Trump’s inauguration: full program of events
20 January 14:18
Today, Donald Trump will be inaugurated as President of the United States in Washington, DC. A detailed program of events was published by CBS News, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
All official events
The inaugural ceremonies of the newly elected president and vice president are planned by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. This year, the committee is chaired by Senator Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota. The committee oversees eight events on Inauguration Day:
- the procession to the Capitol;
- the swearing-in ceremony of the Vice President;
- the swearing-in ceremony of the president;
- the inaugural address;
- honorable retirement of the previous president and vice president;
- a signing ceremony, during which the new president signs appointments, memoranda, proclamations, or executive orders;
- inaugural dinner;
- a review of the troops, during which the president and vice president inspect military units;
- the Presidential Parade, which will be held at the Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, D.C. due to the cold weather.
The theme of this year’s ceremonies is “Our Enduring Democracy: A Constitutional Promise.”
The inauguration ceremony is scheduled to begin at approximately 18:30 Kyiv time, and Trump is sworn in at around 19:00. Thus, around this time, the 24 hours during which Trump promised to stop the war in Ukraine during his campaign will begin.
The ceremony was originally planned to be held on the western front of the U.S. Capitol, but the president-elect decided to move it to the Capitol Rotunda, allegedly because of the expected cold temperatures in Washington on Monday. At the same time, it is likely that Trump is moving the ceremony indoors for security reasons.
Although there is no set time for the inauguration ceremony, in 2017, when Trump was sworn in, and in 2021, when Biden was inaugurated, the ceremony lasted approximately an hour.
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The order of the ceremony
According to the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, the inaugural ceremonies will begin with a musical prelude performed by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Combined Choirs and the U.S. Marine Corps “Presidential” Band.
Klobuchar will announce the beginning of the ceremony, and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, and Franklin Graham will offer the opening prayer. Christopher Macchio, an opera singer known as the Tenor of America, will perform “Oh, America!”.
Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh will then swear in Vice President J.D. Vance. Trump nominated Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court in 2018 after the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy.
Country singer Carrie Underwood will perform “America the Beautiful” with the Armed Forces Choir and the U.S. Naval Academy Choir Club.
After their performance, Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the presidential oath of office.
The Naval Academy Glee Club will return to perform “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” after which Trump will deliver his inaugural address.
The ceremony will conclude with a blessing from Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, president of Yeshiva University; Imam Husham Al-Husayni of the Islamic Education Center of Karbalaa; Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of 180 Church Detroit; and Father Frank Mann of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, as well as a performance of the national anthem by Macchio.
Trump’s position on Ukraine
During the election campaign, Donald Trump repeatedly said that he would stop the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office. Sometimes he suggested that this could happen even before that.
Also during the election, the media spread the so-called “Trump Plan”. The idea was that the United States would use its influence to stop the war and maintain the status quo. To do this, Trump would force Putin and Zelenskyy to sit down at the negotiating table. If Putin does not agree to negotiate, the United States will give Ukraine all the weapons it needs to win on the battlefield. If Zelenskyy refuses to negotiate, the United States will completely stop helping Ukraine.
This plan, in its various variations, stipulates that Russia retains the territories it temporarily occupies and that Ukraine does not join NATO.
However, later Trump seemed to “forget” about this plan. In particular, he voiced scenarios in which he would force Russia to capitulate due to the decline in world oil prices.
After Trump was elected President of the United States, one of his advisors, Brian Lanza, said that Ukraine should forget about Crimea. The president-elect’s entourage, however, was quick to deny this statement and said that Lanza could not speak for Trump.
Currently, the future US Special Representative for Russia and Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, is talking about 100 days in which he wants to reach some kind of agreement.
