The inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th President of the United States takes place on Wednesday. Banners and flags are up all over the nation’s capital, but the presence of barricades and some 25,000 National Guard troops are a sign that this is no ordinary inauguration event.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic and the recent mob violence in the Capital, only about 1,000 people will attend when Biden takes the oath of office. Most of those will be members of Congress and their guests. Of course, that attendance number is not counting the National Guard troops stationed around what is starting to feel like Fortress Washington D.C.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is set to stand before Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and take her oath of office shortly after the event kicks off at 11:15 a.m on Wednesday. Following the vice president’s oath, Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the oath of office to President-elect Biden.
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The newly sworn in Biden will then give his inaugural address to the handful of attendees before attending ceremonial duties such as reviewing troops from each branch of the military and a ceremonial wreath laying at Arlington National Cemetery.
Rather than the usual inaugural balls that are traditional on inauguration days, all events after the actual inauguration will be virtual.
One person who will be noticeably absent from the events will be the outgoing President Donald Trump. While it hasn’t happened in over 100 years, there have been a few times when a living former president did not attend his successor’s inauguration.
The most notable absentees were John Adams who did not attend his rival Thomas Jefferson’s inauguration in 1800, John Quincy Adams who sat out the inauguration of Andrew Jackson in 1829, and Andrew Johnson who feverishly signed new legislation into law as Ulysses Grant took his oath in 1869.
Rather than attend ceremonial transfer of power to Biden, President Trump has decided to host his own send-off. Invitations have gone out inviting people to Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington where the outgoing president will speak before boarding Air Force One for the final time and flying to his Mara-Lago resort in Florida.
Media reports have indicated Trump asked for a 21-gun military salute upon his departure; however, it remains to be seen if that will actually occur. However, Trump will not be in Washington, D.C., when Biden takes his oath.
Most national news media will stream the Biden inauguration online. ABC will begin its coverage at 7 a.m. while PBS begins at 10:30 a.m. CBS’s coverage will run all day, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and will also simulcast online. CNN will pick up coverage at 4 p.m. and run until 4 a.m. Thursday. Fox is scheduled to broadcast inaugural events from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. and NBC will run from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Scott Hudson is the Managing Editor of The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
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