Trump is back and we’re already getting deja vu. As was typical of his last time in office, Trump’s inauguration yesterday provided more headlines in a single day than was typical of the Biden administration across entire weeks. Some people find that terrifying. Others find it electrifying. Everyone finds it overwhelming.
So, for the sake of clarity, we’ve sifted out some of the biggest moments from the inauguration from all the pomp, pageantry and trumpet-playing. From Elon Musk’s suspect salute to Jeff Bezos’s wife Lauren Sanchez’s inauguration attire and the wildest of Trump’s many, many breakneck policy changes, here is everything you may have missed from a genuinely insane day in global politics.
1. Melania dodging Trump’s affection with the help of a wide brimmed hat
Melania Trump stepped out for the inauguration yesterday in a distinctive outfit which some have praised… and others have likened to the Hamburglar. Her look was made up of a monochrome silk wool coat and skirt by New York designer Adam Lippes, a choice which some have decided is a statement about the American economy.
It also included a scene-stealing wide brimmed hat which made it so that the First Lady couldn’t properly kiss her husband, leading to an air kiss that will go down in the history books.
2. Elon Musk’s questionable salute
Richest man in the world and new head of the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk, gave a frenetic speech last night that involved a very angular and suspect salute to the crowd.
Many have compared it to a Roman salute (also known as the Fascist salute) and the Sieg Heil, as favoured by Hitler, but regardless of what it actually was, it’s being celebrated as a win by right wing extremists.
Many prominent leaders of neo-Nazi groups, including Christopher Pohlhaus, the leader of the notorious neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe and Christopher Hood, who founded the New England race-separatist movement NSC-131, are posting about the salute and taking it as a win for their cause.
3. Trump declaring there were only two genders
In a sobering moment, Donald Trump made an executive order shortly after he was sworn in as president to change the US government's policies on gender and diversity, following promises he made on the campaign trail. This order designated that there are two genders only — male and female — and he also declared that they cannot be changed.
"As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female," Trump said during his inaugural address on Monday.
On top of this, Trump reversed orders that his White House team called "unpopular, inflationary, illegal, and radical” including a Biden directive aimed at preventing discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation. Another directive he revoked was designed to address "racial equity and support for underserved communities."
4. Trump withdraws from the Paris agreement and says ‘drill, baby, drill’
In another of his bombshell first-day policy changes, President Trump withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. The agreement (which the majority of the world is signed up to) ensures that countries commit to reducing emissions, adapt to climate change impacts and provide financing to developing countries to help ease climate change.
But, just a week on from wildfires that burned down significant portions of LA County in the state of California, Trump has officially decided against climate-forward action and has withdrawn from the agreement. Trump also vowed that the US would embark on a new age of oil and gas exploration.
"We will drill, baby, drill," he said in one inaugural address, before calling the Paris agreement a “ripoff” during a second speech following his swearing-in.
5. Lauren Sanchez’s very Lauren Sanchez choice of attire
It was hard to miss the billionaire tech boy FROW at the inauguration, with Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai and Mark Zuckerberg (CEOs of Amazon, SpaceX, Google and Meta respectively) all present.
Bezos was the only one to have a partner by his side and, in case you didn’t know, that’s his fiancée, former news anchor and current helicopter enthusiast, Lauren Sanchez. Sanchez is known for her slightly gaudy fashion sense (sorry Lauren) and yesterday was no exception.
To the inauguration of a president, she wore a white blazer suit by Alexander McQueen with a visible lace, lingerie-esque bodice beneath. The reaction has been unfavourable towards Sanchez, with a notable response coming from Selling Sunset star Christine Quinn (who would know a thing or two about gaudy outfits), who said: “Jeff Bezos’s wife strutting into the presidential inauguration in lingerie with her chesticles hoisted like NASA was launching them into orbit? Peak Selling Sunset season 2 energy… Cute outfit, sweetheart, but wrong place.”
6. Signing to leave WHO
Just five years on from a global pandemic, Trump has decided that the USA needs to leave the World Health Organisation (WHO). He signed the executive order yesterday to begin the process of withdrawing the US from the organisation, which helps to control epidemic and endemic diseases and has a general aim of trying to achieve the highest possible level of health for all the world's people.
"Oooh, that's a big one," a newly inaugurated Trump said as he signed the document after arriving back at the White House.
7. Hillary Clinton laughing at decision to rename Gulf of Mexico
Trump’s former opponent Hillary Clinton made her feelings known about some of the new President’s policies during the inauguration, especially one Trump has concocted for the Gulf of Mexico. “A short time from now we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America,” Trump said in a speech at the Rotunda of the US Capitol.
Hillary Clinton can’t contain her laughter as Trump says he’s changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. pic.twitter.com/FgFR1dd4G6
— Adam Schwarz (@AdamJSchwarz) January 20, 2025
Clinton, sat behind Trump and beside her husband, former US president Bill Clinton, can be seeking looking down and chuckling, her shoulder movements barely concealing her laughter, while Trump made the decree. Also looking on were Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, who looked pained.
