Trump returns to power: BBC Learning English from the News

From BBC Learning English,

this is Learning English from the News -

our podcast about the news headlines.

In this programme, Trump returns to the White House.

Hello I'm Pippa. And I'm Phil.

In this programme, we look at one big news story

and the vocabulary in the headlines that will help you understand it.

You can find all the vocabulary and headlines from this episode,

as well as a worksheet on our website, bbclearningenglish.com.

So, let's hear more about this story.

President Donald Trump has started his second term as president

with lots of executive orders about what he wants to do.

Executive orders are written orders which don't require Congress,

that's the US lawmaking institution, to approve them.

Among Trump's first acts as president are starting to withdraw

from the World Health Organisation and the Paris Climate Agreement,

which is an international agreement to fight climate change.

He also threatened to put tariffs on Chinese, Canadian and Mexican goods,

tariffs are fees for importing goods,

and Trump reversed many of the previous president, Joe Biden's policies.

Let's have our first headline.

Donald Trump vows new golden age for US as he moves to unwind Joe Biden era.

And that's from the Financial Times in the UK.

That headline again, Donald Trump vows new golden age for US

as he moves to unwind Joe Biden era.

And that's from the Financial Times in the UK.

This headline is reporting on a speech Trump made

on his first day as president.

In the speech, Trump vowed, that means promised, that the US would have

a new golden age.

And we're looking at this expression 'golden age'.

OK, gold is very expensive,

and if you win gold in a competition, you are the best.

So, it sounds like President Trump is promising something good

for his country. That's right.

A golden age is what we call a period

of time where everyone is happy or successful.

Trump is claiming that he will create a future where the US will be successful

and people will be happy.

Interestingly, we usually use the expression 'golden age' to talk

about the past and not the future.

For example, we might say that the 1960s and 1970s was a golden age for music.

That would mean that music was at its best during that time,

and is not as good now.

Of course, that would be a matter of opinion

depending on the type of music you like.

We've had 'golden age' - a period of time when everyone is happy or successful.

For example, some people say that the golden age of television is over.

This is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

Today we're talking about President Donald Trump's first actions

in his second term as president of the US.

As we've been hearing, Trump has made many announcements

and executive orders since becoming president again,

some of them controversial.

Trump has also chosen to pardon, that means to officially forgive,

nearly 1,600 people who were involved in the January 6th riots in the US in 2021.

These people attacked the Capitol, a political building in Washington, D.C.,

because they falsely believed

that President Biden didn't really win the 2020 election.

But Trump describes these people as 'hostages',

and those who are in prison are now being released.

And our next headline is about Trump's pardons.

Trump grants clemency to all charged over January 6 US Capitol attack.

And that's from Al Jazeera.

That headline again, from Al Jazeera.

Trump grants clemency to all charged over January 6 US Capitol attack.

So, this headline is about Trump's decision about the people involved

in the January 6th attack.

And we're interested in this phrase, 'grant clemency'.

OK, let's break it down.

Firstly, if you grant someone something, it means you give them something

or allow them to do something,

usually in an official way.

And then we have 'clemency'.

This is a very formal word for kindness or mercy,

especially when giving someone a punishment.

So, Trump has granted the people involved in the Capitol riots clemency.

He has given them a smaller punishment by letting them out of prison early.

Now, 'clemency' is not a term that we use a lot in everyday English.

You're most likely to hear the word 'clemency' in a legal context.

Yeah. For example, in a trial, a criminal might ask the judge

for clemency because maybe this is their first offence.

They're asking for kindness and a smaller punishment.

But we do hear 'grant' in lots of contexts.

So, someone might be granted freedom if they're let out of prison.

Or another example, workers might be granted a pay rise by their employer.

We've had 'grant clemency' - give a smaller or kinder punishment.

For example, the judge granted the criminal clemency

and only gave her a small fine.

This is Learning English from the News, from BBC Learning English.

We're talking about Donald Trump's return to the White House

as president for the second time.

Now that Trump has begun his second term as president,

other countries around the world are thinking about

what his new policies might mean for them.

And we have a headline about this. Best of frenemies:

Trump's relationship with Europe this time may be very different.

And that's from BBC News.

That headline again, from BBC News.

Best of frenemies:

Trump's relationship with Europe this time may be very different.

This headline is talking about the relationship that Trump might have

with European countries over the next few years.

And we're interested in this phrase, 'best of frenemies'. What are frenemies, Phil?

Well, the word 'frenemies' is a combination of the word 'friend'

and 'enemies'.

So a frenemy can be someone who pretends to be your friend

but is actually your enemy.

And we also use 'frenemies' to talk about two people who are friendly

despite a dispute or rivalry.

Yes, you see this a lot in film and TV.

Think of a superhero movie where one of the villains ends up working

with a hero to defeat another evil force.

The two characters are both friends and enemies at the same time.

OK, so the headline is describing the US and Europe as 'frenemies'.

But the phrase is 'best of frenemies'. Why is that?

Well, we have a common expression in English, 'best of friends'.

This just means very close friends.

And so this is a clever headline about the relationship

between Europe and the US.

Yes, Europe and the US have been close allies in the past,

but the headline is suggesting that now Donald Trump is president again,

the relationship between them might become more complicated.

We've had 'frenemies' - both friends and enemies at the same time.

For example, the film director has a lot of frenemies in Hollywood.

She can't trust anyone.

That's it for this episode of Learning English from the News.

We'll be back next week with another news story.

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Bye for now. Bye!