The nation’s capital, a bastion of liberalism, became Trumpland for a day.

Neither the frigid temperatures nor last-minute changes to President Trump’s inauguration ceremony deterred his most ardent supporters from flocking to Washington on Monday.

It showcased the strength and diversity of the Trump coalition that reshaped the Republican Party and the national political conversation. Gay men from conservative states stood shoulder to shoulder with Black women from liberal states, and former anti-Trumpers mingled with die-hard MAGA warriors who were proud to have been with him since “Day 1.”

“It’s a lot more fun this time around,” Stephanie Fisher, who traveled from Minnesota, told The Washington Times. “It’s kind of like you can come out of your conservative closet. It’s less shameful.”

Some VIPs scored tickets to witness Mr. Trump take the oath of office in the Capitol Rotunda, and other fans caught him at a postinaugural ceremony in an arena downtown. Others were happy to celebrate on the streets with their political brethren.

After four years of President Biden, the revelers shared a sense of jubilance and relief. They wanted to put the past behind them and look forward to what is in store for the U.S. at home and abroad.

“He’s not in first grade anymore,” said Jo Elton, who has supported Mr. Trump from the beginning. “He is now a college graduate. He knows what to do. He didn’t start Day 1 like he did before. As soon as he had his vote in and knew he was coming in, he set up camp, and we’re starting way ahead of the curve now.”

Indeed, a common outlook was that Mr. Trump would have a much better grasp of the ins and outs of the federal government and would be able to implement his agenda of trade, immigration and foreign policy much more effectively than when he first took office in 2017.

Robert Wagner from Columbus, Ohio, said Mr. Trump would pursue Reaganesque supply-side policies to spark an economic boom.

“We’ve awakened the sleeping giant,” said Mr. Wagner, an economist. “We have so much economic power that’s being capped by all these regulations. You lift those regulations, and this economy is going to rock ’n’ roll like you’ve never seen before.”

Trevian Kutti, a Black publicist from Chicago who was accused alongside Mr. Trump of trying to unlawfully change the outcome of the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia, said the momentum behind Mr. Trump’s second term has been building. She noted the long-awaited ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the soaring cryptocurrency markets and Mr. Trump’s planned crackdown on illegal immigration.

“This [inauguration] is just going to be that extra stamp that every American who got out and cast their vote for Donald Trump had been waiting for,” Ms. Kutti said.

John Bush of Indianapolis said he was excited that Mr. Trump would focus more on helping homeless veterans and everyday Americans struggling to make ends meet than sending money to Ukraine or offering services to illegal immigrants.

“Yeah, you want to take care of them. You want to do what you can, but we shouldn’t be doing that before our citizens,” he said.

Protesters were few and far between.

It marked a dramatic split from eight years ago when hundreds of thousands of protesters swarmed Washington the day after Mr. Trump’s inauguration to lock arms against him and ratchet up pressure on elected leaders to thwart his every move.

For some, the lack of political pushback was jarring.

“There have been a couple of people with bullhorns screaming about Trump being an insurrectionist and stuff, but like they were just individuals,” said Joseph Repici, 36, of Hot Springs, Arkansas. “I just expected like a wall of people coming. … It is suspicious.”

Marlow Shultz, who voted for Joseph R. Biden in 2020 and Hillary Clinton in 2016 and was bundled up in Trump gear, attributed the relative absence of protests to Americans’ change of heart.

“I think people are done being gaslighted,” said Ms. Schultz, who traveled from her home in Jacksonville, Florida, to celebrate Mr. Trump’s inauguration.

Others were cautiously optimistic about how quickly Mr. Trump could implement his agenda. Although Republicans hold a trifecta in the White House and on Capitol Hill, as they did in 2017, slim majorities in both chambers of Congress, particularly in the House, could trip up what they hoped would be a legislative sprint.

Tracy Finegan, 58, came from a small town outside Nashville to commemorate Mr. Trump’s second term. She worried that those closest to him could derail his plans over the next four years.

“I think my only concern is him being undermined, sabotaged, harmed,” Ms. Finegan said. “But for him, the promises that he’s made, he’s made good on every promise he’s ever made to the American people.”

Chris Hoins, a retiree from Bethesda, Maryland, recalled his impression of Mr. Trump in Washington eight years ago: a “baffled look on his face” as he was ushered through the Capitol by Republicans and people, be it in his administration or outside of it, taking advantage of him.

Mr. Hoins said he is confident that Mr. Trump’s second term in the White House will be much different.

“Now he knows what he wants, so that’s really good,” Mr. Hoins said. “I still question whether he’s the right leader for the country, but he’s the best one we had as a choice in both cases.”

• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.

• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.