Donald Trump’s inauguration speech was unusually “low-energy”, according to a body language expert.
Known for his energetic and often erratic public addresses, complete with music and crowd interaction, the US president presented a stark contrast during his inauguration on Monday. Trump, who remained almost motionless and delivered what was described as a “low-energy” speech, appeared completely different, the expert suggested.
The reason behind this change in demeanour, according to Mark Bowden, is Trump’s reliance on the teleprompter due to the gravity of the occasion. Mr Bowden observed: “Teleprompters are up for Trump in the optimism that he will stick to the speech written for him.
“He has lower energy because he has to stick with the speech and not free-wheel it. His natural speech is very repetitive. There is no repetition in this.” Bowden told the Irish Star: “He’s clearly reading from the script.”
In his speech, Trump made the bold claim that divine intervention during an assassination attempt last summer was the reason he could become the next president of the United States. Trump reflected on his presidency, saying: “Over the past eight years, I have been tested and challenged more than any president in our 250-year history … Those who wish to stop our cause have tried to take my freedom and indeed to take my life.”
He said: “Just a few months ago, in a beautiful Pennsylvania field, an assassin’s bullet ripped through my ear, but I felt then and believe, even more so now that my life was saved for a reason. I was saved by God to make America Great Again.”
Trump began erasing Joe Biden’s legacy immediately after taking office as the nation’s 47th president, pardoning nearly all of his supporters who rioted at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and issuing a blizzard of executive orders that signal his desire to remake American institutions. Four years after being voted out of the White House, Trump has a second chance to launch what he called “a golden age” for the country.
He signed orders for increasing border security, designating drug cartels as foreign terrorist organisations, limiting birthright citizenship, freezing new regulations and establishing a task force for reducing the size of the federal government. He also rescinded dozens of directives issued by Biden, including those relating to climate change and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Trump said that walking back into the already-remodelled Oval Office after his inauguration was “one of the better feelings I’ve ever had.” Unlike during his first term, when new staff members scrambled to figure out what exactly their president was trying to achieve, Trump moved rapidly and methodically to advance his agenda on Monday.
His first action after arriving at the White House was pardoning about 1,500 people charged in connection with the January 6 attack, even if they had been convicted of assaulting police officers. Trump commuted the sentences of another 14 people, including leaders of the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.