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Under Trump’s shadow

January 20, 2021
Balance of Power
Bloomberg

A new day is dawning in Washington, but under the long shadow of the past four years.

Two weeks after Donald Trump's supporters staged a deadly attack on the Capitol, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th U.S. president in a noon ceremony on the building's steps. Kamala Harris will become the nation's first female, non-White vice president.

Biden will make a plea for unity as the centerpiece of an unusual inauguration held under heavy security after weeks of tumult stoked by Trump, and against the backdrop of efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead of throngs crowding the National Mall, Biden will see thousands of National Guard soldiers (25,000 are deployed across the city) and barricades. As Josh Wingrove writes, it's a grim reminder of the deep rifts he wants to mend.

Trump, who in one of his final acts as president granted clemency to dozens of people, including former strategist Steve Bannon, is skipping the inauguration, the first outgoing leader to do so since the 19th century.

Instead he's throwing a military-style send-off for himself before leaving for his Florida resort, where he plans to take up residence.

The road ahead for Biden is difficult. He faces a battle to confirm some cabinet members and haggling over a new virus aid package. Trump's pending Senate impeachment trial will be a charged event and complicate any efforts for bipartisan cooperation on key issues. 

Trump's time in office is almost over. But his presidency has altered America, perhaps permanently. — Kathleen Hunter

The "Field of Flags" at the National Mall.

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said the mob that stormed the Capitol was "fed lies" and "provoked by the president," in some of the strongest words he's used to tie Trump directly to the attack.

Tell us how we're doing or what we're missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net.

Global Headlines

Policy blitz | Biden will start immediately to unwind Trump's policies with at least 15 executive actions, including reversing U.S. withdrawals from the Paris climate agreement and World Health Organization, and stopping construction of a border wall with Mexico. He will sign orders revoking a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, imposing a mask mandate on federal property and ending Trump's travel ban on predominantly Muslim and African countries.

Tough talk | Biden's cabinet lineup suggests his administration will continue some of Trump's hard-line economic policies toward China. Treasury pick Janet Yellen said the U.S. is "prepared to use the full array of tools" to address trade practices it deems abusive. Secretary of State-designate Antony Blinken said he agreed with the Trump administration's description of China's crackdown on Uighur Muslims as genocide.

Growing troubles | Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn is seeking to burnish his image after political and economic instability spawned unprecedented demands for reform of the monarchy. Philip Heijmans reports the king has boosted his presence in Thailand since student-led protests broke out, returning from Germany where he'd spent much of his reign. The king and his entourage have attended religious ceremonies, greeted kneeling supporters clad in yellow shirts, and even swept the floor at one of his charity projects.

King Maha Vajiralongkorn

Photographer: Pacific Press/Pacific Press

Battling on | Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte survived a confidence vote in the Senate but failed to win an outright majority after a junior party defected from his coalition. The result should encourage European Union officials who are trying to coordinate efforts to fight the coronavirus and investors who wagered that Italy wouldn't be pitched into a new election campaign.

Big government | The devastation wrought by the pandemic has brought a resurgence of state intervention in Europe's biggest economies. Austerity is out and massive fiscal action has taken its place, as governments spend big to shore up companies and prevent the kind of mass unemployment seen in the U.S. As William Horobin and Birgit Jennen report, there are already calls for Europe's change of heart to become permanent.

What to Watch

  • South Korean President Moon Jae-in named a key figure in talks with Pyongyang to be his foreign minister, as Blinken pledged to review Washington's "entire approach" to North Korea.

  • President Emmanuel Macron hinted during a visit to troops that France could soon scale back its largest overseas military operation, fighting Islamist militants in West Africa.

  • Guatemalan authorities say they broke up a caravan of migrants trying to reach the U.S. and deported thousands.

And finally ... Jack Ma resurfaced for the first time since authorities in China began clamping down on his business empire nearly three months ago. He appeared in a live-streamed video that sent Alibaba's stock soaring but left unanswered questions about the billionaire's fate. Ma spoke briefly during an annual event he hosts to recognize rural teachers: In one video circulated online he was seen touring a primary school in his hometown of Hangzhou. Ma told the teachers he'll spend more time on philanthropy, and didn't mention his run-ins with Beijing.

A video recording of Ma addressing teachers.

Photographer: Justin Chin/Bloomberg

 

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