BRET BAIER: Inauguration Day highlights America’s eternal promise

On January 20, 2025, at noon, Donald J. Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. He will be only the second president to hold consecutive terms, Grover Cleveland being the first. Cleveland’s fate was the result of public buyer’s remorse. First elected in 1884, he was defeated in 1888 by Benjamin Harrison, whose economic policies turned into a disaster. Harrison was so weak that Cleveland saw an opportunity to return to the White House. He was re-elected in 1892.

On Monday, Trump will repeat the unusual act of Cleveland as he stands for the inauguration on one of the coldest days of the year in Washington, DC Trump announced that the event will be moved indoors to the Capitol Rotunda, with live viewing up to 20,000 Capital One Arena. Although more than 200,000 people have tickets for the inauguration, most of them will be watching on screens all over America. Bad weather has put a damper on celebrations just a few times, most recently for Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration in 1985, when the temperature was seven degrees during the day.

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Inauguration Day is a constitutionally mandated ritual, our way of keeping the promise of democracy every four years. The traditions that exist, without politics, are loved by the public regardless of who puts their hand in the Bible. Every four years, this event is an acknowledgment of what unites us. Americans in particular put aside their differences and focus on our enduring democracy. Hard feelings may linger from the election, but the opening ceremony transcends those stages, if only for a day.

It starts early in the morning when it is customary for the incoming president and his spouse to be held at the White House for tea by the outgoing president and his spouse. The Bidens will host the Trumps on January 20. This tea, another example of a peaceful transition of power, can be difficult when the winners and losers come together in those final moments. The Trumps are completely skipping 2021, but photos from various transitions show plenty of strong smiles. Everyone reads pictures for body language clues, but the bottom line is that it usually happens. Americans like to see leaders of different parties get along, even superficially. Note the fiery response in the press and on social media to Trump and Obama smiling and chatting at Jimmy Carter’s funeral.

It is also customary for the outgoing and incoming presidents to ride to the Capitol together. Trump and Obama rode together on the first day of Trump’s inauguration in 2017. It is not known if Biden and Trump will use the car this time.

The inauguration itself will follow tradition, with all four living presidents present—Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden. Holding positions alongside Cabinet appointees and top guests will be new faces at the event—a collection of the world’s most powerful tech leaders, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, and TikTok CEO Shou Zi. Chew.

Everyone is looking forward to the opening speech, which sets the tone for the new administration. Over the centuries, signature lines have been remembered long after the president has come and gone. What makes the statement memorable is how well it reflects the American spirit of resilience. For example, Thomas Jefferson’s declaration that “all differences of opinion are not differences of principle.” Or Abraham Lincoln in 1865, when the Civil War was in its last period, shedding a lot of blood, offering this wonderful olive branch: “With no hatred for anyone, with love for all, with the firmness of what is right as God gives us to see what is right, let us strive to finish the work we are in, to bind let us feel the wounds, take care of the one who is carrying the war and his widow and orphan, do everything possible. achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and among all nations.”

Franklin Roosevelt stood before a nation devastated by the Great Depression and tried to instill a new resolve with these words: “So, first, let me affirm my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, irrational, irrational fear that paralyzes the necessary efforts to turn retreat into advance.” John F. Kennedy said what was perhaps the most famous first line of all: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”

Tech leaders, including Elon Musk, Shou Zi Chew, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg will attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday. (ETIENNE LAURENTBAY ISMOYOMARK RALSTON ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In Reagan’s first inaugural address, he laid out the guiding principle of American greatness in the world: “Above all, we must understand that no weapon, or no weapon in the world’s arsenal, is as formidable as moral will and courage.” set men and women free.”

Reports from the Trump administration say that Trump will set a happy tone for his second inauguration, and if he does that, he will get a positive response from the public. On this holy day, Americans love their leaders to speak up for what they are on the right and America.

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After the event there will be a rally, which has also been moved to the Capital One Arena. The opening parade, which has been a tradition since the nation’s earliest days, is an opportunity to combine celebration and display of the best of American life, with marching bands, floats and displays representing the states. The dedication and courage of America will be displayed by units of the military, police, and fire departments.

This year’s parade will also include first responders from Butler County, Pennsylvania, the site of an assassination attempt on Donald Trump in July. They will honor Buffalo Township Fire Chief Corey Comperatore, who was shot and killed that day.

Finally, it is customary for the outgoing president to slip a personal note to his successor in the Oval Office desk drawer. The tradition started with Ronald Reagan, who left a personal note to George HW Bush. Bush then did the same to Bill Clinton, writing, “Your success is now the success of our country. I’m rooting for you.”

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When President Trump entered the White House for his first term, he received a note written by Barack Obama: “Millions of people have placed their hopes in you, and all of us, regardless of party affiliation, should hope for increased prosperity and security during your administration.” ”

Trump left a note for Joe Biden in 2021, which Biden said was “a very kind letter.” Now Joe Biden will leave a note for Trump. And the great cycle of American life continues.

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