MONROE - As Donald Trump became the 45th president of the United States on Friday, people worldwide looked to Washington, D.C. to see what he, the most powerful person in the free world, will do next.
In Monroe on Friday, local citizens were eyeing the incoming president with a mixture of apprehension and tentative hope.
Marlea Johnson, Browntown
Marlea Johnson said she hopes Trump "will be able to unite this country," referencing the bitterly divided presidential campaign that dominated the U.S. since 2015. Johnson said the country needed to be united despite the partisan divide that has opened between its citizens.
Calli Vestin and Isabella Carus, both of Monroe
Calli Vestin was less optimistic.
"I hope he does better than he did on his businesses," Vestin said, alluding to the six times Trump filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for various businesses between 1991 and 2009. Vestin said she hopes Trump will at least be able to keep jobs in the U.S.
Isabella Carus agreed with Vestin, saying "I hope he does better than I think he can do."
Trevor Frie, Monroe
Trevor Frie was more optimistic.
"I hope he can get the country out of debt," Frie said. "We owe a lot of money and hopefully he can put that money into things like education."
Frie said he wasn't confident Trump would be able to alleviate the country's debt, but was simply hoping for the best.
"Also, hopefully we don't go to war," Frie said. "We just spent eight years on our last war, we don't need to do that again anytime soon."
Janet Wunschel, Monroe
"I couldn't care less what he does," said Janet Wunschel. "I don't like the man and I didn't vote for him."
Wunschel said she thought Trump has next to no qualifications to be president - "he has no political experience at all," she said - and that it was a shame that he was elected in the first place.
Celia Leck, Monroe
Celia Leck said she was torn between two hopes.
"I think it's a toss-up between working on jobs or fighting ISIS," Leck said.
Leck said she hoped Trump would be able to address the nation's unemployment issue, but acknowledged that the Islamic State, the fundamentalist Islamic militant group occupying wide areas of the Middle East, "needs to be stopped."
In Monroe on Friday, local citizens were eyeing the incoming president with a mixture of apprehension and tentative hope.
Marlea Johnson, Browntown
Marlea Johnson said she hopes Trump "will be able to unite this country," referencing the bitterly divided presidential campaign that dominated the U.S. since 2015. Johnson said the country needed to be united despite the partisan divide that has opened between its citizens.
Calli Vestin and Isabella Carus, both of Monroe
Calli Vestin was less optimistic.
"I hope he does better than he did on his businesses," Vestin said, alluding to the six times Trump filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for various businesses between 1991 and 2009. Vestin said she hopes Trump will at least be able to keep jobs in the U.S.
Isabella Carus agreed with Vestin, saying "I hope he does better than I think he can do."
Trevor Frie, Monroe
Trevor Frie was more optimistic.
"I hope he can get the country out of debt," Frie said. "We owe a lot of money and hopefully he can put that money into things like education."
Frie said he wasn't confident Trump would be able to alleviate the country's debt, but was simply hoping for the best.
"Also, hopefully we don't go to war," Frie said. "We just spent eight years on our last war, we don't need to do that again anytime soon."
Janet Wunschel, Monroe
"I couldn't care less what he does," said Janet Wunschel. "I don't like the man and I didn't vote for him."
Wunschel said she thought Trump has next to no qualifications to be president - "he has no political experience at all," she said - and that it was a shame that he was elected in the first place.
Celia Leck, Monroe
Celia Leck said she was torn between two hopes.
"I think it's a toss-up between working on jobs or fighting ISIS," Leck said.
Leck said she hoped Trump would be able to address the nation's unemployment issue, but acknowledged that the Islamic State, the fundamentalist Islamic militant group occupying wide areas of the Middle East, "needs to be stopped."