NEW YORK – President-elect Donald Trump rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday after being named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year for the second time.

The honors for the businessman-turned-politician mark Trump’s remarkable comeback from a ostracized former president who refused to accept his election defeat four years ago to a president-elect who decisively won the White House in November.

Before ringing the opening bell at 9:30 a.m., a first for him, Trump spoke at the Stock Exchange, calling it “a tremendous honor.”

“It’s the second time Time magazine has received this award, and I think they like it even better this time,” he said.

He touched on some of the people he has named to his new administration, including Finance Secretary Scott Bessent, and some of his announced policies, including a promise this week that the federal government will grant expedited approvals, including environmental approvals, for projects and construction worth more than $1 billion.

“I think we’re going to have a great run. We have some problems to solve, some big problems in the world,” he said.

Sam Jacobs, executive editor of the Times, announced on NBC’s “Today” show that Trump has been named Time magazine’s 2024 Person of the Year. Jacobs said Trump was someone who “had the biggest impact on the news in 2024, for better or worse.”

“This is someone who made a historic comeback, who reshaped the American presidency and reordered American politics,” Jacobs said. “It’s hard to deny that the person who moves into the Oval Office is the most influential person in the news industry.”

He added that “there is always a heated debate in the magazine” about the award, “although I have to admit that this year was an easier decision than in previous years.”

In an interview with the magazine published Thursday, Trump discussed his recent campaign victory and his election victory.

“I called it ’72 Days of Rage,'” Trump said. “We have touched the nerve of the country. The country was angry.”

Trump was on Wall Street to celebrate the ceremonial start of the trading day. The Time magazine cover featuring him was projected onto a wall at the Stock Exchange, flanked by American flags.

Trump took the stage at the exchange, flanked by family members and members of his new administration, as his favorite song, “God Bless the USA,” played.

Trump was also Time Magazine’s Person of the Year in 2016 when he was first elected to the White House. He was listed as a finalist for this year’s award alongside notables such as Vice President Kamala Harris, X owner Elon Musk, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kate, the Princess of Wales.

The NYSE regularly invites celebrities and business leaders to attend celebratory opening trading at 9:30 a.m. On Thursday, Trump will give the honor, which has become a symbol of culture and politics, for the first time.

Last year, Time CEO Jessica Sibley rang the NYSE’s opening bell to announce the magazine’s 2023 Person of the Year: Taylor Swift.

Trump has long been fascinated by appearing on the cover of Time, where he first appeared in 1989. He has falsely claimed to hold the record for cover appearances, and The Washington Post reported in 2017 that Trump had a fake image of himself on the magazine’s cover hanging at several of his golf country clubs.

Earlier this year, Trump sat for interviews with the magazine for a story that appeared in April. Time’s billionaire owner, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, criticized Trump’s Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, for not granting the magazine an interview.

“Despite multiple requests, Time was not granted an interview with Kamala Harris — unlike every other presidential candidate,” Benioff said in a post on X. “We believe in transparency and publish every interview in its entirety. Why isn’t the vice president engaging with the public on the same level?”

In his latest interview, published on Thursday, Trump reiterated that he would pardon most of those convicted in the riots at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. “It will start in the first hour,” he said of the pardons. “Maybe the first nine minutes.”

Trump said he would not ask members of his administration to sign a pledge of loyalty. “I think for the most part I can tell who is loyal,” he said. But he said he would fire anyone who doesn’t follow his guidelines.

Regarding the war in Gaza, Trump said he wanted to end the conflict and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knew that. When Trump was asked if he trusted Netanyahu, he told Time: “I don’t trust anyone.”

The new president also discussed his plans for mass deportations and argued that he would have the authority to use the military to support those efforts, even though, as the magazine notes, the Posse Comitatus law prohibits the use of the military against civilians.

“It doesn’t stop the military if there is an invasion of our country,” he said. “I will only do what the law allows, but I will go to the maximum extent of what the law allows.”

Trump created his image as a wealthy real estate developer, which he flaunted as the star of the TV reality show “The Apprentice” and during his presidential campaign. He won the election in part by channeling Americans’ fears about the economy’s ability to support the middle class.

The larger business community has welcomed his promises to cut corporate taxes and cut regulations. But there are also concerns about his stated plans to impose sweeping tariffs and potentially target companies he believes are not aligned with his own political interests.

The U.S. stock market has historically tended to rise regardless of which party wins the White House, with Democrats posting larger average gains since 1945. But Republican control could lead to big changes in winning and losing industries beneath the surface, and investors are increasing their bets. He earlier built on what Trump’s favored higher tariffs, lower tax rates and less regulation will mean.

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Associated Press writers Colleen Long and Josh Boak in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.