Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President on Wednesday, January 20.
Inauguration Day is always a momentous occasion in the United States, but this year the tension in the country and the challenges facing the new administration have put an unprecedented spotlight on the day. The transition of power has not been peaceful: Donald Trump incited a riot of his supporters on Jan. 6 that disrupted the counting of Electoral College votes in the Capitol and left five people dead. As a result, the heart of the nation’s capital city took on the appearance of a conflict zone in the lead-up to Jan. 20, with thousands of National Guard troops stationed around the city and a series of barricades and fences encircling the Capitol Building where Biden will be sworn in.
A Senate impeachment trial over Trump’s incitement of the riot will now loom over the early days of Biden’s presidency. Trump is set to leave town before Biden’s swearing in, breaking with more than 100 years of precedent of outgoing presidents attending the event. Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage throughout the country. More than 400,000 Americans have died since the beginning of the pandemic, and Biden now needs to manage the complicated rollout of life-saving vaccines.
Biden is expected to focus on a theme of unifying the country in his first speech as president, which he is scheduled to deliver after he is sworn in around midday. This piece will be updated throughout the day.
Trump leaves town
Donald Trump is expected to leave Washington at 8:00 am, hours before his presidency officially ends. (Which, as TIME’s Philip Elliott notes, means Trump gets to fly on a plane designated Air Force One for a final time.) Trump will be in Palm Beach, Florida, by the time Joe Biden is sworn in. His early departure marks a significant break with precedent and Washington norms: there are only three past presidents known to have skipped their successors’ inaugurations, the most recent instance of which was more than 150 years ago. All other living former presidents besides 96-year-old Jimmy Carter will be in attendance at Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday.
After spending months casting doubt on the legitimate results of the election, refusing to gracefully concede and inciting a mob of supporters who violently rioted at the Capitol during the certification of the Electoral College votes, Trump said in a pre-recorded farewell speech released on Jan. 19 that he “pray[s]” for the Biden administration’s “success in keeping America safe and prosperous.” Trump continued: “We extend our best wishes, and we also want them to have luck, a very important word.”
But he also left a parting reminder of the political power he hopes to wield even after he leaves the White House, “As I prepare to hand power over to a new administration at noon on Wednesday,” Trump said, “I want you to know that the movement we started is only just beginning.” —Tessa Berenson
Pandemic preparations
Inauguration Day typically brings a packed schedule of events to Washington, D.C., with lots of pomp and crowds for days surrounding a new President’s swearing in. But this year, Biden’s inauguration is taking place amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the fallout from the Jan. 6 riots when a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol building, so in-person events will be significantly scaled back.
Even before the election-denying mob raised security concerns, this inauguration was going to look very different from previous iterations. The inaugural committee picked Dr. David Kessler, a pediatrician and former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, to serve as its chief medical advisor, and put in place strict health and safety protocols for anyone who is attending. Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will take their oaths of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol, but officials have significantly limited the number of attendees to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Members of Congress typically receive 200,000 tickets to distribute to constituents so Americans from all over the country could attend the event in person. This year, each member of Congress got only two—one for themselves and one for a single guest.
Outside the official swearing in ceremony, the National Mall will also be closed and members of the public have been encouraged to stay away due to COVID-19. This means there won’t be any way for Trump to compare crowd sizes the way he did with former President Barack Obama’s inauguration. There will also be no public parade to the White House or in-person inaugural balls, which usually serve as another opportunity for the new President to make appearances.
Instead, once Biden has given his inaugural address outside the Capitol, he and Harris will participate in a “Pass in Review,” in which they review military troops to signal a peaceful transfer of power, and then visit Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to honor fallen members of the military. Afterward, they will receive a “presidential escort” to the White House, made up of socially distanced members of every branch of the military.
Most of the other inauguration events will be virtual to demonstrate the new Administration’s commitment to following health and safety guidelines. A virtual “parade across America” will feature videos of performances from communities across the country, and the day will culminate with the “Celebrating America” primetime special hosted by Tom Hanks and featuring appearances by Eva Longoria, Kerry Washington and a slew of performers including Foo Fighters, John Legend, Lin Manuel Miranda, Bruce Springsteen, Demi Lovato, Justin Timerlake, Ant Clemons and Jon Bon Jovi. —Abigail Abrams
0 comments:
Post a Comment