The Trump Inauguration: All You Need To Know
By Tyler Durden
The day is finally here: the long and turbulent 2016 election reaches its dramatic conclusion today when Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. In a ceremony likely to draw 900,000 people, including protesters, Trump and his vice president, Mike Pence, will take the oath of office at noon outside the domed U.S. Capitol, with U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts presiding.
The inauguration by the numbers:
- The crowd is expected to be between 700,000 and 900,000. This compares to roughly 1.8 million present during Barack Obama’s first inauguration.
- 28,000 security officials, including secret service and national guard are expected to be present
- Trump’s inaugural address is expected to last about 20 minutes
- The parade will include 8,000 participants representing 40 organizations, including marching bands and veteran groups
- There will be 3 official balls, compared to 10 for Obama
- 99 protest groups have signed up to demonstrate the inauguration
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The Inauguration
The inauguration of the controversial real estate mogul and former reality television star will largely follow tradition, but there will be several unique changes scattered throughout.
In what will likely be the most personal touch, Trump has chosen his childhood Bible for the swearing-in ceremony. He will also use the Lincoln Bible, which has been used at three previous inaugural ceremonies: that of Abraham Lincoln in 1861, and for Barack Obama both in 2009 and 2013.
Unlike previous inaugurations, the lineup of performers has been largely kept quiet as a number of individuals who were either asked to participate or who were announced as part of the lineup ended up dropping out following backlash. One performer who has been confirmed is Jackie Evancho, a 16-year-old “America’s Got Talent” alum. She will be singing the national anthem.
Another abnormal aspect of the day will be the number of congressional Democrats who have announced that they are skipping the inauguration. The latest count has one-third of all House Democrats skipping the inauguration. There is no modern precedent for a planned political boycott of this scale. The boycott does not appear to have shaken Trump, who used his most common form of communication to make his first statement of the day. Trump sent out a tweet from his personal account, writing “it all begins today!”
It all begins today! I will see you at 11:00 A.M. for the swearing-in. THE MOVEMENT CONTINUES – THE WORK BEGINS!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 20, 2017
The day’s schedule of events follows the familiar pattern of inaugurations of the past, however, as Trump will have stayed overnight at Blair House across the street from the White House and will go from there to a church service. Then, he and his wife, Melania Trump, will go to the White House for tea with the Obamas before proceeding to the Capitol.
The swearing-in ceremony will take place shortly after they arrive, and Trump will take the oath of office promptly at noon, which marks the official transfer of power.
The inaugural address comes toward the …read more
Source: The Trump Inauguration: All You Need To Know
