Tag: inauguration
Donald Trump

At Trump's Fumbling Inauguration, The Vibes Were Very Weird

Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president on Monday, and as is often the case with Trump, things were not normal. Here are just a few of the strange things the entire world saw as Trump took the oath of office.

Trump didn’t put his hand on the Bible

When Trump took the oath, he never placed his hand on the Bible held by his wife Melania Trump. By contrast, when Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama took the oath, they put their hands on the Bible.

Trump in the dumps?

On his way in to take his oath, Trump didn’t look particularly happy to be there. He slowly walked in with a demeanor more appropriate for a funeral than a triumphant political victory.

Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com)

Trump misses his kiss with Melania

The customary kiss for the presidential spouse was also a misfire. Perhaps due to the gigantic size of her hat, Trump gave his wife, Melania Trump, a mere air kiss instead of the real thing.

Oligarchs up front

Instead of congressional leaders, the people with the closest seats to Trump’s ceremony were billionaires who have bent the knee to him. They included co-president Elon Musk (the richest person in the world), Amazon and Washington Post head Jeff Bezos, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg (fresh off of unleashing hate speech across his sites), and Apple head Tim Cook.

Elon Musk investigates the ceiling

Elon Musk gave a close inspection of the ceiling of the Capitol, instead of keeping his eyes on the ceremony.

Chesty singing

Opera singer Christopher Macchio sang as JD Vance entered the Capitol rotunda to be sworn in. Macchio appeared to have left his tie at home and shared his bare chest with the world.

The last time Trump occupied the White House for for years, it was an endless cavalcade of weirdness that turned out deadly for thousands of people. In his first day in office, it is clear the weirdness has returned.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

'Saved By God' -- But Trump Doesn't Touch Bible As He Takes Oath

'Saved By God' -- But Trump Doesn't Touch Bible As He Takes Oath

During his presidential swearing-in inaugural ceremony, Donald Trump several times invoked God, while inexplicably not placing his hand on either of the two Bibles Melania Trump held at his side.

“I was saved by God to make America great again,” Trump told the former presidents, lawmakers, and billionaires in attendance at the Capitol Rotunda. “We are one people, one family, and one glorious nation under God,” Trump also declared, adding, “We will not forget our God.”

Many, including the deputy chief of staff to a Democratic Congressman, noted that Trump did not place his hand on the Bible. And while not a constitutional requirement, it was a striking anomaly.

Also reporting Trump not being sworn in with a hand on the Bible, the New York Post noted, “Trump used both a family Bible and the so-called Lincoln Bible, which was sworn on by the 16th president in 1861 as well as Barack Obama in 2009 and 2013.”

“Instead,” the Post reported, “Trump stood with his left arm down by his side as he raised his right hand for the oath of office.”

Few presidents have skipped the hand-on-the-Bible portion of the swearing in.

President John Quincy Adams in 1825 reportedly used a law book instead of a Bible, according to PBS.

“In 1901, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was hastily sworn in after the assassination of President Wil­liam McKinley,” notes Americans United for Separation of Church and State. “Roosevelt had rushed to Buffalo, where McKinley had been shot by an anarchist named Leon Czolgosz. Roosevelt took the oath of office at the home of a friend, and no Bible was used during the private ceremony.”

In 1963, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, “believed it was best for a reeling nation to know that a president was in place immediately. As Johnson was preparing to take the oath of office aboard Air Force One, a Bible was not available. Kennedy’s personal Roman Catholic missal was found in his living quarters,” according to The Washington Post.

But this may be the first time a president has been sworn in with a Bible by his side yet without putting their hand on it.

Watch the video below or at this link.

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Trump Fans Who Flocked To DC Now Furious Over Indoor Inaugural

Trump Fans Who Flocked To DC Now Furious Over Indoor Inaugural

Supporters of President-elect Donald Trump have been flocking to Washington D.C. in advance of his second inauguration on Monday. But many were caught off-guard at the news that the incoming president would be conducting his swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol rotunda, where only V.I.P. guests will be able to attend.

The Daily Beast reported after the news broke that the outdoor inauguration ceremony had been relocated, Trump fans who traveled from across the country were outraged. NBC Washington was the first to inform Oklahoma resident Ken Robinson that the inauguration had been moved indoors due to frigid temperatures and high winds in Monday's weather forecast.

"I don't like it! I mean we came all the way from Oklahoma, and now we're not gonna get to see him?" Robinson said. "We might as well have stayed home and watched it on TV."

"We have farms," Oklahoma-based Trump supporter Harry Troyer said. "We don’t get to not feed the cows cause it’s cold."

National Park Service officials had already begun the process of giving out the approximately 220,000 tickets for inauguration attendees prior to the announcement that the ceremony had been moved to the U.S. Capitol. Attendees have been invited to watch the inauguration via livestream at Washington D.C.'s Capital One Arena (home of the Washington Wizards NBA franchise), though the facility only has roughly 20,000 seats, meaning many Trump supporters will still be unable to even watch the inauguration there.

Following the change in venue, CBS News congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane tweeted that those inauguration tickets have now been designated as merely "commemorative." This is despite some tickets selling for $500 apiece on Craigslist as of Thursday.

"The majority of ticketed guests will not be able to attend the ceremonies in person," read a memo by the House Sergeant at Arms.

"It's actually something that we've been looking forward to for historical purposes and being a part of it, that's once in a lifetime," Trump supporter Jose Granado, who traveled to D.C. from Florida, told NBC Washington. "Made all the plans, all the arrangements to come up and be a part of this event. And all of a sudden to hear that it's moved indoors, it's kind of like a bummer."

“Spent thousands of dollars on a hotel room and now they aren’t having an Inauguration for the public,” one Trump supporter wrote on X. “Wtf.”

“We have coats and will wear them. Already bought expensive hotels, rental cars, subway tickets etc etc,” another X user wrote. “We the people were prepared for the cold. We want to see Trump in person. Rain snow sleet warm cold it don’t matter.”

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Judge Aileen Cannon

Judge Cannon Allows Release Of Special Counsel Report On Trump Coup

On Monday, January 13 — a week before Donald Trump's second inauguration — the news broke that Judge Aileen Cannon had OK'd the release of part of former special counsel Jack Smith's final report on his two criminal cases against the president-elect.

Smith's final report contains two volumes: one dealing with Smith's Mar-a-Lago documents case (which Cannon dismissed), the other dealing with Smith's election interference case (which Judge Tanya Chutkan dismissed without prejudice at Smith's request after Trump won the 2024 election). And Cannon gave the go-ahead for the release of the election interference portion of the report, while setting a January 17 hearing for the classified documents part.

After the news broke, CNN's Dana Bash brought on legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid for analysis.

Reid told Bash, "What we were looking for today is whether she would try to block (the full release) of Jack Smith's reports. As a special counsel, he is required by regulation to submit reports detailing his investigative decisions to the attorney general. He has submitted two reports to Attorney General Merrick Garland…. The classified documents report is not expected to be released anytime soon, because that case is still active."

Reid added, "Trump had co-defendants in that case. Their cases are still active even though Trump's has been dismissed. So, all eyes are on the January 6 report. And…. Judge Cannon cleared the way for this report to possibly be released. "

Reid noted, however, that based on conversations with sources, she "wouldn't be surprised" if Trump's lawyers "appealed" Cannon's ruling and went "higher up the legal food chain to try to block this release."

Reid told Bash, "Even though sources on both sides tell me there's not a lot of news in this report….. the Trump team had made it clear: They are going to fight Jack Smith and the Justice Department every step of the way."

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Shop our Store

Headlines

Editor's Blog

Corona Virus

Trending

World