people. They’re on a new kick – ‘Russia, Russia, Russia,’ ‘Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine,’ all the different hoaxes and the new one is ‘President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk.’ No, that’s not happening but Elon’s done an amazing job. Isn’t it nice to have smart people that we can rely on?”
Trump joked that Musk, who will head the new Department of Government Efficiency, couldn’t become president even if he wanted to because the tech billionaire wasn’t even born in this country; Musk was born in South Africa.
