Then, taking his place in the White House Oval Office, he plunged into a stack of executive actions that began to undo the heart of his polarizing predecessor ’s agenda on matters from the deadly pandemic to climate change.
History was made at his side, as Kamala Harris became the first woman to be vice president.Much to repair, much to restore, much to heal, much to build and much to gain,†Biden said.
“There’s no time to start like today,†a masked Biden said.Swearing the oath with his hand on a five-inch-thick Bible that has been in his family for 128 years, Biden came to office with a well of empathy and resolve born by personal tragedy as well as a depth of experience forged from more than four decades in Washington.Both he, Harris and their spouses walked the last short part of the route to the White House after an abridged parade.Biden then strode into the Oval Office, a room he knew well as vice president, for the first time as commander in chief.
The tense atmosphere evoked the 1861 inauguration of Abraham Lincoln, who was secretly transported to Washington to avoid assassins on the eve of the Civil War, or Franklin Roosevelt’s inaugural in 1945, when he opted for a small, secure ceremony at the White House in the waning months of World War II.At Biden’s invitation, congressional leaders from both parties bowed their heads in prayer in the socially distanced service a few blocks from the White House.
Vice President Mike Pence, standing in for Trump, sat nearby as Lady Gaga, holding a golden microphone, sang the National Anthem accompanied by the U.S.
Later, Biden, Harris and their spouses were joined by the former presidents to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Ceremony.
By afternoon, a White House desolate in Trump’s waning days sprang back to life, with Biden staffers settling in and new COVID-19 safety measures, like plastic shields on desks, in place.In the evening, in lieu of the traditional balls that welcome a new president to Washington, Biden and Harris appeared separately at the Lincoln Memorial to take part in a televised concert that also marked the return of A-list celebrities to the White House orbit after they largely eschewed Trump.The Bidens ended their evening watching fireworks from a White House balcony.After a brief farewell celebration at nearby Joint Base Andrews, he boarded Air Force One for the final time as president.
Trump did adhere to one tradition and left a personal note for Biden in the Oval Office.