Trump promises far-reaching change in second term at rollicking rally

Summary
The president-elect spoke before thousands of supporters at an arena in Washington one day before his inauguration.President-elect Donald Trump pledged during a rollicking rally in the nation’s capital to enact far-reaching change in his second term, promising to oversee mass deportations, challenge progressive culture and slash government spending.
“Starting tomorrow, I will act with historic speed and strength and fix every single crisis facing our country," Trump said.
Trump’s pre-inauguration rally capped one of the most tumultuous and unlikely political comebacks in American history with a celebration less than a mile from where he’ll take the oath of office Monday as the country’s 47th president. Trump used his speech to take another victory lap over his election victory. “We won!" Trump said as he stepped on stage.
The president-elect’s roughly hourlong speech before thousands of supporters at the Capital One Arena was reminiscent of the rallies that fueled his political rise. Trump, who is constitutionally barred from running for a third term, relishes speaking before large crowds and is likely to continue holding large rallies throughout his presidency.
The president-elect argued that he was already changing the country, even before he steps into the Oval Office, touting what he called the “Trump effect." He said companies are lining up to expand their operations in America, adding that Apple CEO Tim Cook told him he was planning “massive investments" in the U.S. Apple declined to comment. And he took credit for reviving TikTok just hours after the company went dark in the U.S. and for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.
“We’ve achieved more without being president than they’ve achieved in four years with being president," he said.
Donald Trump watches the Village People perform ‘Y.M.C.A.’ on stage at the Capital One Arena.
Trump previewed his first day in office, saying he would sign executive orders focused on limiting illegal immigration. “You’re going to see executive orders that are going to make you extremely happy—lots of them," said Trump, promising the largest mass deportation in American history. He paused his remarks to play a video montage of news reports that painted immigrants as a threat to public safety.
On those who were prosecuted for participating in the riot in the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Trump said: “You will be very happy with my decision on the Jan. 6 hostages."
But for all of his bravado, Trump will face major challenges once he takes office, including a narrow majority in Congress that could make enacting his sweeping agenda difficult. He will have to decide how to approach the continuing war in Ukraine, which he said during the presidential campaign that he would immediately end.
Trump has also promised to slash government spending and streamline federal bureaucracy through an advisory panel led by billionaire Elon Musk called the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk recently tempered expectations for the amount of costs that can be cut, saying his initial pledge to lash spending by $2 trillion was a “best-case outcome."
“This victory is the start, what matters going forward is to make significant changes, cement those changes and set the foundation for America to be strong for centuries, forever," said Musk, who was followed onstage at the rally by his 4-year-old son X.
Trump said during the rally that he would declassify documents on the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy Jr., Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Trump also touched on the culture war issues that animate his base, from his concerns about trans athletes to his pledge to stop government-funded diversity, equity and inclusion programs. After Trump spoke, the Village People performed “Y.M.C.A.," a song that has become an unofficial Trump anthem and spawned social-media memes mimicking the president-elect dancing style.
Inside the packed Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, the red hat-wearing crowd danced to Kid Rock and cheered when speakers mentioned mass deportations and stopping crime. The president-elect’s family, cabinet nominees, allies in Congress and friends from the business world attended, alongside other familiar faces, including the “Front Row Joes," who have attended hundreds of rallies, and a man wearing a brick-printed suit, representing Trump’s promise to build a wall along the southern border.
“Accountability is coming. Justice is coming," said Stephen Miller, a longtime adviser to Trump who will serve as deputy chief of staff for policy in the White House. “The whole federal bureaucracy is about to learn that they don’t work for themselves. They work for you."
People gather for the Trump victory rally ahead of the inauguration in Washington, D.C.
Speakers expressed elation that Trump would soon retake the White House. “Has anyone ever been more excited for a Monday morning to roll around?" said Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son. “It’s like Christmas, Easter, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and my birthday all wrapped up into one special day."
Outside the arena, throngs of people waited in the fenced-in streets for hours in the rain and snow, hoping to get in, briefly transforming this otherwise deeply Democratic city into a sea of the most fervent MAGA supporters in crowd sizes not seen since Trump’s last public rally in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.
Vendors peddled gloves, hand-warmers, T-shirts and hoodies. Next to a bank of port-o-potties, one man sold blankets that featured an image of Trump with his arms outstretched in front of the White House under orange lettering that read, “Daddy’s Home."
In one group, supporters wore red hoodies and matching knit hats emblazoned with the phrase, “Make Canada Great Again." One intersection two blocks away from the arena turned into a dance floor when the Village People’s “Y.M.C.A." began blaring from a set of speakers.
“We’re keeping warm," said Eydie Aldana-Boghossian, who lives in Los Angeles, after emerging from the makeshift dance floor. “I think it’s because of the high energy and the excitement—the jumping around. It’s a 10 out of 10."
C. Ryan Barber, Xavier Martinez and Vivian Salama contributed to this article.
Write to Natalie Andrews at natalie.andrews@wsj.com