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The National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for most of California’s Los Angeles and Ventura counties on Tuesday for the area’s “extremely low relative humidity and periods of gusty offshore winds.”

The weather service said its “Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag warning has ended, but dangerous fire weather conditions persist through Thursday or Friday.” Northeast winds will remain “gusty” in the hills and mountains, the service said in a statement. Low humidities are set to continue. 

Some areas will experience a lull in the winds Tuesday night into Wednesday, but extremely dry conditions will continue and winds will strengthen again late Wednesday, according to the weather service. The Red Flag Warning covers most of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties through 8 p.m. Thursday.

Earlier Tuesday, the weather service said there was an extreme risk of fire weather over parts of Southern California. The service said winds of 32 to 64 kilometers per hour, combined with “stronger winds in the terrain, low relative humidity, and dry fuels, have contributed to the dangerous conditions.”

Strong winds sparked some scattered fires Tuesday in Los Angeles, but alert firefighters quickly brought the fires under control.

At least 27 people have died in a series of wildfires across the Los Angeles area during the past two weeks as Santa Ana winds mixed with dry conditions on the ground to quickly spread blazes.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger has called for an outside investigation into the evacuation notification process for residents of western Altadena, near the Eaton Fire, one of several that erupted across Los Angeles. A report in the Los Angeles Times says evacuation orders for western Altadena were delayed for hours.

“From what I have been told, it was a night of pure chaos for both fire and first responders,” Barger told The Times. The county supervisor said she has “deep concerns” about what happened. Residents told the Times that by the time they received evacuation orders, many of the homes in the area already were on fire. 

Seventeen people are reported to have died in the Eaton fire.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said an executive order she signed Tuesday is designed to curb the flow of toxic debris from the region’s fires and protect the area’s beaches and oceans.   

“This is to prevent additional damage to areas already ravaged by fire and also to protect our watershed, beaches and ocean from toxic runoff,” the mayor said. City workers will remove toxic materials and set up barriers to direct the flow of debris into the sewer system. 

Meteorologists say rain forecast for the region will begin late Friday and last until early Saturday. National Weather Service meteorologist Bryan Lewis said “In terms of ending the fire season, it’s probably not going to be enough for that. But it’ll certainly help a little bit.”
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Representative Elise Stefanik, President Donald Trump’s nominee to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, faced questions at her Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday. The high-ranking House Republican told lawmakers she would advance Trump’s “America First” agenda at the international body. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more.
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Twenty-two Democratic-led U.S. states sued Tuesday to try to block President Donald Trump from ending birthright U.S. citizenship for the children of undocumented migrants living in the country. 

The suit by the states, joined by the city governments in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, are among the first filed by those opposing Trump’s executive orders, which he signed in the immediate hours after his inauguration Monday. 

The U.S. Constitution guarantees citizenship to those born in the country, and court rulings have made only small exceptions, such as rejecting citizenship for the offspring of foreign diplomats born in the U.S. Presidents cannot unilaterally change the Constitution, which instead must be accomplished through large majorities of lawmakers in Congress or wide state legislative action. 

But Trump, as part of his crackdown on 11 million or more undocumented migrants living in the U.S., signed one executive order directing U.S. agencies to stop handing citizenship documents to the offspring of undocumented migrants. 

The Republican president’s order directed federal officials, starting Feb. 19, to not recognize U.S. citizenship for children born in the United States to mothers who are in the country illegally or are in the U.S. only temporarily, such as visa holders, and whose fathers are not citizens or lawful permanent residents. 

Trump’s nascent administration is moving quickly to deport such migrants back to their home countries, even if they have lived in the U.S. for years, paid taxes and assimilated into American life. Trump’s immigration agents are first targeting undocumented migrants who have been convicted of crimes. 

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement, “State attorneys general have been preparing for illegal actions like [Trump’s no-citizenship edict], and today’s immediate lawsuit sends a clear message to the Trump administration that we will stand up for our residents and their basic constitutional rights.” 

The White House did not immediately comment on the suits, three of which were filed in Boston, Massachusetts, and Concord, New Hampshire. Four states filed a separate lawsuit in Washington. 

Democratic-led states and advocacy groups have immediately challenged two other Trump executive orders, one creating the Department of Government Efficiency — a nongovernmental advisory panel overseen by billionaire Trump supporter Elon Musk — and another weakening job protections for government civil servants to make it easier for the Trump administration to fire them and replace them with Trump loyalists. 

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell said that if Trump’s no-citizenship order is allowed to stand, it would mean more than 150,000 children born annually in the United States would be denied the right to citizenship. 

“President Trump does not have the authority to take away constitutional rights,” she said in a statement. 

One of the plaintiffs challenging the order is a woman living in Massachusetts identified only as “O. Doe.” She is in the country through temporary protected status and is due to give birth in March. 

The temporary protected status immigration designation is available to people whose home countries have experienced natural disasters, armed conflicts or other extraordinary events and currently covers more than 1 million people from 17 nations. 

U.S. birthright citizenship was enshrined in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in the aftermath of the Civil War in the early 1860s and ratified in 1868. It says: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” 

Platkin, the New Jersey attorney general, said Tuesday that presidents might have broad authority, but they are not kings. 

“The president cannot, with a stroke of a pen, write the 14th Amendment out of existence, period,” he said. 

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, a U.S. citizen by birthright and the nation’s first Chinese American elected attorney general, said the lawsuit was personal for him. 

“The 14th Amendment says what it means, and it means what it says — if you are born on American soil, you are an American. Period. Full stop,” he said. “There is no legitimate legal debate on this question. But the fact that Trump is dead wrong will not prevent him from inflicting serious harm right now on American families like my own.” 

Chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union in New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts along with other immigrant rights advocates have also filed suit to block Trump’s action. 

Their suit asked a court to rule that Trump’s order is unconstitutional. It cites the case of a woman identified as “Carmen,” who is pregnant but is not a U.S. citizen. The lawsuit says she has lived in the United States for more than 15 years and has a pending visa application that could lead to permanent resident status. She has no other immigration status, and the father of her expected child has no immigration status either, the suit says. 

“Stripping children of the ‘priceless treasure’ of citizenship is a grave injury,” the suit said. “It denies them the full membership in U.S. society to which they are entitled.” 

Some material in this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
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UNITED NATIONS — President Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations told senators at her confirmation hearing Tuesday that she will promote his doctrine of “peace through strength” on the world stage if she is confirmed.

“It is imperative to ensure strong American leadership at the United Nations,” Elise Stefanik told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “I share President Trump’s vision of a U.N. reformed by strong America First peace through strength and return to this founding mission of promoting peace and security around the world.”

Stefanik, 40, from a rural New York district, has been in Congress for a decade and has served on national security related committees. As chair of the Republican Conference since 2021, she is the fourth-ranking House Republican but will have to step down if she is approved.

She appeared to have bipartisan support, with Democratic legislators largely posing standard foreign policy questions and avoiding partisan attacks.

China’s influence

China’s growing influence within the United Nations was at the top of lawmakers’ concerns.

“China has used its malign influence to block attempts to discuss the Chinese government-sponsored genocide against the Uyghurs, and they have blocked our ally Taiwan from fully participating in the U.N.,” committee chair Jim Risch of Idaho said. He also criticized Beijing for pushing its nationals into U.N. system jobs to serve its national interests.

Stefanik agreed that Beijing has made “significant inroads” at the world body and said Washington needs to push back on it with a “long-term strategy.”

“Working closely with our allies and our partners, both at the most junior levels and at the more senior levels within the U.N., we need to make sure that we are running candidates – either American or allied nations – in the election process for key leadership posts within the U.N. system,” she said.

Stefanik said efforts should focus on technical organizations such as the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) – both organizations that until recently had been under the leadership of international civil servants from China. And she warned that the United States must be vigilant in protecting its ethical standards related to the use of artificial intelligence.

The United States is the single largest financial contributor to the United Nations, and several senators questioned whether U.S. taxpayers are still getting their money’s worth from the organization. The nominee said she would seek to do an agency-by-agency audit of what U.S. funds are spent on and press for reforms including more transparency and accountability. She also had praise for agencies led by U.S. appointees, including the World Food Program and the U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF.

“Stefanik’s remarks signaled that the U.S. is going to be tough on the U.N., but not walk away from the organization altogether,” said Richard Gowan, U.N. director for the International Crisis Group. “I actually think that quite a lot of her lines about the need to ensure the U.N. offers value for money will play well with other big donors to the organization, who are keen to control costs.”

One of Trump’s first executive orders on Monday was to notify the World Health Organization of his intention to withdraw the United States from the body – and with it the hundreds of millions of dollars it contributes to WHO’s budget. Stefanik said she supported the move.

“WHO failed on a global stage in the COVID pandemic for all the world to see,” she said.

Stefanik was most passionate about “our most precious ally” Israel and defending it from what she called “antisemitic rot” and bias at the United Nations.

“We need to be a voice of moral clarity on the U.N. Security Council and at the United Nations at large, for the world to hear the importance of standing with Israel, and I intend to do that,” she said.

Asked by Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen about her vision for “the day after” in Gaza, she said Trump is “uniquely positioned” to bring peace to the region, to eradicate Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah, and protect Israel’s national security.

Van Hollen pressed further, asking if she supports the view of far-right Israeli legislators who say Israel has a biblical right to the entire West Bank. Stefanik replied “yes.”

Crisis Group’s Gowan said that last comment might fuel “nervousness” among U.N. members that Trump could endorse an Israeli effort to annex parts of the Palestinian territories. But overall, he thinks international diplomats will have found her testimony reassuring.

“Especially after the whiplash effect of Trump disowning the Paris [climate] deal and World Health Organization during his first afternoon in office,” he said.

No vote has been scheduled yet in the committee on her nomination. If Stefanik passes that hurdle, and she is widely expected to, then her nomination would go to the full Senate for a final vote.
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Засідання пройде у закритому режимі
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У Києві на лівому березі працювали сили ППО
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MEXICO CITY — Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s executive order moving toward designating drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations would only impact Mexico if there’s close coordination between the two governments.

She said that Mexico would defend its sovereignty and independence while seeking coordination with the U.S. in the wake of the order signed Monday.

“We all want to fight the drug cartels,” Sheinbaum said at her daily press briefing. The U.S. “in their territory, us in our territory.”

Trump’s order highlighted Mexican drug cartels and other Latin American criminal groups like Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13). The order says they “threaten the safety of the American people, the security of the United States, and the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere.”

The order did not list any Mexican cartels by name but said Cabinet secretaries would recommend groups for designation as terrorist organizations in the next 14 days. It was among a slew of executive orders Trump signed Monday to kick off his administration, several of which focus on securing the southern border.

“The Cartels have engaged in a campaign of violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere that has not only destabilized countries with significant importance for our national interests but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs,” the order reads.

It was unclear what the impact could be for fighting the cartels, but there was concern it could be another way to make it more difficult for people from the countries where those groups operate to access the U.S.

It came in addition to measures including the declaration of an emergency on the U.S. southern border, a promise to slap 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada on Feb. 1 and ending the use of the CBP One app, which allowed migrants to apply for asylum appointments before reaching the border.

Trump has also promised to carry out mass deportations and threatened military intervention in Mexico to fight cartels, something sharply rejected by Sheinbaum.

Many have voiced concern the terrorist designation could provide the U.S. justification to take military action against cartels.

Vanda Felbab-Brown, an organized crime expert at the Brookings Institution, said the order could have “huge implications from trade to migrants.”

As cartels have gained a firm grip on control of the lucrative migrant smuggling trade in recent years, it’s virtually impossible for migrants and asylum seekers to pass through Mexico and other Latin American countries without paying some sort of fee to cartels.

The moment they do, Felbab-Brown said, it could disqualify them from seeking asylum.

“Trump can essentially prevent the vast majority of undocumented migrants trying to cross the U.S. border from getting asylum,” she said.

Mike Vigil, a former head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s foreign operations, said he expected any terrorism designation to have very little impact on day-to-day operations against cartels because many of the same anti-terrorism powers American authorities would be granted are already employ in counter-narcotics efforts.

“It’s already been done. This is nothing new,” Vigil said. “It’s all political theater and tossing a piece of stale salami to [Trump’s] base.”

He said logistically the order would likely allow the U.S. to seize assets of groups in the U.S., sanction U.S. citizens that do business with terrorist organizations and block members of those groups from entering the U.S.

“It’s not going to allow the U.S. to send troops into Mexico like so many people think simply because people forget that Mexico is a sovereign country and it would be an act of war,” he said.

The move comes as cartel violence has intensified in northern Mexican states after the kidnapping and detention of kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada sparked an all-out war between rival factions of the Sinaloa cartel. Gunmen continue to leave mutilated bodies scattered across the state and kidnap people even from hospitals.

It’s part of a larger shifting dynamic in cartel warfare in the Latin American nation. Years ago, a handful of criminal organizations headed by a few key capos controlled large parts of Mexico. Now, many more factions have violently fought for power, as they’ve become more agile and harder to pin down.

They’ve used more sophisticated tools like bomb-dropping drones, improvised explosive devices and rigged armored vehicles, and have expanded into migrant trafficking and the avocado trade. Meanwhile, thousands of Mexican citizens have gotten caught in the crossfire, having been slain or gone missing.

 
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Washington — President Donald Trump is spending his first full day back in the White House meeting with congressional leaders, making an infrastructure announcement and demonstrating one of his favored expressions of power: firing people.

The new president posted on his Truth social media platform early Tuesday that he would fire more than 1,000 presidential appointees “who are not aligned with our vision,” including some high-profile names.

Trump fired chef and humanitarian Jose Andres from the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, retired Gen. Mark Milley from the National Infrastructure Advisory Council, former State Department official Brian Hook from the board of the Wilson Center and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms from the President’s Export Council.

“YOU’RE FIRED!” Trump said in his post — his catchphrase from his reality TV show, “The Apprentice.”

Former President Joe Biden also removed many Trump appointees in his first days in office, including former press secretary Sean Spicer from the board overseeing the U.S. Naval Academy.

Trump planned to continue to build on his barrage of Inauguration Day announcements, with the White House promising a “massive announcement” on infrastructure. Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to detail the announcement in advance, but she said in an interview on Fox News that it would send a message to the world.

“You won’t want to miss it,” she said.

“Infrastructure week” became a punchline during Trump’s first administration as White House officials promised repeatedly — over years — to train a focus on major public works projects, only to have Trump himself quickly shift emphasis elsewhere while major legislation on infrastructure never materialized.

It was enough of a pattern that Biden joked about how his predecessor couldn’t pull off even a week of focus on infrastructure while his administration oversaw passage of billions of dollars for bridges, tunnels, roads and other projects for the coming 10 years.

“He didn’t build a damn thing,” Biden said frequently of Trump, adding that his own administration delivered “infrastructure decade.”

Trump wants to ban Chinese companies from owning vital U.S. infrastructure in sectors such as energy, technology and agriculture, and he says he will force Chinese owners to sell any holdings “that jeopardize America’s national security.”

Trump also attended a national prayer service Tuesday morning at Washington National Cathedral, a customary visit for new presidents and one that will wrap up his four days of inauguration-related events.

Later in the day, the president was expected to meet with House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune and other GOP (Republican) legislators. It’s the first formal sit-down for the GOP leadership teams including Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Senate GOP Whip John Barrasso and the new president as they chart priorities for using Republican power in Washington.

Despite an ambitious 100-day agenda, the Republican-led Congress is not on the same page on some ideas and strategies as they rush to deliver tax cuts for the wealthy, mass deportations and other goals for Trump.

Trump used the first hours of his presidency on Monday to sign a series of executive orders and memorandums, moving quickly to show that his new hold on the U.S. government would be a stark change from his predecessor.

He pardoned hundreds of people for their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, withdrew the U.S. from the Paris climate accords and the World Health Organization, began his immigration crackdown by declaring a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border and sought to end automatic citizenship for anyone born in America, which is expected to run into constitutional challenges.

He also signed an order that intends to pause a ban on TikTok for 75 days to give its China-based parent company more time to find an approved buyer.
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З початку доби загальна кількість бойових зіткнень вздовж усієї лінії фронту складає 55
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Його лишають під вартою на 60 діб з можливістю внесення застави 263 тисячі гривень
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In the Southwest United States, bird migrations are shifting as global temperatures warm. Gustavo Martіnez Contreras takes us to the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in the state of New Mexico.
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Davos, Switzerland — EU chief Ursula von der Leyen declared Tuesday that Europe was ready to negotiate with the United States and seek to improve ties with China as Beijing warned against damaging trade wars in the face of Donald Trump’s protectionism.

Trump returned to the White House on Monday, and while he may not be physically present in the Swiss Alpine resort of Davos, he is the elephant in the room for the executives and leaders hobnobbing at the annual World Economic Forum.

With Beijing and Brussels facing some of the biggest risks from the return of self-professed tariff-loving Trump, China’s Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took to the stage first at the forum.

“Protectionism leads nowhere and there are no winners in a trade war,” Ding said, without mentioning Trump directly.

Trump threatened on Monday to impose tariffs if Beijing rejects his proposal to keep Chinese-owned app TikTok online on condition that half of it is sold off.

China is taking a cautious approach to Trump and after the TikTok threat, Beijing said it hoped the United States would provide a fair business environment for Chinese firms.

After Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke to Trump by phone on Friday, he said he hoped for a “good start” to relations with the new US administration.

Meanwhile, von der Leyen took a conciliatory tone. She said the EU’s “first priority will be to engage early, discuss common interests and be ready to negotiate” with Trump.

“We will be pragmatic but we will always stand by our principles, to protect our interests and uphold our values,” she said.

The European Commission president also stressed that Europe “must engage constructively with China – to find solutions in our mutual interest” despite escalating trade tensions between the two.

Brussels has provoked Beijing’s ire with a raft of probes targeting state subsidies in the green tech sector, as well as slapping tariffs on Chinese electric cars.

In an apparent reference to the European Union measures, Ding warned against “erecting green barriers that could disrupt normal economic and trade cooperation.”

More trade deals

On the campaign trail, Trump said he would impose extra customs duties on allies including the EU, as well as on China.

After his inauguration, Trump raised the possibility of imposing 25-percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico.

Von der Leyen reiterated her commitment to free trade during her speech, pointing to recent EU deals with Switzerland, the South American bloc Mercosur and Mexico.

She also said she and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted to “upgrade” their partnership.

Trump announced the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, which von de Leyen defended as the “best hope for all humanity” and vowed: “Europe will stay the course.”

Ukraine is also keeping a very close eye on what Trump’s second mandate will involve.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to call on world leaders and company executives to maintain – and ramp up – their support for his country’s war against Russia.

Zelensky said on Monday he was hopeful Trump would help achieve a “just peace.”

Embattled German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was also to address the Davos forum, likely his last as leader ahead of elections next month.

Also speaking on Tuesday will be conservative leader Friedrich Merz, the favorite to succeed him as chancellor.

‘Better understand’ Trump

Middle East conflicts will likewise be high on the agenda as Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani speak in separate sessions during the first full day of the forum.

As a fragile ceasefire holds in the Israel-Hamas war, the WEF will host a discussion on how to improve aid delivery to the Palestinian territory of Gaza and how to kickstart the reconstruction and recovery after heavy bombardment.

Despite suggestions Trump’s return would overshadow the forum that began on the same day as his inauguration in Washington, WEF President Borge Brende said the US leader had brought fresh attention to the gathering.

“It has increased the interest in Davos because people feel they need to come together to better understand what’s on its way,” Brende told AFP in an interview.

 
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It’s been a long day in Washington, filled with tradition and some out-of-the-ordinary events as the United States swears in its 47th president. VOA’s Senior Washington Correspondent Carolyn Presutti brings us the sights and sounds from Inauguration Day 2025.
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U.S. President Donald Trump issued a series of executive actions after taking office Monday, including moving to withdrawal from international health and climate bodies and directing a suspension of U.S. foreign aid.

A set of orders focused on immigration, such as declaring an emergency on the U.S.-Mexico border, ending asylum and halting birthright citizenship for some children born in the United States.

Trump also ordered vetting and screening “to the maximum degree possible” all those who want to enter the United States, and for the government to identify countries that may have screening procedures deficient enough to warrant blocking their nationals from entering the United States.

In his first term in office, Trump pursued an “America First” form of foreign policy, and an order he signed Monday directs new Secretary of State Marco Rubio to focus State Department efforts on that mission.

“From this day forward, the foreign policy of the United States shall champion core American interests and always put America and American citizens first,” the order said.

Trump ordered the United States to withdraw from the 2015 Paris climate accord, a repeat of a move he also made in his first term. Trump said the U.S. has a successful record of “advancing both economic and environmental objectives” that should be a model to other countries.

Nearly 200 countries signed the agreement aimed at limiting global warming with each country providing its own plan for limiting greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

In another repeat from his first time in office, Trump ordered the United States to withdraw from the World Health Organization due to complaints that the agency mismanaged the COVID-19 pandemic and gets too much funding from the U.S.

Calling U.S. foreign aid “not aligned with American interests,” Trump issued an order to pause foreign development assistance for 90 days and for the programs to undergo reviews.

Funding for many programs has already been appropriated by Congress, so it was not clear how much aid would be initially affected by the order.

Trump also reversed an order signed by former President Joe Biden last week that had removed Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terror.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel responded to Trump’s move Monday by calling it “an act of arrogance and disregard for the truth.”

On trade, Trump issued an order calling for a review of a number of trade agreements, including one with China and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

He also specifically called for an assessment of “unlawful migration and fentanyl flows” from Canada, Mexico and China. Ahead of taking office, Trump said those countries would need to act on those areas in order to avoid tariffs on goods sent to the United States.

In response to a law passed during Biden’s term that would have blocked TikTok in the United States in connection with national security concerns, Trump signed an order telling the Justice Department not to enforce that ban until his administration can “determine the appropriate course forward.”

The law directed a TikTok ban unless its China-based parent company sold it to an approved buyer. U.S. officials promoting the ban expressed concerns that the Chinese government could obtain Americans’ digital data.

Trump himself tried to carry out a similar ban during his first term, but in recent weeks has championed keeping TikTok available to U.S. users, including the potential for the U.S. government to acquire a stake in the company.

Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters
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WASHINGTON — Amid frigid temperatures in the nation’s capital, the peaceful transfer of power from one presidential administration to the next took place Monday.

The inauguration events, starting with a church service and culminating in an oath and inaugural speech at the Capitol building, were attended by former presidents and their families, foreign dignitaries, and tech billionaires.

Members of the “press pool” — a group of reporters, photographers and video journalists — were on hand to capture the day’s events for the media outlets that make up the White House Correspondents’ Association.

Through the press pool, accredited journalists take turns covering the president’s daily activities to ensure 24-7 coverage of the American leader. VOA White House correspondent Misha Komadovsky was assigned to Monday morning’s inaugural events.

“Today, I’ll be your eyes and ears during the first steps of Donald Trump’s inauguration,” Komadovsky emailed at around 8 a.m. local time as part of his assignments.

The pool report had noted that the inaugural events were to follow a traditional course: a morning church service and a meeting between the outgoing and incoming first families before traveling to the inauguration.

The service at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Lafayette Park across from the White House has been a part of inauguration events since 1933, when Franklin D. Roosevelt attended a service before being sworn in as the 32nd president.

Trump, as the 47th U.S. president, followed in his predecessors’ footsteps. He and first lady Melania Trump sat in the front row of the church, alongside his vice president, JD Vance, and second lady Usha Vance.

Melania Trump wore a navy suit by New York-based designer Adam Lippes, paired with a wide-brimmed hat by American designer, Eric Javits.

Dressing the first lady was an honor, Javits said, adding that his background in art has informed his ability to bring “harmony and balance to the face” with his designs.

In Melania Trump’s case, he told the AP, the designing was not difficult because the first lady is “blessed with great bone structure, beauty and a wonderful sense of style.”

Also attending Monday’s service — which took place the same day that the U.S. marks Martin Luther King Jr. Day — were members of the Trump family, including his children Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany and Barron Trump. Individuals whom the president has nominated for key roles in his administration also filled the pews, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Pete Hegseth, Pam Bondi, Kash Patel and Marco Rubio.

Foreign dignitaries were also present. Leaders seen by the press pool included President Javier Milei of Argentina, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy, and Britain’s former Conservative Party prime minister Boris Johnson.

Some of the world’s richest individuals were also there, including Elon Musk of Tesla, social media platform X, and SpaceX; Apple CEO Tim Cook; and media tycoon Rupert Murdoch.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew attended the service, as did media personality Tucker Carlson.

TikTok had briefly gone offline Saturday evening following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding a law ordering the Chinese social media platform to sell to an American owner. Trump indicated he planned a “joint venture” to allow TikTok to operate.

Service was restored on Sunday, with a message to users that said that “as a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.”

Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who earlier this month was held in contempt of court twice over a defamation case stemming from Trump’s failed 2020 election, was also spotted at the service.

Giuliani last Thursday settled the $148 million defamation judgment granted to two election workers in the U.S. state of Georgia.

During Monday’s 25-minute church service, the choir sang “America the Beautiful.” After the service concluded, Trump walked down the aisle, greeting guests along the way. He was seen patting Milei of Argentina on the shoulder.

Next, keeping with tradition, outgoing President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden met with the incoming president and first lady at the White House.

The First Families shared tea in the White House Blue Room before departing together for the U.S. Capitol.

Because of extreme cold weather, the inauguration was held inside the Capitol rotunda, with music from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Combined Choir and the U.S. Marine Band. Opera singer Christopher D. Macchio sang “Oh, America!” and singer Carrie Underwood performed “America the Beautiful” with the Armed Forces Chorus and U.S. Naval Academy Glee Club.

Former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were on hand for the inauguration, along with many members of the church service congregation and the Trump family, as faith leaders offered prayers.

Tech billionaires including Musk, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Google CEO Sundar Pichai were spotted at the inauguration, alongside the president’s supporters and U.S. lawmakers.

Chief Justice John Roberts swore in the 47th president, on a Bible held by Melania Trump. The president was flanked by his children.

Following the oath of office, a luncheon took place, followed by a military troop review and parade.

As the ceremonial swearing in took place, new staffers at the White House were seen moving into their new offices and unpacking images of the president and first lady.
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White House — On the historic first day of his second term in office, President Donald Trump laid out his vision for a bolder — and larger — United States.

“The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation, one that increases our wealth, expands our territory, builds our cities, raises our expectations, and carries our flag into new and beautiful horizons,” he said in his inaugural address Monday. “And we will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.” 

Then he got to work signing a stack of executive orders. He said they included a declaration of a national emergency at the southern border that would allow the deployment of troops, and a national energy emergency that would allow more domestic oil and gas extraction. He also declared that there are only two genders, male and female, and said he would order that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America. 

Historians say that Trump made history on his second Day 1 by using what is historically a unifying speech to portray a future that many Americans may disagree with. 

“Donald Trump did not do that. This was one of the most partisan presidential inaugural speeches — it was less an inaugural speech and more a State of the Union. He just listed a series of bullet points of projects he wanted to undertake, from deporting immigrants to seizing back the Panama Canal,” said Jeremi Suri, a history professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

Shortly after his inaugural speech, Trump spoke to a smaller group of supporters at the Capitol and reiterated claims that the 2020 election was “totally rigged” — a claim without proof. He also pardoned some of those convicted over the violent events of Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob of Trump supporters attempted to disrupt the certification of the election Trump lost. 

“I think this was a better speech than the one I made upstairs, OK?” Trump said.

Some of Trump’s powerful supporters expressed their joy. 

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk was among the billionaires who packed into the Capitol for the ceremony and hailed Trump’s victory. After Trump was sworn in, Musk took to the stage of the rally at Capital One Arena to praise him.

“This was no ordinary victory,” he said. “This was a fork in the road of human civilization.”

Consumer advocacy groups are sounding alarms about some of the new president’s quieter moves, ones they say seek to loosen regulations and benefit the extremely wealthy.

“When we think about why the incoming Trump administration wants to freeze regulations and halt public protections wholesale, it is at the behest of the wealthiest among us, corporate special interests,” said Lisa Gilbert, co-president of the nonprofit consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen. “They are who benefits when we don’t have guardrails on the books.”

Trump did not, on Monday, directly address foreign policy concerns such as Ukraine and competition with China — but Suri said his expansionist rhetoric sent a message.

“It’s hard for the United States to tell [Russian President] Vladimir Putin or [Chinese President] Xi Jinping that they should not seek expansion when our president is talking about expansion, but insofar as we don’t follow through on that rhetoric, we still are on very strong ground to say that invading your neighbor, as Putin has in Ukraine, or as China might potentially do in Taiwan, that is verboten, that crosses the line, so long as it’s just words from us,” he said. “If we were to go to war to try to seize the Panama Canal, that would certainly give a kind of carte blanche to Putin and Xi Jinping, because they make the same arguments for Ukraine and Taiwan.”
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