The Inaugural Address
Issued on: January 20, 2017
REMARKS OF PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP--AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY
INAUGURAL ADDRESS
FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2017
WASHINGTON, D.C.
As Prepared for Delivery-
Chief Justice Roberts, President Carter, President Clinton, PresidentBush, President Obama, fellow Americans, and people of the world: thankyou.
We, the citizens of America, are now joined in a great national effortto rebuild our country and to restore its promise for all of our people.
Together, we will determine the course of America and the world foryears to come.
We will face challenges. We will confront hardships. But we will get thejob done.
Every four years, we gather on these steps to carry out the orderly andpeaceful transfer of power, and we are grateful to President Obama andFirst Lady Michelle Obama for their gracious aid throughout thistransition. They have been magnificent.
Today's ceremony, however, has very special meaning. Because today weare not merely transferring power from one Administration to another, orfrom one party to another--but we are transferring power fromWashington, D.C. and giving it back to you, the American People.
For too long, a small group in our nation's Capital has reaped therewards of government while the people have borne the cost.
Washington flourished--but the people did not share in its wealth.
Politicians prospered--but the jobs left, and the factories closed.
The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country.
Their victories have not been your victories; their triumphs have notbeen your triumphs; and while they celebrated in our nation's Capital,there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across ourland.
That all changes--starting right here, and right now, because thismoment is your moment: it belongs to you.
It belongs to everyone gathered here today and everyone watching allacross America.
This is your day. This is your celebration.
And this, the United States of America, is your country.
What truly matters is not which party controls our government, butwhether our government is controlled by the people.
January 20th 2017, will be remembered as the day the people became therulers of this nation again.
The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.
Everyone is listening to you now.
You came by the tens of millions to become part of a historic movementthe likes of which the world has never seen before.
At the center of this movement is a crucial conviction: that a nationexists to serve its citizens.
Americans want great schools for their children, safe neighborhoods fortheir families, and good jobs for themselves.
These are the just and reasonable demands of a righteous public.
But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists: Mothersand children trapped in poverty in our inner cities; rusted-outfactories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation;an education system, flush with cash, but which leaves our young andbeautiful students deprived of knowledge; and the crime and gangs anddrugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so muchunrealized potential.
This American carnage stops right here and stops right now.
We are one nation--and their pain is our pain. Their dreams are ourdreams; and their success will be our success. We share one heart, onehome, and one glorious destiny.
The oath of office I take today is an oath of allegiance to allAmericans.
For many decades, we've enriched foreign industry a