Body language expert breaks down Donald Trump's 'silent statement' during arrival at church service ahead of inauguration
A body language expert has broken down the 'silent statement' made by Donald Trump as he arrived for a church service ahead of his presidential inauguration.
Trump arrived with his wife and incoming first lady, Melania Trump, to St John's Church, known as the 'Church of the Presidents', as he prepares to take on the role of the 47th President of the United States today (January 20).
Trump, who was last voted into the Oval Office in 2016, will reassume the position after taking the oath of office at the inauguration, which this year is being held inside the Capitol building.
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The church service - a traditional event for president-elects ahead of the inauguration - marks the imminent end of Joe Biden's time in office, but the outgoing president shared kind words for his successor when the two met later at the White House.
After witnessing Trump's arrival at the church, body language expert Judi James shared her thoughts and noted that 'Trump didn’t just show up; he arrived'.
Speaking to Paddy Power, James said: "Gone was the peacocking and showboating of old – this was alpha mode at full throttle. The chest? Inflated and splayed like a cockerel in a power pose. The spine? Upright enough to make a Buckingham Palace guard jealous. The expression? A lip-clamp and raised jaw combo that screamed, ‘I’m in charge. Again.’
“It was a deliberate transformation. The man who has Rocky, Braveheart, and even the Village People on his inspirational playlist looked ready to outshine them all. This wasn’t just Trump the showman – this was Trump the heavyweight."
James went on to express belief that Tump was trying to convey something very specific in his arrival, saying: "As he stepped out of the car, he stood to attention, shoulders squared, head rotating like he was scanning for doubters. Then, with a single, low-raised fist, he delivered a quiet yet commanding gesture of triumph – a silent statement that said, ‘Try stopping me now.’"
After the church service, Trump and Melania made their way to the White House where they were greeted by Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, before making their way to the Capitol building for the most important event of the day - the swearing-in ceremony.
Former presidents including Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama are all present at the event, along with some of Trump's government picks such as Elon Musk.
Everything Trump has pledged to do as 47th US President
Delaying the TikTok ban
After TikTok went dark yesterday (January 19), it was bought back after mere hours with a message reading: "Welcome back! Thank you for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump's efforts, TikTok is back in the US!"
Trump will reportedly sign an executive order to delay the ban saying he wants to 'make a deal to protect our national security.'
Immigration
In a statement during a rally at Madison Square Garden during his presidential race he said: "On Day 1, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out.
"I will rescue every city and town that has been invaded and conquered, and we will put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail, then kick them the hell out of our country as fast as possible."
Planning over 100 executive orders
It's been reported by AP that Trump plans on preparing over 100 executive orders on his first day in the White House. Trump's allies have reportedly spent time preparing documents that Trump can sign quickly, on issues such as deportation, school gender policies and vaccine mandates, without input from congress.
“There will be a substantial number,” said Senator John Hoeven, R-N.D.
Making hidden government files public
Including the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King Jr., Trump promised at his recent rally in Washington D.C that, in a bid to increase government transparency, he will be making these disclosures in 'the coming days'.
“And in the coming days, we are going to make public remaining records relating to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert Kennedy, as well as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”
'Make Greenland Great Again Act'
In a bid that has not gone down well with Greenlanders, taking to his social media platform Truth Social Trump said: "For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.
“Greenland is an incredible place. The people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, cherish it, from a very vicious outside World. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”
January 6 pardons
Trump's loss in the 2020 election led to the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, in turn resulting in the arrests of a number of Trump supporters.
In an interview with TIME, Trump said that looking into the cases of the rioters' will take place in 'the first nine minutes' of his time in office.
In a post shared on his social media channel, Trump said: "I am inclined to pardon many of them. I can't say for every single one, because a couple of them, probably they got out of control."
Getting rid of birthright citizenship
Exactly as it sounds, Trump once declared he wanted to get rid of birthright citizenship, which immediately gives citizenship to anyone born in US. Noting that this may not be possible as it's written into the constitution, he said he wants to achieve this by executive order - bypassing congress again - 'if we can'.
Cut federal funding for schools educating on 'inappropriate' topics
Speaking early last year, Trump addressed a crowd in Iowa and made plans to 'save [the] country from destruction'.
"On day one, I will sign a new executive order to cut federal funding for any school pushing critical race theory, transgender insanity," he said, per NPR.
Trump also said he would target schools pushing 'any other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content on our children'.
Making the US the 'crypto capital'
Back in 2021, Trump called crypto a 'scam against the dollar.' But four years on, he's pulled a u-turn as he vowed to make the US the 'crypto capital of the planet'.
On social media, Trump claimed crypto would be 'mined, minted and made in the US'.
Both he and wife Melania released their own memecoins ahead of the inauguration, while experts previously predicted Bitcoin could reach up to $250,000 this year.
Be a 'dictator'
In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity last year, he referred to himself as a 'dictator' when asked if he was promising to 'never abuse power as retribution against anybody'.
In response, Trump said: "Except for Day 1.
"I want to close the border and I want to drill, drill, drill. We're closing the border and we're drilling, drilling, drilling," he continued.
"After that, I'm not a dictator."
End Green Deals
Trump has spoken previously about his plan to 'terminate the Green New Deal', which he dubbed the 'Green New Scam'.
The Green New Deal was pitched by Democrats Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey, but it was never signed into law.
Addressing the policies in a speech in September, Trump said: "To further defeat inflation, my plan will terminate the Green New Deal, which I call the Green New Scam. Greatest scam in history, probably.
"We [will] rescind all unspent funds under the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act."
"I'm going to write it out in an executive order. It's going to end on Day 1."
Arrange green cards for college graduates
Despite making his stance on migration clear, Trump has advocated for non-US citizens to receive green cards to stay in the country if they graduate from college.
During an episode of the 'All In' podcast recorded this year, Trump said: "Anybody graduates from a college, you go in there for two years or four years, if you graduate, or you get a doctorate degree from a college, you should be able to stay in this country [...]
"Somebody graduates at the top of the class, they can't even make a deal with the company because they don't think they're going to be able to stay in the country. That is going to end on Day 1."
Scrap 'electric vehicle mandates'
Trump plans to scrap Biden administration’s so-called electric vehicle mandate, referring to new pollution standards that incentivize auto manufacturers to increase production of electric and lower-emission vehicles.
Despite vowing to get rid of the policy on his first day, Trump told podcaster Joe Rogan the move could take 'maybe two days, because it’s a little bit busy'.
Fire the man who indicted him
Trump faced two federal cases in relation to the 2020 election result from special counsel Jack Smith, and the future POTUS has no plans to work with him again.
Speaking on October 24, Trump told the Hugh Hewitt show he would fire Smith 'within two seconds'.
"He'll be one of the first things addressed," he said.
Topics: Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Melania Trump, Politics
Emily Brown