On Friday, Jan. 20 at 12:00 p.m. Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 45th President of the United States. The events of the inauguration began the day before with the arrival of the Trump family in Washington D.C. and a celebration on the National Mall. The next day was filled with many events including the traditional meeting of the outgoing president and the incoming president, the swearing-in ceremony, the parades, military unit reviews, three inaugural balls, and much more. However, the day was not all fun and games. Congress went to work to confirm two of Trump’s cabinet picks. Trump was also seeing to his executive duties by signing legislation and executive orders. The day was also filled with havoc due to the protests that turned into riots.
The day prior to his inauguration, then President-Elect Trump flew into Andrews Air Force Base to begin a very busy day. The President-Elect began by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers in Arlington National Cemetery. During the day Trump attended meetings with his advisers and members of congress. A the end of the day, Trump attended his inauguration concert on the National Mall with performances by Toby Keith, 3 Doors Down, and Lee Greenwood. Trump spent his final night as a private citizen at the Blair House in Washington D.C., a tradition dating back to President Carter.
In accordance with tradition, during the morning of the inauguration, Donald and Melania Trump arrived at the White House for a coffee and tea with then President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. The president and president-elect rode down Pennsylvania Avenue towards the Capitol Building for the inauguration ceremony. During the ceremony, there were performances by the Moron Tabernacle Choir and Jackie Evancho. Around 12:00 p.m. Mike Pence was sworn in as Vice President by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Immediately after, Donald Trump was sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts. President Trump then gave his inauguration speech, which has since been criticized as being extremely populist and anti-establishment. The ceremony then ended and former President Obama was flown off to Andrews Air Force Base.
It is estimated that 31 million people watched the inauguration on cable and broadcast news networks. However, this is seven million less than the 38 million who watched President Obama’s inauguration, the second highest on record. These numbers do not include the use of live stream views through the internet, which provides a new source for viewers. Twitter estimated that they had over 6 million viewers through their platform alone. The president has been very hung up on these numbers in recent days due to the release of pictures comparing the size of the crowds. These pictures show the crowds at the time of the swearing-in during the 2009 and 2017 inauguration, with the 2009 inauguration being much larger.
Trump’s busy day then included a traditional luncheon with the members of Congress. Also in attendance was former Secretary of State and former rival for the Presidency, Hillary Clinton. Although all of the attention was focused on Trump, during a speech Trump recognized Clinton for attending and for the hard-fought campaign. Trump also thanked those who worked on his campaign and supporters. He also reiterated some of the key points of what he hopes to get done during his presidency. After the luncheon, Trump attended a review of the armed forces. The events shifted into a presidential parade with an emphasis on the armed forces. Finally, Trump and the First Family ended the night by attending three inaugural balls.
In between the parade and the first inaugural ball, President Trump signed legislation allowing former Marine General James “Mad Dog” Mattis to serve as Secretary of Defense. Trump also signed executive orders to formally appoint the members of his cabinet. Finally, Trump signed a proclamation declaring that day as a “National Day of Patriotic Devotion”. This is a tradition of the presidents to declare a national holiday after their inauguration. During 2009, President Obama declared his as a “National Day of Renewal and Reconciliation”.
There was a lot of controversy surrounding the events of the day, from the selection of performers to the protesters inside Washington, D.C. at the time of the inauguration. Many of the performers asked to attend immediately rejected the invitation on the basis of politics. Others had accepted, but later back out due to immense public pressure and even death threats. The performers were highly criticized by the media and the public for their lack of A-list celebrities. Several of the peaceful protests that began during the inauguration eventually developed into riots. This caused thousands of dollars in damage, and one business may even have to shut its doors due to the damage. These riots also led to the arrest of over 200 people and the injuries of 6 police officers.
The following day was filled with more protests by the women’s march. However, instead of this protest strictly taking place in Washington D.C., there were protests all around the world. It is estimated that the crowds in at the National Mall were significantly larger than that of the inauguration. While the protests have been praised as very impactful, there are still many who believe that the protests had no impact, mainly due to the crude language and threats of violence by some of the speakers.
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