![]() ![]() Attending dignitaries wore masks and sat several feet apart. The National Mall, typically packed with throngs of supporters for the ceremony, instead was filled with nearly 200,000 US flags. ![]() The violence prompted the Democratic-controlled US House of Representatives to impeach Mr Trump last week for an unprecedented second time, accusing him of incitement after he exhorted his backers to march on the building to press false claims of election fraud in the US presidential election in November last.Īmid warnings of possible renewed violence, thousands of armed National Guard troops circled the Capitol in an unprecedented show of force. The inauguration itself, one unlike any other in US history, served as a stark reminder of both the tumult that defined the Trump era as well as the pandemic that still threatens the country. The inauguration also took place two weeks after a mob of Mr Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol, in an incident that left five dead. Mr Biden assumes the presidency amid a deeply divided country reeling from a battered economy and a raging coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 400,000 Americans. Photograph: Doug Mills/EPA/PoolĪfter the inauguration ceremony at the US Capitol, Mr Biden and his family opted to walk the last few blocks of Pennsylvania Avenue to their new home. US president Joe Biden and first lady Dr Jill Biden walk along Pennsylvania Avenue with their family in front of the White House on Wednesday. ![]() Mr Biden took the presidential oath, administered by US chief justice John Roberts, with his left hand resting atop a five-inch heirloom Bible that has been in his family for a century. He then flew to his Mar-a-Lago retreat in Florida. Mr Trump, who never conceded the November 3rd presidential election, did not mention Mr Biden by name in his final remarks as president on Wednesday morning, when he touted his administration’s record. I just want to say goodbye, but hopefully it’s not a long-term goodbye, we’ll see each other again.” Speaking to journalists as he boarded the Marine One helicopter, Mr Trump said: “We’ve had an amazing four years. Instead, he left Washington, DC, earlier on Wednesday, vowing to return "in some form". ![]() Mr Trump was not present, breaking with tradition by refusing to attend his successor's inauguration. They were accompanied by three previous presidents, Mr Obama, Bill Clinton and George W Bush, and their partners. Mr Biden and new US vice-president Kamala Harris then travelled to Arlington Cemetery, where they laid a wreath at the grave of the unknown soldier. If we show a little tolerance and humility, and if we’re willing to stand in the other person’s shoes.” “We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts. “We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal,” he implored. He added that “we must reject the culture in which facts themselves are manipulated and even manufactured”.īut he offered a vision of hope, as he spoke of the “uniquely American way – restless, bold, optimistic”, and called on his fellow Americans to “set our sights on the nation we can be”. “Few people in our nation’s history have been more challenged or found a time more challenging or difficult than the time we’re in now,” he said. At this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed,” he said. “The will of the people has been heard and the will of the people has been heeded,” he said in his 21-minute inauguration address, which touched on the challenges as well as possibilities that currently faced the country. Photograph: Alex Wong/GettyĮarlier in the day, Mr Biden was sworn-in as the 46th president at a ceremony at the US Capitol shortly before noon local time. Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th US president alongside his wife, DR Jill Biden. Mr Biden also signed an order mandating mask-wearing at a federal level – one of several orders he was due to sign on Wednesday. ![]()
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