Unheard of for forty years and the inauguration of Ronald Reagan in 1985. Already at the time, it was the cold that forced the Republican president to take refuge within the walls of the Capitol.
Eight years after his first inauguration, the 47th President of the United States will take the oath of office on the Bible on Monday January 20 in Washington, culminating in four days of festivities turned upside down by a freezing atmosphere. This Friday, January 17, facing the “risk of record temperatures”, the president-elect announced that the ceremony would be held under the rotunda of the Capitol, and not on its steps, inside the place stormed by a crowd of his supporters a little more than four years earlier.
It was the president-elect himself who announced this change of program on the Truth Social network.. “An arctic wind is sweeping the country. I don't want to see people hurt in any way,” wrote Donald Trump this Friday afternoon. The 2025 ceremony is set to be the coldest in 40 years, with temperatures feeling below -10°C and freezing winds.
Faced with the weather forecast, the inauguration ceremony will exceptionally be broadcast in the Capital One Arena, the large hall in the center of Washington with a capacity of around 20,000 seats. It will also host the parade traditionally organized on the immense esplanade of the Mall, for which 7,500 participants were initially announced. Donald Trump promised to join the public there after his swearing in. This historic day will end in the evening with the usual series of balls. Three speeches by the new Republican president are planned.
The marathon of festivities begins on Saturday evening. The real estate mogul and (future) 47th President of the United States has planned quite a party: a reception and fireworks will be held in Sterling, at one of his golf clubs, less than an hour away from Washington, Virginia. Another highlight, the meeting organized on Sunday afternoon in the federal capital, where the one who will still only be the President must also speak in front of thousands of his supporters. A ceremony at the National Cathedral will close the chapter of the investiture on Tuesday.
-“A slightly more solid security plan” than for previous inaugurations
After an electoral campaign marked by violence and two assassination attempts targeting Donald Trump, Washington is experiencing an unprecedented security deployment. Some 25,000 police and military personnel mobilized, 48 km of barriers erected, snipers on the roofs and drones in the sky: the Secret Service, responsible for the protection of high-ranking personalities, describes “a slightly more solid security plan” than for previous investitures, justified by “a more threatening environment”. The authorities nevertheless expect modest demonstrations compared to the anti-Trump rallies which brought together hundreds of thousands of people for his first inauguration in 2017.
In order to raise the temperature and warm up the public, the Trump camp booked les Village People for the meeting on Sunday and a ball on Monday. Their hit Y.M.C.A. has become an essential part of Donald Trump's rallies and a tune to which the Republican has gotten into the habit of performing dance steps. “We know that this will make people unhappy, but we believe that music must live without political considerations.justified Monday January 13 on his Facebook page the founder of the disco group, Victor Willis.
For the opening ceremony, forget the Hollywood stars Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez who came to sing in 2021. This year, Americans will be able to hear country singer Carrie Underwood and tenor Christopher Macchio.
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