Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, Vice President Pence, and my distinguished guests, my fellow Americans, this is America’s day. It’s taken as many lives in one year as America lost in all of World War II. The US Marine Band will play “ruffles and flourishes” ceremonial music followed by the song Hail, Columbia, which was composed for George Washington’s inauguration in 1789 and which was a quasi-national anthem until The Star-Spangled Banner became the official anthem in 1931. “I’m very confident that the Joint Chiefs, the White House Military Office and United States Strategic Command have this well in hand,” he says. When do the nuclear codes change hands? It’s a story that might sound something like a song that means a lot to me. Every disagreement doesn’t have to be a cause for total war. Let us add our own work and prayers to the unfolding story of our nation. To overcome these challenges – to restore the soul and to secure the future of America – requires more than words. But we still have far to go. We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal. Washington DC mayor Muriel Bowser is telling people to stay home. That’s America. “To put it simply, at noon, the Pentagon will recognise Biden and won’t recognise Trump. We can join forces, stop the shouting, and lower the temperature. Before God and all of you I give you my word. Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this: I ask every American to join me in this cause. If you believe the most important election in four years was stolen, you might not just sit and accept that,” he says. The wording of the oath is different to the VP's, and shorter. Biden and Harris as running mates last August. You know the resilience of our Constitution and the strength of our nation. It is a time for boldness, for there is so much to do. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size. We have been through so much in this nation. On the day he becomes president, Biden will rejoin the Paris climate accord; make masks compulsory on federal property and during interstate travel; and end Trump’s ban on immigration from some Muslim nations. Few periods in our nation’s history have been more challenging or difficult than the one we’re in now. Crowds at Abraham Lincoln's inaugural speech in 1861.Credit:Getty Images. Felicity is the National Explainer Editor for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WA Today and The Brisbane Times. Biden (who, incidentally, will be only the second Catholic president, after JFK) will use a family Bible from 1893. We will need all our strength to persevere through this dark winter. The President’s speech was written by Vinay Reddy. What are the common objects we love that define us as Americans? While a range of books have been used for swearing-ins in Congress – for example, the Koran was used by the first Muslim congresswomen, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar – presidents so far have tended to use Bibles. Uniting to fight the common foes we face: With unity we can do great things. “There are clearly people who believe this stuff and take it seriously. I have just taken the sacred oath each of these patriots took — an oath first sworn by George Washington. Sotomayor swore in President-elect Joe Biden as vice-president in 2013. They healed a broken land.My fellow Americans, I close today where I began, with a sacred oath. How does the transfer of power work? The most insipid, meaningless, out of context scriptural reference ever: Biden’s inauguration speech deciphered By Frank Louis As a university media and communication professor, I have spent much time critiquing public speaking assignments. Read more explainers here. Biden's Grandkids Joined at White House After Inauguration — and Baby Beau Danced with President this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. That’s democracy. “I worry about that as well.”. Lyndon Johnson was sworn in on a Catholic liturgical book aboard the Air Force One plane after the killing of John F Kennedy in Texas in 1963. And here we stand, just days after a riotous mob thought they could use violence to silence the will of the people, to stop the work of our democracy, and to drive us from this sacred ground. It feels like this was not so much an inauguration speech as a kind of sermon, right, a sermon to an angry and divided country. The first president, George Washington, for example, used a St John's Masonic Lodge Bible which, according to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, was opened at random “due to haste” on Genesis 49:13. We will be a strong and trusted partner for peace, progress, and security. To all those who supported our campaign I am humbled by the faith you have placed in us. And each of us has a duty and responsibility, as citizens, as Americans, and especially as leaders – leaders who have pledged to honor our Constitution and protect our nation — to defend the truth and to defeat the lies. Through the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War, 9/11, through struggle, sacrifice, and setbacks, our “better angels” have always prevailed. Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we are all created equal and the harsh, ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, and demonization have long torn us apart. This is a great nation and we are a good people. An American story of decency and dignity. When a new prime minister wins office in Australia, he or she is sworn by the Governor-General in a simple ceremony. My fellow Americans, we have to be different than this. Today, we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate, but of a cause, the cause of democracy. "Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this: Bringing America together. We look ahead in our uniquely American way — restless, bold, optimistic — and set our sights on the nation we know we can be and we must be. The story that tells ages yet to come that we answered the call of history. The right to dissent peaceably, within the guardrails of our Republic, is perhaps our nation’s greatest strength. We are entering what may well be the toughest and deadliest period of the virus. We will lead not merely by the example of our power but by the power of our example. I promise you this: as the Bible says weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning. And later in the day, Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Harris and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff are expected to visit Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Through a crucible for the ages America has been tested anew and America has risen to the challenge. In a memo to the new administration, incoming chief-of-staff Ron Klain says these are among a dozen items on the agenda for January 20. “Every important date is in there,” he told TV interviewer Stephen Colbert, “every time I’ve been sworn in for everything, the date is inscribed on the Bible, when our son [the late Beau Biden] was sworn in as attorney-general … It’s just been a family heirloom.”. A cry that can’t be any more desperate or any more clear. For without unity, there is no peace, only bitterness and fury. The first address Joe Biden gave as President during his inauguration on Wednesday has direct ties to the Miami Valley. Chief Justice Roberts, Vice President Harris, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, Vice President Pence, distinguished guests, and my fellow Americans. There’s no button to push.”, Preparations for Inauguration Day 2021.Credit:Bloomberg. As a sparse, mask-wearing crowd gathered to hear the new president's address, a large National Guard presence made plain the weight of the occasion. Downtown roads and metro stations will be closed. Today, we mark the swearing-in of the first woman in American history elected to national office – Vice President Kamala Harris. Take a measure of me and my heart. We will repair our alliances and engage with the world once again. On “We the People” who seek a more perfect Union. Uniting our people. History, faith, and reason show the way, the way of unity. But the American story depends not on any one of us, not on some of us, but on all of us. If we do this then when our days are through our children and our children’s children will say of us they gave their best. And so today, at this time and in this place, let us start afresh. Biden and Harris then inspect the troops, a ritual that symbolises the peaceful transfer of power to a new commander-in-chief. For this inauguration, for example, the Pledge of Allegiance will be led by a firefighter from Georgia, Andrea Hall; there will be a poetry reading from the first national youth poet laureate, Amanda Gorman, and the benediction will be given by a home-town friend of the Bidens, Reverend Silvester Beaman of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Wilmington, Delaware. I know speaking of unity can sound to some like a foolish fantasy. I thank my predecessors of both parties for their presence here. We can see each other not as adversaries but as neighbors. Here we stand across the Potomac from Arlington National Cemetery, where heroes who gave the last full measure of devotion rest in eternal peace. Trump made building the pipeline a central promise after Obama scrapped it in 2015 as part of his administration’s climate change efforts. “One of the most interesting questions is, how will Biden give a speech that attempts to heal the deep divisions in the US at the moment but that also doesn’t let Trump off the hook? The dream of justice for all will be deferred no longer. Hundreds of thousands of businesses closed. Yet hear me clearly: Disagreement must not lead to disunion. Recent weeks and months have taught us a painful lesson. (Imagine time-travelling back to the shindig Frank Sinatra organised for Kennedy in 1961, featuring Ella Fitzgerald, Leonard Bernstein, Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte and Sinatra among others …). Important things. If we’re willing to stand in the other person’s shoes just for a moment.Because here is the thing about life: There is no accounting for what fate will deal you. But the fact is we face them all at once, presenting this nation with the gravest of responsibilities. Further, the FBI has warned that extremists, fringe groups and conspiracy theorists have called for armed demonstrations on the day. We will honor them by becoming the people and nation we know we can and should be. Washington is fortified, with rings of security around the Capitol, White House and National Mall and thousands of armed soldiers (vetted by the FBI) guarding against another attack by Americans who refuse to accept Trump’s defeat. Actors Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh and Gene Kelly at John F Kennedy's inaugural ball in 1961. Credit:Getty Images, “What’s new is Trump’s not going to be there,” says Dr Thomas J Adams, an expert in US politics and history at the University of Sydney. We can treat each other with dignity and respect. Here we stand, where 108 years ago at another inaugural, thousands of protestors tried to block brave women from marching for the right to vote. This is just the start of a 10-day blitz to, in Klain’s words, “reverse the gravest dangers of the Trump administration - but also to start moving our country forward”. “That means there’s not the traditional handover, there’s not the shaking of the hands, there’s none of that stuff.”. What can we expect on Biden's Inauguration Day? There is also the matter of COVID-19. As RMIT Research Fellow Dr Emma Shortis notes, “3000 to 4000 people will die [in the US] during the day of the event itself. It requires that most elusive of things in a democracy: In another January in Washington, on New Year’s Day 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. That is what we owe our forebearers, one another, and generations to follow. Harris has chosen Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to swear her in, a history-making event in which the first black, South Asian and female vice-president will take her oath of office from the first Latina justice. I thank them from the bottom of my heart. We can reward work, rebuild the middle class, and make health caresecure for all. Livestream: President Biden's Inauguration Speech And Events : Inauguration Day: Live Updates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were sworn in as president and … Others include extending the pause on student loan repayments and possibly cancelling the Keystone XL pipeline project, a controversial project piping oil from Alberta, Canada to Nebraska. It’s called “American Anthem” and there is one verse stands out for me: “The work and prayersof centuries have brought us to this dayWhat shall be our legacy?What will our children say?...Let me know in my heartWhen my days are throughAmericaAmericaI gave my best to you.”. A cry for survival comes from the planet itself. A US presidential inauguration ceremony is an all-day affair. Will we meet our obligations and pass along a new and better world for our children? It’s thought that Barack Obama’s 2009 ceremony drew a record 1.8 million supporters. Crowds at Abraham Lincoln's inaugural speech in 1861. Music is part of the inauguration ceremony. We can make America, once again, the leading force for good in the world. It has two shadows cast over it: coronavirus and the storming of the Capitol building on January 6.”. Biden’s first afternoon in the Oval Office, between the ceremony and the prime-time celebration of his inauguration, will be action-packed. We have never, ever, ever failed in America when we have acted together. Will we master this rare and difficult hour? I understand they worry about their jobs, about taking care of their families, about what comes next. Over two dozen members of Biden's extended family were in Washington for the inauguration, his younger brother, Frank Biden, 71, an attorney, told The Palm Beach Post. To all those who did not support us, let me say this: Hear me out as we move forward. And at this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed. And when we do, we will write the next chapter in the American story. President Joe Biden’s inaugural address Wednesday, as provided by CQ Transcripts: Chief Justice Roberts, Vice President Harris. And, in my first act as President, I would like to ask you to join me in a moment of silent prayer to remember all those we lost this past year to the pandemic. That democracy and hope, truth and justice, did not die on our watch but thrived. As does President Carter, who I spoke to last night but who cannot be with us today, but whom we salute for his lifetime of service. Airbnb is cancelling reservations to stop people coming to the capital for the event on Wednesday (Thursday morning, AEDT). Joe Biden's speech at the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration. In Donald Trump’s first full day in office in 2017, he railed against what he said were media underestimates of his pulling power. And where will Trump be on the big day? Over the centuries through storm and strife, in peace and in war, we have come so far. This year, no such concerns will arise. And, devoted to one another and to this country we love with all our hearts. Each leader is issued with the launch codes on a special card called the “biscuit”, which they must carry with them at all times. I understand that many Americans view the future with some fear and trepidation. By noon, the Trump family’s chattels, including his $US50,000 ($64,000) “room-size golf simulator”, will have followed him out the White House door, The New York Times reports, en route to his home in Palm Beach; once Biden is inaugurated, his family's moving vans can start unloading. Here we stand, in the shadow of a Capitol dome that was completed amid the Civil War, when the Union itself hung in the balance. Watch Joe Biden's first speech to the nation as president-elect of the United States ... coronavirus pandemic and be ready to deploy it on the day of his inauguration. ... On Inauguration Day, Trump, Biden… Two key aides helping Biden formulate his inaugural address are longtime adviser Mike Donilon, who helps with every major speech, and Vinay Reddy, the director of Biden… But the answer is not to turn inward, to retreat into competing factions, distrusting those who don’t look like you do, or worship the way you do, or don’t get their news from the same sources you do. My fellow Americans, in the work ahead of us, we will need each other. By day’s end, the aide carrying the codes following Trump will leave Trump's side in Florida and return to Washington, according to US National Security expert Marc Ambinder, who has written extensively about nuclear weapons chain-of-command issues. I know the forces that divide us are deep and they are real. University of Sydney Associate Professor Brendon O'Connor says a frightening concern will be “whether there is violence or not”. We will press forward with speed and urgency, for we have much to do in this winter of peril and possibility. We face an attack on democracy and on truth. “By the end of the day Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, will arrive to a deep-cleaned living quarters where their bags will be unpacked, their furniture arranged and their favourite foods stocked in the fridge.”.