It was 2017, and like many, I hoped that Donald Trump's lies and threats on the campaign trail were nothing more than political bluster designed to get him into the White House.

After all, this was a man who had spent years in the public eye with no political experience, and the notion that his time in office would 'soften' him seemed plausible. Perhaps the weight of the office, the responsibilities of governance, would bring about a more tempered, even presidential, version of the man we'd seen campaigning. I was wrong.

Fast-forward eight years, and as I stood at the Capitol once again, freezing in the cold like an extra from The Revenant, I realised with a heavy heart that the Trump we had hoped time might change was nothing more than a fantasy.
Instead, we saw the emergence of Trump Mark II - still as unhinged, more radical, and just as divisive, if not more so, than before.

As the ceremony unfolded, I looked around, surveying the crowd. Eight years ago, the atmosphere among those who showed up was electric with anticipation. There had been a palpable sense of excitement among his supporters, who flocked to Washington, D.C., to see the outsider take power.

But today, it felt different. The crowd was smaller, the enthusiasm more subdued, and the tension in the air thicker—maybe it was just the cold, but I could feel it.
Still, Trump strode to the Rotunda's podium with his signature confidence, that characteristic swagger that has always defined him. As he raised his hand to take the oath of office again, it was impossible not to feel a sense of disbelief.
Was this man really back for another four years?

His speech that day was a stunning display of the same divisive rhetoric that had gotten him elected in the first place.
There was no sense of reflection, no olive branch extended to the people who had opposed him, no call for unity in a nation so clearly fractured. Instead, he doubled down on his "us vs them" mentality, fueling the anger of his base and dismissing any attempt at reconciliation.

His words were designed to inflame and rally his faithful supporters, keeping them firmly in his corner regardless of the consequences for the country. He spoke of winning, of defeating his enemies, of holding power and wielding it like a sledgehammer.

It was like watching someone throw a tantrum in a preschool, except with way more power and a much bigger audience.
All while his MAGA faithful - and now shameful tech titans - fully embraced it. They revelled in his wild policies, his refusal to bend to anyone, and his disregard for norms.

To them, Trump is their hero - a man who can do no wrong, who was fighting for them against the establishment.
For the millions of Americans who had rejected him in the first place, the moment felt like a nightmare come to life. These were the people who had been trying to make sense of his presidency for the last four years, and now they had no choice but to accept the reality of another four years under his rule. The divide here is more apparent than ever.

On one side, you had those who saw Trump as a messiah, a saviour who would take on the powers that be, no matter the cost.
On the other hand, there were those who feared that this second term would be even more destructive and that his unchecked power would only lead to more chaos, more harm, and deeper division.
What had begun as a hopeful moment for a country divided was now a stark reminder of just how fractured America had become.

It seems that Trump Mark II is not going to be the president many had hoped he might become. Instead, America is faced with a leader who seems more intent on stoking division, more fixated on his own agenda, and more willing to ignore the will of half the country than ever before. As we walked away from the Capitol, still numb from both the cold and the reality of what we had just witnessed, it was difficult not to feel a sense of dread about what the next four years would bring.