Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, Iowa GOP Chair Jeff Kaufmann celebrate Trump inauguration

Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad believes Iowa will prosper during the second term of President Donald Trump.

The Republican Party of Polk County celebrated Trump’s inauguration by holding a fundraiser at the World Food Prize Hall of Laureates.

Trump, the 45th president, was sworn in as the 47th president Monday afternoon in Washington, D.C., after he defeated Kamala Harris in November’s general election.

Branstad and Iowa GOP Chair Jeff Kaufmann opened the cocktail mixer in Des Moines Monday evening by making remarks.

The fundraiser coincided with other inauguration balls happening in Washington Monday night. Nearby, the Iowa Women of Achievement Bridge lit up in red, white and blue to celebrate the new president’s inauguration.

“Donald Trump carried Iowa three times, and we’re proud of that,” Branstad told the crowd of a few dozen people. “And a lot of sweat, not only for that, but for all these other Republicans who’ve been elected.”

Kaufman told the crowd that Polk County is important for the Iowa Republican Party.

“This is Iowa’s largest county,” Kaufman said. “This is important what goes on here.”

What did Trump say during his inauguration?

In a speech after he was sworn in at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Trump said “America’s decline is over.”

He outlined a series of sweeping executive orders he later signed to curb immigration, boost fossil fuel production and roll back environmental regulations, the first steps in enacting a far-reaching agenda that would reshape the government while testing the limits of presidential authority.

He said he was declaring a national emergency at the southern border with Mexico, dispatching troops there and resuming a policy forcing asylum-seeking migrants to wait in Mexico for their U.S. court hearings — all a prelude to what he described as an unprecedented operation to deport millions of immigrants.

“All illegal entry will be immediately halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came,” Trump said.

Trump is the first president in more than a century to win a second term after losing the White House and the first felon to occupy the Oval Office.

The Iowa Chapter of the Party for Socialism and Liberation — a democratic-socialist party — planned a protest of Trump’s policies at the Iowa State Capitol Monday evening. But the protest was postponed until 2 p.m. Saturday because of temperatures around 1 degree at 5 p.m.

Republicans are now the working class party, Branstad said

Branstad, 78, served as the U.S. Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2020 during Trump’s first term. Trump expanded party, Branstad said.

Kaufmann became the Iowa GOP Chair in 2014. Kaufmann also worked to diversify the party, Branstad said.

“It used to be the Democrats were the party of the working people, and we were the party of business,” Branstad said. “Today we’re the party of working people and business, and we’re electing Republicans in a lot of areas that you didn’t used to elect Republicans.”

The Iowa Republican party is in its strongest place in the last 50 years with a Republican as governor, supermajorities in the Iowa House and Senate, Kaufmann said. As a result the party is adding people, he said.

“We’ve grown the amount of Republicans we have in this state,” Kaufmann said. “We’ve kept essentially everyone that was in our base, and Donald Trump has added to our blue-collar roots.”

What other Iowa politicians said about Trump’s inauguration

In a statement Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said Trump’s inauguration gave Iowans the chance to recommit to freedom, justice, equality and opportunities for all people.

“Inauguration days are a celebration of new beginnings and an opportunity to inspire the country and unify the American people,” Hart said in a statement. “We celebrate the peaceful transfer of power that defines our democracy. Our nation is strong and resilient and our people have the desire and the power to come together to chart the course of our future.”

U.S. Rep Zach Nunn, a Republican, said that he hopes to work with Trump to rebuild the country’s economy, secure the U.S.-Mexico border and cut taxes “for middle class families.”

“The American people look to our leaders to deliver results and solve the many crises affecting our country,” Nunn said in a statement. “Together, we will make meaningful progress toward a stronger, more prosperous future for all Americans.”

Reuters contributed to this report.

Philip Joens covers retail and real estate for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-284-8184, pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.