Rob Crilly

Trump was still in full campaign mode. Was that wise?

We were told Donald Trump would be displaying his “philosophical” side in his inaugural address. To me, sitting beneath a grey Washington sky, it looked pretty much the same as the bombastic side that we saw so much of during the campaign.

In short he stood on the steps of the United States Capitol, symbol of American democracy, surrounded by past presidents, senators and representatives, waved to the crowd and then promised to blow it all up.

He painted a bleak picture of America – all drug-addled families and shuttered factories – just as he had at the convention last year. This time he added a new chapter. “This American carnage stops right here and stops right now,” he said. “We are one nation, and their pain is our pain. Their dreams are our dreams, and their success will be our success. We share one heart, one home, and one glorious destiny.”

He promised to return government to the people, snatching it back from professional politicians who have been living high on the hog.

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