President Donald Trump will use the US oil reserves as a weapon to assert its power and prevent both friends and foes from “pushing it around.”
“We’re not going to let any nation, whether friendly or unfriendly, push us around from any standpoint, including the economy because we have something that they don’t have,” he said on Monday.
“We have a power that they don’t have — liquid gold beneath our feet, the likes of which no other nation possesses,” he said about his strength through energy policy.
Exploiting the vast petroleum and gas reserves in the US was a key plank of his election platform, both to bring down prices and assert US power abroad.
Trump was speaking to members of the military at the Commander in Chief’s Ball, where they celebrated his inauguration as president.
He promised to strengthen the military and ensure success by winning without fighting, showcasing the nation’s strength. “Through our power and might, we will lead the world to peace. Our friends will respect us, our enemies will fear us, and the whole world will admire the unrivalled greatness of the United States military,” he added.
“We will measure our success not only by the battles we win, but also by the wars we end, and perhaps most importantly, the wars we never get into,” he said. “It’s called Peace through strength,” he continued.
“We don’t have to fight the worst if we can do it without fighting, as long as we have total victory, we do it without fighting,” he said.
Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance danced with their wives, followed by two female soldiers, while the women danced with two male soldiers. The crowd, including a South Korean contingent participating via video, cheered.
That ball, along with two others, capped the daylong inauguration festivities for the president.
At the Liberty Ball, Vance claimed their victory was too large to rig, referencing the 2020 loss, which Trump insists was stolen from him.
Trump said that the people were “longing for common sense” and his election would bring a return to it.
Men will no longer play in women’s sports, and there will be no more gender change operations for all, he said.
Country singer Jason Aldean, rapper Nelly, and the Village People performed at the ball.
Trump’s day, which began with a church service, was to be capped by the Starlight Ball before he returns to the White House.
(Inputs from IANS)
