Inauguration Day 2021: Obama, Bush and Clinton give message to Biden as Oval Office gets a revamp
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Your support makes all the difference.Barack Obama, George W Bush and Bill Clinton spoke in a taped message during the Celebrating America concert.
“Joe, I'm proud of you,” said Mr Biden’s former boss, Barack Obama.
Mr Biden called for American unity as he spoke at the Lincoln Memorial during a celebration concert.
“It is humbling to stand here in this place in front of these sacred words. Humbling out of respect to President Lincoln and the office we now share and humbling because of you, the American people," he said at the Celebrating America event.
“As I said earlier today, we have learned again that democracy is precious and because of you democracy has prevailed."
His speech came after the Senate confirmed his first cabinet nomination of Avril Haines for director of national intelligence.
Earlier he got to work at the Oval Office of the White House by signing several executive orders after being sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.
The first order he signed was a federal mask mandate, which would require the face shield on federal property and during interstate travel. His other two executive orders involved revoking Donald Trump’s Muslim travel ban and rejoining the Paris Climate Accords.
Vice President Kamala Harris also got straight to work on Wednesday after she was sworn in. She went to the Senate for the swearing in of three Democratic senators.
This all comes after a day filled with inauguration-related events, including Mr Biden and Ms Harris traveling to Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W Bush, and Barack Obama were all in attendance for the events.
Mr Trump, in comparison, broke precedent and left the White House for Mar-a-Lago in Florida without attending the inauguration. The one tradition Mr Trump did participate in was writing a letter to his successor, which was left in a drawer of the Resolute Desk. Mr Biden did not reveal the contents of the letter, but he did say it was "very generous”.
McConnell and Pelosi present flags to the new president and vice president
Another part of the Inauguration Day events includes the leader of the Senate and the House of Representatives presenting flags to the new president and vice president that were flown at the start of the swearing-in ceremony.
“On behalf of the Senate, with all due respect to our distinguished Speaker … not only did we swear in a son and daughter of the Senate … but indeed these former senators skipped the House all together,” Mr McConnell joked, a slight snub at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
He then presented a flag to Vice President Kamala Harris.
Then it was Ms Pelosi’s turn to take the podium where she presented a flag to Joe Biden, saying it was “time to play ball”.
"This flag will reflect America united," she said. “May it be a symbol of the hope, the healing, and all of the enthusiasm you have for our country.”
Kevin McCarthy says he’s ‘very proud’ of Biden and Harris, despite pushing voter fraud conspiracy
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy participated in the Inauguration Day events on Wednesday, even though he pushed the “Big Lie” that there was massive voter fraud in the presidential election.
He congratulated Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, saying he was “very proud” of them.
This comes after Mr McCarthy challenged the certification of Electoral College votes for Arizona and Pennsylvania following the US Capitol riots. He also signed onto a Texas lawsuit that challenged the election results.
Biden and Harris leave US Capitol to head to Arlington National Cemetery
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have left the US Capitol after completing all of the Inauguration Day traditions, which included a small parade in front of the steps of the building.
They will now head to Arlington National Cemetery with their families to lay a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, another tradition.
Former Presidents Barack Obama, George W Bush, and Bill Clinton will also participate in the ceremony. Donald Trump will be absent after he refused to participate in the day’s events.
How many Catholic presidents have there been?
Joe Biden has become the second ever Catholic president of the United States.
Out of the 46 presidents since the inauguration of George Washington in 1789, the only other Catholic commander-in-chief was John F Kennedy.
Oliver O’Connell has the story:
How many Catholic presidents have there been?
President Biden’s faith is an important part of his life
Hillary Clinton praises poet Amanda Gorman, saying she should run for president
Hillary Clinton shared a picture of herself with poet Amanda Gorman, who became the youngest inaugural poet laureate in history.
In the tweet, Mrs Clinton said that Ms Gorman, 22, promised to run for president in 2036 after she came of legal age to assume the presidency.
Ms Gorman has received hefty praise for the poem she wrote and recited on social media.
People praise poet Amanda Gorman for inauguration performance
‘I will listen to these words many times over’
Watch live: President Biden lays wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington
White House is redecorated ahead of Biden’s arrival
The White House has entered into the redecorating phase while President Joe Biden participates in several Inauguration Day events.
Pictures showed photos getting hung up throughout the White House that showed the president with First Lady Dr Jill Biden, as well as other monumental moments in his career.
One picture was of the president and first lady at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool with Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff on Tuesday. That event was in honour of the hundreds of thousands of lives lost during the Covid-19 pandemic.
‘America is back’: World leaders react to Biden’s inauguration
World leaders are congratulating Joe Biden on his inauguration as the 46th president of the United States, bringing to an end one of the most chaotic periods in American history under Donald Trump, who earlier today left the White House for the final time under a cloud of scandal and having issued a flurry of pardons to his friends and associates.
After he was sworn in, Mr Biden delivered remarks in front of a vacant but heavily militarised National Mall that had been filled with American flags due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the handling of which is likely to define the new president's first year in the Oval Office.
"This is America's day," said Mr Biden as he began his speech. "This is democracy's day. Democracy has prevailed," he added, in the only attack at the outgoing president, who attempted to subvert the will of the American people and overturn the election result but failed.
Matt Mathers has the full story:
World leaders react to Biden’s inauguration
‘A great day for democracy,’ says Italian PM Giuseppe Conte
Stock market soars after Biden is inaugurated
Donald Trump long said that the US economy would tank if Joe Biden were to win the presidency, but that was not the case so far.
The US stock market hit an all-time high on Wednesday after Mr Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.
Investors are eagerly anticipating a stimulus package that could provide necessary relief to states, businesses, and individuals amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden administration changes US Ambassador of Israel Twitter page and then changes it back
One of the Twitter pages changed following the inauguration of President Joe Biden was the one for the US Ambassador of Israel.
The page was changed to state “US Ambassador to Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza,” this was likely to hint at the Biden administration’s policy stance on what was and wasn’t Israeli territory.
But after the change circulated on social media, the page was switched back to “US Ambassador of Israel”.
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