INAUGURAL CEREMONY

INAUGURAL CEREMONY

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 11 (Monday, January 20, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 11 (Monday, January 20, 2025)] [Senate] [Pages S252-S258] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] INAUGURAL CEREMONY Inauguration of Donald John Trump, January 20, 2025, 10 a.m. The Architect of the Capitol, Mr. Thomas Austin, accompanied by Mrs. Shannon Austin, entered the Great Rotunda. The Leadership of the 60th Presidential Inaugural Committee, Cochairs the Honorable Kelly Loeffler and Mr. Steve Whitcoff; and Executive Director Mr. Richard Walters entered the Great Rotunda. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr., entered the Great Rotunda. [[Page S253]] Former Senate Majority Leader, the Honorable Mitch McConnell, accompanied by the Honorable Elaine Chao; and the Honorable Elizabeth Dole, entered the Great Rotunda. Former Speakers of the House of Representatives, the Honorable Kevin McCarthy; the Honorable John Boehner, accompanied by Mrs. Debbie Boehner; and the Honorable Newt Gingrich, accompanied by Ambassador Callista Gingrich, and Mrs. Heather Foley entered the Great Rotunda. Members of the 119th United States House of Representatives, led by Majority Whip, the Honorable Tom Emmer and Democratic Whip, the Honorable Katherine Clark, entered the Great Rotunda. The Chair of the National Governors Association, the Honorable Jared Polis, the Vice Chair of the National Governors Association, the Honorable Kevin Stitt, and the Mayor of the District of Columbia, the Honorable Muriel Bowser, entered the Great Rotunda. Members of the 119th Senate of the United States, led by Majority Leader, the Honorable John Thune; Majority Whip, the Honorable John Barrasso; and Democratic Whip, the Honorable Dick Durbin, entered the Great Rotunda. The President-elect's Cabinet and Cabinet-level designees entered the Great Rotunda. The Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps entered the Great Rotunda. Former Vice Presidents, the Honorable Dan Quayle, accompanied by Mrs. Marilyn Quayle, and the Honorable Michael Pence entered the Great Rotunda. The 42nd President of the United States William Jefferson Clinton, accompanied by the Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton, entered the Great Rotunda. The 43rd President of the United States, the Honorable George W. Bush, accompanied by Mrs. Laura Bush, entered the Great Rotunda. The 44th President of the United States, the Honorable Barack H. Obama entered the Great Rotunda. The Chief Justice of the United States, the Honorable John G. Roberts, Jr., and the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States entered the Great Rotunda. The children of President-Elect Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump, and Barron Trump, escorted by the Assistant Secretary of the Senate, the Honorable Robert Paxton; and Deputy Clerk of the House of Representatives, the Honorable Lisa Grant, entered the Great Rotunda. The First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, and the husband of the Vice President, Mr. Douglas Emhoff, escorted by the Republican Staff Director of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, Ms. Emily Leviner; the Senate Secretary for the Minority, the Honorable Gary Myrick; the House of Representatives Chief Administrative Officer, the Honorable Catherine Szpindor; and Mr. Bruce Fischer, entered the Great Rotunda. Mrs. Melania Trump and Mrs. Usha Vance, escorted by the Secretary of the Senate, the Honorable Jackie Barber; the Clerk of the House of Representatives, the Honorable Kevin F. McCumber; Mr. John Bessler; Mrs. Kelly Johnson; Mrs. Iris Weinshall-Schumer; and Mrs. Jennifer Scalise, entered the Great Rotunda. The President of the United States, the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., and Vice President of the United States, the Honorable Kamala Devi Harris, escorted by Ranking Member of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, the Honorable Deb Fischer; House Democratic Leader, the Honorable Hakeem Jeffries; and Senate Majority Secretary, the Honorable Robert Duncan, entered the Great Rotunda. The Vice President-elect of the United States, the Honorable JD Vance, escorted by the Executive Director for the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, Mr. Michael Wagner; Senate Deputy Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, Jason Bell; and House Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Mr. Sean Keating, entered the Great Rotunda. The President-elect of the United States, Donald John Trump, escorted by the Staff Director for the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, Elizabeth Farrar; House Sergeant at Arms, the Honorable William P. McFarland; Senate Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, the Honorable Jennifer A. Hemingway; Senate Majority Leader, the Honorable John Thune; and the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies: House Democratic Leader, the Honorable Hakeem Jeffries; House Majority Leader, the Honorable Steve Scalise; Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Honorable Mike Johnson; Senate Democratic Leader, the Honorable Charles E. Schumer; Ranking Member of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, the Honorable Deb Fischer; and Chairwoman of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, the Honorable Amy Klobuchar, entered the Great Rotunda. Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to the 60th Presidential inauguration. Today, President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance will take their oaths of office, and we will witness the peaceful transfer of power at the heart of our democracy. (Applause.) For the past year, I have chaired the Inaugural Ceremony Committee, which includes the leadership of Congress from both parties. We thank the committee and Capitol staff and law enforcement, who worked so hard over the last year and especially the last 3 days. You have done a beautiful job, and you have shown grace under pressure. (Applause.) Our theme this year is ``Our Enduring Democracy.'' The presence of so many Presidents and Vice Presidents here today is truly a testament to that endurance. We welcome President Biden and Dr. Biden. We welcome Vice President Harris and Doug Emhoff, President Obama, President Clinton and Secretary Clinton, President Bush and Laura Bush, Vice President Pence, and Vice President Quayle and Marilyn Quayle. The Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court are with us--all nine of them; I counted--and, of course, the Trump and Vance families. This ceremony marks what will soon be 250 years of our democracy. It is the moment when leaders, elevated by the will of the people, promised to be faithful to our Constitution, to cherish and defend it. It is the moment when they become--as we all should be--the guardians of our country. Through war and peace, through adversity and prosperity, we hold this inauguration every 4 years. And today, it falls on Martin Luther King Day--a further reminder that we must strive to uphold the values enshrined in our Constitution--the freedoms, the liberties, and as is inscribed on the entrance of the U.S. Supreme Court: ``Equal Justice Under Law.'' (Applause.) But what makes this moment more than a passing ceremony is all who are watching it across the country--the people of this Nation, the ordinary people doing extraordinary things. President Kennedy, who at one point worked as a Senator in this building and would often walk through this very Rotunda, once said: In a democracy, every citizen, regardless of interest in politics, ``holds office''; every one of us is in a position of responsibility. With that responsibility of citizenship comes an obligation not to seek out malice, as President Lincoln once reminded us, but to view others with the generosity of spirit, despite our differences. With that responsibility of leadership comes an obligation to stand our ground when we must and find common ground when we can. With everything swirling around us, the hot mess of division, it is on all of us--to quote an incredible songwriter, who just happened to be born in my State--to ensure that our Nation's democracy is our shelter from the storm. There is a reason this ceremony takes place at the Capitol. In other countries, it might be in a Presidential palace or a gilded executive office building. Here, it is traditionally held at the Capitol, the people's House. It is a fitting reminder of the system of checks and balances that is the very foundation of our government--three equal branches of government. That is how for nearly 250 years, our great American experiment, grounded in the rule of law, has endured. [[Page S254]] So as we inaugurate a new President and Vice President, let us remember that the power of those in this room comes from the people: the construction workers who build our country, the teachers and healthcare workers who nurture us, the troops defending our freedoms, and, yes, the firefighters in Los Angeles putting themselves on the line for us. (Applause.) Our democracy, strength, and grit must match theirs. May God bless our Nation. Thank you. (Applause.) Mrs. FISCHER. Good afternoon. Endurance through the years is the ultimate test. To persevere through time is the truest measure of an idea, an institution, and a nation. Our Founders wrote the Constitution so that America could withstand all the twists and turns of time. They wrote it to guide us and to preserve forever our right of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But as much as the truths and principles enshrined in our Constitution remain the same, our democracy promises the American people the power to change, to chart their own destiny. That is the beauty. That is the importance of democracy. It allows the endurance, the permanence of a nation through change. It allows nations, like our United States, both to avoid the obstacles and to seize the opportunities God has placed before us, all while staying true to our founding principles. Today is our c