Under ramped-up security and pandemic-era restrictions on gathering, President Joe Biden was sworn in Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol, and Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman of color to hold the office.
Biden and Harris each took their oath of office on the west steps of the Capitol, where two weeks earlier insurrectionists pushed past police lines and breached the building’s doors.
In the opening of his inaugural address, Biden said the day’s transfer of power was a victory for democracy and a testament to the strength of the U.S. Constitution.
“The will of the people has been heard, and the will of the people has been heeded. We’ve learned again that democracy is precious and democracy is fragile. At this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed,” Biden said. “This is America’s day. This is democracy’s day. A day in history and hope, of renewal and resolve.”
Biden asked even those who did not vote for him to give him a chance. He said, “Hear me out as we move forward.”
As he did frequently during the campaign, Biden pledged that he will be a “president for all Americans” and will “fight as hard for those who did not support me as for those who did.”
He added, “We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue.”
Biden said the duty of all Americans, especially elected leaders, is “to defend the truth and defeat the lies.”
And he asked, in what he called his first act as president, for a moment of silence to honor the 400,000 Americans who have died of COVID-19.
Biden thanked former presidents of both parties, as well as former Vice President Mike Pence, for attending the ceremony, drawing attention to the absence of his immediate predecessor.
Donald Trump did not attend his successor’s inauguration, becoming the first president to choose to skip it since Andrew Johnson in 1869.
Instead, Trump left the White House early Wednesday on Marine One, the presidential helicopter, flying to Joint Base Andrews outside Washington, D.C., to deliver his final remarks as president to an assemblage of a couple hundred staffers and supporters.
He defended his legacy as president, pointing as accomplishments to the creation of the Space Force, work on behalf of veterans and the economic gains the rebuilt the economy. He also suggested he had left the country on an upward trajectory, admonishing the incoming administration to “be careful.”
Nonetheless, he offered the Biden administration well wishes.
“The future of this country has never been brighter,” Trump said. “I wish the new administration great luck and great success.”
He added: “We’ll be back in some form.”
Trump leaves office having lost allies in his own party, as well as his largest social media bullhorn, and he faces an impeachment trial in the coming weeks that could leave him barred from seeking public office.
By the time Biden gave his inaugural remarks, the former president had landed in Florida to make his way to his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.
Thought there have been no specific threats made against Biden, the nation’s capital is essentially on lockdown following this month’s riots at the Capitol. More than 25,000 troops and police have been called to duty. Tanks and concrete barriers block the streets. The National Mall is closed. Fencing lines the perimeter of the U.S. Capitol complex. Checkpoints sit at intersections.
There were a few scattered arrests, but no serious disruptions in the city during Biden’s inauguration ceremony.
Chief Justice John Roberts swore in Biden; Justice Sonya Sotomayor administered the oath to Harris.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown cheered the inauguration of Biden and Harris. In a statement, she praised the new administration’s diverse cabinet nominees and Harris’ historic role as the first female, Black and Asian Vice President.
“We have waited a long time to have a strong, competent and trustworthy partner we can work with at the federal level — and now more than ever, we need that federal leadership to help states beat COVID-19, once and for all,” Brown, a Democrat, said in the statement.
Former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton and former first ladies Michelle Obama, Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton were in attendance. Former President Jimmy Carter, 96, and former first lady Rosalynn Carter, 93, will not, though they have extended their “best wishes.”
Although the festivities have been radically scaled down due to the raging coronavirus pandemic and security threats, a steady stream of A-list names have signed on. Lady Gaga sang the national anthem on the West Front of the Capitol, with Jennifer Lopez and Garth Brooks also performing.
Other top-tier performers will be part of “Celebrating America,” a 90-minute, multi-network evening broadcast hosted by Tom Hanks that officially takes the place of the usual multiple inaugural balls. Miranda will contribute a classical recitation, joining musicians like Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry, John Legend, Demi Lovato, Foo Fighters, Justin Timberlake and Bon Jovi. Hosts Kerry Washington and Eva Longoria will be joined by basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, chef Jose Andres, labor leader Dolores Huerta and Kim Ng, the first female general manager in MLB history.
After the inaugural address, the new president made his way to the other side of the Capitol for the long-standing tradition of the new commander in chief inspecting the troops. The Pass in Review ceremony is designed to reflect the peaceful transfer of power. Every branch of the military was be presented, though this year’s participants were distanced to deter the spread of the coronavirus.
Then the Bidens and Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The former presidents and first ladies joined them.
The traditional inaugural parade down Pennsylvania Avenue was dramatically scaled back. It extended just a few hundred yards to the White House rather than the 1.6-mile route of previous inaugurations.
Just before 1 p.m. PST, the 46th president and first lady Jill Biden walked through a military cordon lining the White House driveway with the flags of U.S. states and entered the White House for the first time as first couple.
Biden is expected to immediately begin working, with a stack of executive orders on immigration and other matters awaiting his signature.
-- Staff and wire reports