Biden to be inaugurated amid unprecedented security cordon | Daily News

Biden to be inaugurated amid unprecedented security cordon

Soldiers walk past the Capitol
Soldiers walk past the Capitol

Joe Biden will take the oath of office as president in a ceremony dramatically reshaped by the Coronavirus pandemic and still-simmering threats of violence in Washington, casting a pall over the quadrennial celebration of American democracy.

His swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday will come amid an unprecedented cordon of security, with strict physical distancing measures in place as well. A sea of 200,000 flags on the National Mall will stand in for the normally vast crowd cheering a new commander in chief.

And while Biden is using his inauguration to highlight “America United,” he faces a nation where many Republicans still reject his victory, including outgoing President Donald Trump -- who Biden’s fellow Democrats and a handful of Republicans impeached for a second time last week despite Biden’s misgivings about the message it would send as he ascended to the presidency.

Trump is refusing to attend the ceremony, the first living Oval Office occupant to skip the regularly scheduled inauguration of his successor in more than a century.

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris

Biden will become the 46th U.S. president at noon on Jan. 20, a time prescribed by the Constitution. He will stand on the western-facing steps of the U.S. Capitol building, a nod to the power of the legislative branch and the nation that stretches out before him. But he’s asked the audience to stay home.

The inauguration displays to the world the country’s tradition of a peaceful transfer of power, which will be represented this year by the inclusion of every living former president -- except 96-year-old Jimmy Carter - and Vice President Mike Pence.

But Trump won’t be there. Fresh from his historic second impeachment, he is expected to leave for his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida the morning of the event, and will not have Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, over to the White House beforehand, as is customary.

The twin challenges of the Coronavirus and security threats have meant that many traditions have been put on hold. The inaugural parade will be replaced by a short military procession. Balls and parties will give way to a 90-minute prime time TV special featuring musical performances and guests located around the country, all hosted by actor Tom Hanks.

Biden supporters were already being discouraged from coming to avoid turning it into a Coronavirus super-spreader event. And now with the threat of violence, new security fencing topped with razor wire has been erected around the Capitol and troops stand guard 24 hours a day. Not that anyone could get around the city anyway. Thirteen Metro subway stations will be closed and many roads are blocked around downtown. As many as 25,000 members of the National Guard are already in place in the city.

The property rental service AirBnB pre-emptively cancelled all reservations in the D.C. area until after inauguration, citing concerns that properties were being rented by people looking to foment violence. Even bike sharing has been shut down.

Brian Toolan, senior director of government strategy at Everbridge, which is providing logistical support, said that a normal inauguration is already among the most complex large-scale events in the U.S., requiring coordination between multiple law enforcement agencies.

“Clearly this year is going to be different than any other year,” he said. “Regardless of the civil unrest, we’ve got a pandemic going on. We don’t want to see a million people standing next to each other watching the President gets inaugurated.” Some traditions will remain, however, and some more modern elements will also continue. A briefcase known as the “nuclear football” containing the codes to launch nuclear weapons will be handed from one aide to another and the White House website and social media handles will switch automatically.

Pop icon Lady Gaga will sing the national anthem, and national Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman will give a reading, a tradition started by President John F. Kennedy. A Jesuit priest will lead the invocation for Biden, the second Catholic president in U.S. history, while the pastor of a Black church in Biden’s home state of Delaware will give the benediction. A female fire fighter from Georgia, where Biden pulled off a surprise win, will lead the Pledge of Allegiance. After the swearing-in, the Bidens will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington Cemetery. In a nod to continuity, he will be joined there by former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama and their wives.

The wreath laying is a new addition to the day’s events and is especially meaningful for Biden, whose late son, Beau, served in the National Guard in Iraq.

While the peaceful transfer of power is a pillar of U.S. democracy, not all previous inaugurations have gone off smoothly.

John Adams, John Quincy Adams and Andrew Johnson all skipped their successors’ inaugurals out of spite. Abraham Lincoln came to his first ceremony surrounded by armed guards due to death threats; he took his second oath of office amid a civil war. And Obama and George W. Bush faced heightened security over concerns about terrorism.

Even the lack of crowds isn’t unprecedented. Ronald Reagan moved many events indoors at his second inauguration due to a severe cold snap that made gathering outdoors too dangerous. Daytime temperatures were in the single digits Fahrenheit, with wind chills of -25F (-32C).

Highlights

Noon: Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and then President-elect Joe Biden will take their oaths. Biden will give an inaugural address and conduct a brief review of troops. Lady Gaga sings the national anthem. You can watch the ceremony on news and cable networks, or online at bideninaugural.org/watch or the Presidential Inaugural Committee’s YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Twitch channels.

Afternoon: Joe and Jill Biden will be joined by former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.

8:30 p.m. A TV special hosted by Tom Hanks will feature performances by Justin Timberlake, John Legend, Bruce Springsteen, Demi Lovato and others. It will be broadcast on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and MSNBC as well streamed on the inaugural committee’s channels.

(Bloomberg, Yahoo)