WASHINGTON, D.C. — Due to freezing temperatures and high winds, Donald Trump’s inauguration as 47th president of the United States was held in the Capitol rotunda Monday, on the same day as Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

“My fellow citizens, the golden age of America begins right now,” said Trump.

He said the weaponization of the Justice Department and our government will end and American borders will be defended.

Trump said his recent election will give the people back their faith, their wealth, their democracy and their freedom. He said he will move with purpose and speed to bring back hope, prosperity, safety and peace for citizens of every race, religion, color and creed.

“For American citizens, Jan. 20, 2025 is Liberation Day,” he said.

“All illegal entry will immediately be halted. We will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came. We will reinstate my remain in Mexico policy,” said Trump.

He said he will immediately begin overhauling our trade system to protect American workers and families.

“Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens,” said Trump.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) spoke about democracy at the second inauguration of President Donald J. Trump Monday.

The Chair of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies since last year, Klobuchar said the inauguration theme this year is “Our Enduring Democracy.”

She said the ceremony marks what will soon be 250 years of our democracy.

“It is the moment when leaders, elevated by the will of the people, promise to be faithful to our Constitution, to cherish and defend it. It is the moment when they become, as we all should be, the guardians of our country,” Klobuchar said.

“Through war and peace, through adversity and prosperity, we hold this inauguration every four years, and today it falls on Martin Luther King Day, a further reminder that we must strive to uphold the values enshrined in our Constitution–the freedoms, the liberties and, as is inscribed on the entrance of the United States Supreme Court, equal justice under law,” she said.

Klobuchar said in democracy every citizen, regardless of political interest, “holds office”–every one of us is in a position of responsibility. With that responsibility of citizenship comes an obligation not to seek out malice, as President Lincoln once reminded us, but to view others with a generosity of spirit, despite our differences.

“With that responsibility of leadership comes an obligation to stand our ground when we must and find common ground when we can,” said Klobuchar.

“With everything swirling around us–the hot mess of division–it is on all of us, to quote an incredible songwriter who just happened to be born in my state, to ensure that our nation’s democracy is our shelter from the storm,” she said.

Congressman Brad Finstad (R-MN) of New Ulm said it was “an incredible honor to take part in the peaceful transfer of power established by our country’s founding fathers and witness history as our 47th president took the oath of office.”

Finstad said the American people “decisively placed their trust in President Trump to lead our country in a new direction; to secure our border, reduce waste in government, uphold the rule of law, lower costs for hard-working families, and restore America’s dominance on the global stage.”

District 15B Rep. Paul Torkelson, (R-Hanska), said he’s looking forward to President Trump’s return to the Capitol.

“It’s a great thing. It’s very exciting for us as Republicans to see a Republican back in as president. We look forward to some changes. Less government and more freedom is something we stand behind. I’m waiting to see what comes down the road from President Trump. I haven’t looked at his speech yet, but I know he’s a proponent of less government interference and he’s a pro business guy,” said Torkelson.

He talked about the federal government deporting illegal immigrants.

“If they go after people with serious criminal backgrounds, I’m fine with that. If it comes down to splitting up families, that’s a different story,” Torkelson said.

Brown County Republican Party Chairman Greg Bartz of Sleepy Eye said he’s looking forward to President Trump being back in office.

“It’s a good day. Now there are a lot of things that are hopeful for the future. President Trump sure has a lot of things on his table including too many government regulations that hurt agriculture and business. They need to be revised. We want more efficiency but many regulations don’t make sense,” said Bartz.

He said President Trump will be undoing some of the executive orders issued in recent years but he’d rather see Congress passing laws than executive orders being issued.

“I’m looking forward to Congress passing laws we need. Hopefully that happens,” said Bartz.

Brown County Democratic Party Chairwoman Lori Sellner said she hopes there’s enough common ground for both political parties to help make the country better.

“I agree with what U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said at President Trump’s inauguration regarding leaders being faithful to the Constitutution and working with others. There will be things Democrats and Republicans will disagree on, but given a second opportunity to lead, I hope President Trump really does want to do things to unite us. I’m used to hearing of hope and optimism in inaugural speeches. I haven’t heard all of President Trump’s speech yet. I worked today. I’ll listen to it tonight. Who knows what the next four years hold,” Sellner said.

She talked about when she heard from people while campaigning last year.

“When I went door-knocking last fall, people told me they were stressed out with how much life was costing them and that was why they wouldn’t vote for my (Democrat) candidate. It seems like people were voting for President Trump to lower living costs, not for distractions like renaming mountains, bodies of water of taking over the Panama Canal. Nobody brought anything like that up. Most people were nice, even if we disagreed. There were no threats,” said Sellner.