Trump’s swearing-in to take place inside Capitol due to cold

Eight years after his first inauguration, Donald Trump will become the 47th president of the United States on Monday in Washington, the culmination of four days of festivities turned upside down by polar cold. It is under the rotunda of the Capitol and not on its steps that he will take the oath, a first in 40 years.

Here are details on how the ceremony will take place, those who will attend, the notable absentees as well as the first hours in power of the Republican president, the oldest in the history of the United States.

High point: Donald Trump will take the oath of office Monday at midday before delivering his inauguration speech.

However, because of the polar cold forecast, he will not do it on the steps of the Capitol, as tradition dictates, but inside the very place stormed by a crowd of his supporters there is a little more of four years to try to prevent the confirmation of Joe Biden’s victory.

The outgoing president and Kamala Harris, vice president and presidential candidate last November, will then say goodbye.

Exceptionally, given the anticipated freezing temperatures, the inauguration ceremony will be broadcast in the Capital One Arenathe large hall in the center of Washington, with a capacity of approximately 20,000 seats.

It will also host the parade traditionally organized on the immense esplanade of the Mallto which 7,500 participants were initially announced.

Donald Trump promised to join the public there after his swearing in.

Other celebrations

This historic day will end in the evening with the usual series of balls. The new Republican president is scheduled to speak there on three occasions.

Well before that, the festivities will open on Saturday evening with a reception and fireworks at one of Mr. Trump’s golf clubs less than an hour from Washington, Virginia, in Sterling.

Another highlight, the rally organized on Sunday afternoon in the federal capital, where the one who will still only be the president-elect must also speak in front of thousands of his supporters.

A ceremony at the national cathedral will close the inauguration chapter on Tuesday.

Enhanced security

After an electoral campaign marked by violence and two assassination attempts against Donald Trump – the first in the middle of an electoral rally – Washington is the scene of an unprecedented deployment of security forces.

Some 25,000 police and military personnel mobilized, 48 km of barriers installed, snipers on the roofs and drones in the sky: the secret services, responsible for protecting the highest personalities, describe a slightly stronger security system than during previous investitures, justified by a more threatening environment.

The authorities nevertheless expect demonstrations to be modest in scale compared to the anti-Trump rallies which brought together hundreds of thousands of people during his first inauguration in 2017.

That of 2025 promises to be the coldest in 40 years with temperatures felt below -10°C and an icy wind.

In 1985, the polar cold caused Ronald Reagan to retreat under the Capitol rotunda.

The tech giants in the game

The guest audience will feature tech multi-billionaires. In addition to the essential Elon Musk, the richest man in the world who has become one of Donald Trump’s close friends in addition to valuable financial support, the bosses of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, and from Apple, Tim Cook.

Open in full screen mode

In the political ranks, two absences will be noted at the inauguration ceremony: those of former first lady Michelle Obama and the former Democratic President of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

Barack Obama, whom Donald Trump succeeded during his first term in 2017, will be present, as will the two other former presidential couples, Bill and Hillary Clinton as well as George W. and Laura Bush, according to the American press.

Guests, will the Italian far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Hungarian Viktor Orban make the trip? Other European far-right figures have already announced their presence: the French Marion Maréchal and Éric Zemmour, the British Nigel Farage or even one of the leaders of the German party AfD, Tino Chrupalla.

Double dose of the group Village People promised to the gathering on Sunday and to one of the balls on Monday: the tube disco Y.M.C.A. (1978) has become a staple of Donald Trump’s rallies, who has developed the habit of doing a few dance steps when he hears it.

Open in full screen mode

After Hollywood stars Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez in 2021, country singer Carrie Underwood and tenor Christopher Macchio will participate in the inauguration ceremony. The first must perform the patriotic piece America The Beautifulthe second the American anthem.

Immigration, all-out customs duties with neighbors Mexico and Canada or with rival China, deregulation on energy and climate issues, pardons granted to his supporters convicted for the assault on the Capitol… Donald Trump promised during his campaign shock decisions from his first day in power.

Among these, “the largest program of expulsions in American history” or even, “with a simple stroke of a pen, the decision to put an end to the transgender madness”.